ITV

Tag: Mahesh Samat

  • Total number of TV channel goes up to 813

    Total number of TV channel goes up to 813

    MUMBAI: Within a fortnight, three more channels have been added to the entire list of channels that can be viewed in India. This includes 400 news and current affairs channels and 413 non-news and current affairs channels, as on 15 September 2014.

     

    The number of TV channels that can uplink from and downlink to India is 685 (earlier 682).This includes 378 news (earlier 376) and 307 (earlier 306) non-news channels.

     

    As for the channel that can only uplink and only downlink, the number remained constant at 35 and 93, respectively. The new channels include Kalinga TV, Epic TV. The latter, started by former Disney MD Mahesh Samat, has been waiting for more than a year to get a licence approval from MIB.

     

    At a recent function, Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar had said that the ministry is working towards clearing licences of all the pending channels that had been deliberately kept pending by the earlier government. Near about 14 channels were to be listed.

     

    The ministry has also simplified the process of security clearance for broadcasters.

  • A sigh of relief for Epic

    A sigh of relief for Epic

    MUMBAI: The channel which plans to create a history finally breathed a sigh of relief when after almost a year’s wait has got a licence approval from the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB).

     

    Mid-last year, Mahesh Samat, a former Disney MD, had announced his plan of his own venture Epic TV channel. Mahindra & Mahindra chairman Anand Mahindra had come on board as a major investor. And then, soon came the news that billionaire industrialist Mukesh Ambani too had joined the venture as the second investor venture capitalist to fund Samat’s Epic Television Networks.

     

    The channel offering segmented content to viewers specifically related to history, folklore and mythology was supposed to debut by August 2013.

     

    Samat had brought in former YRF TV head Ravina Kohli as programming head, apart from business head Aparna Pandey who was earlier associated with Big CBS channels as business head. “Our shows will be different from what India has been watching,” Samat had quoted then.

     

    Amongst the shows being developed is one based on a novel by Indu Sundaresan called The Twentieth Wife which tracks a young widow named Mehrunissa, daughter of Persian refugees and wife of an Afghan commander, who goes on to become the empress of the Mughal Empire under the name of Nur Jahan by getting married to emperor Jehangir.

     

    However, things didn’t progress as planned. The tedious and long procedure to get approvals from the MIB delayed its launch.

     

    “Yes, it comes as a big relief that finally we have got the licence from the MIB. However, we still have to get a nod from Wireless Planning & Coordination wing of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technology. So keeping the fingers crossed,” says Samat.

     

    The channel hopes to get the nod soon and hopes to launch by end of the year.

     

    There will be a few more announcements as well because the channel will make changes to the agencies representing it. Earlier, IContract, a part of Contract Advertising and the WPP Group, was appointed to manage the creative and brand building duties for the channel; while Madison Media was assigned the media buying and planning mandate. Similarly, MSLGroup, a specialty communications and engagement network, has been handling the channel’s Public Relations, while Jack in the Box Worldwide, the content-for-brands arm of Bang Bang Films, had been selected to manage all digital communication for EPIC.

     

    “MSLGroup no longer represents us and there might be a few more changes,” says Samat without revealing much.

  • An epic wait for Epic

    An epic wait for Epic

    MUMBAI: What do &Pictures, Star World Premier HD and Romedy Now have in common? The three channels have had a smooth run-up to their recent launch.

    However, starting a new channel isn’t an easy task. One has to get approvals from various ministries which can be labeled as the biggest hurdle (at least in some cases), apart from want of money and resources, in premiering a new channel.

    A classic case of such a channel which is yet to see the light of day despite everything being ready is Mahesh Samat’s Epic Television, a venture invested in by Mukesh Ambani and Anand Mahindra.  

    Epic, which will air content based on the country’s history, folklore, and mythology, albeit in a contemporary format, was slated for a mid-August launch. However, it’s end-September and there’s still no sign of the channel going live.

    Apparently, production of the shows is already on floors and various agencies too have been decided, but there’s no clarity even about when the channel will go on test signals. This, despite the hope that Epic would cash in on rising demand for specialty channels, given the increasing speed of digitisation.

    So what’s keeping it from going on air? Among the series of approvals to be procured before a new channel can be launched: first comes the foreign ministry, next the home ministry, and most importantly, the I&B ministry. Only when all of them have looked into the nitty-gritties and given their clearance can the newbie go live. Again, clearances may take as little as three months, or as long as three years. In the meanwhile, if a file gets stuck with a ministry for more than six months, it has to go for re-approval.

    While we may keep wondering as to which phase of this bureaucratic process, the Epic file is stuck in, according to sources, the channel isn’t alone in its predicament. Nearly 45 to 50 files are stuck with various ministries owing to a variety of issues.

    With elections round the corner, one wonders whether these would stand a fighting chance versus the many issues the ruling party may want to deal with first, even if just to guard their turf.

    So, we will have to continue playing the waiting game…

  • Epic TV to experiment with long and short duration content

    Epic TV to experiment with long and short duration content

    MUMBAI: Here’s more dope on Epic TV, the new historical, folklore and mythological channel that is being wet-nursed by former Walt Disney India head Mahesh Samat and funded by Anand Mahindra personally.

     

    As revealed yesterday, the channel is expected to launch in August sometime. Currently, the company has applied to the I&B ministry for a broadcast license, which it hopes to have in its pocket in a couple of months. It is also negotiating for transponder space – one on the Insat series and the other with a south east Asia based vendor.

     

    Additionally, Samat says that the channel has plans to do narratives and programming of varying duration. “We are focusing on programming based on long form fiction narrative of an hour’s duration, non-fiction shows and short form fiction. Long form will have two-three hour episodic shows in a day. These will focus on new situations, supernatural content, drama and crime. Whereas narrative non-fiction will consist of one to two hours programming in a day, underlining narrative documentaries including contemporary, recreational and reenactment styles. And the last short form content will be seen as short vignettes, explaining interesting facts, and short ‘behind-the scenes’ videos.”

     

    Samat says all the shows will be shot in HD and with high production values. “We will be looking at monetising the content even across digital platforms, eking out revenues from wherever we can,” he reveals.

     

    Apart from Ravina Kohli and Aparna Pandey other professionals who have come on board include Niharika Kotwal as head production and Manish Thukral as chief financial officer.

  • Disney India appoints Avinash Pant as executive director – marketing

    Disney India appoints Avinash Pant as executive director – marketing

    MUMBAI: The Walt Disney Company (India) has appointed Avinash Pant as executive director, marketing.

    Pant will report in to Walt Disney Company (India) MD Mahesh Samat.

    In his new role, Pant will be responsible for building the Disney brand by driving the company’s marketing strategy, coordinating all Disney business marketing efforts and providing leadership in developing key global and local franchises in India.

    He will also oversee corporate communications as well as the creative design cell and live events functions. 
     
    Pant moves in from Coca-Cola where he spent 14 years working across various functions and gained tremendous experience in marketing and in building brands. He also has experience in strategic marketing, category and brand management, innovation, media planning and buying, consumer activation and sales.
     
    Samat said, “We are focused on building a family entertainment brand in India. Avinash will be charged with creating and maximizing opportunities for families to enjoy and connect with Disney’s creativity and content.”

    “India is one of the most exciting and rapidly changing markets in the world. This role represents an exciting opportunity to increase Disney’s brand presence here and connect with our consumers in a deeper, richer and more relevant way,” Pant added.