Tag: MTV Beats

How niche channels have fared so far in 2017

BENGALURU: A number of brands often advertise on niche or speciality television channels to target specific audiences. A specialty channel can be a commercial broadcasting or non-commercial television channel which consists of television programming focused on a single genre, subject or targeted television market at a specific demographic. In this paper, the author has attempted to study the performance of five genres based on Broadcast India Research Council of India (BARC) data in terms of Weekly Impressions (000s) Sumsfor the top five channels for weeks 1 to 12 of 2017 through statistical analysis.

The five genre are (in alphabetical order)

(1) English Entertainment (6 Mega Cities : NCCS AB : 2+ Individuals)
(2) Infotainment (6 Mega Cities : NCCS AB : 2+ Individuals)
(3) Kids’ (All India (U+R) : NCCS All : 2 – 14 years Individuals)
(4) Lifestyle (6 Mega Cities : NCCS AB : 2+ Individuals)
(5) Music (All India (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals)

This paper must be read with a caveat: It deals only with the players present in BARC’s top 5 lists of channels per week and programmes per week for each genre. The sums/percentages of other genres/players’/channels of other players as well other channels of players in this paper ratings or Impressions (000s) Sums other than those indicated in BARC’s top 5 lists of channels and programmes have not been considered/mentioned in this paper during the period under consideration and those numbers could be more/higher. Further, Combined Total Impressions or Combined Weekly Impressions mentioned in this paper means the sum of all the Impressions (000s) Sums for all the weeks under consideration of a network and/or channel and/or programme/s.

In terms of Combined Weekly Impressions in (000s) Sums of the top five channels of each genre during the 12 week period under consideration in this paper, Music is the biggest genre, followed by the Kids genre. Please refer to the following table: It may be noted that BARC data for both these genres is from both urban and rural markets, as compared to data from 6 Mega Cities : NCCS AB : 2+ Individuals for the other three genres.BARC provides data for the most successful programmes for the Kids’ genre only.

Music Genre

The top channels that have appeared in the top 5 Music channels – All India (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals list during weeks 1 to 12 of 2017 generally play Hindi Music. Some of the channels play pure Bollywood music, others a mixture of Bollywood and Hindi Music, and Hindi Classical Music while some others play a mix of Bollywood with a spattering of other Indian language and international music.

Five channels – Mastiii, B4U Music, 9XM, Sony MIX, 9X Jalwa have generally been present in the list during the 12 weeks under consideration, except during week 11, when MTV Beats came in at rank 5, while 9X Jalwa exited it in that week.

Sri Adhikari Brothers Television Network’s subsidiary TV Vision’s music channel Mastiii– (Hindi Classic Music) has been the top channel in the Music genre during all the 12 weeks of 2017 as per BARC data for the period. B4U Music from the B4U Group, owned by Lakshmi Mittal, Kishore Lulla and GokulBinani was the second most watched channel during the period. The9X Group’s music channel 9XM came at third spot followed by Sony Pictures Network India’s Hindi film music channel Sony MIX. The 9X Group’s Hindi Classic Music channel 9X Jalwa was the fifth most watched channel during the first 12 weeks of 2017.

Please refer to the chart below for channels and ranking.

Kids’ genre

Five channels have been consistently present in the top 5 Kids channels list All India (U+R) : NCCS All : 2 – 14 years Individuals during all the first 12 weeks of 2017. They are NICK, Cartoon Network, Pogo TV, Hungama and Disney Channel.

Viacom’schildren’s 24-hour pay channel in Hindi, with the option of English, Tamil and Telugu audio feed on DTH, NICK (Nickelodeon) has topped the top 5 channels list during the period under consideration in this paper. Time Warner’s Turner Broadcasting’s Cartoon Network India was the second most watched children’s channel during weeks 1 to 12 of 2017. The channel primarily airs animated shows in four different languages: English, Hindi, Telugu and Tamil. Turner’s Pogo TV was the third most watched kids channel during the period, followed by Disney Channels Worldwide’sHungama TV having Hindi, Telugu and Tamil dubbed content at fourth place. The Walt Disney Company’s Disney Channel available in English, Hindi, Telugu and Tamil(although many shows broadcast on the channel are only available in Hindi) was ranked fifth during the period under consideration.

Please refer to the list below.

As mentioned above, BARC provides data for the most successful programmes for the Kids’ genre only. Hindi films and programs based on the Indian animated series Motu Patlu on NICK and Pogo TV and Indian animated comedy adventure ChhotaBheem on Pogo TV were among the most successful children’s programs during the weeks under consideration.

Infotainment

Five channels from the Infotainment genre – Discovery Channel, History TV 18, National Geographic Channel, Animal Planet and Nat Geo Wildfound a place in the top 5 channels list in terms of Combined Weekly Impressions (000s) Sums during the first 12 weeks of 2017.

Discovery Communications Discovery Channel in Hindi, Telugu and Bengali along with English and a dedicated channel in Tamil was the most watched Infotainment channel during the first twelve weeks of 2017. Viacom’s History TV18 in eight languages – English, Hindi, Bengali, Gujarati, Marathi, Tamil, Telugu and Urdu was the second most watched channel during the period under consideration. 21st Century Fox and National Geographic Society’s National Geographic Channel came next, followed by Discovery Communications Animal Planet. 21st Century Fox and National Geographic Society’s Nat Geo Wild was the fifth most watched channel during the period under consideration in this paper.

Lifestyle

Five channels have been consistently present in the top Lifestyle channel list (6 Mega Cities : NCCS AB : 2+ Individuals) during the first twelve weeks of 2017. They wereLiving Foodz, Fox Life, Food Food, FYI TV18 and TLC.

The Essel Group’s Living Foodz channel was the most watched Lifestyle channel in weeks 1 to 12 of 2017. Fox Broadcasting Company’s Fox Life was the second most lifestyle channel during the same period. Celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor, Malaysian Astro, and Mogae Consultantschannel Food Food came next, followed by A+E Networks and TV18’s FYI TV18 channel that is available in 8 languages including English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu, and Bengali at fourth place. Discovery Communications TLC was the fifth most watched Lifestyle channel during the first 12 weeks of 2017.

Please see the list below:

English Entertainment

During the first twelve weeks of 2017, the English Entertainment genre was dominated mainly by five channels – Comedy Central, STAR World, Zee Café, Colors Infinity SD and AXN, except for 3 of the 12 weeks when Fox’s FX channel entered the list, while AXN exited it.

Viacom’s Comedy Central topped the lists in seven of the twelve weeks under consideration, followed by Star India’s Star World which topped the lists for five weeks. The Essel Group’s Zee Café was third, with Viacom 18’s Colors Infinity SD. Sony Pictures Network India’s AXN at fifth place.

Please refer to the chart below:

April 3, 2017
Mullen Lintas delivers a ‘baap’ for MTV Beats

MUMBAI: From the stable of Viacom18, MTV Beats has had a great start to its journey in India. With its unique positioning and differentiated content offering that is targeted primarily towards the youth, the channel has created quite a niche in the Indian Bollywood music space.

To further popularise the product offering to the Indian masses, the channel has announced the launch of its inaugural brand campaign. Conceptualised and executed by Mullen Lintas Mumbai, the campaign highlights the unique bond that audiences share with music; which is almost like a marriage between two soul mates. That is the core objective with which MTV Beats wants to associate itself with the young viewers of India and be seen as an able partner providing them the best in Hindi music.

Giving a deeper insight into the marketing campaign of Viacom18 MTV Beats youth and english entertainment head Ferzad Palia said, “Music is an important medium to reach out to young people today, and nobody does music better than MTV. So now that MTV Beats is here, we are heralding it as the birth of the ‘BAAP’ of music because after all, MTV is the big daddy of music. In true MTV style, the marketing campaign for MTV Beats is quirky, unabashed and irreverent yet it clearly communicates the brand’s positioning of being the ultimate destination for Hindi music any time of the day or week. I’d like to thank Mullen Lintas for the creative thought they’ve put into this. The tagline – ‘Blood mein hai beat’ draws heavily from India’s obsession with Bollywood music and reinforces the belief that music is a part of every Indian’s very DNA.”

With a tongue-in-cheek referral, the video film tracks the journey of one such ardent lover of music who is literally impregnated with seeds of Bollywood hits. The film is centered around the core idea of a love child being born out of one night of passion between the protagonist who gets turned on by the music being played on TV. The film goes on to explore light-hearted circumstances that get created due to the outcome and how she uses her pregnancy to entertain people. So much so that she turns out to be the life of any event where music is a core ingredient. The day finally arrives and the protagonist becomes proud mother to a wonderful child that’s musically-inclined, and is the source of inspiration to everyone around. This feeling is summed up by the core campaign tagline: Blood mein hain Beat.

Mullen Lintas EVP Ayyappan Raj said, “It’s one of the most fun campaigns that Mullen Lintas Mumbai has worked on in the recent past. When an iconic brand like MTV is launching a Bollywood music channel there is a strong desire to create something big and different. With that in mind, we wanted to make a statement about the launch of Beats and in the quintessential brand tonality. We are very happy with the way the campaign has come together. Also we are quite happy about the fact that we have ‘delivered’ another successful brand launch for the Viacom18 group.”

Highlighting the creative thinking that was arrived for the campaign, Mullen Lintas EC Garima Khandelwal said: “MTV Beats, the offspring. MTV, the parent. A future and a legacy. Bollywood and music ka baap is born. The campaign is aimed to present this storyline, this bloodline. And therefore, to present MTV Beats as the lovechild of MTV and a fan of MTV seemed actually too legit! Enjoy!”

The film has gone live on popular channels and will span other popular offline and online mediums too. While the TVC takes viewers through the story of the birth, the Print and Outdoor initiatives will bring alive the baby through various avatars.

See the promo here

March 23, 2017
Viacom18’s MTV Beats now on DD’s Freedish

MUMBAI: Viacom18’s maiden music channel MTV Indies, which recently got replaced by new kid MTV Beats, has been placed on Doordarshan’s Freedish as a free to air (FTA) channel.

MTV Beats has replaced Viacom18’s currently running channel X Zone on the pubcaster’s DTH platform that carries FTA channels and is popular in semi-urban and rural areas of India.

The Hindi music channel will be available on various other DTH platforms and bundled with Viacom18’s offerings as a pay channel.

MTV Beats was conceived and launched recently to replace MTV Indies with an aim to address a mass audience. It will predominantly focus on Bollywood music. MTV Beats is targeted at 15–30-year-olds across urban and rural India.

Viacom18 has also acquired an additional licence to launch MTV Beats HD.

September 12, 2016
Viacom18’s MTV Beats now on DD’s Freedish

MUMBAI: Viacom18’s maiden music channel MTV Indies, which recently got replaced by new kid MTV Beats, has been placed on Doordarshan’s Freedish as a free to air (FTA) channel.

MTV Beats has replaced Viacom18’s currently running channel X Zone on the pubcaster’s DTH platform that carries FTA channels and is popular in semi-urban and rural areas of India.

The Hindi music channel will be available on various other DTH platforms and bundled with Viacom18’s offerings as a pay channel.

MTV Beats was conceived and launched recently to replace MTV Indies with an aim to address a mass audience. It will predominantly focus on Bollywood music. MTV Beats is targeted at 15–30-year-olds across urban and rural India.

Viacom18 has also acquired an additional licence to launch MTV Beats HD.

September 12, 2016
‘MTV Beats’ to hit the Hindi music genre

MUMBAI: Viacom18 is all set to strengthen its youth and music portfolio with a 24X7 music brand ‘MTV Beats. MTV, a brand that defines pop culture, is also the brand that changed the way music was consumed. From introducing music television to India that defined an entire generation as the MTV Generation, to giving the country unforgettable shows such as MTV Unplugged, Coke Studio@MTV, Dewarists and MTV Spoken Word; MTV has always been the ultimate word on what young India likes to tune in to. With MTV Beats going on air soon, Viacom18 will now be offering its audience a one-stop destination for all their music needs.

Elaborating on the portfolio redesign, Viacom18 group CEO Sudhanshu Vats said, “MTV initiated India into the experience of pop culture, making it a socially and commercially successful phenomenon. Today the brand is synonymous with being reflective of the country’s youth – their preferences, beliefs, opinions, desires et al. This presents us with the unique opportunity to redesign our Youth and Music portfolio to take brand MTV into sharply segmented content buckets within the genre. We will now be offering 3 differentiated experiences from brand MTV – while the flagship channel will be focused on youth and branded content and MTV Indies will continue to cater to the indie subculture, now, on the digital platform; MTV Beats, our first 24X7 Hindi music channel, will replace MTV Indies on air, with an eye to take the MTV brand to a more mass audience.”

Giving a deeper insight this new music channel, Viacom18 youth and English entertainment business head Ferzad Palia said, “India loves its music, especially Bollywood music. With MTV BEATS, we aim to give our audience a 24×7 music companion who fulfils all their music needs through the day. This is a channel aimed at 15 – 30 year olds across urban and rural India, people who love music and often imagine their day having a sound track of sorts. To give our audience’s life a unique beat, we’re working on defining the week into mood based themes and curating our playlists accordingly, thereby making music viewing a more relatable experience.”

MTV Beats will predominantly focus on Bollywood music and will soon be available on air.

September 7, 2016
‘MTV Beats’ to hit the Hindi music genre

MUMBAI: Viacom18 is all set to strengthen its youth and music portfolio with a 24X7 music brand ‘MTV Beats. MTV, a brand that defines pop culture, is also the brand that changed the way music was consumed. From introducing music television to India that defined an entire generation as the MTV Generation, to giving the country unforgettable shows such as MTV Unplugged, Coke Studio@MTV, Dewarists and MTV Spoken Word; MTV has always been the ultimate word on what young India likes to tune in to. With MTV Beats going on air soon, Viacom18 will now be offering its audience a one-stop destination for all their music needs.

Elaborating on the portfolio redesign, Viacom18 group CEO Sudhanshu Vats said, “MTV initiated India into the experience of pop culture, making it a socially and commercially successful phenomenon. Today the brand is synonymous with being reflective of the country’s youth – their preferences, beliefs, opinions, desires et al. This presents us with the unique opportunity to redesign our Youth and Music portfolio to take brand MTV into sharply segmented content buckets within the genre. We will now be offering 3 differentiated experiences from brand MTV – while the flagship channel will be focused on youth and branded content and MTV Indies will continue to cater to the indie subculture, now, on the digital platform; MTV Beats, our first 24X7 Hindi music channel, will replace MTV Indies on air, with an eye to take the MTV brand to a more mass audience.”

Giving a deeper insight this new music channel, Viacom18 youth and English entertainment business head Ferzad Palia said, “India loves its music, especially Bollywood music. With MTV BEATS, we aim to give our audience a 24×7 music companion who fulfils all their music needs through the day. This is a channel aimed at 15 – 30 year olds across urban and rural India, people who love music and often imagine their day having a sound track of sorts. To give our audience’s life a unique beat, we’re working on defining the week into mood based themes and curating our playlists accordingly, thereby making music viewing a more relatable experience.”

MTV Beats will predominantly focus on Bollywood music and will soon be available on air.

September 7, 2016