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MTV India was primarily known for music, comedy, spoofs and “Fully Faltoo” attitude. The team of Cyrus Oshirdar (creative and content), Cyrus Broucha and Cyrus Sahukar was giving its viewers a “no-tension” dose of comedy and music.
In 2007, Viacom and Network18 got together to create a joint venture. What followed was the redrawing of the roadmap for MTV. The positioning changed and music became shorter in line with its new image of being a youth entertainment channel.
The man in charge of this content revamp was Ashish Patil as he churned out shows that would stand the new look – Its My MTV. From Fully Faltoo to Kick Ass and from Bakra to Splitsvilla, MTV has scored points in segmenting, targeting and positioning for the youth.
The channel has also extended its wings in the US, New Zealand and Australia.
In an interview with Indiantelevision.com’s Gaurav Laghate, MTV India GM and senior VP creative and content Patil says that the game has just started.
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Is the ongoing producer-plex owner’s tussle affecting MTV as there is no new music release to lap up for content? |
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Why are you going less on music and more on non-music content? |
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What was the need for this change in identity?
And so far as the business goes, the music pie is limiting. Music as a commodity is playing everywhere; so eyeballs are limiting and revenues have hit a ceiling. |
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Even the market leader in the music channel genre had to change? |
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So what is the new positioning of MTV? |
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How will you describe your TG?
This target audience is very fickle and impatient. If they don’t like something, they have multiple options to switch over to. And anything that catches youth eyeballs is competition for me. Be it malls, gizmos, movies, mobiles, ipods, internet, etc. |
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So that is why you are making your presence felt on internet and other space? |
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But don’t you think some of the content is not fit for small towns, or non-metros? |
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Is your programming strategy confined to unlicensed thrill, living on edge and speed?
So my aim is to cater to all the needs of my TG. We are now building on our franchise. Earlier I had only Roadies as a fixed offering on Saturdays at 7 pm. Now I have shifted it to Sundays and got the highest opening for Splitsvilla season 2 on Saturdays. |
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| So you mean you are now getting appointment viewing? Absolutely. As I said, earlier we used to launch shows on Saturdays at 7 pm band. I had a great following there, courtesy Roadies. It was a gamble when I shifted it to Sundays, but it did well for us. Now I have viewers for Saturday as well as Sunday. Also, in December, I launched Haven @ 7 on weekdays. So I am taking baby steps to get more viewer attention. I am already getting more viewership than many general entertainment channels (GECs). |
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So what are the plans ahead? |
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How has the JV between Viacom and Network18 helped in MTV’s growth in India?
Also, both (Viacom and Network18), as players, are front-foot batsmen. It has put our transition in the fourth gear. Our efficiency has increased and so has our brand value, distribution, marketing, headcount and infrastructure. |
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Have we seen MTV’s revenues grow over the last couple of years?
Ad sales accounts for 65 per cent of our revenues, of which 5 per cent comes from international clients. Around 15 per cent comes from affiliates, which is also increasing. 15 per cent comes from Viacom Brand Solutions (client lead stuff, events and advertiser funded programming) like The Fast and The Gorgeorus, Stunt Mania etc. The remaining 5 per cent comes from L&M and movie previews (Ghajini).
Also, we are opening up supplementary revenue streams through mobile, web, and even through ticker. Our ticker has a fan community on social networking sites and advertisers want to be there. |
Tag: Network18
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‘When you are a market leader, it’s necessary to shake things a little’ : Ashish Patil- MTV India GM and senior VP creative and content
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Network18 to provide Idea subscribers with news content
MUMBAI: Network18 will pump in customised finance, news and technology content to Idea Cellular subscribers.
The services will be powered by the group’s online news properties – moneycontrol.com, IBNLive.com and Tech2.com.
Subscribers to general news and tech content will have to pay Rs 30 a month while the weekly fee is Rs 10 and for daily services it is Rs 3. The subscription price for finance content is Rs 50 a month, Rs 15 a week and Rs 5 per day.
“These offerings are a great beginning for us. With the combined expertise of Network 18 and Idea Cellular, we will be able to serve the masses in a better manner,” says Network18 mobile business head Rahul Pandey.
The services will be available to GPRS users of Idea across its 15 telecom circles in India. The service can be accessed on Idea’s WAP portal- wap.ideaFresh.com.
“The sites will offer information and updates with text, video and pictures in a crisp, mobile-friendly format for Idea GPRS subscribers on the move,” says Idea Cellular CMO Pradeep Shrivastava.
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‘We are developing a 100 per cent Indian company’ : G Krishnan – TV Today Network CEO
TV Today Network Ltd. has been very conservative in expanding its footprint. While TV news organisations Network18 and NDTV Ltd. have scaled up their business model to work out a non news empire, the Aroon Purie-promoted company has stuck to its basic strength of running a string of news channels.
Holding tight the purse strings, TV Today has stayed a profit-focussed company. Flagship Hindi news channel Aaj Tak continues to be the market leader while Tez and Dilli Aaj Tak are add-on channels serving targeted spaces. English general news channel Headlines Today has got a new positioning of being “refreshingly different.”
The company intends to merge Radio Today Broadcasting Ltd, a group firm, with itself. TV Today, which currently holds 10 per cent in Radio Today, believes the synergy will help it to pocket local advertising much more efficiently.
In an interview with Indiantelevision.com’s Sibabrata Das, TV Today Network CEO G Krishnan talks about the company’s plans to launch more news channels to service the need gap while stressing on the need to get it correct.
Excerpts:
Why has TV Today been reluctant to scale up like TV18 or NDTV when it is sitting on Rs 1.7 billion of cash on books?
Some media companies have tied up with international majors to fund their expansion. We are developing a 100 per cent Indian company. But we will have more channel roll outs. We are firming up a robust business plan. We are looking at all possibilities and are taking our time as we want to do it correctly.Will you wait for digitalisation to take off in a big way before adding more channels?
We are studying the feasibility of launching niche channels. Distribution is currently the major cost in the P&L (profit and loss) account. However if we feel there is potential in any space in the long term, we will look at launching channels to service the need gap.Isn’t TV Today too dependent on flagship Hindi news channel Aaj Tak with Tez and Dilli Aaj Tak being low-cost channels?
Media companies tend to depend on a single flagship channel. Star India has Star Plus as the main revenue channel while in case of Zee, it is Zee TV. But Headlines Today is growing and targeted channels like Tez and Dilli Aaj Tak contribute both to our turnover and our profitability. Tez has shorter news wheels while Dilli Aaj Tak is a Delhi/NCR specific Hindi news channel with the content led by utility in the capital region.TV Today had floated a wholly owned subsidiary company, TV Today Network (Business) Ltd, a few years back and was talking to American financial and business news major Bloomberg. Are the plans to launch a business news channel still alive?
Bloomberg was talking to several players at that stage. We are still open to launching a business news channel, with or without partners.Are there any big plans for Headlines Today?
Headlines Today has been on the growth track with the new positioning of “refreshingly different” and targeting the younger audience. We will further consolidate our position and launch more properties to strengthen the various time bands.‘News channels are paying Rs 5 billion as carriage fee. It is for us as a group of broadcasters to see if we can ensure that this doesn’t gallop further‘Do you see a slowdown in the Indian economy affecting the TV news organisations?
The TV news market, pegged at Rs 10 billion, is growing at 17 per cent. The size of the Hindi news market is Rs 6 billion while English general news channels make about Rs 2 billion. The healthy thing is that each segment is growing. The English business news space will see market expansion when the Times of India Group launches its product in this segment.Aren’t a rise in carriage and personnel costs a worrying feature?
News channels are paying Rs 5 billion as carriage fee. The surge in distribution costs is killing the industry. It is for us as a group of broadcasters to see if we can ensure that this doesn’t gallop further. The personnel cost has not grown at an alarming pace for us in the last fiscal (Rs 552 million compared to Rs 445 million in FY’07). For some networks, though, the rise in costs will be really tough.The new players also should stick to reasonable ad rates. Everybody is hoping that good sense would prevail and the market shouldn’t be spoilt.
TV Today’s revenue jumped 22 per cent to Rs 2.3 billion in FY’08. Was this driven by an ad rate hike and improved utilisation of Headlines Today?
We had an effective ad rate hike of 12-13 per cent in the last fiscal. We have further increased our rates by 8-9 per cent in July.Was the 43 per cent surge in net profit to Rs 435.5 million led by an income in international distribution?
We made Rs 100 million from international distribution. We plan to take both Aaj Tak and Headlines Today to Canada. We are doing research to assess that market.Do you see domestic pay revenues kicking in this year?
We are a pay channel and are part of the One Alliance bouquet. We have turned pay in select markets as we do not want to lose our viewership and ratings. We will see distribution income grow.Zee News Ltd. has started the franchising model to have a footprint in the smaller markets. Do you see this as a growth model you would like to follow?
We have not explored the franchising model. We feel launching our products directly in the marketplace is a better route.TV Today is in the process of merging Radio Today Broadcasting Ltd, a fellow subsidiary company, with itself. Why?
The radio business will synergise with our TV business. We will tap local advertisers.If the government allows news on private FM radio, will we see a radical change in positioning from its current talk show format for women?
We will have a heavy dose of news. And the synergy will work. When we launch more local channels in other markets, it will add strength to our radio advertising revenues.What has been the progress made by the News Broadcasters Association (NBA) on the Content Code?
The NBA is putting systems in place for a content code based on self-regulation for news television channels. We understand the need for a self-regulatory system and are aggressively pursuing it. We have formed the ‘News Broadcasting Standards (Disputes Redressal) Authority’ to enforce NBA’s code of ethics and broadcasting standards. The authority will become operational from 2 October. -
TV18 promoters to up stake in firm via creeping acquisition
MUMBAI: Television Eighteen India on Friday said its promoter group would increase stake in the company through a creeping acquisition instead of subscribing to warrants.
Network18 Media and Investments Ltd, a founder group firm, has already acquired 300,000 equity shares in TV18 since 15 February 2008 via purchases in the open market. TV18 owns and operates business news channels CNBC TV18 and Aawaz.
The fall in share prices could have triggered Network18’s decision to buy in the open market.
TV18 board had earlier approved the issue of 10 million warrants to allow Network18 India Holdings , a unit of Network18, to up its stake in the company.
“Network 18 India Holdings has decided not to subscribe to the preferential allotment of 10 million convertible warrants of TV18 that were approved for allotment,” an official statement said.
Creeping acquisition is a process by which the promoters of a company holding less than majority stake increase their equity either by making an open offer to the shareholders or buying from the market.
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‘From the’Small Big’ company to the ‘Big Small’ company’
2007 was a remarkable year for the Indian media industry. It was a year that witnessed small steps as well as giant leaps, fundamental shifts as well as tactical maneuvers, greater clutter as well as cutting edge innovation.
On the whole, 2007 fulfilled a lot of potential in the industry, yet it leaves us with a sense that the Indian media story is still pregnant with a thousand more possibilities… Media players saw newer growth pastures, widened their business horizons, deepened their portfolios and above all competed and cooperated aggressively. This was a sign that the industry was alive, kicking and ready to reach the next level. The fact that many global brands made a beeline to enter the market or strengthen their presence is a testimony to the health of the industry.
There was widespread strengthening of newer trends such as the heightened sensitivity to user generated content across genres, and a greater focus on interactivity and ‘mobilization’ of content across the board
_____****_____The year saw some good old fashioned competition reach newer pinnacles. Within television, multiple channel launches, especially in news and entertainment, aggressive sales and marketing ploys such as those displayed in the battle for cricket broadcasting supremacy, innovative new show formats, dogged pursuance of alliances and rights and the perennial scramble for prime time shares, ensured 2007 was an exciting period for the industry. At the same time, there was widespread strengthening of newer trends such as the heightened sensitivity to user generated content across genres, and a greater focus on interactivity and ‘mobilization’ of content across the board.
Even in other media such as print, competition became fiercer amongst the national print majors. Yet, there was also a rise of more targeted products, creating niche plays across regions (launch of city specific compacts in Delhi and Bangalore), demographics such as the youth, women (launch of youth oriented compact paper) or genres such as lifestyle, global fashion, celebrity gossip ( launch of many international magazine titles). The same high intensity and feverish growth pitch could be seen in the online and new media space, with multiple mobile marketing solutions, out of home innovations and web enabled services hitting the market.
Clearly, 2007 was a momentous year for the industry, with a great degree of optimism in the air. However, there were also concerns that made us exercise caution in all that optimism. Talent management became an important issue for the industry, with sustained levels of attrition. Industry fee and rate structures were under much debate, especially for broadcasters with respect to the surcharge issue. The need for a re-alignment in these became a matter of contention and that is yet to be fully resolved. The regulatory environment for the industry did not improve substantially and a lot of streamlining in policymaking is still necessary in close consonance with industry players. Issues such as revenue leakages through media value chains and a greater level of industry consensus and organization are other key areas that continued to impede us in 2007.
This year, the group saw tremendous ‘competency expansion’, apart from continued organic growth in its already existing market leading brands.
_____****_____For Network18, 2007 was a defining moment in many ways. Befittingly, in 2007, we confidently unraveled our new brand identity and re-committed ourselves to continue enlightening, entertaining and enabling India. Moreover, the year symbolized a great culmination of the first phase of Network18’s growth story. By 2007, we have progressed from being only a “small company” a decade ago, a production house as our genesis, to now becoming a “small BIG company”, which is considered as one of India’s leading full play media conglomerates.
In fact, in 2007, our growth story reached newer unprecedented highs. This year, the group saw tremendous ‘competency expansion’, apart from continued organic growth in its already existing market leading brands. In 2007, Network18 expanded into newer media such as print and genres such as general entertainment, through strategic alliances with global leaders like Viacom and Forbes, the acquisition of Infomedia and announcement of the JV with Jagran Prakashan.
We diversified our gamut of services with the launch of E18, our full spectrum events business which clocked early coups with prominent music gigs such as Americas and Scorpions. Our filmed entertainment venture Studio18 led from the front with innovative distribution and marketing strategies as was evident from Jab We Met becoming one of the year’s blockbusters, despite the high voltage drama from other big budget releases.
We continued on the leadership path in the Indian online space with stronger performance of all portals across the content, communication and transaction spectrum. Our foray into the Hindi online space with the launch of ‘Josh18’ and success with our latest mobile innovation “Moneycontrol’s Markets on Mobile” ratified our status as new media pioneers in the country. In fact, Markets on Mobile has already emerged as one of the largest mobile subscription services in the country within a couple of months of launch.
On the television side, our leader brands across business news, general news and music and entertainment (CNBC Channels, CNN-IBN, IBN 7 and MTV Network channels) continued to traverse new boundaries and sustained their momentum through 2007. Ratings, viewer feedback, awards and advertiser interest ratified the continued progress of our television business.
Clearly, in 2007, it was definitive that Network18 has become a “small BIG company”. The future promises to be exciting and invigorating for all of us at the group. Our long term vision is quite simple and clear. Network18 must emerge as the “Big Big company” on the global media stage, a torchbearer of the Indian media industry’s arrival on the world market.
However, our immediate objective towards achieving that vision is to FIRST become a “big SMALL company”. The “SMALL” symbolizes our passionate commitment to huddle together (Much like the famous Indian cricket one!) and continue to work as a well knit team which envisions and synergizes together and above all never loses the spirit of innovation and enterprise that has been the DNA of Network18. At Network18, expanding size will not mean furthering distances!
At the group, our success mantra has always been our ability to execute with great precision, led by India’s best media talent along with strong adherence to our core values and vision. We hope to continue attracting and retaining the most innovative and passionate minds in the business as we strive to achieve the next phase of the Network18 growth story. 2008 and beyond…
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Network18, Jagran in JV to launch Hindi biz daily
MUMBAI: Soon after acquiring ownership control in Infomedia and forging a strategic alliance with Forbes Media for magazine publishing, Network18 has entered into a 50:50 joint venture with Jagran Prakashan to step into the newspaper space.
For starters, the JV will launch a Hindi business daily in 2008. Though there are several English business dailies, there is no such offering in the Hindi language.
The JV also intends to launch other Indian language dailies focused on financial and economic news. Says Network18 MD Raghav Bahl, “In recent years, business audiences have grown immensely in the Hindi heartland and regional markets, reflecting a democratisation of enterprise and wealth creation across the nation. We are delighted to partner Jagran Prakashan as it will allow us to fulfill this need powerfully in the print space, by combining TV18’s strengths in business content with Jagran’s intimate understanding of print markets.”
TV18 has a roster of brands across television, online and information terminal platforms in the business space while Jagran Prakashan Limited (JPL) publishes one of India’s largest news daily Dainik Jagran. The venture will also throw open opportunities to exploit across platforms.
Says JPL CMD Mahendra Mohan Gupta, “Our experience in the language media space has revealed a growing interest in specialized business news and information, which this vehicle will enable us to cater.”
The deal will help Network18 to access the distribution network of Jagran, a crucial piece in the print business.
The JV will be governed by a board, comprising representatives from TV18 and Jagran Prakashan, which will oversee management plans and execution.
The operational specifics in terms of brand name for the business daily and selection of the editorial and business team is in the process of being formalised, says an official release.
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TV18 Group is now Network18; unveils logo
MUMBAI: TV18 Group is rechristened as Network18. The new branding will unify all current and future entities of the TV18 Group under a single umbrella.
Existing companies such as TV18, GBN, Web18, Homeshop18, Viacom18, Studio18 and Events18 will reflect the new corporate identity.
The Group will also don a new logo which is red and white in colour. “The logo reflects the company’s brand identity which is a window to an ever-changing world in addition to connoting the stature and ambitions of the emerging global media corporation,” the company said in a statement.
Commenting on the new branding, Network18 managing director Raghav Bahl said, “We have come a long way since TV18 began in 1992 as a small production house. From television news to filmed entertainment, Network18 leaves little untouched and unconquered, thus taking it a step closer to becoming the undisputed media mega brand! Despite our rapid growth and diversification, the one thing that has not changed, is our vision to be ‘better than the best’ and to continuously set new standards in this fast growing industry.”
Added Network18 Group CEO Haresh Chawla, “Network18 has built some of the most enviable media brands and audience franchises in India and we continue to work aggressively towards building India’s finest truly multi-platform media conglomerate. The new Network18 identity unites our over 3000 strong team and operations with a common set of values and aligns them behind a common purpose. The unified identity will help us harness the power of our individual brands and build an even stronger relationship with all our stakeholders. It is an exhilarating moment for all of us.”
Network18 Group COO B Sai Kumar said, “Network18 embodies all the attributes of a start-up and combines it with the power to enable, enlighten and entertain every Indian. Over the past decade, the Group has been able to empower more than 80 million Indians. The re-energised entity will aim to reach out to a much larger audience in India and globally. In the process, we also hope to make Network18 the first truly Indian, global media company.”
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GBN to dilute close to 15% in IPO, valuation pegged at Rs 6.5-7 billion
MUMBAI: Global Broadcast News Ltd (GBN), which owns and operates English news channel CNN-IBN, will dilute close to 15 per cent in its intial public offering (IPO), pegging the valuation of the company at around Rs 6.5-7 billion.
The company, which plans to raise Rs 1.05 billion in the public float sometime in January, has yet to announce the price band. The proceeds of the issue will be used to meet the company’s growth plans, which include the completion of the acquisition of Hindi channel IBN-7.TV18 Group managing director Raghav Bahl declined to comment on the extent of dilution that the IPO would involve. “We are in the process of finalising that,” he said.
Sources, however, confirm that the company is looking at a dilution in the region of 12-15 per cent through the IPO. Indiantelevision.com had earlier reported that GBN would be raising Rs 1.05 billion.
Bahl is also aggressively eyeing the regional news space. “We realise it is an important growth segment. But we are still examining it. We will be taking a final decision on this quickly,” he said.
The other growth area in the broadcasting business, Bahl said, was in launching niche channels in the news space. There is no decision yet in which companies these channels will be housed.
Growth for TV18 will come from subscription business. Pay revenues in this fiscal will rest at Rs 350 million, Bahl said. “We see the lines of distribution business maturing in the coming years. It will account for a big leap in our revenues. We will also continue to register advertising growth,” he added.
TV18, which got re-listed on Wednesday after restructuring the different businesses, is expected to close this fiscal with a revenue of over Rs 2 billion and a net profit margin of around 35 per cent. The company houses two business channels, CNBC TV18 and CNBC Awaaz, a clutch of internet properties, financial wire service Crisil Marketwire (which was recently acquired) and an e-broking venture with partners which will get launched in 3-6 months. “TV18 is positioned as a full spectrum business news, information and transaction play company,” said Bahl.
On the first day of trading in its new avataar on Wednesday, TV18 opened at Rs 600 and closed at Rs 618.35. This was much higher than the market expectation of a debut listing in the range of Rs 450.
“The market is giving value to the internet properties. Bahl has created a perception where he will be a clear leader in this space,” an analyst at a broking firm said.
Bahl may decide to list these internet properties (including flagship moneycontrol.com, commoditescontrol, ibnlive, compareindia, cricketnext) which are sitting inside TV18 overseas. He will be adding more sites through a string of acquisitions as well as growing them organically. “We are bullish on our internet properties. We are giving it a balance sheet and a capital structure. We will unlock value for the shareholders at the right time as they reach critical size. This can mean revenues or even critical traffic into these portals,” he said.
Interestingly, the TV18 scrip (before the restructuring) saw a surge in quick time by Rs 300 to hover over Rs 900 on the back of the IPO floated by Naukri.com (Info Edge). Bahl has created internet assets that can rake in money as he scales up these verticals.
TV18 shareholders will also enjoy the GBN value which will come to them via the Network18 route. Network18, which has 51 per cent stakes in both TV18 and GBN, is likely to be listed within 2-3 weeks.
TV18 will be raising capital up to Rs 3 billion to fund its various expansion requirements. “We have made some investments in acquisitions and other areas through internal accruals and debt. We have a capital raising programme,” says Bahl.
TV18 had earlier mandated HSBC to raise Rs 1 billion. “We will sit with them again and decide how much and when we need to raise capital,” said Bahl.
Besides being the holding company, Network18 will also house Studio18 and Shop18. “It is positioned as a full play media company. In Studio18, we will have a presence in the movie business across the value chain of distribution, production, acquisition and content syndication. We will roll out our products in the next fiscal. We also have ambitious plans for Shop18,” says Bahl.