ITV

Tag: News Live

  • Assam’s Prag News aims for better distribution, content tie up

    Assam’s Prag News aims for better distribution, content tie up

    KOLKATA: The north eastern region of the country has been an ignored lot. And it is not just the people, who are asking for attention, but the channels as well that are now vying for more visibility. One such channel is Assam-based Prag News, a 24×7 satellite News channel, which is looking at pan-India presence. The channel has signed a deal with direct to home (DTH) operator Tata Sky to further enhance its distribution in other parts of the country.

     

    “We have already signed the deal with Tata Sky and as soon as the operator finds the bandwidth, Prag News will be included on the platform,” informs Prag News chairman and managing director Sanjive Narain.

     

    The News channel which is already available on Airtel Digital TV and Dish TV is also in talks with other DTH operators to ensure better reach. “We will disclose the information about the other players once the deal is finalised,” he adds.

     

    “It will be a win-win situation for any DTH player if it ties up with Prag News. The arrangement will also benefit the Assamese viewers of the platform,” opines Vinod Jhaveri of VKJ Advisory Services.

     

    The channel also enjoys a good reach in cable TV homes, across the country. While it is being distributed across the country via multi system operator SitiCable, in parts of Bihar it is distributed through Darsh Network, in J&K by 7 Sea, in Punjab with FastWay and in West Bengal via CTVN.

     

    Prag News, one of the oldest local news channels of the north east region which was launched in 2000 and operates out of Guwahati, has other plans as well. Taking cue from the tie-up between Times Now and Guwahati based News Live during Lok Sabha election, Prag News is also looking at content tie-up opportunity with a national News broadcaster.

     

    “Nothing has been finalised as yet on this front,” informs Narain.

     

    Post Assam chief minister Tarun Gogoi’s decision to step down after his defeat in the general elections and BJP-led government deciding to monitor the states closely, the region has become a hub of new.

     

    “Mainstream media especially TV has always ignored the north east.  While clubbing all stories under the section ‘North East’ is an easy way out for channels, it is completely unfair to the people there. It is good to know that local channels like Prag News are looking for content tie-ups. If this happens, we can hope to see substantial increase in coverage from different states of north east in the media space,” says a Kolkata based television expert.

     

    The channel is currently available across Assam and other north-east states and enjoys a viewership of over 10 million. 

  • Times Now ties up with News Live for poll coverage

    Times Now ties up with News Live for poll coverage

    KOLKATA: National news channel, Times Now, has tied up with Guwahati-based News Live, a 24×7 satellite news channel from the house of Pride East Entertainments, for election poll coverage.

     

     
    As per the agreement between the two channels, with polling starting from the North East, Times Now will telecast the news and feeds covered by News Live, starting Monday. Feeds on election coverage at different constituencies at the later stage will also be shared on 12 and 14 April.

     

     
    Apart from this, both the channels will share expert views and participate in discussions aired on each channel, informs a senior editor from News Live.
     

     

    “To cover the polling, News Live has deployed 17 OB (outside broadcasting) vans and 17 journalists”, says Pride East Entertainments CEO Caushiq Bezboruah

     

     
    “Mainstream media, especially TV, has always ignored the North East. In fact, clubbing all stories under the ‘North East’ is an easy way out for them which is unfair to the people of the region. It is good to know that a leading TV channel has tied up with an Assam-based network. We can hope to see substantial increase in coverage from the different states during this election season,” says television expert Pranab Ganguly.

     

    Similarly, a business consultant and White Canvas Services founder Samaresh Shah adds: “This was extremely needed. North East is an integral part of India’s economy and deserves as much attention as the rest of the country.  This is a welcome step. I hope that the same will lead to some interesting feeds for the audience.”
     

     

    Talking about the channel, News Live, which was launched in January 2008, Bezboruah says, “The channel has become one of the favourite among the viewers in North East market. The TRP of the channel last week was 190.8.”

     

     
    He adds that the channel is available in all cable homes of the North Eastern states including Assam, Meghalaya, Manipur, Mizoram, Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh, Sikkim and in parts of New Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, North Bengal belt and Bhutan. “It is the only channel of the region which finds space on Freedish as well. It is also available on Dish TV, Sun Direct, Tata Sky, Airtel Digital TV, Reliance Big TV and Videocon d2h.”
     

     

    While the channel had tied-up with Times Now earlier as well, it will get its due ‘credit’ this time.
     

     

    Pride East Entertainments employs around 350 people including journalists and technicians.

  • EMFA seeks hike in govt. ad rates

    EMFA seeks hike in govt. ad rates

    MUMBAI: It’s rare that a private body appreciates the government whole-heartedly. But recently The Electronic Media Forum Assam (EMFA) appreciated the State government’s decision to hike government-sponsored advertisement rates for newspapers by 60 per cent over the existing rate. The forum announced it in a statement.

     

    However, the Forum has also urged the Assam government to enhance government- sponsored advertisement contributions to the State-based satellite news channels.

     

    Earlier, the representatives from the State government and newspaper owners’ association in presence of State information & public relations minister Basanta Das met to get an assurance from the government to hike the advertisement rates with effect from January 1, 2014.

     

    The news channels in Assam are registered as ‘free to air’ and are more dependant on advertisements for their survival. And thus, the forum has been asking the government to consider improved rate of advertisements for news channels too.

     

    In the release, EMFA mentioned: News channel managements should use the enhanced fund for the benefit of their employees with structured salaries, other allowances, PF and ESI benefits.