ITV

Tag: News Nation

  • Vivek Makker returns to NDTV as national revenue head

    Vivek Makker returns to NDTV as national revenue head

    NEW DELHI: NDTV has brought back seasoned sales leader Vivek Makker as national revenue head for NDTV India, NDTV Madhya Pradesh–Chhattisgarh and NDTV Rajasthan, entrusting him with the task of supercharging advertising revenues across its flagship Hindi news network.

    Makker knows the terrain well. From 2012 to 2022 he climbed the NDTV ladder to become national head of NDTV India, shaping strategy and client relationships in the intensely competitive Hindi news segment. He now returns after a three-year stint at News Nation, where as executive vice-president he steered national sales, digital marketing and customer experience.

    His earlier career spans nearly every corner of India’s broadcast and out-of-home market. At Star India he managed northern-region sales, while at JSL Media he headed the outdoor revenue function. At Times Innovative Media he was part of the core team that launched airport advertising in Delhi and Mumbai in 2007, taking monthly billings from zero to Rs 10 crore within a few years. He recruited and retained a high-performing team and built direct relationships with top developers such as DLF, Emaar and Unitech, as well as brands from Volkswagen to GM and BMW.

    Makker started out in media marketing at Hindustan Times in 1999, later moving to Star TV to handle marquee real-estate and IPO clients. Across these roles he earned a reputation for meticulous client servicing, sharp sales strategy and the ability to build lasting partnerships in a sector known for churn.

    The NDTV executive say his mandate is clear: grow advertising share in Hindi heartland markets while deepening ties with national advertisers and agencies. With more than two decades of experience and a track record of turning fledgling revenue streams into major profit centres, Makker is expected to give NDTV’s Hindi channels fresh commercial momentum as the network readies for the next phase of expansion.

  • NDTV India gets its Suhail signal as prime-time champ joins the network

    NDTV India gets its Suhail signal as prime-time champ joins the network

    MUMBAI: The 9 pm battlefield has a new warrior, and he’s carrying numbers sharper than any sword. Syed Suhail, Hindi television’s undisputed prime-time champion for over 100 weeks, has joined NDTV India as senior executive editor and prime-time anchor. In a fiercely fought time band where star anchors jostle for dominance, Suhail carved his legacy with sheer consistency and clarity. His previous show not only ruled the 9 pm slot week after week but also became Hindi prime time’s most-watched broadcast, drawing nearly 19 million viewers on average. Even more telling audiences stuck with him longer than with any other face on screen at that hour, turning his dominance into a ritual for three straight years.

    Suhail’s rise is no overnight story. From his early days at Jain TV and a regional channel where he learnt humility, to P7 News and News Nation where he sharpened his storytelling, each stop added grit and finesse. At News24, he mastered viewer connect, and by the time he reached Republic Bharat, he had rewritten the rules of the 9 pm battleground. His 100-day trek across 45 districts of Uttar Pradesh meeting everyone from ministers to security guards and children in orphanages cemented his India-first philosophy of journalism.

    What separates him from the pack is not just ratings. Suhail personally reviews every show, swears by the power of visuals, and insists the story itself should be the star. For him, journalism is less about noise and more about keeping the ordinary citizen at the centre while putting the nation’s interests above all.

    On his move to NDTV India, Suhail said, “From the start of my career, I have admired NDTV for its credibility and ‘viewer-first’ approach. To be part of this network is not just a professional honour, it is a responsibility to remain true to the common man and to tell their stories simply, honestly, and with commitment.”

    Welcoming him, NDTV CEO & editor-in-chief Rahul Kanwal, said: “Suhail is one of Hindi television’s most trusted prime-time voices. He brings not just ratings leadership but also credibility and an instinctive connection with viewers. We are delighted to welcome him to NDTV India as we strengthen our promise of meaningful, people-first journalism for a new India.”

    For viewers, the message is clear: at 9 pm, Suhail will now set the tone for NDTV India. For rivals, the battle just got that much harder.

  • News Nation appoints Anita Khanna as senior vice president & network sales head West

    News Nation appoints Anita Khanna as senior vice president & network sales head West

    Mumbai: News Nation Network has appointed Anita Khanna as senior vice president and network sales head for the West. In her new roles, she will be responsible for the performance of all revenue-generating avenues; drive growth through strategic decisions; partner with key stakeholders and steer revenue acceleration.

    Prior to this, Anita Khanna was vice president of sales for TV Today Network. She was an integral part of the original team to see through the launch of Aaj Tak. She grew the market in the West from scratch to its success. Anita is a well-known media professional with over two decades of experience and a unique, relationship-driven personal approach with clients, advertising agencies, and with her team.

    Speaking about her new position, Anita Khanna said, “It gives me great pleasure to join the enthusiastic and aggressive team of News Nation Network. The brand is already well established and I look forward to collaborating with all stakeholders to achieve long-term goals.”

    On her appointment, News Nation Network chief business officer Bhuwan Bhatt said, “Inclusion of Anita will further strengthen the national team as well as the growth of our west region. We are immensely hopeful that Anita will bring huge value to the organisation with her leadership and interpersonal skills. We look forward to driving growth of all the brands with each passing day in their role.”

    News Nation Network executive vice president and national head of sales Vivek Makkar added, “Joining of Anita will give a strong boost to the revenue potential of the network. I’m confident that, as a seasoned professional, Anita will scale new heights.”

  • News State MP concludes ‘Badhta Madhya Pradesh’ conclave

    News State MP concludes ‘Badhta Madhya Pradesh’ conclave

    Mumbai: News Nation’s regional channel News State Madhya Pradesh/Chhattisgarh has concluded its conclave specially carved to discuss the development of the state titled “Badhta Madhya Pradesh.”

    It witnessed the most desirable line-up of participants that News State Madhya Pradesh is known for in its events, including the heavyweights from the top political parties. The format was strategic and was considered a mix of top personalities being grilled in one-on-one sessions by the top News State anchors.

    News State Madhya Pradesh/Chhattisgarh a well established regional channel from the most trusted news network, News Nation, believes in putting forth the issues related to the public in an impartial manner, and the same picture was seen in its special conclave “Badhta Madhya Pradesh.”

    News State boldly raised the queries of the public in the form of questions before the veterans and tried to bring every answer in front of the public.

    To delight the audience with top-quality content, all political head honchos were present at the event, including Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and various other guests like BJP president Madhya Pradesh Vishnu Datt Sharma, BJP cabinet minister Madhya Pradesh Bhupendra Singh, Congress former president Madhya Pradesh Arun Yadav, BJP cabinet minister Madhya Pradesh Vishwas Sarang, and Congress former minister Jaivardhan Singh.

    News Nation Network chief business officer Bhuwan Bhatt said, “We are happy to organise “Badhta Madhya Pradesh,” as the title of the conclave was exactly the way the state has performed in terms of its growth rate, which was the country’s highest in the years 21-22. This special event in Bhopal generated top-notch participation and a full-fledged one-to-one discussion on the future of Madhya Pradesh. The conclave was a huge success.”

  • News Nation Network strengthens its sales team

    News Nation Network strengthens its sales team

    Mumbai: News Nation Network ropes in Vivek Makker as executive vice president & national head of sales for the network. Harsha Vardhan Dwivedi as vice president of sales to take care of its regional business.

    In their capacity, they will be responsible for the performance of all revenue-generating avenues, drive growth through strategic decisions, partner with key stakeholders and steer revenue acceleration through their leadership.

    Prior to this, Vivek Makker was the National head for NDTV India. Vivek is a well-known media professional with over two decades of experience and a unique relationship-driven personal approach with Clients, Advertising agencies and his Teams. He has also worked with HT media, Star TV, and Times OOH.

    In his role, Vivek added “Feeling excited and happy to be part of News Nation, one of the fastest expanding Media groups that have futuristic approach and deep-rooted traditional values”

    Speaking of joining the team, Harsha said, “It gives me great pleasure to join the enthusiastic and aggressive team of News Nation Network. The brand is already well established, and I look forward to collaborating with all stakeholders to achieve long-term goals”.

    With over 20 years of work experience, Harsha in his previous roles has worked for various organisations like Sahara TV Network, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd., Zee Media Corp Ltd., Mahuaa Media Network, ETV News Network & Network 18 before joining News Nation Network. He has been a part of launches like Zee Bihar Jharkhand and relaunches like Zee Sangam, India 24*7, etc.

    News Nation Network chief business officer Bhuwan Bhatt said “Inclusion of Vivek and Harsha, will further strengthen the team. We are immensely hopeful that Vivek & Harsha would bring huge value to the organization with their leadership and interpersonal skills. We look forward to driving growth of all the brands with each passing day in their respective roles.”

  • News18 India garners 12.8 per cent average market share during Week 27-30: Barc

    News18 India garners 12.8 per cent average market share during Week 27-30: Barc

    Mumbai: News18 India has widened its lead in the Hindi-speaking 15+ market with 12.8 per cent market share during Week 27-30 as per Broadcast Audience Research Council (Barc) India data.

    As per Barc ratings released on Thursday, Aaj Tak garnered a 12.02 per cent relative share and India TV stood at 12.01 per cent.

    Republic Bharat had 11.2 per cent relative share, followed by TV9 Bharatvarsh with 9.8 per cent share, Zee News at 7.2 per cent, ABP News 6.6 at per cent, Times Now Navbharat at 6.4 per cent, News Nation at 5.8 per cent, Good News Today at 5.1 per cent and Zee Hindustan at 4.1 per cent.

    News18 India further strengthened its position during primetime hours between 1800-2400 hours with 13.6 per cent market share. Aaj Tak had a 12.1 per cent relative share, followed by Republic Bharat at 12.0 per cent, TV9 Bharatvarsh at 10.6 per cent, Zee News at 7.6 per cent, ABP News at 6.6 per cent and Times Now Navbharat at 5.7 per cent.

    Source: BARC data, TG: NCCS 15+ (All Viewership data based on TV only) Wk 27-30’22: 22nd July’22 to 29th July’22, All Days, 24 hrs Market Share – HSM – Urban + Rural

    In the last few months, News18 India has spruced up its content and programming strategy, coupled with new marketing initiatives.

    Network18 CEO Hindi Cluster Karan Abhishek Singh said, “Continuous dominance of News18 India as the country’s top news channel shows the kind of viewer’s affinity and trust the channel enjoys. Our robust line-up of shows and anchors also keeps us ahead in primetime. Our focus on news, unmatched perspective, insightful analysis, and debates are the key differentiating factors that keep us ahead of the competition.”

    The channel has not only performed well on TV, but its digital audience base has also seen steep growth.

    News18 India managing editor Kishore Ajwani said, “There are a multitude of reasons which have helped us become a daily household name across India. The strong line-up of story-driven shows, the diversity of content, debates that offer perspective, and our fast-paced information delivery, all of these offerings have contributed to the increase in engagement with the audience and resonance of the channel.”

  • News Nation begins on-ground activity to increase brand engagement

    News Nation begins on-ground activity to increase brand engagement

    Mumbai: News network News Nation has started its on-ground activity in the state of Uttar Pradesh to increase brand engagement and reach out to smaller towns and hinterlands. 

    The on-ground activity, which will be executed across key locations covering all of Uttar Pradesh in the next 30 days, will also touch upon various big cities in the state. It aims to reach out to the masses of urban and rural areas of the state. To further strengthen this activity, it has been given an on-air hook for viewers to participate in the on-air contest and win exciting prizes daily and there is a weekly bumper prize as well. 

    “This is our first on-ground activity since the pandemic struck and we are quite excited about it,” commented News Nation Network MD Sanjay Kulshrestha. “Uttar Pradesh is one of the critical markets in terms of business potential and viewership. News Nation is well recognized and respected in the state. However, we felt that there is still ample opportunity to further increase our penetration in the state especially in deeper pockets of tier 3 & 4 towns and upcoming hamlets, hence this on-ground activity has started”.

    News Nation Network director and editor-in-chief Manoj Gairola said that this activity will be executed with a 360-degree approach, supported by various departments like distribution, editorial, sales, strategy, and marketing. “We are hopeful that this initiative will bring the brand closer to the viewers. Our viewers will observe several such actives in different states shortly,” he further added.  
     

  • News Nation’s Abhay Ojha moves on

    News Nation’s Abhay Ojha moves on

    Mumbai: News Nation Network president of sales and marketing Abhay Ojha has put in his papers, sources close to the development told IndianTelevision.com on Monday.

    He has been associated with the company since June 2013.

    At News Nation, Ojha was responsible for managing revenue growth for the network across broadcast, event management and conclaves. He has diverse expertise across broadcast and digital in functions such as marketing, strategic planning, sales and leadership.

    Ojha is a broadcast industry veteran with more than 22 years of experience. His previous assignment was at TV9 Network as vice president of sales. Prior to that, he was with Reliance Broadcast Network as national sales head. He’s also had stints at Network18 Media and Investments and TV Today Network.

  • News Nation Network celebrates the ninth anniversary

    News Nation Network celebrates the ninth anniversary

    Mumbai: News Nation is the network that always stands for fearless journalism with an uncompromising commitment to the integrity of news coverage. The channel is proud to have maintained this attitude for nine years in a row.

    In the span of nine years, News Nation has successfully set the agenda for news broadcast and is credited with not just its own spectacular rise but also for the exponential growth of the genre. It has countless achievements and accomplishments with steady growth over the years, along with some serious in-roads in the digital field, representing clients from all over India.

    The channel has shown consistent growth and is ahead of various other Hindi news channels. The ratings have always proven the channel’s zest for better and healthier news which reaches out to a large number of masses. It is News Nation’s vision and mission to be close to every Indian home and that’s why the channel has launched and always supported programmes and events that are close to a wide section of society. News Nation has provided an entire spectrum of emotions to its viewers, a value that is well captured in its tagline – ‘Khabrain Jo Banti Hain Aapki Power.’

    “The role of responsible and accurate news brands has become even more important in a world awash with misinformation, and News Nation is committed to serving the nation with integrity and fearless journalism,” said News Nation Network president of sales and marketing Abhay Ojha. “Every year we strive to be creative to our partners and clients present all over India. This year we are going to be steadfast in our approach towards events and summits based across the Nation. We sincerely thank one and all who have been a part of this glorious journey with us.”

  • News Nation is all prepped up with special content this Bihar Elections

    News Nation is all prepped up with special content this Bihar Elections

    The country is gearing up for its first full-fledged elections amidst the COVID-19 pandemic. With the dates approaching, excitement is increasing but there is also a sense of panic. For a total of 243 seats, major political parties are preparing for a fierce battle. Meanwhile the Government maintains that all safety measures would be in place. To ensure proper physical distancing, maximum number of voters per polling station have been brought down from 1600 to 1000. Over 1 lakh polling stations would be set up this time compared to 65,000 stations back in 2015. As per the Election Commission, 7 lakh units of hand sanitisers, 46 lakh masks, 6 lakh PPE Kits, 6.7 lakh face shields and 23 lakh single use gloves have been arranged. While those above the age of 65, suspected and confirmed COVID-19 patients, will be allowed to vote through a postal ballot. Also, the timings for polling have been extended by an hour to deal with the expected slower pace of proceedings.

    To keep our viewers informed of such information and more, News Nation is all prepped up with special content line up, showcasing all the latest happenings from ground zero. The detailed programming will keep the viewers engrossed about every single unfolding in the state. 

    With the commitment to bring the most comprehensive coverage, News Nation has launched multitude of shows. The programming will highlight the current situation, connecting the voters and viewers. The Flagship property Abki Baar Kiska Bihar will bring top newsmakers from across the leading political parties, presenting the most impactful debates, discussions and interviews. Other segments under the umbrella branding of Abki baar Kiska Bihar will include a unique travelogue, Jiya ho Bihar ke Lala E-Ha-Chunavi Chakallas, where reporter will be seen interacting with the local people, politicians and gram Pradhan.  The intent being to give a platform to the locals where they can be vocal about their concerns as well as expectations from the next Government. Also, we have created a Superfast segment where Anchor will take us through all the latest updates of the day to give our viewers a quick highlight. Backed by a team of highly qualified anchors, reporters and experts, News Nation will offer viewers a vast coverage of Bihar elections.

    Mr. Abhay Ojha, President- Sales & Marketing told us “With special content line up created specifically for the elections, we have a perfect package to offer. Sponsors are keenly watching the shows and we are getting positive response from client and agencies, we are hopeful of closing some sponsors soon”.