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Tag: sports channels

  • India’s ad market rebounds in H1 2025 as TV steals the show: Excellent Publicity report

    India’s ad market rebounds in H1 2025 as TV steals the show: Excellent Publicity report

    MUMBAI: Here’s one report which is not talking of doom and gloom as far as ad spends in India are concerned. India’s advertising market kicked off 2025 on a high according to a half-yearly report by ad-tech and media planning agency Excellent Publicity, citing data from TAM Media Research, TAM AdEx and RCS India, reported Business Standard. The report said that  television powered ahead as the biggest gainer in the first half of the year, outspending print and radio, while digital was the lone laggard.

    Ad spends on TV per channel jumped 27 per cent year-on-year. Sports channels hoovered up 68.5 per cent of TV spends, trailed by general entertainment with 15.7 per cent. The e-commerce media, entertainment and social media category led volumes with a 25.6 per cent share. Star India kept its crown with 16.8 per cent of volumes, while Jio Hotstar topped the brand charts. Cellular services were the fastest risers, ballooning 17 times over the year.

    Print was no pushover either, posting a robust 26 per cent growth. Cars took pole position with 8.9 per cent of spends, while two-wheelers zipped ahead with a 31 per cent surge. Maruti Suzuki India was the top advertiser; Allen Career Institute, the top brand. Rajasthan led among states with 15.6 per cent of spends, and Delhi among cities with 7.1 per cent.

    Radio barely moved the needle, inching up 4 per cent. Properties and real estate dominated, cars followed, and pan masala muscled into the top 10. Maharashtra accounted for 19.3 per cent of radio spends, Delhi 18.1 per cent. Maruti Suzuki India again led advertisers, while Jeena Sikho Lifecare was the top brand.

    Digital, by contrast, shrank 12 per cent – the only medium to contract – though it logged the highest number of advertisers in three years. E-commerce online shopping led with an 11.2 per cent share. Amazon Online India was the top advertiser, Amazon.in the top brand. Programmatic buying made up 88.3 per cent of spends. Some niches bucked the trend: washing powders and liquids soared 21 times, perfumes and deodorants six times.

    “What’s really interesting is how brands are navigating a delicate balance,” said Excellent Publicity co-founder and director Vaishal Dalal.. “TV still captures attention, radio keeps the connection local and relatable, print is earning back trust, and digital is becoming sharper and more targeted.”

    Strangely the report did not talk about  outdoor spends. Was the situation hunky-dory in the sector like TV?

  • Star Sports 1 Hindi drags sports channels viewership down in week 7

    Star Sports 1 Hindi drags sports channels viewership down in week 7

    MUMBAI: The decline in the viewership pattern of sports broadcasters continued in week seven (15-21 February) of Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) India ratings. Sports channels, this week, tumbled by over 60 per cent as compared to week six (8-14 February).

    Star Sports 1 Hindi of Star India group dragged the viewership of overall sports channels to the lowest level this year. The channel alone fell substantially by over 76 per cent in the current week of BARC.

    Despite significant fall in viewership, Star Sports 1 Hindi topped the list of top five sports channels. The channel received 78,298 weekly impressions in week seven as compared to 3,31,536 weekly impressions in week six of BARC.

    Star Sports is the official broadcaster for all international matches played in India and New Zealand. It’s also an official partner to telecast limited over matches of the World Cup and Asia Cup across genres.

    Cricket is the majorly favoured and watched sport by the Indian audience, followed by World Wrestling Entertainment, soccer, and tennis. However, week seven was dull in terms of any India-specific cricket matches except women’s T20 world cup and the domestic tournament Ranji Trophy.

    Dethroning the government-owned channel, DD Sports, from the top five channels’ list completely, Star Sports First bagged the second position. The channel posted a positive show with a marginal rise in viewership of over 6 per cent, by securing 49,263 impressions in week seven as against 46,244 in the previous week of BARC.

    Despite being low in numbers as compared to rival broadcasters, Sony Pictures Sports Network channels have put a tough fight in week seven. This week, the group’s two sports channels, Sony Ten 1 and Sony Ten 3, grabbed the third and fourth spots in the list of top five most-viewed channels.

    Sony Ten 1 turned green after reeling under a negative space for the last two weeks. The channel improved its performance by gaining over 1 percent to 31,573 weekly impressions as compared to 31024 impressions in the previous week. The channel, in week six, was down by over 50 per cent.

    Replacing Star Sports 3 from its position at number four, Sony Ten 3 has been featured for the first time in the top five sports channels list with 25561 weekly impressions in the current week. All thanks to the UEFA: Champions League – Round of 16, a football tournament that began from 19 February, the channel has successfully made a mark in week seven of BARC.

    Meanwhile, Star Sports 2, for the first time this year, got featured at the fifth spot in the list of top five channels in terms of viewership. The channel secured at least 20,383 eyeballs in the week seven of BARC. The channel broadcasts the domestic cricket tournament, Ranji Trophy, which has come to its last leg of semis and features many important cricketers that represent Team India at the international level.

  • Sports channels see marginal rise in viewership due to IndvsNZ, Australian Open

    Sports channels see marginal rise in viewership due to IndvsNZ, Australian Open

    MUMBAI: Sports is the most preferred genre by viewers and advertisers after GECs and movie channels, and cricket most-watched sport all of them. This had become more evident during the third T20 match between India and New Zealand due to the marginal increase in the viewership of Sports channels, according to the Broadcast Audience Research Council India week 4 data.

    Out of the top five sports channels, STAR Sports 1 Hindi has bagged number one spot in week 4 (25-31 January) of BARC, and has received at least 378958 weekly impressions. On the second spot on the chart, DD Sports that achieved 103110 weekly impressions, all thanks to India and New Zealand's nail-biting third and fourth T20 matches that were broadcasted on the government-owned channel.

    Though STAR Sports 1 Hindi was ranked first, the other two channels of the Star group such as STAR Sports First and STAR Sports 3 have been positioned at third and fifth spot respectively in the list of week 4. Dominating the sports genre, STAR’s all three channels combine have gained over 5 lakh weekly impressions, according to the latest BARC data.

    Apart from cricket, the other important sporting event — Australian Open was also televised in week 4. Precisely, the quarter and semi-final matches took place in the week 4 data of the BARC. Australian Open 2020 helped Sony Pictures Networks’ Sony Ten 1 to gain viewership, which received 62824 weekly impressions in the latest BARC report.

    The marquee sports events that are scheduled at both domestic and international this year are ICC Women’s T20 World Cup, IPL 2020, ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, Olympics 2020, UEFA Euro 2020. 

  • BARC week 14: Sports channels exit the top ten list while leaders regain their respective slots

    BARC week 14: Sports channels exit the top ten list while leaders regain their respective slots

    MUMBAI: Post ICC World Cup T20, sports channels that had made an entry into top ten channels list across genres have exited it as per Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) all India data for week 14. This means that Star Sports 3, Star Sports 1 and DD National are not on the list of top channels..

    Sun TV retained first position with 992033 Impressions (000’s). Star Plus regained its second slot post World Cup T20 with 770166 Impressions (000’s) followed by Colors on third slot with 708713 Impressions (000’s) and Zee TV stood at number four with 640650 Impressions (000’s).

    Zee free to air channel (FTA) Zee Anmol bagged the fifth spot with 574822 Impressions (000’s) and Sony Pal was at sixth spot with 509528 Impressions (000’s). Life OK stood at number seven with 504192 Impressions (000’s) followed by Star Utsav with 495425 Impressions (000’s) which grabbed the eighth slot and Rishtey maintained it presence at number ninth with 472614 Impressions (000’s). Sony Pictures Network’s movie channel Sony Max bagged the tenth spot with 452559 Impressions (000’s).

  • BARC week 14: Sports channels exit the top ten list while leaders regain their respective slots

    BARC week 14: Sports channels exit the top ten list while leaders regain their respective slots

    MUMBAI: Post ICC World Cup T20, sports channels that had made an entry into top ten channels list across genres have exited it as per Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) all India data for week 14. This means that Star Sports 3, Star Sports 1 and DD National are not on the list of top channels..

    Sun TV retained first position with 992033 Impressions (000’s). Star Plus regained its second slot post World Cup T20 with 770166 Impressions (000’s) followed by Colors on third slot with 708713 Impressions (000’s) and Zee TV stood at number four with 640650 Impressions (000’s).

    Zee free to air channel (FTA) Zee Anmol bagged the fifth spot with 574822 Impressions (000’s) and Sony Pal was at sixth spot with 509528 Impressions (000’s). Life OK stood at number seven with 504192 Impressions (000’s) followed by Star Utsav with 495425 Impressions (000’s) which grabbed the eighth slot and Rishtey maintained it presence at number ninth with 472614 Impressions (000’s). Sony Pictures Network’s movie channel Sony Max bagged the tenth spot with 452559 Impressions (000’s).

  • Sports channels take a bow across genres in BARC week 12

    Sports channels take a bow across genres in BARC week 12

    MUMBAI: First, it was the Asia Cup and now the ICC World T20 that have helped Star Sports 3 and Star Sports 1 respectively to take a place among the top four channels across genres in week 12 of Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) all India data. And in the meanwhile, Sun TV continued to lead across genres and retained its pole position.

    Sun TV garnered first position with 919879 Impressions’ 000. Pushing Star Plus to third position, Star Sports 3 bagged the second slot with 906939 Impressions’ 000 followed by Star Plus with 776500’ Impressions.

    Star Sports 1 garnered the fourth spot across genres with 724204 Impressions’ 000 followed by Colors at fifth berth with 697306 Impressions’ 000 and Zee TV on sixth place with 670488 Impressions’ 000. Zee Anmol grabbed the seventh position with 570049 Impressions’ 000.

    In week 12, DD National made it’s entry in top ten once again on number eight with 549970 Impressions’ 000 while Sony Pal and Star Utsav bagged ninth and tenth slot with 536230 Impressions’ 000 and 521855 Impressions’ 000 respectively.

  • Sports channels take a bow across genres in BARC week 12

    Sports channels take a bow across genres in BARC week 12

    MUMBAI: First, it was the Asia Cup and now the ICC World T20 that have helped Star Sports 3 and Star Sports 1 respectively to take a place among the top four channels across genres in week 12 of Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) all India data. And in the meanwhile, Sun TV continued to lead across genres and retained its pole position.

    Sun TV garnered first position with 919879 Impressions’ 000. Pushing Star Plus to third position, Star Sports 3 bagged the second slot with 906939 Impressions’ 000 followed by Star Plus with 776500’ Impressions.

    Star Sports 1 garnered the fourth spot across genres with 724204 Impressions’ 000 followed by Colors at fifth berth with 697306 Impressions’ 000 and Zee TV on sixth place with 670488 Impressions’ 000. Zee Anmol grabbed the seventh position with 570049 Impressions’ 000.

    In week 12, DD National made it’s entry in top ten once again on number eight with 549970 Impressions’ 000 while Sony Pal and Star Utsav bagged ninth and tenth slot with 536230 Impressions’ 000 and 521855 Impressions’ 000 respectively.

  • Chrome Week 52: English Movies & Business News only gainers

    Chrome Week 52: English Movies & Business News only gainers

    MUMBAI: In week 52, English Movies emerged as the number one genre in six metros with a growth of 1.9 per cent Opportunity To See (OTS), according to Chrome Data Analytics. Movies Now led the section with 60.3 per cent OTS.

     

    Next on the list was the Business News genre with a growth of 0.1 per cent OTS. CNBC emerged as the channel, which benefited the most in the genre with 75.3 per cent OTS.

     

    Amongst the losers of week 52, the Sports channels genre led the section on an all India basis by witnessing a drop of 5.4 per cent OTS, while DD Sports led the chart with 74.9 per cent OTS.

     

    English Entertainment was next in line, which failed to generate positive ratings and dropped by 3.4 per cent OTS with Zee Café being the most affected channel at 49.9 per cent OTS.

     

    The Youth channels genre in Hindi Speaking Market (HSM) dropped by 1.8 per cent, wherein Channel V recorded 85.1 per cent OTS in week 52.

     

    On the other hand, the Religious channels genre dropped by 1.5 per cent in HSM with Aastha leading the tally with 60.3 per cent OTS.

  • Television’s Independent Film Channel now just IFC

    Television’s Independent Film Channel now just IFC

    MUMBAI: In a small bit of news that may come as a surprise to many, Independent Film Channel has officially changed its name to just IFC.

     

    The regular viewers might have probably figured that out by now. But the recently announced that the corporate paperwork has been signed to change the network’s name to IFC.

     

    It’s just another example of how networks evolve over time with their names and images sometimes catching up to them; in recent times a channel that pops up in the head is The Learning Channel becoming TLC as its programming changed dramatically.

     

    Closer home we have witnessed such changes among news channels and sports channels in recent times.

     

    The changeover began in 2010 when IFC began airing its first original comedy, The Increasingly Poor Decisions of Todd Margaret.

     

    The network now produces six original comedies. The most recent, a spoof of prime-time soaps titled The Spoils of Babylon, starring Will Ferrell, Kristen Wiig and Tobey Maguire with several other famous names making cameos, began past week. Reruns of Arrested Development were also a key part of the transition.

     

    While there are plenty of places to find broad-based comedy on TV, IFC managers figured they could fill a niche with shows that are ‘slightly off’ – as IFC says in its tagline.

     

    IFC, owned by AMC Networks Inc, has also acquired movies that are anything but independent; over the holiday season it ran installments of the National Lampoon ‘Vacation’ comedies.

     

    Financially, it’s always detrimental for a network in creating its own original programming than in relying on movies that were originally produced for other venues.

     

    IFC has some surprises in store later this year with a new series, Garfunkel & Oates, starring the comic duo Riki Lindhome and Kate Micucci, and a second season of Maron, about the comic Marc Maron.

     

    Though IFC’s transition had been long time due, signing the documents striking off the name Independent Film Channel was still a significant move for the channel. Now what’s left to be seen is does it have an impact on its reach and viewership, only time can tell.

  • Al Jazeera Sport rebrands as beIN Sports

    Al Jazeera Sport rebrands as beIN Sports

     

    MUMBAI: Qatar based network Al Jazeera has rebranded its sport channel from Al Jazeera Sport to beIN Sports. The move will see Al Jazeera Media Network uniting its global sport channels under one name ahead of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

     “As excitement builds ahead of the FIFA 2014 World Cup Finals, beIN SPORTS guarantees front row seats to all the live action in Brazil as well as live coverage from other popular worldwide sporting events,” beIN said in the statement.

    Subscribers will now have access to 19 HD channels with 12 in Arabic that were formerly called Al Jazeera 1 to 10 and will now be called beIN Sports 1 to 10. The rebranding will provided viewers more opportunities to watch their favourite sports across the globe.