ITV

Tag: THC

  • Ratings: AXN maintains lead in English entertainment; Star World, Zee Café neck and neck

    Ratings: AXN maintains lead in English entertainment; Star World, Zee Café neck and neck

    MUMBAI: The English entertainment scene is witnessing a fair bit of action. The History Channel (THC) underwent a repositioning from infotainment to entertainment. AXN unfortunately got banned by the I&B Ministry last month on the dubious charge of showing inappropriate content.

    Tam data c&s 4+ all India from 15 July 2006 – 13 January 2007 shows that AXN has enjoyed a share of over 50 per cent over the past six months compared to Zee Café and Star World.

    Zee Café has, meanwhile, been steadily improving its share. From 15 July – 15 August its share among was 13 per cent. This has risen to 22 per cent for the period 1 January – 13 January 2007, with Star World slightly ahead at 24 per cent.

    However for the period 15-30 December 2006 Zee Café was ahead with a share of 22 per cent compared to Star World’s 17 per cent.

    For the metros, AXN’s share is 44 per cent, while Star World and Zee Café each have a share of 22 per cent. THC has a share of 11 per cent for the period 31 December 2006 – 13 January 2007. This marks a fall from 20 per cent for the period 15-30 December 2006 where it was on even terms with Star World and Zee Cafe. In fact for the most part, until 2007 THC has been on level terms with Star World and Zee Cafe in terms of channel share in the Metros.

    AXN’s Special Focus On Prime Time
    Talking about the performance over the past six months, AXN India business head Sunder Aaron says that a special focus was given to primetime. So the channel came out with the concept of Elite Weekdays and Elite Weekends. This is where its premium shows like CSI, 24 air. In the weekdays it is post 11 pm while on Saturday and Sunday it airs at noon. Aaron adds that what gives the channel further appeal are shows like Guinness, Ripley’s which go beyond the metro centric.

    On the local front he is satisfied at how The Amazing Race Asia fared in India. This was a pan Asian initiative and showed that regional fare with an Indian touch will work with viewers. The channel, Aaron says, has a few ideas on the table. One of this involves the second season of A Man’s World. It also appointed Sumona Roy as marketing manager. This is in line with the channel’s commitment to boost its operations in India.

    The problem still is the ban. Aaron declined to comment on when the channel would be back on air but said that care would be taken to ensure that content would not be offensive to anybody. The I&B Minister had issued the ban on the grounds of AXN showing ‘obscene programmes’. The ban will last till 15 March 2007.

    A Period Of Restructuring For Zee Café
    Zee Café business head Neil Chakravarti says that the programming lineup has gone through a significant restructuring over the past year. “Our endeavour was to become the only ‘true English GEC’ in the country. The aim is to offer the widest variety of entertainment across drama, comedy, thrillers, reality, soaps, fashion, lifestyle, music, movies and local English content.

    “As of February, the plans are largely in place. We have recently introduced America’s number one soap, The Young and the Restless which runs across weekdays at 8 pm. Our most exciting new product is Café Xtreme, which has action/ adventure/ thrills oriented programming, and will run every single day from 11 pm – midnight. In addition, we have introduced a movie band, Saturday Night Lights to showcase the best of Hollywood.”

    Zee Café last year launched among other shows the ninth season of the hospital drama ER, Bikini Destinations and the second season of Full House. No doubt the second show gave a bit of oomph to the channel. It also added some action to the mix with Without A Trace. Of course since both Zee Café and Star World focus on oven fresh shows from the US there is the occasional overlap. For instance both air Orange County, which recently came to an end in the US.

    Chakravarti adds that Zee Café recently started an initiative of running strip shows across the same time band during primetime on weekdays. The Tonight Show and E! News are telecast delayed live every day from the US, via satellite uplink. Young and Restless and Café Xtreme also run in stripped format, every weekday (and even weekends, in case of Xtreme)

    Star World Stays With Its Strategy
    Elaborating on Star World’s strategy, Star India GM content Harsh Rohatgi reiterates the efforts being made to bring the most popular and best shows from across the globe on the channel. The last six months saw the launch of various new shows and seasons on the channel.

    One of these was Rockstar Supernova. This was a global talent hunt show to find a new singer for a band formed by Motley Crew, Metallica and Guns & Roses. Then there was the comedy Two and Half Men with Charlie Sheen. Its core properties include Desperate Housewives, which came back for a second season as did the hospital soap Grey’s Anatomy.

    To give a boost in terms of variety there are award shows like the Golden Globes. It has also aired music specials like the Andrea Bocceli concert.

    In terms of where it lies in the English general entertainment space, Rohatgi points out that that as a genre English entertainment has a very niche audience base. The preference is more on the qualitative aspect of programming.

    “Star World’s programming speaks for itself and has successfully built a loyal audience base over the years that it continues to retain while adding on new audiences. As far as AXN goes we are poles apart in the programming structure. We classify ourselves as a family English entertainment channel with a mix of comedies/action series/dramas/ special events etc.

    “AXN is clearly a male skewed English entertainment channel. Hence comparing both the channels would not be fair.”

    English Entertainment Viewership Stagnating?
    Then there is the issue of viewership for English entertainment stagnating. Rohatgi counters by saying that there has been a marked increase in the spread of what an English entertainment viewer can watch.

    “Earlier English entertainment used to be demarcated quite clearly. But now infotainment/ Lifestyle channels/ English news channels are also wooing the same viewer. Hence we don’t think the genre is stagnating. On the contrary its expanding and the challenge is to keep up and expand the offerings with it.”

    Rohatgi says that for Star World constant research is being done to understand what are the needs, likes and dislikes of the viewers. “Koffee with Karan season two has been improved based on the feedback from viewers. We are also working on various local formats.”

    Star World Confident Of Success in Cas Environment
    Rohatgi is also confident about how the channel will fare in a Cas environment. “Our programming is the best, which is constantly revamped and updated as per the latest and best properties in the global scenario. Hence a viewer is assured of finding only the best fare on the channel. In a digital environment, channels in niche genres will be bought on both perception and the quality of programming.”

    Brands Cherry Picking Shows
    On the advertising front he says that there definitely has been a shift in the way the genre is being sold. Now the preference is to go along with properties that fit the brands rather than doing a broad based deal. Hence a lot of brands now look at handpicking shows they would want to associate with. Hence the sales teams have been pitching property specific deals to the clients.

    Chakravarti says that based on the feedback received Zee Café’s perception among the viewer universe as well as the media fraternity is quite positive at the moment.

    Cas, DTH Will Be The Final Levellers?
    A contention partially backed by OMS media director Madan Mohapatra, who says that while Zee Café’s perception has improved over the past year, it is still a little behind Star World. “However as Cas and DTH get entrenched, the perception gap will come down further. The push that Zee Café has given to its content over the past year has not gone unnoticed. The advantage that Star World has is that it made a sustained push earlier.” In Mohapatra’s opinion Star World benefits from high profile shows like Koffee with Karan.

    Says Mohapatra, “Besides the RODP route, clients often put money behind new shows on these channels like Orange County (the third season kicks off on Zee Cafe next month) if they feel that there is good traction and these shows will add new viewers to the channel due to marketing activities being done. However as a show gets older the enthusiasm of the client also goes down.”

    He notes that Zee Café compared to the other two players is more open to experimentation in terms of content and how it deals with clients. “They work with clients on customised and contextual programme breaks (ICI Pens did branded brake bumpers). This means that an ad appears depending on the mood of the show. I would draw a parallel to what happens with cricket where a pop up comes on depending on what has happened.”

    AXN, he says, is a little bit behind Star World perception wise because of its mostly male skew. It has gotten polarised as a result. The good thing for AXN is that it has followed a very clear path and has not deviated. While the effect of the ban has yet to be seen, it is likely that the lifestyle shows might take a hit. What is interesting is that Zee Cafe in the past year started airing some lifestyle shows like the earlier mentioned Bikini Destinations.

    Speaking about THC’s positioning, Mohapatra evers that that it is taking the right approach by broad basing its content.

    In conclusion one can say that the new platforms of DTH and Cas will help the channels segment those who watch them regularly from those who merely surf through them. Viewing habits will be more clear. It is up to the players to constantly finetune strategies to make sure that viewers will pay to watch them.

  • The History Channel looks to build a local connect for ‘Ultimate Cars’

    The History Channel looks to build a local connect for ‘Ultimate Cars’

    MUMBAI: The History Channel (THC) is looking at different ways in which to build a closer brand connect with viewers.

    Last month it had announced a slew of initiatives which includes airing a set of interstitials called Timepieces. Now it has done a unique stunt for its show Ultimate Cars.

    The show which airs every Wednesday at 10 pm looks at cars including Ferrari, Alfa Romeo, Porsche 91, Corvette. It looks at what makes them special, the history as well as their novelty value. The channel has now tied up with car designer Dilip Chhabria.

    Speaking to indiantelevision.com on this THC VP marketing Rajesh Sheshadari says, “Dilip Chhabria is an expert on the subject of cars. We therefore chose him as our endorser of the show. On air we have cut promos which air during the course of each episode. He gives his views on a particular car being featured.

    “Online we have created a microsite at www.historychannelindia.com/dc.html. Visitors can read his views on the cars. They can also offer their feedback. There is a car of the week feature as well as an episode guide. For the next season next year we are looking to take the relationship to the next level by possibly organising an on-ground event with a motoring association.” The channel has roped in Pepsi, Visa, Nokia, ICICI Prudential, Club HP and Kinetic Blaze as sponsors.

    As had been reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com THC has kicked off an online initiative is a campaign called Save Your History. This is a community sharing site that will allow Indians to share and collaborate on important historical happenings in their lives, which could be in the form of photos, precious documents and artifacts.

    Right now a trial version of the site is up. The final version will be launched at the end of next month. The channel is also in the process of roping in well known personalities like industrialists to endorse the initiative. Promos featuring them will be cut and will go on air towards the latter half of next month.

  • The History Channel launches local initiatives to connect brand

    The History Channel launches local initiatives to connect brand

    MUMBAI: In April, The History Channel (THC) had repositioned itself as an entertainment channel while staying true to its core proposition of airing content with a historical perspective. As a step up to this strategy, the channel has embarked on India-specific initiatives.

    Speaking to Indiantelevision.com, THC senior VP programming Joy Bhattacharya says, “We are taking an integrated approach which encompasses on air, online and on ground. On air we will be showing a special on the Mughals on 23 and 24 September at 10 pm titled Warrior Empire. The show will look at various aspects of their rule. Viewers will learn little known details like the Taj Mahal was built of bricks with only a marble façade. Later on we will be airing a show Jewel In the Crown.”

    THC is also looking at doing a series of 30 second to one minute interstitials called Timepieces which will kick off next month. “It will offer information on what happened this week in history. This will air during breaks of programmes. Each week a new interstitial will ai,” adds Bhattacharya.

    The channel plans to launch next year an initiative around the 150th anniversary of the 1857 revolt. “We are talking to parties like the imperial war museum in London. They have artefacts and documents of what transpired. It is good to see that they have an unbiased viewpoint of what happened in terms of what worked and did not work during colonisation. The channels’ weekly reach since the repositioning has risen by 29 per cent. Our share in the English entertainment genre has also doubled,” says Bhattacharya.

    The online initiative is a campaign called Save Your History. This will be a community sharing site that will allow Indians to share and collaborate on important historical happenings in their lives, which could be in the form of photos, precious documents and artifacts.

    For instance, a famous cricketer could put a photograph of his first bat or the first match that he played. The campaign is aimed at educating people on the importance of responsibility and commitment to saving one’s culture and heritage for the sake of posterity. Bhattacharya says that this is a good way to get a community involved with the brand.

    “We are trying to involve as many people as possible to create a community of history. We have approached several well known personalities as well on this. After all everybody has a history. The History channel site gets around 7000 page views a day,” adds Bhattacharya.

    The onground initiative involves a tie up with NGO, the Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural heritage (Intach). The organisation works towards promoting awarness of heritage and conservation. Both parties will aim at making history more relevant.

    “The first step of the initiative is a school contact programme. Screenings of THC’s shows like French Revolution,The Mughals, Rome and Crusades are being organised by Intach with its chapters, schools and colleges. In the first month, the activity will reach 6000 students. This way THC hopes that children will not look at history as being dull and boring,” says Bhattacharya.

    He also says that plans are afoot to include heritage walks, seminars and workshops. This way the channel hopes to build a brand that people can touch and feel. In terms of marketing activity to create awareness, spots will air on the channel. These initiatives, Bhattacharya says, will give viewers the feeling that the channel is programmed by and for Indians.

  • History Channel to hype entertainment quotient

    History Channel to hype entertainment quotient

    NEW DELHI: Come live the entertainment story with Martin Sheen, Omar Sharif, Daniel Craig and Peter O’Toole. This is The History Channel’s (THC) new mantra for India.
    The only international television network devoted exclusively to historical programming, today announced its plans for pursuing a new strategic direction in India by making a well-defined shift to entertainment.

    The channel also outlined its extensive plans to take forward this move to aggressively drive viewership and advertising revenues. Starting 6 May, viewers in India will get to experience an enhanced and extended offering of the same.

    “This year we are looking at making the channel stronger and more relevant to our viewers and advertisers by enhancing our offering,” The History Channel managing director India Nikhil Mirchandani said at a press conference today.

    The new strategic direction of the channel stems from its need to continuously stay relevant to its viewers. The History Channel with its new tagline ‘Live The Story’ is going to be all about bringing alive a viewing experience that will be unique, inspirational and above all entertaining.

    According to the company, the shift to entertainment ensures that THC remains true to its unique theme of History while becoming more entertaining and engaging through riveting programmes that will be showcased in hitherto unseen formats.

    Commenting on the new programming that will be visible on the channel from May, company’s senior vice-president programming Joy Bhattacharjya said, “We have a spectacular line-up of programmes from May onwards. We are moving onward and adding to our well-researched and entertaining documentaries and serials a whole new line up of the most interesting stories.”

    The new fare from history will include mini-series, re-enactments and also films. Martin Sheen, Omar Sharif and Daniel Craig will enact some of the most popular and interesting characters and stories through history.

    “It is what I call the Devdas effect – where we will inform in an entertaining format and allow viewers to live the stories that are historically relevant,” Bhattacharjya added.

    The film Devdas made a couple of years back by Sanjay Leela Bhansali in true Bollywood style of lavish sets, grandeur and oodles of melodrama re-told to Gen-X successfully a wasted love story set amidst the 1920s-1940s of West Bengal, torn by class conflict, through the lead protagonists, Shah Rukh Khan, Aishwarya Rai and Madhuri Dixit.

    The programming on The History Channel will deal with events and personalities that are historically significant in an entertaining manner. From Rome to Hitler to Helen of Troy to Spartacus, the channel will explore the wide gamut of history without being restricted by formats.

    The new strategy will also be evident in the vibrant on-air graphic elements, which will reinforce the power and passion of history presented in an entertaining format. To promote the new look and feel, the channel will also roll out an on-air brand campaign that will communicate the spirit of channel.

    Facts and fiction will mesh together. For example, film Marilyn and Me will be accompanied by the biography of the sex goddess. Every month will have a distinctive theme.

    The month of May will be identified through the theme of war and will showcase never-seen before films and series such as Hitler and Haven. June will be dedicated to the theme of Rome and the key films, mini-series and factual series will revolve around this theme.

    Some of the best series from the AETN international library, Crusades, Gold and Barbarians will be presented to Indian audiences by The History Channel in the special format of a Limited Edition Series.

    Speaking on the new strategic positioning of the channel, Rajesh Sheshadri, vice-president marketing said, “We are looking at an exponential increase in viewership by 2008. This increase in viewership is a function of first, our distinct positioning whereby we are the only channel on History.”

    He added, “Second, the fact that we will debut familiar titles in entertaining formats; and third, versioning wherein the channel is also investing in providing its Hindi-speaking viewers with high quality versioned programming that will enhance their viewing experience and allow them to enjoy internationally acclaimed programmes.”

    The channel is also planning innovative and integrated marketing initiatives to ensure the channel’s success in India.

    Reaching more than 200 million viewers in 70 countries, versioned in 20 languages, The History Channel is the only international television network devoted exclusively to historical programming. A division of A&E Television Networks, it is marketed internationally by AETN International.

    In India, the channel began broadcasting in November 2003 and claims to be available to 45 million C&S households. The History Channel comes to India through an affiliation between AETN international and NGC Network (India) Pvt. Ltd.