ITV

Tag: Times Group

  • Dekkho: Integration ease aids Brightcove power OTT service

    MUMBAI: Brightcove, a leading provider of cloud services for video, announced today that Dekkho, a streaming video service specializing in delivering premium content from India’s top content creators, has selected Brightcove to power its OTT service. The service, which debuted in February 2017, was built on Brightcove Video Cloud, enabling Dekkho to leverage an industry-leading online video platform to offer consumers VOD access to 12,000 hours of programming across desktop and mobile applications.

    Dekkho provides its customers with a curated, high-quality video experience with video content ranging from three to 45 minutes. It partners with leading content producers such as Sony Music, Zee Music, Culture Machine, Times Group, and OML.

    “Brightcove constantly remains ahead of the curve, rapidly innovating to incorporate and leverage the constant changes in the online video industry,” said Dekkho co-founder Vinay Pillai.

    “Scalability was most critical for us. We need to deliver our content across a broad range of customers, from those with low-end phones and slow internet connections to people with high-end mobile devices and larger screens. Not only has Brightcove enabled us to do that technically, but their service has been outstanding. We were promised Tier-1 support and Brightcove has delivered.”

    Improving the viewing experience is one of the top challenges facing media organizations in 2017, and Dekkho required a platform with robust APIs that was easy for their application development team to leverage; in particular, the publisher was eager to integrate the video platform with its CMS for simpler ingestion of its videos. The scalability of the Brightcove platform, along with integrations with the majority of the content management systems (CMS), ad networks, and CDNs differentiated Brightcove from other providers.

    “Dekkho is yet another great example of the rise of OTT in India. They’ve managed to quickly launch an intuitive and unique experience, and we’re looking forward to being part of their success,” said Brightcove Asia VP Tomer Azenkot. “Brightcove is excited to be working with this innovative service and helping the company as online video consumption in India evolves.”

  • Taapsee endorses cashless economy campaign

    Taapsee endorses cashless economy campaign

    MUMBAI: While the entire nation was in a flux with the sudden announcement of demonetisation, Times Network, a part of India’s largest media conglomerate, The Times Group, was the only broadcast network that realized the need of the hour and initiated a nationwide campaign ‘Remonetise India’ to bring the economy back on track.

    As part of the initiative, Sahayata camps were organized in Mumbai to encourage people to get Pan Cards, Aadhaar Cards and open bank accounts (Jan Dhan Yojana Accounts) for the development of Digital India. Bollywood Actress Taapsee Pannu was seen promoting the initiative and educating the citizens to learn e-banking, go digital and cashless for the coming future. The camp received tremendous support and response from the common man who were seen taking the pledge of remonetisation, going digital and making India a less-cash economy.

    Times Network MD & CEO M K Anand said, “I think there is a lot of work remaining to bridge the Remonetisation gap. Urban India has started using less cash, but they will get back to their old habit if the entire system is not geared for a less cash way of life. The true benefits of Remonetisation will come only when we drag every activity into the formal economy. For that every Indian citizen needs to be empowered. Financial inclusion can happen only when all have bank accounts. The Remonetise India Sahayata Camps are our effort in this direction.”

    Pannu said, “The sudden decision by the government totally shook the nation and when Times approached me to be a part of this initiative I readily agreed, because I myself am a software engineer and going digital is the need of the hour. Remonetise India is such a novel concept by Times as normally you come across people only condemning the current scenario, but nobody taking a step to help overcome this situation.”

    As part of the initiative, the network first organized a telethon that invited speakers, opinion leaders and policy makers across all network channels to understand the way forward after demonetisation. Further Go Cashless bike rallies were organized to spread awareness about the need to go digital and save cash for those in rural areas who are cash dependent and don’t have an access to digital facilities. The entire campaign has received tremendous support from famous Bollywood celebrities, CEOs, political leaders as well as the common man, making this nationwide initiative a great success.

  • Taapsee endorses cashless economy campaign

    Taapsee endorses cashless economy campaign

    MUMBAI: While the entire nation was in a flux with the sudden announcement of demonetisation, Times Network, a part of India’s largest media conglomerate, The Times Group, was the only broadcast network that realized the need of the hour and initiated a nationwide campaign ‘Remonetise India’ to bring the economy back on track.

    As part of the initiative, Sahayata camps were organized in Mumbai to encourage people to get Pan Cards, Aadhaar Cards and open bank accounts (Jan Dhan Yojana Accounts) for the development of Digital India. Bollywood Actress Taapsee Pannu was seen promoting the initiative and educating the citizens to learn e-banking, go digital and cashless for the coming future. The camp received tremendous support and response from the common man who were seen taking the pledge of remonetisation, going digital and making India a less-cash economy.

    Times Network MD & CEO M K Anand said, “I think there is a lot of work remaining to bridge the Remonetisation gap. Urban India has started using less cash, but they will get back to their old habit if the entire system is not geared for a less cash way of life. The true benefits of Remonetisation will come only when we drag every activity into the formal economy. For that every Indian citizen needs to be empowered. Financial inclusion can happen only when all have bank accounts. The Remonetise India Sahayata Camps are our effort in this direction.”

    Pannu said, “The sudden decision by the government totally shook the nation and when Times approached me to be a part of this initiative I readily agreed, because I myself am a software engineer and going digital is the need of the hour. Remonetise India is such a novel concept by Times as normally you come across people only condemning the current scenario, but nobody taking a step to help overcome this situation.”

    As part of the initiative, the network first organized a telethon that invited speakers, opinion leaders and policy makers across all network channels to understand the way forward after demonetisation. Further Go Cashless bike rallies were organized to spread awareness about the need to go digital and save cash for those in rural areas who are cash dependent and don’t have an access to digital facilities. The entire campaign has received tremendous support from famous Bollywood celebrities, CEOs, political leaders as well as the common man, making this nationwide initiative a great success.

  • FM P-III auction: EMD, bidders initial eligibility declared

    FM P-III auction: EMD, bidders initial eligibility declared

    NEW DELHI: Even as the day of the e-auction of the second batch of FM Phase III on 25 October 2016 approaches, the Government has released the earnest money deposit (EMD) by the pre-qualified bidders and the initial eligibility points (IEP) of each of these.

    According to a list put up on the website of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, Entertainment Network (India) Limited of the Times Group tops the list with an EMD of over Rs 375 million (Rs 37.5 crore) thus gaining 15,000 eligibility points. This is followed by Ushodaya Enterprises Private Limited with around Rs 133.3 million (around Rs 13.33 crore) as EMD,getting 5331 IEP and Kal Radio Limited with EMD of Rs 133 million (Rs 13.3 crore) and 5320 IEP.

    All the 11 bidders have put in an EMD of less than Rs 130 million (Rs 13 crore). The list of pre-qualified bidders for e-Auction of the second batch of private FM Radio Phase-III channels:

    No. Name of Applicant EMD
    Initial Eligibility Points

    1 Abhijit Realtors& Infraventures Private Limited Rs
    2,58,75,000 1035

    2 Dharmik InfomediaPrivate Limited Rs
    7,75,000 31

    3 EntertainmentNetwork (India) Limited Rs
    37,50,00,000 15000

    4 Hotel Polo TowersPrivate Limited Rs
    1,25,000 5

    5 JCL Infra Limited
    Rs19,50,000 78

    6 Kal Radio Limited
    Rs 13,30,00,000 5320

    7 Malar PublicationsPrivate Limited Rs
    5,26,50,075 2106

    8 Purvy BroadcastsPrivate Limited Rs
    10,32,500 41

    9 Rockstar EIPrivate Limited Rs
    1,25,000 5

    10 Sambhaav MediaLimited Rs
    6,88,50,000 2754

    11 South Asia FMLimited Rs
    4,40,00,000 1760

    12 The Malayala Manorama Company Limited Rs 1,75,50,025
    702

    13 The Mathrubhumi Printing & Publishing Co Ltd Rs 1,76,00,000
    704

    14 Ushodaya Enterprises Private Limited Rs
    13,32,98,950 5331

    As stipulated in the notice inviting applications of 20 June 2016, bidders are required to submit their bid for at least one city in the first clock round. Any bidder failing to do so in the first clock round will forfeit its EMD in its entirety. The ministry said any assistance in this regard is available on contact helpdesk +91-124- 430 2039 or support@c1eauctions.com.

    The second batch of FM Radio Phase-III channels comprises 266 channels in 92 cities. The channels include 227 channels in 69 fresh cities and 39 channels in 23 existing cities which had remained unsold as there were no bids. As in the first stage, the e-auctions will be conducted by C1 India Private Ltd. A pre-bid conference was held on 11 July 2016, followed by training and then a mock auction earlier this month.

    The first payment of 25 per cent of the successful bid amount will be made within five calendar days, and the remaining within 15 calendar days of the close of the auction and notification of successful bidders by the Government.

  • FM P-III auction: EMD, bidders initial eligibility declared

    FM P-III auction: EMD, bidders initial eligibility declared

    NEW DELHI: Even as the day of the e-auction of the second batch of FM Phase III on 25 October 2016 approaches, the Government has released the earnest money deposit (EMD) by the pre-qualified bidders and the initial eligibility points (IEP) of each of these.

    According to a list put up on the website of the Information and Broadcasting Ministry, Entertainment Network (India) Limited of the Times Group tops the list with an EMD of over Rs 375 million (Rs 37.5 crore) thus gaining 15,000 eligibility points. This is followed by Ushodaya Enterprises Private Limited with around Rs 133.3 million (around Rs 13.33 crore) as EMD,getting 5331 IEP and Kal Radio Limited with EMD of Rs 133 million (Rs 13.3 crore) and 5320 IEP.

    All the 11 bidders have put in an EMD of less than Rs 130 million (Rs 13 crore). The list of pre-qualified bidders for e-Auction of the second batch of private FM Radio Phase-III channels:

    No. Name of Applicant EMD
    Initial Eligibility Points

    1 Abhijit Realtors& Infraventures Private Limited Rs
    2,58,75,000 1035

    2 Dharmik InfomediaPrivate Limited Rs
    7,75,000 31

    3 EntertainmentNetwork (India) Limited Rs
    37,50,00,000 15000

    4 Hotel Polo TowersPrivate Limited Rs
    1,25,000 5

    5 JCL Infra Limited
    Rs19,50,000 78

    6 Kal Radio Limited
    Rs 13,30,00,000 5320

    7 Malar PublicationsPrivate Limited Rs
    5,26,50,075 2106

    8 Purvy BroadcastsPrivate Limited Rs
    10,32,500 41

    9 Rockstar EIPrivate Limited Rs
    1,25,000 5

    10 Sambhaav MediaLimited Rs
    6,88,50,000 2754

    11 South Asia FMLimited Rs
    4,40,00,000 1760

    12 The Malayala Manorama Company Limited Rs 1,75,50,025
    702

    13 The Mathrubhumi Printing & Publishing Co Ltd Rs 1,76,00,000
    704

    14 Ushodaya Enterprises Private Limited Rs
    13,32,98,950 5331

    As stipulated in the notice inviting applications of 20 June 2016, bidders are required to submit their bid for at least one city in the first clock round. Any bidder failing to do so in the first clock round will forfeit its EMD in its entirety. The ministry said any assistance in this regard is available on contact helpdesk +91-124- 430 2039 or support@c1eauctions.com.

    The second batch of FM Radio Phase-III channels comprises 266 channels in 92 cities. The channels include 227 channels in 69 fresh cities and 39 channels in 23 existing cities which had remained unsold as there were no bids. As in the first stage, the e-auctions will be conducted by C1 India Private Ltd. A pre-bid conference was held on 11 July 2016, followed by training and then a mock auction earlier this month.

    The first payment of 25 per cent of the successful bid amount will be made within five calendar days, and the remaining within 15 calendar days of the close of the auction and notification of successful bidders by the Government.

  • Startup finding reality TV series The Vault makes debut

    Startup finding reality TV series The Vault makes debut

    MUMBAI: The Indian version of Dragon’s Den – on which the iconic Mark Burnett show Shark Tank is based – is being readied to hit Indian TV screens come 1 October 2016. Called The Vault, the reality TV series is looking to fund start ups and nouveau entrepreneurial ideas.

    Each wannabe entrepreneur will get a chance to pitch his idea before a six member strong investor panel and get his or her idea funded to the tune of Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1 crore.

    The 12 episodic show spanning over 30 minutes will enable startups, household businesses, aspiring entrepreneurs with an extraordinary idea, or an established venture an opportunity to expand. The idea is to finance and mentor 36 entrepreneurs by the end of the show.

    But even before The Vault has gone on the floors, it seems to have to run into some sort of controversy. Which is what its American predecessor- Shark Tank – is known for.

    Jatin Goel, the creative brains behind it, says that it will air every Saturday at 7:30 pm on ET Now and every Sunday at 11:30 pm on Times Now. But the channel spokesperson told indiantelevision.com that nothing has been finalized yet.

    However Goel says that he has a signed contract with the Times Group for The Vault.
    Says he: “We have signed a contract with Times Group to discover the next big idea for startups to expand through The Vault. This show is a first-of-its-kind initiative in India towards developing a robust environment that fosters innovation and drives growth for promising business ideas irrespective of the sector they operate in.”

    Goel added that he will be helming the show.

    And he says the procedure to get a shot at the millions on the show has been kept very simple. Entrepreneurs have to register themselves on the show’s website by filling an application form with personal, company or idea related details and the funding expected by coughing up Rs 300 as a one time non-refundable fee. Applicants have to also mention how much equity they are willing to part and for what value. The last announced date of applications is 31 August 2016.

    Accepted applications will be screened and will be shortlisted for the first round of auditions in which each entrepreneur will be grilled about his idea by experts telephonically. A total of 100 applications will be taken forward from this round.

    The shortlisted 100 applications will have to upload a two minute video for the second audition round. From this, the list will be whittled down further to the final list of just 50.

    Goel strongly believes that the Indian entrepreneurial landscape is currently at its peak. “India has the third-largest and the fastest-growing startup ecosystem in the world. The growth witnessed by SMEs and household and rural businesses also indicates that there are many more milestones yet to be achieved.”

    The jury of six will – consisting of self-made millionaires who have already proven their mettle in various backgrounds- retail, technology, real-estate, FMCG, food, health, automobile industry- will judge the entrepreneurs on their idea or startup’s uniqueness and feasibility.

    The investors will be revealed one-by-one on TV and social media through various campaigns.

    A crew of 30 will be filming the show in Film City, Noida, starting the first week of September. An eight multicamera set up is being designed – with four cameras profiling the investors and their closeups when they are talking, two will zoom in on the entrepreneurs as they are pitching and their product showcase, and two will be used for long shots showing both the investor and entrepreneurs in one frame.

    As far as marketing is concerned, Goel says the show will be promoted highly on digital and will have some brand integration involved in it. He and his team are currently in talks with seven or eight advertisers to hop on board for this show.

    “We have not fixed any deals yet. There is no specific sector that we are targeting. Any company which can relate to our concept can be on board,” voiced Goel.

    Plans are afoot to launch a YouTube channel post the show’s run. Apart from a big push on digital, the show will also be marketed on TV, radio, print with various hoardings in metros mainly Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai. The anchors from various channels falling under Times Network will also talk about the show.

    Will it do well in India? The wagers are on. The Subhash Chandra show on Zee Business has also been running for a couple of years . Shark Tank, which aired on Viacom18 English entertainment channel Colors Infinity earlier this year , met with a muted audience response according to reports. The challenge for The Vault does not only lie in securing advertiser backing but also in gaining its audience.

  • Startup finding reality TV series The Vault makes debut

    Startup finding reality TV series The Vault makes debut

    MUMBAI: The Indian version of Dragon’s Den – on which the iconic Mark Burnett show Shark Tank is based – is being readied to hit Indian TV screens come 1 October 2016. Called The Vault, the reality TV series is looking to fund start ups and nouveau entrepreneurial ideas.

    Each wannabe entrepreneur will get a chance to pitch his idea before a six member strong investor panel and get his or her idea funded to the tune of Rs 1 lakh to Rs 1 crore.

    The 12 episodic show spanning over 30 minutes will enable startups, household businesses, aspiring entrepreneurs with an extraordinary idea, or an established venture an opportunity to expand. The idea is to finance and mentor 36 entrepreneurs by the end of the show.

    But even before The Vault has gone on the floors, it seems to have to run into some sort of controversy. Which is what its American predecessor- Shark Tank – is known for.

    Jatin Goel, the creative brains behind it, says that it will air every Saturday at 7:30 pm on ET Now and every Sunday at 11:30 pm on Times Now. But the channel spokesperson told indiantelevision.com that nothing has been finalized yet.

    However Goel says that he has a signed contract with the Times Group for The Vault.
    Says he: “We have signed a contract with Times Group to discover the next big idea for startups to expand through The Vault. This show is a first-of-its-kind initiative in India towards developing a robust environment that fosters innovation and drives growth for promising business ideas irrespective of the sector they operate in.”

    Goel added that he will be helming the show.

    And he says the procedure to get a shot at the millions on the show has been kept very simple. Entrepreneurs have to register themselves on the show’s website by filling an application form with personal, company or idea related details and the funding expected by coughing up Rs 300 as a one time non-refundable fee. Applicants have to also mention how much equity they are willing to part and for what value. The last announced date of applications is 31 August 2016.

    Accepted applications will be screened and will be shortlisted for the first round of auditions in which each entrepreneur will be grilled about his idea by experts telephonically. A total of 100 applications will be taken forward from this round.

    The shortlisted 100 applications will have to upload a two minute video for the second audition round. From this, the list will be whittled down further to the final list of just 50.

    Goel strongly believes that the Indian entrepreneurial landscape is currently at its peak. “India has the third-largest and the fastest-growing startup ecosystem in the world. The growth witnessed by SMEs and household and rural businesses also indicates that there are many more milestones yet to be achieved.”

    The jury of six will – consisting of self-made millionaires who have already proven their mettle in various backgrounds- retail, technology, real-estate, FMCG, food, health, automobile industry- will judge the entrepreneurs on their idea or startup’s uniqueness and feasibility.

    The investors will be revealed one-by-one on TV and social media through various campaigns.

    A crew of 30 will be filming the show in Film City, Noida, starting the first week of September. An eight multicamera set up is being designed – with four cameras profiling the investors and their closeups when they are talking, two will zoom in on the entrepreneurs as they are pitching and their product showcase, and two will be used for long shots showing both the investor and entrepreneurs in one frame.

    As far as marketing is concerned, Goel says the show will be promoted highly on digital and will have some brand integration involved in it. He and his team are currently in talks with seven or eight advertisers to hop on board for this show.

    “We have not fixed any deals yet. There is no specific sector that we are targeting. Any company which can relate to our concept can be on board,” voiced Goel.

    Plans are afoot to launch a YouTube channel post the show’s run. Apart from a big push on digital, the show will also be marketed on TV, radio, print with various hoardings in metros mainly Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai. The anchors from various channels falling under Times Network will also talk about the show.

    Will it do well in India? The wagers are on. The Subhash Chandra show on Zee Business has also been running for a couple of years . Shark Tank, which aired on Viacom18 English entertainment channel Colors Infinity earlier this year , met with a muted audience response according to reports. The challenge for The Vault does not only lie in securing advertiser backing but also in gaining its audience.

  • Network18’s Joy Chakraborthy gets additional role as Forbes India CEO

    Network18’s Joy Chakraborthy gets additional role as Forbes India CEO

    MUMBAI: Joy Chakraborthy gets added responsibility as Forbes India CEO at Network18. Two months, Chakraborthy joined Network18 as president for revenue and business development in May 2016 and now he will be overseeing Forbes India as well.

    Chakraborthy comes with over twenty years of experience in the media industry and has worked across top companies such as the Times Group, where he was director-response handling the biggest revenue portfolio. Prior to that, he headed the Zee group as executive director in charge of revenues, channel placement and the entire niche channel business portfolio. He also served TV Today network as CEO soon after the Zee stint. He has also spent his early years as executive vice president at Star India for six years heading advertising sales of all the channels.

    Graduated from the National Defense Academy with a Master’s degree in marketing management from NMIMS. He has also completed Advanced Management Programme from the Harvard Business School.

  • Network18’s Joy Chakraborthy gets additional role as Forbes India CEO

    Network18’s Joy Chakraborthy gets additional role as Forbes India CEO

    MUMBAI: Joy Chakraborthy gets added responsibility as Forbes India CEO at Network18. Two months, Chakraborthy joined Network18 as president for revenue and business development in May 2016 and now he will be overseeing Forbes India as well.

    Chakraborthy comes with over twenty years of experience in the media industry and has worked across top companies such as the Times Group, where he was director-response handling the biggest revenue portfolio. Prior to that, he headed the Zee group as executive director in charge of revenues, channel placement and the entire niche channel business portfolio. He also served TV Today network as CEO soon after the Zee stint. He has also spent his early years as executive vice president at Star India for six years heading advertising sales of all the channels.

    Graduated from the National Defense Academy with a Master’s degree in marketing management from NMIMS. He has also completed Advanced Management Programme from the Harvard Business School.

  • Rajnish Rikhy joins BCCL as director of response

    Rajnish Rikhy joins BCCL as director of response

    MUMBAI: Rajnish Rikhy has moved to Bennett, Coleman & Company Ltd (Times Group) as the director of response. He will handle all the metros and various other verticals of the business.

    Prior to this, he was the chief revenue officer of the Hindi channels (Aaj Tak, Delhi Aaj Tak and Tej) cluster. Before joining TV Today Network, Rikhy served at BCCL New Delhi as vice president(R). He had previously worked with BCCL in the response function for a period of 16 years, from October 1988 to June 2004.

    It is also reported that BCCL has elevated S Sivakumar to a new role as president of revenue. He will report to the CEO of BCCL. In his new role, Sivakumar will be responsible for both response and brand capital functions.

    “During his long tenure at BCCL, Siva has displayed stellar leadership in his various roles and brings a wealth of experience and professional accomplishments which can propel our key revenue functions like response and brand capital to the next level,” BCCL managing director Vineet Jain said in an internal note to the employees.

    Rikhy will be based out of Times House, Delhi, and will report to Sivakumar.