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Tag: Times Network

  • Romedy NOW celebrates Children’s Day with #WingsToDream

    Romedy NOW celebrates Children’s Day with #WingsToDream

    MUMBAI: Romedy Now, India’s one of the leading English Entertainment Channel celebrates this Children’s Day with its unique initiative, #WingsToDream that empowers children to explore and live their dreams.

    In partnership with CRY and Kidzania, Romedy Now organized day long workshops in Mumbai and Delhi for children from less privileged backgrounds, giving them an opportunity to experience myriad directions that their careers can take. Capturing the essence of this on-ground activity with the heartfelt moments of the children who experienced a world of opportunities, Romedy Now released a special video across the channel’s platforms on November 14, 2019.

    Perfectly in sync with the brand’s proposition, ‘Love. Laugh. Live.’ and in context of Children’s Day, the channel launches the #WingsToDream initiative to infuse more happiness into children’s lives.

    Delivering a powerful message on the importance of a defined career direction, #WingsToDream encourages Romedy Now viewers to motivate an aspiring child, by doing something very simple, convenient and yet, potentially life changing. Viewers are requested to narrate their own career stories to any child who is pursuing an education and might not have the relevant reference circle to seek guidance and inspiration. Through this simple effort, a child might be given that spark which was missing in their life and be motivated to discover newer possibilities of what this world might have in store for them.

    Times Network President – Strategy and Business Head – English Entertainment Cluster Vivek Srivastava said, “It’s every individual’s responsibility to make sure that our next generation enjoys equal opportunities to build their lives, regardless of their socio-economic status. Moulding the young minds to dream and aspire, thisChildren’s Day we are working towards opening a world of hopes and dreams for the children, who are devoid of the right exposure and guidance. We believe that our viewers can play a significant role in motivating these children in realising their true potential and we hope to positively influence our society to take this step towards shaping the future of the children.”

    Celebrating Children’s Day, Romedy Now has also curated a special on air property, ‘Naughty & Nice’, showcasing a line-up of animated movies including Mune, Sherlock Gnomes, Cloudy With A Chance Of Meatballs and Sing on November 14, 2019 from 10.15 am to 4:15pm.

  • Times Network to launch ET NOW in Canada

    Times Network to launch ET NOW in Canada

    MUMBAI: Times Network, India’s premium broadcast network announced the launch of ET NOW in Canada after successfully locking a distribution deal with Ethnic Channels Group (ECG), world's largest ethnic broadcaster that operates 100+ television channels across the globe. The partnership was concretized during MIPCOM 2019 at Cannes, France.

    A purpose driven leader in its category, ET NOW is the first Indian English business news channel that will be available in Canada, offering South Asian viewers a wide spectrum of business news. With the brand ethos, Rise with India, ET NOW focuses on matters that affects India’s inclusive development and empowers the discerning Indian diasporic viewers to take part in India’s growth story. Significantly expanding its foot print in North America, ET NOW offers curated content such as India Development Debate, Start Up Central, The Money Show, India Tonight and more with a holistic deliberation on the Indian financial markets, global and local trends impacting the economy.

    Commenting on the partnership, Times Network COO & Executive President Jagdish Mulchandani said, “We are excited to bring ET NOW in Canada through our partnership with ECG, the foremost broadcast leader in the region. ET NOW has raised the bar for the English business news category in India and I am confident this launch will further enrich our offering for the South Asian viewers in the region.”

    “In today's global market, consumption of business news and information will only continue to increase. As a company that understands both content and technology, ECG is very proud to partner with the Times Group to launch ET Now in Canada", said ECG Co-Founder and CEO Slava Levin.

    Times Network has presence in over 100 countries and is an expert curator of segmented and differentiated content across genres.

  • Hindi news genre sees 22% growth in beginning of festive quarter

    Hindi news genre sees 22% growth in beginning of festive quarter

    MUMBAI: According to BARC data, this year festive season has brought 22 per cent viewership growth on Hindi news channels. The genre has recorded 988.5 million average impressions from week 33 to 39 2019 whereas the average impressions in 2018 were 811.7 million in the respective week of 2018. Ad insertions also grew by 4 per cent this year on the genre. Last year from week 33 to 39 there were 551,535 ad insertions and this year the number has jumped to 571,649.

    This year, due to the general election, Pulwama attack and few other events, news channels have grabbed the interest of various brands and festive season also added to the growth of viewership. ABP News CEO Avinash Pandey said, “News as a genre is very dynamic. There is never a dull period. If you look at this year, it kick-started with major events – like Pulwama, Balakot strike, General election, Article 370 and now three state elections. Needless to say, it will be an action-packed time.”

    He also said, “Festive season is a fantastic time for news genre since there are several categories that are super active especially categories like automobile, retail, services and e-commerce. These categories advertise heavily on news genre to maximise their reach and take full advantage of this celebratory period when people spend more.”

    “Festive season always brings cheers and enthusiasm as far as ads are concerned. The industry witnesses about 25 to 30 per cent growth in the festive quarter. Channels plan specific launches and revise programming line-up to get better viewership during this period because advertising happens on the boom in viewership,” said Times Network English entertainment cluster president – strategy and business head Vivek Srivastava.

    TG for Hindi News Genre: HSM 15+
    Data Period – W33-39 2018 and 2019

    Week 33-39

    2018

    2019

    Growth

    Avg Impressions

    Avg Impressions

    Hindi News Genre

    811.7 Mn

    988.5 Mn

    22%
           
           

    Week 33-39

    2018

    2019

    Growth

    Ad Insertions

    Ad Insertions

    Hindi News Genre

    5,51,535

    5,71,649

    4%

    However, newscasters are noticing a dip in the post-festive season from the last 2-3 years. Pandey also added that ad rates have not been in sync with the festive trend. “Television ad volumes have been a bit stagnant in the last few months as against a decline in print and radio volumes. However, TV advertising volumes are beginning to see an upward trend with the approaching festive season,” Network18 English & business cluster CEO Basant Dhawan opined.

    “In FY19, the English news genre saw around 6 per cent increase over the previous year but CNN-News18 saw a humongous jump of 32 per cent over the last year in viewership terms. We are hoping the same trend to continue given the new programming impetus we are providing,” said Dhawan.

    However, if we look at the BARC data, the beginning of the festival quarter recorded negative growth in the English news genre’s viewership and ad insertions. Week 33 to 39, 2019 had few regional festivals like Ganesh Chaturthi, Onam, Parsi New Year and Raksha Bandhan. The genre had witnessed -29 per cent growth in that respective week. Last year the average impressions on English news channels were 4 million and this year the average impression fell to 2.8 million. Similarly in those weeks, the ad insertions also recorded negative growth by 27 per cent. Last year on the genre there were 169,456 ad insertions from week 33 to 39, this year Ad insertions also fell to 123,290.

    TG for English News Genre: India/AB Male 22+
    Data Period – W33-39 2018 and 2019

     

    Week 33-39

    2018

    2019

    Growth

    Avg Impressions

    Avg Impressions

    English News Genre

    4 Mn

    2.8 Mn

    -29%
           
           

    Week 33-39

    2018

    2019

    Growth

    Ad Insertions

    Ad Insertions

    English News Genre

    1,69,456

    1,23,290

    -27%

    But Dhawan remained positive as the rest of the festive week might see huge interest from brands. He said, “Post the General Elections period there was an anticipated marginal decline in the television news advertising volumes especially so in English news genre. As I mentioned earlier we are now at the cusp of the festive season where the demand is going up. We are seeing interest from various brands on our new programming initiatives on both CNN-News18 and CNBC TV18. In fact, the new programming is being offered to brands at a premium pricing.”

    Srivastava also commented on the impact of economic slowdown on the channels, he said, “There is some slowdown in the market but the good part is that the brands are doing well. Our brands are in a strong place and geared up to turn around the economy slow down. We are having a positive conversation happening with the advertisers. We have number 1 and Number 2 brands in the portfolio and the slowdown will impact smaller brands rather than the bigger one because bigger brands have stable viewership.”

    News Channels Programming strategies for festive season:

    To attract advertisers’ attention news broadcasters have developed programming strategies during the festive seasons. ABP News’ regional channels came up with special shows focussing on regional festivals. “We have structured our programming aptly to give viewers a taste of this festive period. Sharad Ananda is the biggest Flagship Programme of ABP Ananda that captures the true spirit of the Durga Puja festival in Bengal and grabs a million eyeballs. It is the most comprehensive coverage of Durga Puja from across the globe. For ABP Asmita, we have Garba Samman which brings to viewers Navratri celebrations across Surat, Rajkot, Baroda and Ahmedabad,” said Pandey.

    Whereas, Network18’s Hindi news channels and English channels focused on the market trends. Speaking on its revamped programme line-up Dhawan said, “A lot of new programming has been developed. For instance on CNBC TV-18, we have launched a brand new show ‘Startup Street’, where one will get to see stories of entrepreneurial successes, expert advice for business challenges and insights from the leaders of India Inc., leveraging on the new drivers of the new economy – the startups. The same show concept in Hindi ‘Startup Nation’ reaching out to the Hindi speaking belt of India will be launched on CNBC Awaaz on 23 September. Looking at the consumer interest and current volatility in the markets, and the insatiable appetite that Indians have for the yellow metal, we have launched a show called Gold Spot on CNBC Awaaz. It will be a one-stop guide for everything one needs to know about gold – from industry issues, latest jewellery trends to gold funds.”

    He also informed, “Also on CNN-News 18 we are trying to break the norms of the standard programming in the English news genre; on 16 September, we had revamped our prime time lineup. Viewpoint in a new format launched at 5.57 pm where seasoned journalist Bhupendra Chaubey brings the citizens’ voice to centre stage from across the length and breadth of India. The Right Stand which has been reconceived as a 90-minute hardcore debate show with a nation-first philosophy at its core to be hosted by Anand Narasimhan. This show also had live viewers’ participation. We have moved News Epicentre to 10.26 pm where Marya Shakil presented burning political stories of the day with the biggest political voices and newsmakers present. Overall the new primetime lineup will bring all key stories in various formats such as discussions, debate & explainers which we think will help our viewers get to details of the stories in a unique, informative and engaging manner.”

  • Movies NOW, Romedy NOW and MNX celebrate Diwali with special movie line up

    Movies NOW, Romedy NOW and MNX celebrate Diwali with special movie line up

    Mumbai: Spreading the festive cheer, Times Network's English Entertainment channels, Movies NOW, Romedy NOW and MNX, has curated special properties offering wholesome entertainment to its viewers this Diwali. Showcasing best in class English entertainment, Movies Now, Romedy Now and MNX present the perfect opportunity for the viewers to spend this festive season with their families and binge watch their all-time favourite Hollywood movies.

    Oodles of entertainment is on the menu this Diwali as the all-new refreshed Romedy NOW showcases two crackling properties titled ‘Diwali Delights’ and ‘Cracker of A Film Festival’. With an eclectic mix of Hollywood titles, ‘Diwali Delights’, every Monday to Friday at 11 PM till October 28, includes an amazing line-up of movies such as, Ted 2, Love the Coopers, Burnt, Aloha, Friends with Benefits and many more. Offering a Diwali special movie marathon with ‘Cracker of A Film Festival’ on October 26 & 27 at 1 pm to 5pm, the viewers will get a chance to binge watch some of the most loved Hollywood films such as Girls Trip, Fifty Shades Darker, Jerry Maguire, Made of Honour, Sherlock Holmes and The Hero.

    Keeping the festive spirits high, MOVIES NOW with ‘Flash & Flare’, is set to bring an amazing selection of Hollywood blockbusters including, The Avengers, The Amazing Spiderman 2, The Amazing Spiderman, Guardians of Galaxy, Moana, Finding Nemo amongst others, every night at 9 pm till October 26.

    Electrifying the celebrations, MNX’s special property ‘Xplosive Nights’, promises to enthral the audiences every Monday to Friday at 9:00 PM till October 30, 2019 with the movies, Rogue One, Pirates of the Caribbean, The Magnificent 7, Ghostbusters, The Emoji Movie, Bruce Almighty and many more.

    This Diwali, witness the best of English Entertainment on Romedy NOW, MOVIES NOW & MNX!

  • Nikhil Gandhi moves to TikTok from Times Network

    Nikhil Gandhi moves to TikTok from Times Network

    MUMBAI: TikTok has appointed Nikhil Gandhi as Tiktok India head. In his new role Gandhi will be responsible development and operation of TikTok India. Prior to the new appointment, Gandhi was associated with Times Network as President and COO.

    Gandhi has over 20 years of experience in leadership positions at various media and entertainment companies. He has spent around 10 years working The Walt Disney Company from 2007 to 2017. He began his career as an account manager at Viacom18 in 2004. After one year he moved to Times Group as regional head from 2005 to 2007.

    Prior to The Walt Disney, Gandhi had joined UTV in 2007 as business head, he spent almost 6 years with the company.

  • Broadcasters want mandatory DD channels to be part of NCF base pack

    Broadcasters want mandatory DD channels to be part of NCF base pack

    MUMBAI: Prasar Bharati and other private broadcasters want the 25 DD mandatory channels to be part of 100 FTA channels permitted in the Network Capacity Fee of Rs 130. The public broadcaster is of the view that the channels notified by the central government should be made available to subscribers without any additional monetary burden on the subscribers.

    The public broadcaster has shared its comments only related to the question of whether 25 DD mandatory channels be over and above the One hundred channels permitted in the NCF of Rs 130 in Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI)’s consultation paper on tariff-related issue for broadcasting and cable services.

    Private broadcasters like Zee TV, Sony Entertainment Television, Discovery Communications, Times Network and IBF have shared similar views on the question raised by TRAI.

    TRAI had received several consumer complaints wherein consumers have shown concerns about the mandatory DD channels within one hundred channels. Consumers are of view that since NCF is prescribed to cater for 100 SD channels capacity, subscribers must be allowed the freedom to select 100 SD channels. Mandatory 25 channels of DD are an additional burden on the consumers. They are of the opinion that either customers should be given freedom not to choose any/all DD mandatory channels or these channels should be over and above the 100 channels selected by the subscriber.

    Therefore, the authority had asked the industry in its consultation, Whether 25 DD mandatory channels be over and above the One hundred channels permitted in the NCF of Rs. 130/-? To which Prasar Bharati commented that 25 channels notified by the central government should be available to all even if the subscribers is not able to renew its subscription still they should be able to avail public broadcasting services.

    It further said, “Since the STBs are not yet technically interoperable Prasar Bharati is of the view that in case a subscriber does not renew its subscription, the notified channel should continue to be available to such subscribers in order to benefit the subscribers to avail public broadcasting services. This will ensure dissemination of any information of national importance to the subscribers, whether his connection is active or not at that time. However, for such subscribers, any repair or maintenance charges towards customer premises equipment shall be payable by the subscriber as per rates prescribed by the operator. This will also help containing e-waste.”

    “These channels are primarily public service broadcasting channels intended to inform, educate and entertain the masses of India. In fact, the intent of the government, and rightly so, is to provide these channels of the public service broadcaster and channels of Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha to the citizens of India, free of cost, through any possible means of licensed/authorised delivery mechanism. Therefore, it is necessary that, in provisioning of these channels by various DPOs to their subscribers, no condition should be prescribed by them which affects reachability of such channels to the masses,” it opined. 

    IBF said, “It should be a part of the 100 channels. In view of the aforesaid regulatory regime already existing, it is in the best of interest of the subscribers, the authority allows the system to grow at the current existing practices and then review after a period of two years.

    Discovery Communications said, “In our opinion, the system currently introduced and in place should be continued and tested for a longer period of time. There should not be any changes made in the NCF pack even before the new regime is fully implemented. In our view, TRAI should allow the current NCF pack to continue with 25 DD channels for at least 2 years before it starts reviewing the regime again. Therefore, in our opinion, the 25 mandatory DD channels should continue to be included in the 100 FTA channels permitted in the NCF of Rs 130.”

    Times network said, “The Doordarshan channels are important channels and they should be included in the basic tier. A consumer would not mind watching these channels/ having access to these channels or paying small amount of NCF charges for the same keeping the national interest in mind.”

    Zee TV also said that the 25 DD mandatory channels should be provided to each and every subscriber by the DPO within the initial 100 channels only.  

  • Times Network wins ‘Client of the Year’ at Big Bang Awards 2019

    Times Network wins ‘Client of the Year’ at Big Bang Awards 2019

    MUMBAI: Times Network, India’s premium broadcast network won 10 prominent awards at the recently concluded 24th edition of Big Bang Awards 2019 for Creative Excellence.  The network bagged the special award, ‘Client of the Year’ and 9 metals (2 gold; 4 silver and 3 Bronze) for its breakthrough marketing campaigns across its news brands.

    Times Network’s campaign in line with TRAI’s new tariff regime that captured the distinct attributes of its strong bouquet of influential brands – M.A.N (Movies and News) Pack campaign was awarded with a silver in TV Channels – Radio category and the network also received a bronze for India For Kerala Fundraiser in TV Channels – Press category for its exemplary efforts that helped rebuild the lives affected in the 2018 Kerala floods. With 6 awards across the categories of TV Channels and News Programs, TIMES NOW winning streak included 2 gold (OOH) and 1 silver (digital) for 2019 Election Result day promotion campaign- ‘India ka Result’ for successfully building intrigue and anticipation among viewers around election results. TIMES NOW’s one of a kind voter welfare initiative, Swachh Neta won 1 silver and 2 bronze across the categories, press, digital and OOH respectively.  MIRROR NOW’s witty and thought-provoking election campaign that reached out to first time voters, Get Inked – Dadi Vs Pota secured a silver in the TV channels – Digital category.

    Big Bang Awards celebrates some of the finest creative work in advertising, across 12 categories spanning Print, TV, Radio and even new age Digital and Mobile platforms. The jury panel for this year had over 20 prominent Advertising professionals including Raj Nayak, Harish Bijoor, Sundar Madakshira, KV Sridhar and Ashok Lallla to judge the entries.

    Award details below.

    Category

    Sub-Category

    Entry Title

    Brand

    Metal Won

    TV Channels

    Digital

    Swachh Neta

    TIMES NOW

    Bronze

    TV Channels

    Digital

    Get Inked – Dadi Vs Pota rap battle

    MIRROR NOW

    Silver

    TV Channels

    Out of Home

    May 23 – India ka Result

    TIMES NOW

    Gold

    TV Channels

    Out of Home

    Swachh Neta – Dabbawala activation

    TIMES NOW

    Bronze

    TV Channels

    Press

    Swachh Neta

    TIMES NOW

    Silver

    TV Channels

    Press

    India for Kerala – Fundraiser

    TIMES NETWORK

    Bronze

    TV Channels

    Radio

    M.A.N pack

    TIMES NETWORK

    Silver

    News Programs

    Digital

    May 23 – India ka Result

    TIMES NOW

    Silver

    News Programs

    Out of Home

    May 23 – India ka Result

    TIMES NOW

    Gold
  • Nikhil Gandhi quits Times Network as COO & president: reports

    Nikhil Gandhi quits Times Network as COO & president: reports

    MUMBAI: Times Network COO and president Nikhil Gandhi has resigned from his role, as per reports. Gandhi joined Times Network in February 2017 as revenue head and in July 2019 he was promoted as COO and president.

    This was his second stint with the network. He was part of the core team of Zoom during the launch of the channel.

    Prior to Times Network, Gandhi was associated with The Walt Disney Company and his last held position at Disney was vice president. He was also the business head at UTV. Gandhi began his career with Viacom18 in 2004 and moved to Bennett and Coleman and Co Ltd in January 2005.

    Gandhi has around 17 years of experience in media with revenue and business specialisation.

  • Times Network clarifies that Faye D’Souza has not resigned

    Times Network clarifies that Faye D’Souza has not resigned

    MUMBAI: After reports suggested that Times Network's Faye D'Souza has quit, the network has clarified that she continues to be associated with it. Times stated that D’Souza has moved away from managing daily operations into specialised shows.

    Times Network has released an official statement on Faye D’Souza’s resignation. The network said, “Regarding ongoing speculation surrounding Faye D’Souza’s disengagement with Mirror Now, this is to clarify that Faye continues to be associated with Times Network and Mirror Now.”

    It further said, “Having played a pivotal role in establishing a strong position for Mirror Now, Faye moves away from managing daily operations of the brand and will now be responsible for creating and presenting flagship shows on Mirror Now in addition to steering new shows, IPs and ground events for the network.”

    The Times network’s English news channel Mirror Now was launched in April 2017 and D'Souza was appointed as a senior editor. D'Souza started her journalism career with All India Radio, while she was a student. She worked as a post graduate journalist at CNBC TV 18 in 2003 and later moved on to reporting about mutual funds, insurance and personal finance. She ran three weekly shows on ET Now – Investor’s Guide, All About Stocks and The Property Guide.

  • Mirror Now executive editor Faye D’Souza resigns

    Mirror Now executive editor Faye D’Souza resigns

    MUMBAI: Mirror Now's executive editor Faye D'Souza has resigned. Times Network consulting editor Vinay Tiwari is said to be replacing D’Souza and will be the managing editor at Mirror Now, as per media reports.

    The Times network’s English news channel Mirror Now was launched in April 2017 and D'Souza was appointed as a senior editor. D'Souza started her journalism career with All India Radio, while she was a student. She worked as a post graduate journalist at CNBC TV 18 in 2003 and later moved on to reporting about mutual funds, insurance and personal finance. She ran three weekly shows on ET Now – Investor’s Guide, All About Stocks and The Property Guide.