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Tag: TRP

  • 3 Reasons why news industry is miffed with BARC

    3 Reasons why news industry is miffed with BARC

    NEW DELHI: The recent TRP manipulation scam has reopened old wounds that news channels and Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) had been mending. The genre had never been absolutely satisfied with how the authority is measuring ratings and the recent sequence of events has once again brought the matter to the fore. At the recently concluded News Television Summit hosted by Indiantelevision.com, several speakers from the news world pointed out the errors that they feel BARC is making in measuring news TRPs. Here is a comprehensive overview:

    1.  Incorrect Sample Size

    Zee News CEO and editor-in-chief Sudhir Chaudhary pointed out, “I think the main problem with BARC ratings is that the sample size is so small. Statistically speaking, we are a 32,000 crore industry and BARC has its meter in just 44,000 homes. As we traditionally say that of the overall sample size only 10 per cent watch news, we are left with just 4,400 boxes, which is very less for a huge market like India.”

    2.  Incorrect Data Points 

    ABP News Network CEO Avinash Pandey, who has been an open critic of the BARC measurement systems, stated that he’s against the minute-by-minute stock market-like analysis of news shows, where BARC points out at what precise moment the TRP took a jump. According to him, this is prompting all the news channels to run a similar sort of programming and picking up a similar tone with its stories. He said, “Until and unless BARC effectively manages the impact of news, and not just the number of people watching the channel for a certain time, unfortunately, we all will be in the rat race of chasing the ratings and it will destroy our businesses, people’s lives, and our country.”

    3.  Improvement Needed in the Backend

    Times Network MD & CEO MK Anand stated, “From what I’ve seen in the last four years, fixing the back-end of the measurement mechanism is required. BARC CEO Sunil Lulla has been trying to bring a lot of sense to the process. He has been continuously improving it. But whether it is inside BARC or outside, there are people who break ranks and resort to corrupt means. We have seen them use shortcuts to get to the numbers and that is not acceptable.” 

    According to the industry, these drawbacks have also degraded the quality of programmes that news channels are running these days. They highlighted that the blind contest for maximum TRPs has prompted news outlets to run similar shows with little to no differentiation, which in turn is harming the industry as a whole. 

    While BARC under Sunil Lulla is making strides in streamlining the measurement process for the better, there are still loopholes that need to be filled. 

  • Those who flaunted BARC ratings are questioning it now: TV9’s Barun Das

    Those who flaunted BARC ratings are questioning it now: TV9’s Barun Das

    NEW DELHI: TV9 CEO Barun Das says he feels like an outcast. While he’s unsure whether BARC’s decision to hit the pause button on TRP for news channels will prove to be good or bad in the long run, he thinks singling out the news business in this way is cause for concern.

    “When I find that only the news television ratings has been suspended, that makes me feel that I’m standing with a bunch of people who are possibly suspicious. I don’t think there’s something wrong with the industry per se, a few unscrupulous acts may happen here and there. But if it were my decision, I wouldn’t have cast the entire industry in the light of suspicion,” he said during a virtual foresight session with indiantelevision.com founder, CEO and editor-in-chief Anil Wanvari at the News Television Awards Summit 2020.

    He has complete confidence in the BARC and points out what he perceives to be the double standards in the industry: “BARC rating was flaunted by those who are now questioning it. It is uncanny… that people complain against the currency only when they are victimised, otherwise it’s all hunky-dory. You have got to have a standard that is consistent.”

    At the same time, Das recommends strict action against any person or organisation who is found to be running afoul of the system. “Any malpractice or tampering from a news player should attract capital punishment. It should be zero tolerance,” he asserts.

    The investigation into the TRP racket, be it by law enforcement agencies or BARC’s own internal probe, will not just affect the news industry but also have larger ramifications on the society as a whole, believes Das. “So when people speak of ‘intervention’ or ‘malpractice’, we need to be extra cautious because we have the responsibility of forming the country’s opinions.”

    Read our coverage of the NT Awards 2020

    So what should BARC do to plug the gaps in its system? The TV9 CEO has some ideas.

    “Why not have a technical cut-off? Instead of out-casting one genre, say that below a certain figure, the sample or statistical methods have larger margins of error so these other genres which fall below this number would also be suspended. Checks and balances need to be built in to make the system fool-proof.”

    Das also admits that he has radical views when it comes to the advertising-driven business model that presently holds sway over most of the news industry. Without taking names, he highlights the hazards of aping content that seems to be doing well in terms of ratings, without analysing the long-term consequences of pandering to the masses.  

    He illustrates with an analogy: “Let’s say the currency that we have says that consumers are enjoying circus on a news channel during primetime. In a free society, whatever the consumer is expecting you tend to give that more in your content. By the end of the year, you’ll see almost all the channels are showing circus on primetime and viewers who didn’t like it have no choice but to watch circus too. And they would eventually start liking the circus. That’s the risk the country faces by going wrong in our ratings.”

    Das is of the view that news channels should have a model that is fully subscription-based; an advertising-driven news operation is an oxymoron and there is something fundamentally wrong with that system. “If somebody is a large advertiser of mine, how much will I expose him if there’s something going wrong at his end?” he quips.

    But the winds of change are slowly but surely coming. In the West, newer formats of news commentary and engagement are coming up where influencers and multi-channel digital networks are challenging the legacy players. And it's only a matter of time before this catches on in India too. Wanvari asks Das what he predicts will happen to the traditional broadcast industry in such a scenario.

    “The convergence of news originator and consumer will be brought in by the digital world, I’ve said this before. The broadcast sector will give way to digital platforms. The latter lacks intervention at the moment but it’s on auto-correct mode. But organised players will always be there. They will seamlessly transform themselves from a traditional TV business to more digital news content business,” he said.

  • Primetime : News vs TRP

    Primetime : News vs TRP

    KOLKATA: Major news channels in India have been criticised lately for turning primetime into a “farce”. The coverage of late actor Sushant Singh Rajput’s death has further tainted news media’s image, sparking the debate if they should relook at content. While some editors believe the industry needs to re-examine primetime, another section asserts they are doing it every day.

    In a panel during NT Awards 2020 hosted by Indiantelevision.com and moderated by founder, CEO and editor-in-chief Anil Wanvari, renowned Indian journalists shared their views. Times Now editor in chief Rahul Shivshankar said that editors have always been singled out for the quality of news. But of late, a lot of control has been taken away from editors on what they can play. According to him, the industry is running on an unviable business model.

    Shivshankar explained that news channels focus on TRP as it is intrinsically linked to advertising. He is of the view that if news business can be insulated from maniac TRP pressure and fluctuations, editors in the newsroom will be able to have control over the content. “The system for BARC to NBSA is very convoluted and needs to be brought down,” he added.

    India Today and Aaj Tak news director Rahul Kanwal contradicted this view. He acknowledged that there is always pressure for ratings, business, advertising, but that is no reason to sell the soul. He emphasised that it is important to believe in the stories one is doing.

    News channels have been roundly criticised for ignoring other important developing issues during the SSR incident, but Kanwal denied the charge. He said that it was not the only story covered by them and they gave equal importance to stories on the economy and the Covid2019 crisis. However, if something goes wrong, it is important to be open to fixing those mistakes, he added.

    Wion executive editor Palki Sharma Upadhyay claimed that the TRP currency is flawed and the sample size is too small. Yet, some of the channels are dictated by the system. She also echoed Shivshankar’s view that the flaw of the system can’t be blamed entirely on editors. The blame is on viewers too because they watch those shows. But she also added that editors cannot deny the responsibility that comes with the position. She is of the view that there are various ways to bring revenue other than following the TRP model blindly.

    Upadhyay also highlighted another issue that nowadays editors often follow social media agendas to decide primetime rather than applying their mind. Since the top editors themselves are influencers, they can prevent news content from turning into entertainment shows if they unite.  Moreover, anchors need to stop being overdramatic as they are the face of news programmes, she added.

    News18 India managing editor Kishore Ajwani agreed that primetime shows are identified with anchors. It is their opinion, and how they engage that leaves an impact. “I believe that all of us re-examine the prime time shows every day in all aspects – content, format, guests and others,” he said.

    “At the end of the day, it’s a screen and you have got a remote. If you do not like a story, switch the screen. No one has put a gun to your head. We do what we believe should be done,” Ajwani declared.

    Amid all the chaos, TRP and advertising have been blamed mostly for deterioration of news content. Times Now’s Shivshankar added that the channels should move to subscription led models gradually. He also noted that a huge chunk of Times Now’s revenue is coming from subscription. 

  • BARC fires back at Republic for misrepresenting private emails

    BARC fires back at Republic for misrepresenting private emails

    KOLKATAT: The TRP rigging tale has developed a new twist with BARC India expressing disappointment over Republic Network’s action in in making public,  private and confidential communications between the agency and the newscaster and misrepresenting the same. Earlier in the day, Republic Media had  come out with a statement claiming that the TV measurement body has no complaints against it.

    “BARC India reiterates that it has not commented on the ongoing investigation and without prejudice to BARC India’s rights, it expresses its dismay at the actions of the Republic Network,” the ratings body has said in a release issued a short while ago.

    The news network had in its statement issued a few years back revealed that Republic CEO Vikas Khanchandani has in his possession an official email from BARC in which it has said “there is not a single complaint or malpractice found against Republic TV, Republic Bharat or any other affiliate of the news network.”

    Republic had crowed  that the email “crumbles the pack of lies floated and repeated over the last nine days by Param Bir Singh and a section of the media.”

    According to Republic Media, it received an email from BARC India on 17 October 2020, in which the agency stated that: “If there was any disciplinary action initiated under the said code against M/s ARG Outlier Media Private Ltd., then BARC India would have communicated the same to you along with necessary documents for your response.”

    In response to the network’s claim, BARC has not only voiced its discontent with the statement but also reiterated that it is providing necessary assistance to the law enforcement agency, namely the Mumbai Police.

  • Republic Media provides proof of its innocence in TRP rigging charges

    Republic Media provides proof of its innocence in TRP rigging charges

    NEW DELHI: Republic Media Network has come out with a statement in which it is claiming a thumping victory against the “fake news propaganda being spread by the Mumbai police about it being found guilty of rigging viewership ratings.”

    Republic CEO Vikas Khanchandani has in his possession an official email from the viewership ratings agency Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) in which it has said “there is not a single complaint or malpractice found against Republic TV, Republic Bharat or any other affiliate of the news network.”

    The Arnab Goswami founded news network has been claiming from day one of the TRP rigging press conference organised by the Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh that the law keeper has been perpetrating vendetta against him.

    The Republic Media release states that the email “crumbles the pack of lies floated and repeated over the last nine days by Param Bir Singh and a section of the media.”

    The statement mentions that Republic Media received an email from BARC on 17 October 2020, in which the agency has stated that: “If there was any disciplinary action initiated under the said Code against M/s ARG Outlier Media Private Ltd., then BARC India would have communicated the same to you along with necessary documents for your response.”

    With this documentary evidence by BARC out in the public domain, Republic says that three things have been proven: 

    ·   The Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh’s comments against Republic TV were “blatantly false, lies and an extension of political vendetta. It is now incumbent on him to apologise for his lie-ridden campaign against India’s Number 1 news network.”

    ·   That every word uttered across certain sections of the media is false, unsubstantiated and fake news. “Now that the truth is out in the public domain, the onus is now on those portals to correct themselves, apologise for the fake news and put out the truth.”

    ·   The Republic Media Network which runs on the highest professional and journalistic standards has been “vindicated after a nine day slander campaign curated by vested interests and we have been duly informed that there was never a case against us.”

    The news network has demanded that serious action needs to be taken against the police commissioner as well as the political masters behind him, should they be involved for going on a tirade against it based on a series of lies. It says that it is going to fight against any forces and come out unscathed, no matter how hard the Mumbai police or anyone else tries to intimidate and harass it. “We will comply with the law of the land, but not for a moment give in to the coercive attempts to shut down our pursuit for truth through our journalism. We will fight this campaign both in the courts of law and the court of public opinion, with the people of India by our side,” the statement further says.

  • News ratings on the decline as lockdown eases

    News ratings on the decline as lockdown eases

    BENGALURU: News is event-driven. Events drive up viewership of news channels. Elections, disasters, pandemics send news channels into a frenzy.  Coverage, debates, breaking news …., the rapid staccato oratory, hyperbole, events dissected from different angles often leaving messy dregs of the matter, all these antics drive viewership up. Now to the cliché. No other event in television history has affected humanity as the advent of Covid2019 or COVID-19 as most call it. 

    The pandemic that this virus has caused has resulted in the largest lockdown in human memory. People stayed at home, worked from there, for there and at there. Commutes to anywhere were suddenly recent memory. Movie halls closed, business, sporting and other entertainment events were canceled as humanity sought shelter in the precincts of home. World economy, economy of countries and states and cities and places took a nosedive as manufacturing, all business, all economic activitiesalmost completely halted. The stock markets, of course, did function and they too went into steep falls, and then recovered with each bit of ‘positive’ news, but they are nowhere near the highs’ of just a few months ago.

    The time saved from commuting and the spare time culminated into television, media and entertainment consumption binges like never before. And the shortage of surrealism that soaps created, because fresh content was not being produced, led to viewership increases of channels and genres that had never ever experienced the kinds of viewership peaks that they did during the COVID2019 weeks. News, movies, mythology, classics were tried and tested as the media and entertainment industry tried to offer apprehensive audiences some solace, some time away from reality. Television viewership, reach, average time spent (ATS) rose probably like never before. GECs’ lost viewership share to News and Movies channels, but quickly regained some of the lost eyeballs by airing movies, mythology and classics. Pubcaster network Doordarshan or DD made a viewership coup, a killing of sorts, by airing the original Ramanand Sagar made Ramayanand the B R Chopra made Mahabharat as well as classics from the late eighties and nineties of the previous century. 

    Many celebrities including heads and leaders of a few nations contracted the virus. A few succumbed to it. People wanted to know what was happening. Am I safe? Are my family, my parents, my elders, my siblings, my siblings, my pals safe? Could humanity survive the pandemic? Was there a cure, was there a vaccine? News consumption on the ‘idiot box’, on the smart phone, on the laptop or a digital computing device exploded. News on newspapers was often a no-no as some people feared contracting the virus by touching the surface of the newspaper that has to go through so many hands before it is delivered for the reading over a breakfast or a ‘cuppa’. 

    Overall news consumption on television trebled to 21 per cent of total television consumption in Week 13 of 2020 as compared to the average consumption between weeks 2 and 4 of 2020 according to Broadcast Audience Research Council of India and Nielsen (BARC-Nielsen) Reports. This was the first full week of the All India Lockdown, or Lockdown 1.0 as it is now called, that commenced on 25 March 2020, which by the way, was just after midway into Week 12 of 2020. BARC-Nielsen have standardized the average data for weeks 2 and 4 of 2020 as the Pre-COVID-19 reference point in their reports.

    Week 12 by itself saw Television News viewership surge past the normal – this was the week in which India had the Janata Curfew first and then the announcement of the first All India lockdown by prime minister Narendra Modi. Now a digression – Modi has been one of the biggest viewership draws for News Television, and every time he appeared on television during the lockdown weeks, television consumption lineswent completely off even the new charts!

    Please refer to the chart below for Viewership data of the 5 Addresses that Prime Minister Modi has made to the Nation pertaining to COVID-19 (COVID2019) until the time of writing of this paper.

    News Television ratings rose phenomenally in the week leading to and during the lockdown period. Overtime, as Indians got used to the idea that staying at home was the one option that would keep them safe from the disease, television viewership started petering down. Events that were out of normal resulted in small spikes in the already ballooned viewership. The chart below shows viewership data of Top 5 News channels for nine of the ten languages for which BARC provides on a weekly basis for Week 1 to 19 of 2020. To make things easier, the author has combined viewership of top 5 News channels in Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil and Telugu News channels into South India, and the combined viewership of Top 5 News channels in Assamese, Bangla, Marathi and Oriya into Regional India. 

    Per capita news consumption in South India and other regional markets is higher than in the overall Hindi Speaking Market or HSM. BARC defines HRM as All India excluding the South Indian states of Karnataka (Kannada); Kerala (Malayalam); Tamil Nadu and Puducherry (Tamil); and Andhra Pradesh and Telangana (Telugu). TV penetration in South India is also higher than the rest of the country. 

    As is obvious from the viewership trends of the Top 5 Channels from the chart below, News consumption in the country in the weeks after Week 13 of 2020 is lower. 

    Using the BARC-Nielsen base of average data for Week 2 to 4 of 2020, the All India average for the combined weekly impressions of Top 5 channels for 10 languages (nine mentioned above and English) works out to 1,338.614 billion weekly impressions. As is obvious from the viewership trends of the Top 5 Channels from the chart below, News consumption in the country in the weeks after Week 13 of 2020 is lower. 

    Week 12 of 2020 saw the highest consumption of television news across India until the writing of this paper at 5,203.690 million weekly impressions or 388 per cent of the pre-COVID-19 weeks average. This was followed by Week 13 of 2020 with 4,558.658 combined weekly impressions of the top five channels in 10 languages, or about 341 per cent of the pre-COVID-19 week’s average.

    Week 18 saw All India News viewership of top 5 channels of the 10 languages drop to 3,499.652 million weekly impressions or 261 per cent of the pre-COVID-19 weeks average. Week 19 of 2020 has seen a further drop to 3,357.073 million weekly impressions or 251 per cent of the pre-COVID-19 weeks average.

    Economic stagnations and declines have forced governments across the world to slowly recommence trade, businesses, at least within their own boundaries in a limited way with a number of restrictions. As humans slowly restart work and start and learn to adapt, there will be less and less time for television consumption. At present, a lot of people across the globe, including Indians, are still continuing to work from home. And as a matter of fact, the so called ‘new normal’ which has yet to take a definite shape, may enclose work at home for many businesses and services. The world is likely to work quite differently at least until the pandemic dies out, or there is a cure for it or there is a vaccine or maybe all the three or some other combination of these options and or new ones. Media and Entertainment consumption, which includes news is likely to be quite high, higher anyway that during the pre-COVID-19 period.
     

  • Television viewership peters down slightly in Week 14

    Television viewership peters down slightly in Week 14

    BENGALURU: The first three weeks of Indian COVID-19 lockdown have expanded television viewership in India to an extent that was probably never imagined earlier. As many average Indian citizens, bound by the lockdown within the confines of their homes, sought to comfort their minds with news of what was happening within the country and the world and with the pseudo realism that Movies provide, their television viewership habits changed week-on-week. Here’s how.

    Viewership

    In the third week of the Indian COVID-19 lockdown (week 14 of 2020, Saturday, 4 April 2020 to 11 April 2020), television viewership at 1.223 trillion minutes was 37.9 per cent higher when compared to the average of Weeks 2 to 4 of 2020, or the pre-COVID-19 period according to joint Broadcast Audience Research Council of India (BARC) Nielsen reports. But then, this was 3.4 per cent lower than the 1.266 trillion minutes of the previous week, despite the same average daily reach of 627 million television viewers. Hence, the average time spent was obviously lower at 4 hours 38 minutes in Week 14 of 2020 as compared to the 4 hours and 48 minutes that television viewers spent in Week13.

    As is obvious from the chart below, TV viewership has grown like never before during the lockdown week, but week 14 data shows that week-on-week, viewership in Week 14 of 2020 is slightly lower than the previous week, which has so far seen numbers peak at high levels. Please refer to the chart below:

    Effect on genres

    News, which until the COVID-19 period had seven per cent share of viewership, saw it triple to 21per cent in Week 12, or the first week of the Covid-19 Lockdown in India. Though news is still the leader in terms of growth in viewership, the growth of the genre in relation to the Pre-Covid-19 period has been lower in Weeks 13 and 14 as compared to Week 12 of 2020. Business news also seemed to be following the trends of its larger sibling, news. The other seven genres have seen growth in Weeks 13 and 14 vis-à-vis the Pre-Covid-19 Period averages.

    Since no fresh content was being produced, GECs’ saw the smallest growth during the first three weeks of the Covid-19 lockdown. It must be noted that GECs’ are the largest genre in terms of viewership, so the 9per cent and 7per cent growth in Weeks 13 and 14 respectively versus the Pre-Covid-19 are good numbers.

    In the Pre-Covid-19 Period, Hindi GECs’ had a 32per cent share of viewership of the Hindi speaking market of HSM. Hindi GEC’s in the urban Hindi speaking market or HSM (U) which reduced to 29per cent in Week 14. Despite this Hindi GECs’ in HSM (U) attained an all-time high of 4 billion impressions. HSM (U) viewership grew by 26per cent in Week 14 in relation to the average of the Pre-Covid-19 Period. This growth could be attributed mainly to GECs’ resorting to airing old classics. The major growth drivers of the genre were pubcasterDoordarshan’s GECs’ DD National and DD Bharti which saw the return of programmes such as Ramanand Sagar’s Ramayan and B R Chopra’s Mahabharat, as well as soaps like Dekh Bhai Dekh, Byomkesh Bakshi, Shaktimaan, ShrimanShrimati, Buniyaad and Circus. The other GECs’ generally saw flat growth according to BARC.

    Please refer to the figure below:

    GECs’ in South India continued to lead viewership in Week 14 of 2020, but with a lower share as compared to the pre-COVID-19 period. The movies and news genres saw higher viewership in Week 14 as compared to the Pre-Covid-19 Period. Please refer to the chart below:

    Who was watching television when?

    Growth in viewership continued to be led by the younger generation –the 2-14-years age groups followed by the 15-21 and the 31-40-years age groups as well as in the week preceding (Week 11) the lockdown and during the three weeks of the lockdown (Weeks 12, 13 and 14 of 2020). However, growth was lower amongst all age groups in Week 14 of 2020 as compared to Week 13 with respect to the Pre-Covid-19 Period.

    Please refer to the figure below:

    Since people spent time at home, growth in time spent in minutes for watching television was higher among males. The change was slightly lower in Week 14 of 2020 as compared to Week 13 for males and females with viewership of both the weeks in relation to the Average of the Pre-Covid-19 Period. Please refer to the chart below:

    A BARC Nielsen Report dated 16 April 2020 said that BARC’s NCCS A saw the highest growth during the three weeks of the lockdown as well as Week 11 of 2020 as compared to the average of the Pre-Covid-19 Period.  NCCS A has seen the highest growth in Weeks 12, 13 and 14, with growth peaking in Week 13 of 2020 and then petering slightly in Week 14 of 2020. Please refer to the chart below.

    Non-primetime continued to be a growth driver of Television viewership in Week 14. While Full Day All India Television viewership grew 38per cent in Week 14 as compared to the Pre-Covid-19 Period, Rural India viewership growth was driven by non-Primetime viewership. Primetime viewership grew 10per cent in Urban India, while it remained stable in Rural India.

    News is event driven. Week 15 of 2020 has seen the Covid-19 lockdown in India being extended to 3 May 2020. Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s speech on 14 April 2020 announcing the extension of the lockdown which was aired on 199 channels garnered the highest ratings at 3,937.3 million viewing minutes as compared to his previous 3 addresses to the nation on the Covid-19 crisis.

  • BARC panel tampering: first arrests made

    BARC panel tampering: first arrests made

    The Cyber Crime Police in Bengaluru, acting on a complaint filed by the Broadcast Research Council of India (BARC), has arrested five people allegedly for trying to tamper with the television viewership data generated and reported by BARC every week.

    The five arrested include a TV serial producer Raju and four others – Suresh, Jemsy, Subhash and Madhu. The five men allegedly approached the people in whose houses the BARC’s bar-o-meters are installed and asked them to watch a particular show at a particular time in lieu of incentives. The five arrested are currently in judicial custody.

    This is the first time that the Cyber Crime Police have taken action against anyone for this reason.

    Raju allegedly used to approach the producers and offer them to increase the viewership numbers of their serials against a good amount of money.

    “An FIR was registered in this regard and during the course of investigation, it was found that a group of people were involved in illegally hiking the TRP by using multiple televisions and also by paying a small sum to those people in whose houses the TRP meter would be installed, and asking them to watch a particular channel at a particular time. On getting credible information, police arrested the five accused. Investigations revealed that Raju and his team were working for it. Also, this year, BARC had given a contract to a new firm to install the TRP meters. The role of staff in that firm is also being investigated,” the Bengaluru police told The New Indian Express.

    In September 2017, BARC had urged the TRAI and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) to bring in legislations making TV viewership data tamper-proof and stipulate stringent penalties for offenders.

    Over the last 18 months, several instances have come to light where TV channels were found to be allegedly attempting to tamper and influence audience data and indulging in other malpractices to boost viewership or TV ratings points, as it’s popularly described in India. In some cases, BARC India undertook counter-measures resulting in alleged offenders taking legal recourse. In some other instances, the regulator had to issue warnings in an effort to do damage control.

    Also Read:

    BARC India to TRAI and MIB: Tweak legislation to make data tamper-proof

    Demystifying news television viewership in 2017

    BARC segments viewership data for South regional news from GECs

  • ‘Name and shame delinquent channels’

    ‘Name and shame delinquent channels’

    MUMBAI: Media buying and planning (advertising) agencies and brands reacted strongly or cautiously when it came to commenting on famous yet delinquent television channels suspected of wrongdoing by India’s only TV ratings points (TRP)  body. Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC), the only television audience measurement body in India, temporarily suspended the review of viewership of three news channels. BARC had communicated to all the broadcasters that ratings for India News, TV9 Telegu and V6 News were suspended for four weeks owing to suspected mala fide practices.

    This decision may have had a bearing on advertising on the channels in question. Some industry experts were direct and forthcoming in their reactions, others were cautious, while some chose not to comment on the issue.

    Requesting anonymity, a senior media planner told Indiantelevision.com that the decision could have a mixed impact on the advertising revenue of the channels. There would be companies who believe in a particular channel since a long time. They may not get swayed by this temporary phenomenon. Companies who might want to launch a national campaign may take a channel’s current ratings into account before making their decision. Then, there are regional advertisers who want to see the effect of advertising on the ground — they may not take the BARC review into account at all. There would be some advertisers who would want to wait and watch for a while — 2-3 weeks before taking any decision.

    Dentsu Aegis chairman Ashish Bhasin lauded the BARC decision not to review certain errant channels for a period of time. “It is a bold step taken by BARC to name and shame the mischievous entities.” It sends out a warning message to the channels to behave, and will act as a deterrent for other possible mischief-mongers that could spoil the purity of the currency for a Rs 20000 crore annual TV advertising business in India, Bhasin said.

    About the impact on advertising, Bhasin said that the reputation of the errant channels would be affected owing to the suspension of review. “Although I am unaware of which channels were involved in what kind of wrongdoing, the channels would be disadvantaged due to the BARC action. In the medium to long term, the action would prove to be detrimental to the channels vis-a-vis advertising because the client decides to put his money on the basis of clear feedback and seeks value for every pie invested,” Bhasin added.

    Some experts were rather vocal about change in their approach. “I will certainly not recommend these channels for my clients,” an Initiative Media (formerly Lintas Media) business director told Indiantelevision.com.

    The business director said she would rather advise other substitute (surrogate) channels so that her clients do not suffer. She agreed that the BARC India decision may not directly impact regional and local brands, but, she said, media planners who would draw up annual national strategies for their respective clients would certainly keep the BARC India’s suspension decision in mind.

    However, some  client-companies were rather cautious. HDFC Life senior executive vice-president, marketing, analytics, digital & e-commerce Sanjay Tripathy said: “The channels concerned are denying any wrong-doing at this point. However, if the channels are found guilty of any wrongdoing as suggested in media reports, it is only fair then that they face the consequences. Prima facie, we believe before taking such a stance, due process would have been followed by the authorities by BARC (India) and should wait to this matter to be clarified before taking any hasty decisions.”  

    For the sake of an independent and unbiased article, IPG Mediabrands CEO Shashi Sinha chose not to comment since he chaired the technical committee of BARC India.

    “Advertisers who do not utilise the services of media buying agencies may continue to advertise on the errant channels,” said Madison World chairman Sam Balsara. “But, advertisers who take the help of agencies that use scientific methods of calculating GRPs (gross rating point) would over a period of time keep away from such channels,” he added. To a question whether advertisers would mind the temporary suspension, Sam said, “They would and they should.”

    Also Read :

    BARC India suspends three errant channels’ review

     

  • ‘Name and shame delinquent channels’

    ‘Name and shame delinquent channels’

    MUMBAI: Media buying and planning (advertising) agencies and brands reacted strongly or cautiously when it came to commenting on famous yet delinquent television channels suspected of wrongdoing by India’s only TV ratings points (TRP)  body. Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC), the only television audience measurement body in India, temporarily suspended the review of viewership of three news channels. BARC had communicated to all the broadcasters that ratings for India News, TV9 Telegu and V6 News were suspended for four weeks owing to suspected mala fide practices.

    This decision may have had a bearing on advertising on the channels in question. Some industry experts were direct and forthcoming in their reactions, others were cautious, while some chose not to comment on the issue.

    Requesting anonymity, a senior media planner told Indiantelevision.com that the decision could have a mixed impact on the advertising revenue of the channels. There would be companies who believe in a particular channel since a long time. They may not get swayed by this temporary phenomenon. Companies who might want to launch a national campaign may take a channel’s current ratings into account before making their decision. Then, there are regional advertisers who want to see the effect of advertising on the ground — they may not take the BARC review into account at all. There would be some advertisers who would want to wait and watch for a while — 2-3 weeks before taking any decision.

    Dentsu Aegis chairman Ashish Bhasin lauded the BARC decision not to review certain errant channels for a period of time. “It is a bold step taken by BARC to name and shame the mischievous entities.” It sends out a warning message to the channels to behave, and will act as a deterrent for other possible mischief-mongers that could spoil the purity of the currency for a Rs 20000 crore annual TV advertising business in India, Bhasin said.

    About the impact on advertising, Bhasin said that the reputation of the errant channels would be affected owing to the suspension of review. “Although I am unaware of which channels were involved in what kind of wrongdoing, the channels would be disadvantaged due to the BARC action. In the medium to long term, the action would prove to be detrimental to the channels vis-a-vis advertising because the client decides to put his money on the basis of clear feedback and seeks value for every pie invested,” Bhasin added.

    Some experts were rather vocal about change in their approach. “I will certainly not recommend these channels for my clients,” an Initiative Media (formerly Lintas Media) business director told Indiantelevision.com.

    The business director said she would rather advise other substitute (surrogate) channels so that her clients do not suffer. She agreed that the BARC India decision may not directly impact regional and local brands, but, she said, media planners who would draw up annual national strategies for their respective clients would certainly keep the BARC India’s suspension decision in mind.

    However, some  client-companies were rather cautious. HDFC Life senior executive vice-president, marketing, analytics, digital & e-commerce Sanjay Tripathy said: “The channels concerned are denying any wrong-doing at this point. However, if the channels are found guilty of any wrongdoing as suggested in media reports, it is only fair then that they face the consequences. Prima facie, we believe before taking such a stance, due process would have been followed by the authorities by BARC (India) and should wait to this matter to be clarified before taking any hasty decisions.”  

    For the sake of an independent and unbiased article, IPG Mediabrands CEO Shashi Sinha chose not to comment since he chaired the technical committee of BARC India.

    “Advertisers who do not utilise the services of media buying agencies may continue to advertise on the errant channels,” said Madison World chairman Sam Balsara. “But, advertisers who take the help of agencies that use scientific methods of calculating GRPs (gross rating point) would over a period of time keep away from such channels,” he added. To a question whether advertisers would mind the temporary suspension, Sam said, “They would and they should.”

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