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Tag: Turner

  • NBA to receive $ 24 billion over 9 years from Walt Disney, Time Warner

    NBA to receive $ 24 billion over 9 years from Walt Disney, Time Warner

    BENGALURU: The National Basketball Association, USA (NBA) is likely to receive $ 24 billion (about Rs 1,47,000 crore) from Time Warner’s TNT and Disney’s ESPN and APC Networks in a renewed contract over 9 years according to a Bloomberg report. The channels will carry NBA games through 2024-25, paying almost triple the amount for the contract that is set to expire in 2015-16. According to Bloomberg, the channels pay a combined USD 930 million (approximately Rs 5700 crore) a year to the NBA.

     

    According to an NBA press release, the agreements were announced on 6 October, by NBA Commissioner Adam Silver; Washington Wizards owner Ted Leonsis, chairman of the NBA’s Media Committee; Turner Broadcasting System President David Levy; and ESPN President and Disney Media Networks Co-Chairman John Skipper. The NBA’s current eight-year deals with ABC/ESPN and TNT expire at the end of the 2015-16 season.

     

    “The Walt Disney Company and Turner Broadcasting share responsibility for the growing popularity and interest the NBA enjoys, and we are thrilled to extend our partnerships,” said Silver. “With these new agreements, our fans will continue to benefit from the outstanding NBA coverage and programming provided by ABC, ESPN, TNT, NBA TV and their digital platforms.”

     

    “These nine-year extensions with Disney and Turner recognise the extraordinary value of live premium sports,” said Leonsis. “On behalf of our Media Committee and the other team owners, we thank Disney and Turner for their commitment to the NBA and its fans.”

     

    “This is a significant deal for our company and we are pleased to continue our long-standing partnership with the NBA, its fans, owners and players,” said Levy. “The agreement locks in some of the most valuable, original, premium live sports programming that we’ll continue to monetise across TNT and all other platforms within our extensive portfolio and will help further grow our businesses into the next decade.”

     

    “The NBA has never been more popular globally and it continues to grow under Adam’s leadership,” said Skipper. “By acquiring significantly more NBA content on both existing and yet-to-be created platforms, we will establish a vibrant year-round relationship with the NBA and bolster what is already the sports industry’s most impressive and impactful collection of media rights.”

     

    Under the agreements, the partners will televise more national regular-season games (ABC/ESPN: 100; Turner: 64) and will continue to do so generally on Wednesdays (ESPN), Thursdays (TNT), Fridays (ESPN), and Sundays (ABC/ESPN). By the end of these new agreements, the NBA’s partnership will reach 41 years with Turner, while the league’s relationship with ABC/ESPN will extend to 23 years. Additionally, NBA TV’s Sunday, Monday, Tuesday and Saturday game telecasts will continue to fill out the schedule, ensuring a full week of nationally televised games. The NBA’s 24-hour network will present over 100 regular-season games each year.

     

    The NBA release says further that the NBA and Turner will also continue their groundbreaking partnership to manage jointly the NBA’s digital assets including NBA TV, NBA.com, NBA Mobile, NBA LEAGUE PASS, and WNBA.com, which Turner operates out of its Atlanta production facility. TNT will also debut the first-ever NBA Awards Show, an annual event which will air at the end of the season, and will have expanded activation opportunities surrounding key NBA pillars such as Opening Night and NBA All-Star Week.

     

    Under the agreement, ESPN will be granted enhanced digital rights to provide NBA content for multiple ESPN platforms, including ESPN.com and WatchESPN.

     

    The parties have also established a framework for ESPN and the NBA to negotiate the launch of a new over-the-top offering in which the league would receive an equity interest. Details for the new offering will be announced at a future date.

     

    Under a new deal with the WNBA, games will continue to be televised on ABC and ESPN/ESPN2 through the 2025 season. ESPN also will have enhanced in-progress highlight rights for the WNBA on digital and linear platforms.

     

    Beginning with the 2016-17 season, for the first time, at least 20 NBA Development League games and NBA Summer League games will be seen on the ESPN television networks.

     

    Turner Sports will have enhanced content/digital rights to NBA content for multiple TNT platforms including Bleacher Report; interactive online elements such as selected camera angles, statistic feeds and video to complement TNT’s telecasts; and broadband and other content for digital platforms, including highlights and studio shows. This includes the opportunity to develop and distribute new NBA content and programming for Bleacher Report, as well as rights to highlights for incorporation into the brand’s popular team and topic-centric Team Stream Now video offerings.

  • Star and Zee not conspiring to drive Hathway out of business: Star India counsel Rakesh Dwivedi

    Star and Zee not conspiring to drive Hathway out of business: Star India counsel Rakesh Dwivedi

    NEW DELHI: Admitting that Star India and Zee Turner had created MediaPro, Star counsel Rakesh Dwivedi said that the arrangement had been dismantled and “MediaPro is dead in the sense that it is no longer an authorised agent of Star India.”

     

    Arguing before the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal in the cases linked to Taj TV signals for Turner and Zee TV and Star India signals to Hathway and other multi-system operators, Dwivedi said that Star had no stake in Den Networks or Zee and had no problems with Siticable.

     

    Referring to the Regulations which refer to being non-discriminatory and reasonable, he said the petitioners (Hathway and the other MSOs) had not been able to show how Star India was discriminatory.

     

    In any case, he said Star India was treating all MSOs at par, adding that there was no challenge to the reasonableness of the Reference Interconnect Offer agreement. He said it was also incorrect to say that the RIO was not in consonance with market rates.

     

    He also pointed out that on the one hand Star India had been accused of only offering packages and not giving the channels on a la carte, the petitioners themselves then bundled some channels into various packages.

     

    He quoted both the Regulations of the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India and the Competition Commission of India to show that MSOs hold a more dominant position in the cable industry.  

     

    Dwivedi also said that the previous agreement with MediaPro cannot form the basis of the agreement with Hathway or other MSOs as “they proceed on different methodologies.”

     

    He again denied the charge that Star and Zee were conspiring with other MSOs to drive the petitioner MSOs out of business.   

  • Broadcaster or distributor has to give reasons for differential rates for different MSOs: Naveen Chawla

    Broadcaster or distributor has to give reasons for differential rates for different MSOs: Naveen Chawla

    NEW DELHI: While stressing that negotiated settlements had also been provided for in the regulations other than an agreement under the Reference Interconnect Order (RIO), two multi system operators (MSOs) apart from Hathway Cable & Datacom contended today that Star had failed to give reasons for having different rates for them as compared to Den or Siticable.

     

    Naveen Chawla, counsel for MSO Bhaskar, which operates in Jabalpur and Scoda which operates in Navi Mumbai and Mumbai, said his contention was for a reasonable and non-discriminatory rates and he was not challenging the concept of RIO.

     

    He said according to Clauses 3(1) and 3(2) of the Telecommunications (Broadcasting and Cable) Interconnection (Digital Addressable System) Regulations 2012 were clear that any agreement has to be reasonable and non-discriminatory and all MSOs will be treated equally.  In fact, the provision 3(2) clearly indicated that an RIO that is discriminatory and unreasonable is not acceptable.

     

    ‘Reasonable’ can mean the rate provided by law or the rate that is negotiated with a client in keeping with market forces.  Thus, RIO itself has to be reasonable and in relation to market conditions, Chawla said in the ongoing hearing before the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT) in the cases linked to Star signals for Turner and Zee TV.

     

    A RIO may be a la carte or bouquet, but has to be linked to the subscriber, he said. He also said it was the responsibility of the broadcaster and not the MSO under Clause 3(3) to provide RIO agreements or to give reasons within 60 days for any demands.

     

    Clause 4 was clear that it was the broadcaster who had to submit the RIO or agreement to the authorities and also publish it on its website.

     

    Stressing that his main contention was that the RIO agreement given to him by Star was unreasonable and discriminatory, he said TDSAT had in 2006 held that there should be parity in the rates charged and broadcasters have to give reasons in case the rates are different.

     

    Meanwhile, Chawla quoted from a judgment of TDSAT of August 2005 in which the Tribunal had said that an MSO cannot be an agent of the broadcaster and thus not a competitor to other MSOs, and this view had been upheld by the Supreme Court in 2007. He quoted other judgments to say that broadcasters cannot create exclusivity or monopoly of particular MSOs as that would be discriminatory.

     

    He said the only way to judge whether an agreement was not discriminatory or unreasonable was to go by the previous judgment between the parties.

  • RIO is a non-discriminatory agreement between parties under DAS: Taj

    RIO is a non-discriminatory agreement between parties under DAS: Taj

    NEW DELHI: On the third day of the Hathway Cable & Datacom and Taj Television hearing in the Telecom Disputes Settlement and Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT), Taj Television described agreements under the Reference Interconnect Offer (RIO) as ‘a uniform, non-discriminatory mechanism which ensures an agreement between parties.’

     

    Taj Counsel Pratibha Singh also told the TDSAT that RIO was a kind of wholesale rate in the scheme of digital addressable system (DAS). According to her, if no agreement was reached during negotiations, then the payment for TV channels in DAS areas would be fixed as specified in the RIO.

     

    “It is a default programme on a computer – if there is nothing by way of agreement, then there is RIO,” she said.

     

    In the ongoing hearing before the Tribunal in the cases linked to Taj TV, she said that it was also clear that the rates under DAS were 35 per cent of those under analogue, which was later raised to 42 per cent.

     

    Referring to an earlier case in TDSAT, Singh said that though the Quality of Service regulations under DAS tended to curtail freedom, they had protected the consumer until there was adequate competition.

     

    The Telecom (Broadcasting and cable Services) Interconnect (Digital Addressable Systems) Regulations 2012 was clear in section 5(16) that negotiations have to be held.

     

    She reiterated that Hathway had been told on 26 June through a letter that since the negotiations had failed, Taj TV was forwarding a signed RIO. Hathway had also been told that they would be according to RIO if they sent a subscriber report.

     

    She alleged that the multi system operator (MSO) had not reduced the prices of the packages even after receiving the RIO.

     

    She also said that Hathway had failed to respond to the letter sent on 26 June until Taj TV stopped the signals from 1 August. “After failed negotiations, Hathway as late as 18 August claimed that Taj TV was not negotiating despite having admitted earlier that negotiations had been held,” she clarified.

       

    She said it was unfortunate that MSOs and local cable operators felt that they did most of the work and their share should be larger. “They overlook the fact that the broadcaster pays for content, spectrum, government taxes, journalists and producers and so on,” she concluded.

  • Hathway delayed agreement on signals of Zee and Turner: Taj Television

    Hathway delayed agreement on signals of Zee and Turner: Taj Television

    NEW DELHI: In today’s hearing in the Telecom Disputes Settlement Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT), Taj Television counsel contended today and blamed Hathway Cable & Datacom for the delay in an agreement to Zee and Turner channels. She also claimed that Hathway had falsely written in its letter to Taj TV on 23 July that no negotiations were held and presented to TDSAT the dates on which meetings were held between the parties with regard to Zee TV signals.

     

    Counsel Pratibha Singh told the TDSAT today that Hathway had admitted that it had not paid for the Zee TV channels distributed between 1 April and 23 July.

     

    In the ongoing hearing before the Tribunal in the cases linked to Taj TV signals for Turner and Zee, Singh said three meetings had been held to sort out the issue, the last being on 16 June after which Taj TV had sent a copy of the agreement under the reference interconnection offer (RIO) to Hathway. A letter was also sent to Hathway in this connection on 26 June.

     

    Earlier, the Tribunal had fixed for final disposal from 25 August the ‘deep-rooted’ dispute between Hathway and Taj TV, noting that this would require interpretation of certain clauses of some of the statutory regulations.

     

    TDSAT chairman Aftab Alam and member Kuldip Singh had said: ‘unfortunately, the dispute between the two sides is playing out in highly aggressive way and one may add in a rather unpleasant manner. It seems to be affecting a large number of people in viewing their favourite TV channels. The disputants themselves are approaching the Tribunal on a weekly basis complaining against the actions of each other and seeking some interim directions of the Tribunal consuming a lot of time on arguments on miscellaneous applications.  It is, therefore, in the larger interest to finally dispose of these cases after hearing all sides at an early date.’

     

    The Tribunal noted that the dispute had arisen at a stage when the earlier fixed fee agreement between the parties has come to end and they are unable to come to agreed terms for a fresh agreement and under the circumstances the MSO has no option but to take the broadcasters’ channels on their RIO terms.

     

    When talks between the two parties failed, he said the RIO was forwarded on 25 January and was to be effective from February.

     

    Further arguments will continue tomorrow with counsel for Zee expected to conclude her arguments and Hathway responding to them.

  • Turner, HBO boost Time-Warner revenues in Q2

    Turner, HBO boost Time-Warner revenues in Q2

    BENGALURU: Time -Warner Inc (Time-Warner) reported three per cent y-o-y growth in revenue in the quarter ended 30 June 2014 (Q2 of 2014, or the current quarter) to $6.8 billion. The company’s adjusted operating revenue grew 17 per cent to $1.6 billion.

     

    Turner, Home Box Office (HBO) and Warner Bros segments contribute to Time Warner’s numbers.  Revenues were boosted y-o-y by Turner and (HBO) by 9.5 per cent and 16.5 per cent respectively, while Warner Bros showed a 2.4 per cent y-o-y de-growth in the current quarter.

     

    Turner results

     

    Turner reported revenue of $2,750 million in the current quarter as compared to $2,627 million in the corresponding quarter of last year. Turner’s subscription revenue grew 8.7 per cent y-o-y to $1,323 million in the current quarter from $ 1,217 million in the quarter ended 30 June 2013 (year ago quarter), while its advertising (ad) revenue grew 27 per cent in the current quarter to $1,284 million from the year ago quarter’s $1011 million. Turner’s content revenue in the current quarter grew 25.4 2 per cent to $89 million from the year ago quarter’s $71 million. The segment reported 15.3 per cent in adjusted operating revenue in the current quarter to $940 million, as compared to the year ago quarter’s $815 million.

     

     HBO results

     

    HBO’s revenue in the current quarter grew to $1,417 million from $1,216 million in the year ago quarter.  Its subscription revenue grew 9.7 per cent in the current quarter to $1,411 million from $1,040 in the year ago quarter. The segment’s content revenue grew 55.6 per cent to $274 million from $176 million in the year ago quarter. HBO’s adjusted operating revenue in the current quarter grew 22.7 per cent to $552 million from $450 million reported for the year ago quarter.

     

    Warner Bros

     

    Warner Bros revenue fell 2.4 per cent to $2,870 million in the current quarter from the year ago quarter’s $ 2941 million. Warner Bros theatrical product reported 5.5 per cent lower revenue at $1,494 million in the current quarter as compared to the $1,581 million reported for the year ago quarter. The segment’s television product grew by 5.9 per cent in the current quarter to $1,052 million as compared to the year ago quarter’s $993 million.

     

    Y-o-y, Warner Bros current quarter’s content revenue shrank 2.3 per cent to $2,731 million from $2,795 reported during the year ago quarter. Warner Bros advertising and subscription revenues were almost flat at $19 million and $33 million, respectively, in the current quarter as compared to the year ago quarter’s $18 million and $32 million, respectively.

     

    Time Warner completed the Time Warner cable spinoff last month and says it has repurchased 51 million shares for $3.5 billion year-to-date through 1 August 2014. The Time Warner board has authorised an additional $5 billion of share repurchases.

     

    Time Warner chairman and CEO Jeff Bewkes said, “We are off to a very strong start in 2014, with results that demonstrate both the returns we can achieve on our investments in great storytelling and the growth potential of our businesses. Excluding Time Inc., which we expect to spin off as an independent publicly-traded company this quarter, we grew first quarter Revenues by 10%, Adjusted Operating Income by 12 per cent, and Adjusted EPS by 26 per cent. In the first quarter, Warner Bros. picked up where it left off after a record-breaking year in 2013, with The LEGO Movie launching yet another franchise for us and leading all releases at the domestic box office. Combined with its promising slate of movies for the rest of the year and strong lineup of TV shows to be unveiled at the upfronts, Warner Bros. is positioned to have another excellent year in 2014. Home Box Office continues to be red hot, led by the debut of True Detective, the most-watched freshman series in HBO’s history. And the Season 4 premiere of Game of Thrones on April 6 drew HBO’s largest audience since The Sopranos finale. Turner also made history by bringing the NCAA Men’s Basketball Final Four to cable for the first time ever. The success of the NCAA Tournament also helped TBS maintain its position as ad-supported cable’s #1 network in primetime among adults 18-34 and 18-49. It also showcased the importance and vibrancy of our TV Everywhere initiatives, with a more than 40 per cent increase in streams for our March Madness Live service over last year. Another standout at Turner was Adult Swim, which again finished the quarter as the #1 ad-supported cable network in total day for Adults 18-34. And CNN reaffirmed that it is the place the world goes for authoritative coverage during major news events, with delivery in its key demographic up over 50 per cent in March. Further demonstrating our commitment to shareholder returns, during the quarter we returned almost $1.3 billion to our shareholders in the form of share buybacks and dividends.”

  • Taj Television to distribute Zee and Ten Sports channels; agent for Turner

    Taj Television to distribute Zee and Ten Sports channels; agent for Turner

    MUMBAI: Two months after the distribution joint venture (JV) between Star India and Zee Turner called MediaPro dissolved; Zee has decided to hand over its distribution to Taj Television India, a wholly owned subsidiary of Zee Entertainment.

     

    While initially Taj Television was the sole distributor of Ten Sports channels, it will now act as agent for Zee Entertainment, Zee Media and Turner along with Ten Sports. Zee’s sports broadcasting business will continue to be headed by Rajesh Sethi.

    According to sources the move is to integrate all the Zee channels in one bouquet and give an additional push to the whole network.

     

    After the news of MediaPro split broke, Zee Turner had announced that it will set up its independent distribution arm. In the latest, the Network has announced that the new distribution agreements with the various operators will be done under the name of Taj Television. Arun K Kapoor will be the CEO of Taj Television, who was the CEO at MediaPro, earlier.

     

    Taj Television has a suite of 47 television channels. This includes: Zee TV, Zee Cinema, &pictures, Ten Sports, Zee Cafe, Zee Studio, Zing, Zee Marathi, Zee Bangla, Zee Telugu, Zee Kannada, Zee Tamizh, Zee TV HD, Zee Cinema HD, Zee Studio HD, Ten HD, Zee News, Zee Business, HBO, Cartoon Network, Pogo, CNN, Warner Brothers and Zeel’s new channel Zindagi.

  • Pogo colours its viewers with two movie premieres this Holi

    Pogo colours its viewers with two movie premieres this Holi

    MUMBAI: With Holi around the corner, Turner’s mainstay kids channel – Pogo – is showering kids with loads of colour, prizes, new movies and excitement!  The ‘Rang De Holi’ contest and several new movie launches throughout the month will keep kids entertained and engaged.

     

    The ‘Rang De Holi’ contest on the channel, will give kids an opportunity to win Holi themed prizes like inflatable pools, water resistant watches and digital cameras by answering questions based on the Holi games played by Chhota Bheem and his best friends! The content will run from 8 to 29 March from 12:00 pm onwards on the channel.

     

    The channel also intends to leverage the festive season by premiering two new movies on its tent-pole characters Chhota Bheem and Mighty Raju. As a prelude to Holi, kids can catch a brand new Chhota Bheem special called Kung Fu Bheem on 16 March at 12:00 pm. And on the most vibrant day of the year, kids can catch their superhero Mighty Raju battle new and powerful enemies in Mighty Raju: 3 Villains on 17 March at 12:00 pm.

     

    On this occasion, Turner International India executive director and network head – kids Krishna Desai says: “Holi is one of the most joyous, colourful and exciting festival for kids across the country. As the leading entertainment channel in the kids’ genre, Pogo aims to take the festivities to new heights with the Pogo ‘Rang De Holi’ contest and the brand new ‘Mighty Raju’ movie.”

     

    Superheroes Bheem and Krishna will be adding more fun and colour to weekends throughout the month. Every Saturday at 12:00 pm ‘Rang De with Bheem & Krishna’ will bring the viewers action-packed and entertaining movies like Chhota Bheem Rise of Kirmada, Krishna Balram Warrior Princess, Chhota Bheem Dholakpur to Kathmandu, Krishna Balram Rang Mein Bhang and many more.

     

    Pogo certainly is set to colour its viewers with some engaging content this Holi.

  • Move over Krrish, Kid Krrish is here

    Move over Krrish, Kid Krrish is here

    Before the third installment of the Hrithik Roshan-starrer Krrish hits theatres this November, another superhero by the same name, albeit in a kid avatar, is set to storm the home box office.

     

    Come 2 October, the first of a four-part animation series titled Kid Krrish – a joint venture between Rakesh Roshan’s production house Film Kraft, Turner, and Toonz Animation – will premiere exclusively on Cartoon Network at 12.00 pm (CN Popcorn hour).

    Krrish is a family film, whereas Kid Krrish is only targeted at children; so we are clear about our target group expounds Rakesh Roshan

     

    The animation telly-film will see superhero Krrish’s (kid) namesake fighting an evil scientist and keeping him from getting his hands on a precious artifact that he is eyeing. According to the makers, Kid Krrish is about Krishna’s journey of self discovery, and will surely resonate with children of all ages. Add to that, the film will have Jadoo, the lovable alien from the Krrish franchise, who helps Kid Krrish realise his true powers.

    The announcement was made in the presence of Film Kraft Productions’ director Rakesh and his superstar son Hrithik Roshan, while there was no representation for Toonz at the event.

     

    About Kid Krrish, Rakesh said: “It is for the first time that a Bollywood character is set to get an animated version. The character of Krrish has been idolised by every child in India and has become an iconic super hero. Krrish is a family film, whereas Kid Krrish is only targeted at children. So we are clear about our target group. Toonz Animation has done a great job and if the movie does well, we will continue making it for years to come.”

    Kid Krrish will premiere on Cartoon Network on
    2 October at 12 pm

     

    About the partnership, Turner International India Sr. director and network head – kids, south Asia Krishna Desai said: “Turner has been a pioneer in terms of content and we believe that with Cartoon Network and Pogo, we have always provided a full consumer experience and will continue to strive for that. The coming together of three legendary companies in the form of Film Kraft, Toonz Animation and Turner will certainly be a mutually beneficial endeavour.”

     

    What really led to this collaboration? “We were approached by Film Kraft to make a live animation movie on Krrish. We took things forward but tried to reason that if we were trying to connect with children, then we would have to portray Krrish as a kid. So that’s how the idea of Kid Krrish came about,” said Desai.

    So what did Hrithik think of Kid Krrish? “See, before you ask me what are my expectations from the film, I have already got the best compliment from my two sons Hrehaan and Hridhaan… They are completely in love with Kid Krrish,” said the actor.

     

    Asked about similarities about the two superheroes, he said: “See, I don’t know about similarities, but Kid Krrish is certainly better than Krrish (jokes). Well, both stand for the same thing, both have a child alive inside them, both have their share of struggles, and both fend off evil.”

     

    Taking a moment to relive some of his childhood memories, Hrithik said: “Animation has been a big influence in my formative years. I still remember watching Popeye but I never used to love spinach. Though later, I got to know its importance and now, I basically survive on it. I also loved Tom & Jerry and the Justice League.”

    Coming back to the children’s superhero franchise, the first film will air on CN on 2 October followed by three more films in the coming six months to one year. All four films will be exclusively premiered on Cartoon Network. While the second film is already in production, the third and fourth films are at different stages, and will get into production in the coming months.

    Krishna Desai believes the coming together of three legendary companies in the form of Film Kraft, Toonz Animation and Turner will certainly be a mutually beneficial endevour

     

    The music of Kid Krrish has been scored by Aditya Sorab and the lyrics have been penned by Kausar Munir. Apparently, the title song is extremely catchy and will strike a chord with children thanks to its simple lyrics and soulful rendition.

     

    Was there any reason for selecting 2 October as the date for the premiere? Said Desai: “Since it’s a national holiday, we are sure that everyone will be able to enjoy the movie. Also, as for the 12:00 pm telecast time, well that is the prime time for Cartoon Network.”

     

    Elaborating on the promotional plans, Desai said: “Well, 95 per cent of the promotional activity will be carried out by Cartoon Network itself. We will do our bit to promote it digitally and also push it through OOH presence.”

     

    But isn’t it a fact that creating an original animation in India would do better with our audiences? “See, what I believe is the fact that be it any language, content is what matters in the end. So whether it’s Kris in Roll No 21 speaking in Hindi or Ben 10 talking in Hindi, what eventually strikes a chord with children is – if they can relate with the characters on the show, the show will be a success, no matter which language it is in,” Desai shot back.

     

    Would Turner be venturing into more animation films after Kid Krrish? “It completely depends on the idea and the script, because making a live action animation is a tough task, but if something interesting and worthwhile comes along, we will definitely consider it,” Desai concluded.

     

  • Turner partners with Reliance MediaWorks for post-production services

    Turner partners with Reliance MediaWorks for post-production services

    MUMBAI: In a move that further consolidates its in-market operations, Turner International India has announced the establishment of creative services in India for its entertainment networks including Cartoon Network, Pogo and WB. Turner has commissioned one of India’s leading film and entertainment services company, Reliance MediaWorks (RMW), to provide the full gamut of post-production services.

    With in-market end to end capabilities that will be a combination of in-house creative and outsourced production resources, this initiative will enable Turner to be even more poised in responding to market requirements.

    The services provided by RMW will include complete post production of on-air promotions including video editing, voice over recording, music/audio mixing, animation based graphics and visual effects, and digital mastering.  

    Turner International India south Asia MD Siddharth Jain said, “Turner has been consistently ahead of the curve with a proven track record of successful localisation of our brands. It was way back in 2001 when Cartoon Network premiered local content and our home-grown network Pogo bears testament to this success by becoming the kids’ favourite and India’s number one. We are confident this new move will give us further competitive advantages in this dynamic and constantly-evolving consumer and business landscape, especially as we seek to build on Turner’s strategic shift to further empower local markets.” He adds, “We are happy to work alongside Reliance MediaWorks and we look forward to continue the delivery of quality content on our leading platforms.”

    Commenting on the occasion Reliance MediaWorks CEO Venkatesh Roddam said, “We are pleased to be able to offer a one-stop production facility by combining the latest in television studio technology with the most experienced personnel to create winning solutions for Turner. This is just the beginning of a long and fruitful relationship with Turner and we look forward to further cooperation in the future.”