ITV

Tag: TV

  • 14 more regional TV channels soon

    14 more regional TV channels soon

    KOLKATA: At a time when sections of both national and regional media are shutting shop or laying off staff as cost-cutting measures, former minister of state for parliamentary affairs in the PV Narsimharao government and senior Congress leader of Assam, Matang Singh, has plans to launch as many as 14 regional channels pan-India.

    Singh already owns television channels including NE TV, Focus TV, NE Bangla, NE Hi Fi, Hamar TV, HY TV and Radio Oo la la, and controls them through holding companies like Positiv Television and Positiv Radio.

    A highly-placed industry source said, “Singh plans to launch regional television channels in a big way soon.” The source hinted that Naveen Jindal, MP from Kurukshetra, Haryana, and chairman of Jindal Steel and Power, was likely to be part financier on this ambitious project.

    While Singh did not respond to repeated queries by this correspondent, a media manager revealed, “Though the existing channels have a huge reach in the north eastern region, they are not doing well.”

    Meanwhile, there have been reports that Jindal may also buy a majority stake in Assam’s NE TV, which is one of the north east’s leading channels run by Singh through his family and associates. Indiantelevision.com has also learnt that NE Bangla, the 24×7 Bengali news channel owned by Singh, has appointed Biswa Majumdar as editor-in-chief. Before taking on this assignment, Majumdar was at the helm of the channel’s Kolkata TV operations and affairs. Apparently, the search is on for a big studio for NE Bangla at EM Bypass. A company official on condition of anonymity revealed the venue to be near Science City.
    While a cross-section of the media may have been adversely impacted by the ongoing economic slowdown, media analysts predict that the next five to six months will see a spate of news channels mushrooming across the country, what with companies betting big on them thanks to the impending Lok Sabha elections.

  • Ogilvy ‘Made For’ Vodafone network campaign

    Ogilvy ‘Made For’ Vodafone network campaign

    MUMBAI: Ogilvy & Mather Mumbai office has created a new campaign for the telecom giant Vodafone.

    The campaign focuses on the network as it is the single biggest driver of brand choice and the reason for customers exiting from a brand. Hence, communicating ‘network credentials‘ in an evocative and engaging manner, has been a constant endeavor of all telecom brands.

    The agency has created a 360 degree campaign that reinforces the network‘s superiority among the users of the Vodafone network and among other operators and gets them to switch to Vodafone through charming slice of life stories.

    Keeping this insight in mind that the true test of a good network is its wide reach – availability of a signal at unlikely places, the agency zeroed in on the ‘Made For‘ proposition. The Vodafone network delivers on multiple things that one does in their day to day life.

    In the initial phase of market development, Vodafone had decided to focus its communication activities around Vodafone‘s excellent network and connectivity. Hence the agency came up with the tag line, “Wherever you go, our network follows” for the campaign, wherein the pug represented Vodafone‘s network. The campaign made the brand synonymous to an omnipresent network and gave it the stature of a constant companion.

    The next round of Network communication happened last year and the focus of the communication was shifted to ‘quality through connectivity and voice clarity‘ establishing the superiority of the Vodafone network.

    The current campaign will be an extensive 360 degree campaign that will be led by television. The ‘Made For‘ proposition will also be extended contextually in print, outdoor, digital, radio and on-ground.

  • Around 1.80 lakh defaulters in Kolkata face TV blackout as of 26 August

    KOLKATA: With the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) pressuring service providers in Kolkata to disconnect the television connections of customers for not submitting the subscriber application forms, multiple system operators, more than 1.80 lakh customers have experienced a black out till Monday evening.

     

    While talking about the snapping of the connection which started from Saturday morning, Den Networks, Hathway Cable and Datacom and Manthan Broadband Services snapped the maximum number of cable connections, out of 80,000 which were disconnected on August 24.

     

    Also, with just around 45 days remaining for the grand festival of Durga Puja, some cable operators are relaxed and have assured the customers that they can send the details after the festival is over, said a customer, using the service of one of the players, which has maximum penetration in KM area.

     

    Industry sources said: “The consumer application forms (CAF) of these MSOs were not ready as compared to other players like SitiCable. As a result, the three MSOs had to switch off the connection,” adding that the MSO will continue to switch-off few connections at a time in the coming days to guard against law-and-order problem.

     

    As per the TRAI mandate, the MSOs were supposed to switch-off the cable connections of those customers, who had not filled-up the CAFs in Kolkata post midnight of 23 August.

     

    Committee of the Association of Cable Operators, Cable Operators Digitalisation convener Swapan Chowdhury said the MSOs have been asked by the TRAI to provide details of TV connections running illegally in the KM area.

     

    Siticable that has disconnected more than 90,000 subscribers till Monday evening, has seen a good response from customers. “We are not switching off the connections of CAF non compliance customers at a go. We are doing it in small numbers – say 15,000,” expounded Siticable director (Kolkata) Suresh Sethia.

     

    Manthan Broadband Services which has installed 6.5 lakh to seven lakh set top boxes, had alone disconnected around 30,000 connections on Saturday, said Manthan Broadband Services director Sudip Ghosh.

     

    “Our purpose is not to switch-off the connection. But after snapping say four connections, more than 100 customers have approached from the vicinity,” he added.
    Seeing the fast response from the customers, it can be easily assumed that in the KM DAS area, CAFs rate is likely to be 70 per cent to 80 per cent in next six days – seven days, Ghosh predicted.

     

    Den Networks and Hathway Cable and Datacom could not be asked specifically about the connections snapped by them in KM area.

     

    Cable Shilpa Bachao Committee convener Mrinal Chatterjee said instead of disconnecting the TV sets, TRAI should penalise the MSOs and not the customers by asking MSOs to switch off the connection; as the CAFs were not given to the customers on time.

     

    With no official extension notice from the regulatory body, will Kolkata see deactivation of set-top boxes of more and more defaulters at this juncture? Watch this space for the latest updates.

  • Duty Free import of flat screen TVs by air travellers banned

    Duty Free import of flat screen TVs by air travellers banned

    NEW DELHI: The government has banned duty-free import of flat screen television by air travelers in a bid to prop up the rupee, which has plummeted to an all time low (63.73) against the US dollar.

     

    The government, according to a notification, has decided to “disallow import of flat panel (LCD/LED/Plasma) television as part of free baggage allowance” with effect from 26 August.

     

    Air travelers currently can bring a flat screen television for personal use without paying any duty.

  • Doordarshan to live stream India’s 67th Independence Day celebration on YouTube

    Doordarshan to live stream India’s 67th Independence Day celebration on YouTube

    NEW DELHI: Doordarshan, which is telecasting the Independence Day celebrations live from Red Fort, will in association with YouTube live stream the 67th Indian Independence Day celebrations and the Prime Minister’s address to the Nation for 2013.

     

    This association will enable millions of Indians worldwide to enjoy high definition live feed on Doordarshan’s YouTube channel (www.youtube.com/DoordarshanNational) and get front row access to all the celebrations lined up for the grand event.

     

    The live stream will be available on 15 August from 6:25 am onwards, capturing the flag-hoisting ceremony by the Prime Minister from the historic Red Fort, Delhi.
    Users will also be able to enjoy highlight clips from the Independence Day celebrations.

     

    Speaking on the association with YouTube, Doordarshan director general Tripurari Sharan said, “We are delighted to associate with YouTube to share the Independence celebrations with Indians across the globe. Streaming Independence Day celebration live on YouTube will help us to reach the global audience in a format which best suits today’s generation. Our streaming of the 67th Republic Day Parade also received a tremendous response with over 100,000 views. Our objective is to cater to our Indian and global audiences and take events of national importance not only to their TV screens.

     

    Commenting on the initiative YouTube director content partnerships Gautam Anand, said, “We are delighted to partner with Doordarshan to join the celebration of India’s 67th Independence Day live from the historic Red Fort on YouTube. This is the first time we are live streaming India’s Independence Day celebrations and we hope that our users will enjoy the telecast wherever they’re in the world.”

  • The curious case of CCI’s TAM Media investigation

    The curious case of CCI’s TAM Media investigation

    MUMBAI: The TV ratings tornado that had struck the industry a couple of months ago has died down and it appears as if even the same has happened with the TAM Media investigation being conducted by the Competition Commission of India (CCI). Of course the CCI will deny it, but, it does seem so.

     

    The deadline for the responses to the queries sent out to media industry stakeholders by the CCI was 18 July.

     

    “We had received the questionnaire by the enquiry committee of CCI on 18 July. The responses to which were sent to them on the same day. After that we have not received any update from CCI,” informs a highly placed official in Prasar Bharati.

     

    It may be recalled that the CCI had started the investigation post a complaint filed by Prasar Bharati against the audience measurement agency for anti-competitive practices in November last year. The complaint was filed under section 4 of the Competition Act 2002, which pertains to abuse of a dominant position by a market player.

     

    “We are still in the process of collecting data from the stakeholders. The matter is still being investigated,” informs a source from the CCI. The body has asked for an extension to collect the data. “There is a provision to extend the time frame and we are seeking extensions to ensure a proper investigation,” adds the source who refuses to comment any further on the investigation.

     

    It was in late June, this year that the CCI had started sending out notices to key players in the media and entertainment industry seeking information on TAM in order to ascertain whether there was any case to be made against it. The notice sent by CCI was just the first step to find out what reported “wrongs” was TAM Media doing.

     

    When Indiantelevision.com contacted TAM for its comment on the same, a TAM representative responded by say, “We have decided not to comment on the investigation.”

     

    With CCI not yet completing the first step of investigation, how long will the body take to come out with its final verdict? Or are more pressing matters taking up its attention? “You can’t forget, things such as these have a process and take time,” says a media observer. “Don’t be surprised if a damning report against TAM emerges closer to the time of the ratings launch under BARC next year.”

  • Sony’s romantic gamble with the 9:30 pm slot

    Sony’s romantic gamble with the 9:30 pm slot

    MUMBAI: From 9:30 pm onwards this independence day, Sony Entertainment Television has ambitions to gives to its viewers a breath of fresh air. How? Well! One, the channel launches its new series Kehta Hai Dil…Jee Le Zara and two through this show, it brings back the queen of romance on TV, Sangeeta Ghosh.

    “Sony stands for hope, aspirations and happiness and so does the show,” says SET chief operating officer N.P Singh. Sony which aims at strengthening its fiction genre is continuously looking at fresh concepts. “We were looking for content which was different and we came across this. It was relatable and real, like most of our shows. It is a kind of story that you will see Sony doing,” he adds.

    Kehta Hai Dil…Jee Le Zara is a story of Saanchi who is modern yet traditional. “It is a simple concept and has evolved very much from everyday stories. Today, for a lot of women, marriage may not be the first preference,” says Rose Audio Visuals producer Shristhi Arya, who is known for doing off beat and sophisticated soaps like Lipstick, Guns and Roses, Remix, Kabhi Haan Kabhi Na and Twinkle Beauty Parlour.

    “With increasing aspirations, both love and marriage are pushed aside. Also the fact that a lot of interaction takes place among colleagues who are of different age groups, falling in love with a younger man is easier,” says Arya explaining the storyline. Arya feels that television has the responsibility to reflect the sign of the times “And this is a sign of ‘A’ particular zone of people,” she adds.
    Sony stands for hope, aspirations and happiness and so does the show, says N.P Singh

    The show will be replacing Parvarish which currently runs in the 9:30 pm slot. “Parvarish has been on air for the past two years and has had a successful tenure. The time was right to replace it with a newer and fresher show,” informs Sony EVP & business head Sneha Rajani. Apparently, both the channel and the producer feel that the new show’s storyline has a fit with the aspirational needs of the core Sony viewer. “Through Sony I have got a platform which has the exact audience that I am looking for my soap,” informs Arya.

     

    The story is about a family living in the beautiful hill station of Panchgani. “It was the script that excited me the most. It is a simple story of simple characters and this is what got me to direct the soap,” reveals show director Siddharth Sengupta who has earlier helmed dramas like Balika Vadhu and Ek Chabhi Pados Mein.

    The crew which started filming in end-July has recreated the feel of Panchgani in Film City located in Goregaon in Mumbai. “We are shooting 12-13 hours daily and have currently shot approximately six episodes. We need to build a bank, because once the show goes on air we will be only meeting deadlines,” reveals Sengupta.
    Shristhi Arya feels that television has the responsibility to reflect the sign of the times we are in

    The main protagonists are Sangeeta Ghosh (Des Mein Niklla Hoga Chand fame) and Ruslaan Mumtaz who made his debut in Bollywood through Mera Pehla Pehla Pyaar. While Ghosh plays Saanchi, Mumtaz will be seen as Dhruv. The other characters are Sulabha Deshpande and Meenakshi Sethi, who will play the two grandmothers, Delnaz Irani who plays Dilshad, Nabeel Ahmed will be seen as Advait and Priyanka Sidana will be seen as Prachi. The story has been written by Niranjan Iyengar and the screenplay and dialogues are by Arjun and Purva respectively. The main sponsor for the show is L’oreal Paris Total Repair 5.

    Sony is using a 360 degree marketing campaign to lure in audiences to the channel. The channel has appointed MOMS Outdoor Media Solutions for managing OOH activities. “We will be marketing the show on TV, radio, print, digital and also hoardings,” informs Rajani. The channel has shot three promos and also shot three to four countdown promos, which are airing currently. Apart from this, the marketing campaign will also involve a print ad on the day the show goes on air.
    The show is a clutter breaker, says Sneha Rajani

    The show will face stern competition from Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai on Star Plus, Qubool Hai on Zee TV and Na Bole Tum Na Maine Kuchh Kaha: Season 2 on Colors. Does Sony have any strategy to deal with this competition, answers Singh, “Well, competition is a reality. Within the very aggressive competitive market, you have to differentiate the niche. Sony in its last 17 years has always run shows which are different from the rest and that has set us apart and we continue to follow that strategy.”

    With reality shows working better for Sony, why add another fiction soap in the already cluttered fiction genre? Says Rajani, “We consciously decided two years back to focus more on fiction shows. We had gone a little weak in capturing viewers in the fiction space and so decided to focus more on the fiction genre.”

    “Also we currently have two reality shows Indian Idol Junior and Comedy Circus running on our channel. Kaun Banega Crorepati will also hit TV screens soon. All this leaves us with no space for any more reality shows,” she adds.

    So what’s new in the soap that will help it get good TVTs? “It is a clutter breaker. From the time the promos went up, I have been receiving messages from people who can relate to this story. It is not drama, but the journey of an independent, yet responsible woman,” comments Rajani.

    “Fiction today is the mainstay for every GEC. People want to see fresh content. Now how well the programme does depends on its content and whether it has been able to add some freshness to it. If it can engage its audiences, it will surely do well,” says Madison Media Group, Bangalore COO Dinesh Rathore.

    The channel will soon see a row of new soaps replacing the current ones. But for this slot, it is surely placing a big bet that viewers will bite. Will keeping the show simple for people to believe in it, help the channel record increased TVTs? With the channel falling off to the fifth position in this general entertainment channel space, Sony must surely be praying it will.

  • Social networks stepping up efforts to get TV ad budgets

    Social networks stepping up efforts to get TV ad budgets

    NEW DELHI: Facebook and Twitter are stepping up their efforts to increase their share of the global TV ad budget as technical developments begin to enable advertisers to target people who use digital devices while watching television.

    A report in The Financial Times quoted by CASBAA says the two social network giants have been rolling out a number of initiatives over the summer in a bid to earn more from global TV ad spend, which is expected to be worth $205 billion this year.

    Facebook has launched a campaign, dubbed Reach for the Beach, to highlight the fact that holiday makers take their mobile phones with them while leaving their TVs at home.

    Recent research from eMarketer has shown that the amount of time people in the United States spend consuming digital media will overtake the hours they spend watching TV for the first time this year.

    Facebook vice president of global marketing solutions Carolyn Everson said that today mobile has overtaken TV to become “the primary screen”, although she didn‘t expect TV and Facebook to be locked in rivalry. “I think we‘re at a stage where the conversation is really TV plus Facebook,” she said.

    The company has commissioned a study from Nielsen, the market research firm, which found that more people aged 18 to 24 used Facebook than any of the four major US TV networks between 8pm to 11pm during weekdays.

    It is currently developing 15-second video ads that can replay TV ads on Facebook and plans to launch the initiative in October. It is also working on the means by which ads on Facebook could be linked to a TV show in real time.

    Twitter, meanwhile, has formed partnerships with media companies to monitor what people tweet while watching TV and it expects to use the information to help target ads on Twitter.

    Twitter chief revenue officer Adam Bain said, “We often have thought about Twitter plus TV, but we are now thinking about Twitter Times TV.”

    However, advertisers are weighing up the pros and cons of linking in their offerings to the social networks.

    Razorfish senior vice president Joe Mele has cautioned whether consumers would want to receive ads while tweeting, for example, about the presidential debates or the Super Bowl.

    He said, “There is a question about whether or not just because you are watching something on TV means you want that same experience on a different device.”

  • Airtel’s Aapli Boli, Aapla Network campaign rings in Maharashtra

    Airtel’s Aapli Boli, Aapla Network campaign rings in Maharashtra

    MUMBAI: Bharti Airtel, a leading global telecommunications company with operations in 20 countries across Asia and Africa says Hello to Maharashtra with a new campaign – “Aapli Boli, Aapla Network”. The new advertisement reiterates Airtel’s commitment to offer seamless network connectivity and enrich lives of its customers.

    The new TVC showcases varied cultural background of different districts in Maharashtra yet connected with one network anywhere, anytime! It highlights the strength of Airtel’s network across the state helping customers to stay connected with their loved ones wherever they go – from Kolapur to Solapur, Nasik to Nagpur , Auranagabad to Pune!

    Mr. Ashok Ganpathy, Hub CEO – Maharashtra, Goa & Gujarat, Bharti Airtel said “Our new campaign, “aapli boli aapla network” reinforces the seamless network experience Airtel provides in the state of Maharashtra- a large state with a rich and diverse culture. The campaign connects the brand with the region through its catchy and inclusive lyrics- bringing in a feeling of togetherness. We believe this campaign will further strengthen our brand in the minds of consumers, whilst they enjoy the superior network experience.”

    Powered by its extensive coverage reach, Airtel has delivered on all network quality benchmarks in Maharashtra as defined by TRAI – for instance Availability of Network, Ease of originating a Call or a Data Session, Voice Clarity and Ability to successfully complete the Calls and Data Sessions.

    Airtel has planned a strong 360- degree campaign spread using TV, outdoor, radio, print (selective) and retail signage’s to support the campaign.

    Created by the media agency Taproot, the campaign complements its earlier brand campaigns ‘Har Friend Zaroori Hai Yaar’ campaign and ‘Jo Tera Hai Woh Mera Hai’ to tap the youth audience.

  • BARC begins nationwide roadshow with Bengaluru

    BARC begins nationwide roadshow with Bengaluru

    BENGALURU: In what was the first of four to five open houses that BARC intends to hold in India, the apex body shared details about the way forward at Bengaluru last week. Principal Provocateur/Advisor Paritosh Joshi, who represents the broadcasters interests in the 12 member technical committee on BARC spoke at length about the council’s plans on the new audience measurement system. In attendance were about 100 professionals from the broadcast and ad ecosystem, and BARC CEO Partho Dasgupta and VP Mubin Khan.

     

    Some of the points that were clarified at the Bengaluru Open House include:

     

    For what is said to be the largest tender ever floated for audience measurement anywhere in the world, BARC has received expressions of interest from significantly big technology companies that wish to be a part of the tender. The tender terms state that each vendor would have to work with whomsoever BARC wants it to work with. “Since multiple vendors are likely to be involved, system integration was crucial and there was a possibility of a blame game when something didn’t work out,” Joshi said, explaining why BARC will play a pivotal role.

     

    Of the 32 expressions of interest, 27 companies from across the world had been asked to submit proposals. Because of the huge diversity of devices on which television style content could be consumed, TV content was now more and more agnostic to screen as well as time. Consumption of TV and television type content was not only being space-shifted, but also time-shifted. BARC has made it clear in its RFPs’ that it wanted a screen and technology agnostic measurement.

     

    BARC expects to complete the awarding of contracts by end September or early October and the new ratings system could be out by the summer of 2014.

     

    Value added reselling of data is another possibility for the future. As much of the process that can be automated will be automated – simply because BARC wants to minimise human intervention.

     

    The ratings body has not yet fixed periodicity of dispensing data because it would vary within the structure of the sample. Joshi explained, “Based on the current situation and sample size, probably getting weekly data is all that could be possible initially. This is not an emotive issue of weekly, fortnightly or quarterly reporting, BARC would look at the data and decide. It must be remembered that the higher the frequency that one seeks, the larger the sample size must become to be able to find statistically significant sized audiences. BARC recognises that there are some channels that we cannot report on a weekly basis, and so these channels could be reported quarterly, BARC will give unduplicated quarterly reach since there is no other number available for these channels.”

     

    Explaining how BARC picked up the establishment study size, Joshi said, “The most critical element of an audience measurement system is defining the establishment and the way people and the type of people (the consumer classification) who consume television. The establishment study which is already in the field will help BARC to prioritise and enable it to determine the segments of the population that are important and cannot be missed. To pick up a sampling size of 2.4 lakh for the establishment study, BARC used the census of India and electoral rolls, since there was no other database available, maybe in the future Aadhar could be used to provide a sampling frame. The establishment study will essentially run continuously, BARC will be able to re-estimate the underlying universe with far higher frequency than has probably been done until now.”

     

    “One of the big things that BARC is working with the RFPs is that it is defining what the relative error is, what the confidence is. Today the stakeholders are not aware about what the relative errors or the confidence of the numbers are. They are working with the numbers as if they were the absolute truth, which they aren’t. BARC will define the statistical boundaries within which the numbers are to be interpreted. Numbers that don’t fall within those bounds will not be reported,” said Joshi.

     

    Clarifying the role of the technical committee, Joshi said, “Besides evaluation of the proposals for the new audience measurement system, the BARC technical committee will carry out due-diligence exercises on a regular basis once data starts flowing. Since audience measurement research is not stationary, it is evolving continuously, the technical committee will drive the evolution.”

     

    “The technical committee is autonomous of the BARC board. The BARC board cannot decide what the technical committee does. The technical committee decides what the research needs. For the board to override a decision that the TechCom has made requires it to have a 75 per cent majority. 60 per cent of the voting share at BARC is with the broadcasters and 20 per cent each with the advertisers and the agencies,” explained Joshi further.

     

    Throwing light on what the BARC was not, Joshi said, “People somehow feel that BARC will replace TAM. That now you have TAM and later you’ll have BARC. TAM Media is a for-profits research venture. In the current scheme of things it is a vendor owned vendor managed system. We don’t know much about establishment study that they do, they do issue a summary every year, but they don’t tell you the details of the study. BARC is not a research company and it will never be a research company. It is a joint industry body that will be designing, commissioning, supervising and owning India’s broadcast audience research. That does not mean that it will be conducting that research itself. BARC commissions research which means that somebody else will actually conduct it. Therefore BARC is not a replacement of TAM. TAM could be potentially a vendor to BARC as could be a whole series of other kinds of companies and various other sorts of entities.”

     

    Sharing details about the new systems that were in place globally, Joshi said, “In the UK and some European countries, Canada and US, in Japan inventory is being sold on the basis of VOSDAL+7 (Viewed on Same Day as Live) – seven days of audience data are cumulated to actually determine the ratings for a show and this will grow as currency in other parts of the world. So you’re not only measuring the primary TV consumption, but also in all other forms. BARC may not be able to measure it at the start, but it should be able to do so in a year and a half from now.”