Tag: TV9 Gujarati

ABP tops the charts with regional flair and a digital news power play

MUMBAI: Who says news is all doom and gloom? For ABP Network, it’s a story worth celebrating in five languages, no less. According to Comscore MMX-Multi-Platform data for February 2025, ABP Network has emerged as India’s third-largest digital publisher, pulling in a whopping 147.9 million unique visitors and outpacing media giants like HT Media, Zee Digital, India Today Group, Times Network, and NDTV.

But this isn’t just a numbers game, it’s a masterclass in multilingual domination. ABP’s regional powerhouses are sweeping through Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Gujarati, and Punjabi markets like seasoned newsroom ninjas.

In the Hindi segment, ABP News surged ahead with 75.7 million unique visitors, outshining its nearest rival by over 18 million, a staggering lead that cements its top slot in India’s most competitive news space.

ABP Ananda waltzed through the Bengali market with 18.9 million UVs, dancing 11.8 million steps ahead of the competition. Meanwhile, ABP Majha proved its mettle in Marathi with 19.2 million visitors, comfortably ahead of Sakal Media and Lokmat.

Over in Gujarat, ABP Asmita swept up 5.3 million unique visitors, leaving behind TV9 Gujarati, Divyabhaskar, and News18 Gujarati. ABP Sanjha flexed its Punjabi muscle with 1.2 million UVs, clinching the top spot ahead of News18 Punjab and Punjab Kesari Jagbani.

And in the Tamil market, newcomer ABP Nadu made a statement, grabbing second place with 9 million visitors, becoming the youngest publisher to break into the leadership ranks.

From legacy strongholds to new frontiers, ABP Network is clearly not just chasing eyeballs, it’s curating digital loyalty across India’s media map. With its blend of regional relevance, digital-first strategy, and journalistic agility, ABP isn’t just reporting the news, it’s rewriting the playbook.

April 7, 2025
TV9 Network dominates the Indiantelevision.com News Television Awards 2023

Mumbai: In a resounding recognition of its commitment to excellence in journalism, TV9 Network won a staggering 53 awards at the News Television Awards 2023, organised by Indiantelevision.com at an event on 9 December in Holiday Inn, Delhi.

The honours span no less than 15 categories and 7 languages, recognising the work of multiple broadcast channels and digital platforms by TV9 Network, including News9 Plus, The Innovation Hub, Money 9, TV9 Bharatvarsh, TV9 Bangla, TV9 Gujarati, TV9 Kannada, TV9 Marathi, TV9 Telugu and the TV9 UPUK Digital YouTube channel.

Incepted in 2007, the News Television Awards honour outstanding television news journalism across 45 unique categories in 8 different languages, rewarding “channel programmers, anchors, presenters, technicians, producers, editors, reporters and management”, as per its website.

“There is a major transformation taking place in the realm of Indian news media today. As viewers become more discerning amidst a surplus of options, TV9 Network has succeeded at disrupting the status quo, both in conventional broadcasting and in digital news formats. From pioneering the world’s first news OTT platform to delivering unparalleled coverage of current affairs through traditional television, innovation is at the centre of everything we do. Our commitment is to continually enhance the quality of content while upholding the fundamental tenets of journalistic integrity”, said TV9 Network chief growth officer Raktim Das.

Indiantelevision.com founder & CEO Anil NM Wanvari, joined the panel of jurors for this year’s event, which included esteemed personalities such as PolicyBazaar CMO Sai Narayan, Gulf Marketing head Amit Gheji and JK Tyre CMO Amit Gujral among others.

News9 Plus, India’s first news OTT platform took home 8 laurels at the event, across the ‘Programming’ and ‘Promo, Designing and Packaging’ categories, with TV9 Network MD and CEO’s ‘Duologue with Barun Das ft. Mithali Raj’ winning the award for ‘Editorial Choice – Most Cerebral Talk Show’.

TV9 Network Innovation Hub, the flagship brand solutions powerhouse, bagged 2 wins for the Set Design and Brand Partnership of its ‘Road to Safety’ campaign, which aimed to increase awareness about road safety in India.

Money9, the personal finance OTT offering by TV9 Network and the first of its kind in India, was also graced with the ‘Original Programming On OTT (Hindi)’ award, for its show Money Central.

Also winning big were the broadcast channels, with TV9 Bangla walking away with an unprecedented 12 accolades, including 3 Personality Awards, for Amritanshu Bhattacharya, Anirban Chowdhury and Suman Mahapatra.

TV9 Telugu scored a similarly impressive 11 wins, with 3 Special Awards and 4 Personality Awards given out to Deepthi Vajpeye, Rajinikanth Vellalacheruvu, G Nethravathi and Pranitha Yadav.

TV9 UPUK, the YouTube channel dedicated to quality news coverage of events in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand also emerged a big winner of the evening, with 4 Programming Awards and 2 Personality Awards, to Pankaj Tripathi and Brijesh Tiwari.

On another front, Shivani Purohit of TV9 Gujarati was also conferred with a Personality Award, bringing the total tally of honours bestowed on the channel to 6.

Meanwhile, TV9 Kannada and TV9 Marathi enjoyed great success in the Programming Categories, taking home 3 and 2 commendations respectively.

Logging one win for Programming and one Personality Award to Mahesh Kumar Tiwari, TV9 Bharatvarsh rounded out the Network’s tally for the evening, bringing the figure up to a tremendous 53.

December 12, 2023
TV9 Network partners with JioTV/ JioTV+

Mumbai: TV9 Network, India’s largest television news network, has joined forces with JioTV & JioTV+, a LIVE TV streaming service owned by Jio Platforms Ltd, a subsidiary of Reliance Industries. This strategic alliance is set to magnify TV9 Network’s presence in the realm of connected TV and mobile streaming platform, ushering in a new era of television viewing characterised by enhanced enrichment and seamlessness, all driven by cutting-edge technology.

As part of this collaboration, seven premium channels from TV9 Network are live on JioTV and JioTV+, offering an extensive range of news, entertainment, and infotainment programming to JioTV and JioTV+’s vast and diverse user base. The channels include TV9 Bharatvarsh, TV9 Telugu, TV9 Kannada, TV9 Marathi, TV9 Gujarati, TV9 Bangla, and the network’s latest English offering News9.

JioTV is a LIVE TV streaming platform with over 1000 channels in over 15 languages and 12 genres and hosts content from over 200 broadcasters. JioTV offers LIVE TV along with a seven-day catch up which can be consumed on mobile phones and tablets with Jio sim cards for free. JioTV+ on the other hand is the connected device for TV screens that runs on JioFiber and wifi offering the best OTT packages alongside the linear channels. With an extensive user base that spans urban and rural areas, this is an ideal partnership for TV9 Network to reach a wider and more diverse audience. This partnership promises to strengthen the connection between TV9 Network and its viewers, providing them with easy access to the network’s rich content offerings.

Talking about the collaboration, TV9 Network chief growth officer (broadcasting & digital) Raktim Das said: “With cutting edge content and robust distribution, TV9 Network has disrupted news media industry in the country. This collaboration aligns perfectly with our mission to bring credible, informative, and engaging content to viewers across the country. The fact that all our 7 channels are now available on JioTV and JioTV+ platform reflects our unwavering commitment to keeping our viewers informed and connected.”

With both entities committed to delivering top-notch news content to a broader and more diverse audience, Das added: “Our collaboration with JioTV & JioTV+ is a testament to our dedication to innovation and customer-centricity. We believe this strategic alliance will not only help us expand our footprint but also provide our viewers with unparalleled convenience and access to their favorite TV9 Network channels. We are excited about the future prospects of this partnership and look forward to creating compelling content for our new and existing viewers.”

November 1, 2023
TV9 Network partners with Cloud TV

Mumbai: TV9 Network has joined forces with Cloud TV, a leading provider of advanced smart TV operating systems (OS), to enhance its presence in the connected TV space. This collaboration aims to amplify TV9 Network’s footprint in the connected TV realm, delivering an enriched and seamless television viewing experience to audiences across the nation through state-of-the-art technology.

TV9 Network chief growth officer Raktim Das spoke about the collaboration, stating, “Our partnership with Cloud TV heralds an exciting phase in redefining how viewers interact with our channels through connected TV platforms. This collaboration marks a pivotal juncture in our quest to reshape television news viewing in India. Cloud TV’s cutting-edge smart TV OS technology, synergized with TV9 Network’s exceptional content, will create a distinct and captivating viewing experience for the audience.”

Cloud TV COO Abhijeet Rajpurohit, expressed his enthusiasm, stating, “We are thrilled to integrate TV9 Network’s News Channels for our users to stream for Free on their Cloud TV devices. News channels hold a significant place in India’s television landscape, and our collaboration with TV9 Network enables our users to effortlessly access Live TV channels, eliminating the need for a DTH box or TV stick. TV9 Network’s extensive and multilingual news channels provide users with the opportunity to stay updated with the latest global news content right from their TV’s homepage, all at absolutely zero cost.”

Cloud TV is renowned for its innovative smart TV solutions that deliver a truly smart and interactive experience on modern television devices. It has established itself as a leader in smart TV OS innovation, its ecosystem includes prime features, including Official Apps, Personalised Content Recommendations, Live TV Channels, Voice Assistant, Built-in App Store, Mobile Remote App for enhanced control, Effortless Universal Search, User Profiles, and much more. Currently boasting a user base exceeding 6 million, partnerships with over 150 esteemed smart TV brands, and collaborations with more than 200 content partners, Cloud TV is well-primed to redefine the future of news television in tandem with TV9 Network.

TV9 Network boasts a diverse array of channels that cater to a wide range of audience. As part of this collaboration, Cloud TV will support the distribution of TV9 Network’s channels across various smart TV platforms. The distribution includes seven popular channels under the TV9 Network umbrella, which include: TV9 Bharatvarsh, TV9 Telugu, TV9 Kannada, TV9 Marathi, TV9 Gujarati, TV9 Bangla, News9 Live.

This partnership is set to empower Indian viewers with a more interactive and immersive TV experience. By leveraging Cloud TV’s expertise in smart TV OS, TV9 Network aims to expand its reach and engage with viewers on a deeper level, ensuring that audiences can access their preferred news content seamlessly through connected TV devices.

September 25, 2023

BARC week 12: Shemaroo Marathibana enters top five Marathi channels list

MUMBAI: In week 12 of BARC India ratings, the regional market has witnessed a lot of changes. The Marathi market witnessed a new entrant Shemaroo Marathibana at fifth position. As this was also the second week of lockdown to curb the pandemic Covid-19, it has upped the viewership of news channels in the regional market as well.

In the Gujarati market, four regional news channels were in the top five list of Gujarati channels; TV9 Gujarati grabbed leading position while last week it was seen at third position. In the Bangla market, Zee Bangla has jumped from the second position to first.

In the Bangla market, Zee Bangla, Star Jalsha, Jalsha Movies, Sony Aath and Colors Bangla were the top five channels in week 12 of BARC India ratings.

Bangla

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 12
1	Zee Bangla	262071
2	STAR Jalsha	258526
3	Jalsha Movies	115530
4	Sony Aath	79055
5	Colors Bangla	73347
WB (U+R): NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

In the Bhojpuri market, Bhojpuri Cinema, Zee Biskope, B4U Bhojpuri, Big Ganga and Danbang were the top five channels in week 12 of BARC India ratings.

Bhojpuri

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 12
1	Bhojpuri Cinema	73526
2	Zee Biskope	56631
3	B4U Bhojpuri	44367
4	Big Ganga	40992
5	Dabangg	13391
Bihar/Jharkhand (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

In the Gujarati market, TV9 Gujarati, ABP Asmita, Colors Gujarati Cinema, Sandesh News and News18 Gujarati were the top five channels in week 12 of BARC India ratings.

Gujarati

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 12
1	TV9 Gujarati	65853
2	ABP Asmita	58450
3	Colors Gujarati Cinema	41107
4	Sandesh News	38243
5	News18 Gujarati	37100
Guj / D&D / DNH (U+R): NCCS All: 2+ Individuals,

In the Kannada market, Zee Kannada, Udaya TV, Colors Kannada, Star Suvarna and Udaya Movies were the top five channels in week 12 of BARC India ratings.

Kannada

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 12
1	Zee Kannada	486250
2	Udaya TV	263978
3	Colors Kannada	212492
4	Star Suvarna	197536
5	Udaya Movies	188706
Karnataka (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

In the Malayalam market, Asianet, Surya TV, Mazhavil Manorama, Zee Keralam and Flowers TV were the top five channels in week 12 of BARC India ratings

Malayalam

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 12
1	Asianet	235311
2	Surya TV	123355
3	Mazhavil Manorama	98191
4	Zee Keralam	71292
5	Flowers TV	69763
Kerala (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

Zee Marathi, Fakt Marathi, ZeeTalkies, Star Parvah and Shemaroo Marathibana were the top Marathi channels in week 12 of BARC India ratings

Marathi

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 12
1	Zee Marathi	231633
2	Fakt Marathi	146499
3	Zee Talkies	146407
4	STAR Pravah	110625
5	Shemaroo Marathibana	99330
Mah/ Goa (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

Pitaara TV, PTC Punjabi, Zee Punjabi, Manoranjan Movies and PTC News were the top five channels in week 12 of BARC India ratings.

Punjabi

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 12
1	Pitaara TV	66316
2	PTC Punjabi	61097
3	Zee Punjabi	52328
4	Manoranjan Movies	35536
5	PTC News	33194
Pun / Cha (U+R): NCCS All: 2+ Individuals,

Sun TV, Star Vijay, KTV, Zee Tamil and Star Vijay Super were the top five Tamil channels in week 12 of BARC India ratings

Tamil

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 12
1	Sun TV	940371
2	STAR Vijay	417322
3	KTV	407057
4	Zee Tamil	389266
5	STAR Vijay Super	204030
Tamil Nadu/ Puducherry (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

Star Maa, ETV Telugu, Gemini TV, Zee Telugu and Gemini Movies were the top five Telugu channels in week 12 of BARC India ratings

Telugu

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 12
1	STAR Maa	690486
2	ETV Telugu	590952
3	Gemini TV	542941
4	Zee Telugu	528017
5	Gemini Movies	246908
AP/ Telangana (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

April 4, 2020

BARC week 43 : No significant changes in regional market

MUMBAI: No significant changes were observed in the regional broadcasting market as per BARC week 43 data. In Bhojpuri space, Bhojpuri Cinema and B4U Bhojpuri exchanged their place at first and second positions and Colors Gujarati Cinema, Colors Gujarati also exchanged their place at the top two positions.

Tamil:

In Tamil space, Sun TV, Star Vijay, Zee Tamil, KTV and Star VIjay Super were the top five Tamil channels in week 43 of BARC India ratings.

		Week 43
1	Sun TV	875912
2	STAR Vijay	429031
3	Zee Tamil	384954
4	KTV	251329
5	STAR Vijay Super	119821
Tamil Nadu/ Puducherry (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individual

Marathi:

The pecking order of top five Marathi channels remained unchanged. Zee Marathi, Colors Marathi, Fakt Marathi, Star Pravah and Zee Talkies were the top five Marathi channels.

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 43
1	Zee Marathi	386006
2	Colors Marathi	167787
3	Fakt Marathi	149314
4	STAR Pravah	106247
5	Zee Talkies	105153
Mah/ Goa (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individual

Gujarati:

Colors Gujarati Cinema , Colors Gujarati, , ABP Asmita TV9 Gujarati and Sandesh News were the top five Gujrati channels in week 43 of BARC India ratings while top two channels exchanged their place at first and second position compared to last week’s data.

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 43
1	Colors Gujarati Cinema	22442
2	Colors Gujarati	18516
3	ABP Asmita	14527
4	TV9 Gujarati	12223
5	Sandesh News	7537
Guj / D&D / DNH (U+R): NCCS All: 2+ Individuals

Bangla:

Top five Bangla channels this week were Zee Bangla, Star Jalsha, Jalsha Movies, Colors Bangla and Zee Bangla Cinema.

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 43
1	Zee Bangla	320153
2	STAR Jalsha	279558
3	Jalsha Movies	82610
4	Colors Bangla	62258
5	Zee Bangla Cinema	59548
WB (U+R): NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

Bhojpuri:

In Bhojpuri space Bhojpuri Cinema and B4U Bhojpuri exchanged their places at first and second positions.

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 43
1	Bhojpuri Cinema	60187
2	B4U Bhojpuri	45233
3	Big Ganga	39879
4	Dabangg	15037
5	Bhojpuri Dhamaka DISHUM	11457
Bihar/Jharkhand (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals

Kannada:

No changes were observed in the pecking order of top five Kannada channels in the week 43 of BARC India ratings.

Week 43: Saturday, 19th October 2019 to Friday, 25th October 2019

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 43
1	Zee Kannada	536899
2	Colors Kannada	318081
3	Udaya TV	182774
4	Star Suvarna	173124
5	Udaya Movies	143276
Karnataka (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individual

Telugu:

Star Maa Zee Telugu, ETV Telugu, Gemini TV and Star Maa Movies were the top five Telugu channels. No significant changes were observed in this market.

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 43
1	STAR Maa	725538
2	Zee Telugu	445127
3	ETV Telugu	437274
4	Gemini TV	386329
5	Star Maa Movies	229042
AP/ Telangana (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals

Malayalam:

In Malayalam space Asianet, Mazhavil Manorama, Flowers TV, Surya TV, Zee Keralam were among top 5 channels.

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 43
1	Asianet	272390
2	Mazhavil Manorama	81621
3	Flowers TV	80693
4	Surya TV	60062
5	Zee Keralam	53067

November 5, 2019

BARC week 31: Colors Gujarati drops to fourth position

MUMBAI: In week 31 of BARC India's ratings, regional channels have witnessed some changes in their respective segment. In top five table of Gujarati channels, Colors Gujarati has slipped down to fourth position from second position. In Telugu segment, Star Maa has replaced Gemini Movies at fifth position.

Colors Gujarati has slipped down from second to fourth position whereas ABP Asmita moved up from third to second position and TV9 Gujarati also moved up from fourth to third position.

Gujarati

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 31
1	Colors Gujarati Cinema	38271
2	ABP Asmita	27115
3	TV9 Gujarati	25310
4	Colors Gujarati	22734
5	Sandesh News	19828
Guj / D&D / DNH (U+R): NCCS All: 2+ Individuals,

Star Maa Movies replaced Gemini movies at fifth position. Zee Telugu and Gemini TV exchanged their places at third and fourth position.

Telugu

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 31
1	STAR Maa	747432
2	ETV Telugu	457153
3	Gemini TV	441196
4	Zee Telugu	422961
5	Star Maa Movies	200233
AP/ Telangana (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

Zee Bangla Cinema moved from fifth position to fourth position and Aakash Aath moved down from fourth to fifth position in week 31 of BARC India ratings.

Bangla

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 31
1	Zee Bangla	360021
2	STAR Jalsha	247465
3	Jalsha Movies	75672
4	Zee Bangla Cinema	69157
5	Aakash Aath	61956
WB (U+R): NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

Top three bhojpuri channels- Bhojpuri Cinema, B4U Bhojpuri and Big Ganga remained same. Dabangg moved down from fourth to fifth position and BHojpuri Dhamaka Dishum moved up from fifth to fourth position.

Bhojpuri

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 31
1	Bhojpuri Cinema	67119
2	B4U Bhojpuri	64253
3	Big Ganga	46464
4	Bhojpuri Dhamaka DISHUM	17661
5	Dabangg	12926
Bihar/Jharkhand (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

No changes were observed in the pecking order of Kannada channels in week 21 of BARC India ratings

Kannada

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 31
1	Zee Kannada	484120
2	Colors Kannada	277496
3	Udaya TV	213647
4	Star Suvarna	165683
5	Udaya Movies	153221
Karnataka (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

No changes were observed in the top five Malayalam channels.

Malayalam

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 31
1	Asianet	304369
2	Flowers TV	110445
3	Mazhavil Manorama	94162
4	Surya TV	77869
5	Asianet Movies	62223
Kerala (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

No changes were observed in the top five Marathi channels.

Marathi

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 31
1	Zee Marathi	374086
2	Fakt Marathi	231936
3	Colors Marathi	187549
4	Zee Talkies	157102
5	STAR Pravah	115591
Mah/ Goa (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

Sun TV, Star VIjay, Zee Tamil, KTV and Star Vijay Super were the top five Tamil channels in the week 31 of BARC India Ratings

Tamil

Rank	Channel Name	Weekly Impressions (000s) sum
		Week 31
1	Sun TV	841476
2	STAR Vijay	533302
3	Zee Tamil	374655
4	KTV	261989
5	STAR Vijay Super	102422
Tamil Nadu/ Puducherry (U+R) : NCCS All : 2+ Individuals,

August 9, 2019

ETV News Gujarati targets Rs 40 crore revenue in first year

MUMBAI: The last few months saw several regional news channels sprout from the Network18 group. The channels from the bouquet charged into the states of Karnataka, West Bengal and Haryana/Himachal Pradesh and soon another channel is set to make headway into the land known for its lions.

In the presence of the new Gujarat chief minister Anandiben Patel, ETV News Gujarati is set to launch in 21 June. The current news bulletins on its sister general entertainment channel ETV Gujarati will cease to exist with the arrival of the news channel. “For the last so many years our Gujarati viewers have been demanding a 24 hours news channel for the region. Since, ETV news is known for its credibility, viewers were not satisfied with only a few news bulletins which ETV was running on the existing Gujarati channel,” says ETV news group editor Rajesh Raina.

The existing team that was creating the bulletins has now been enhanced with additions in the constituency level. Currently, being broadcast out of the network’s previous owner Ramoji Rao’s massive studios in Hyderabad, it will later shift to its headquarters in Ahmedabad and a sub-office in Gandhinagar. Naresh Dave is the editor while Neeraj Attri will be looking after the marketing and sales head of the channel.

“Hindi channels are strong in Gujarati because of lack of quality content on regional channels. There is still a potential here and also a vacuum. FMCG, pharmaceuticals and agricultural companies are potential target advertisers,” says Attri.

The competitors to ETV News Gujarati are TV9 Gujarati and Sandesh News. The size of the entire state’s market including the national Hindi channels is about Rs 500 crore to Rs 550 crore out of which regional channels command close to Rs 100 crore to Rs 110 crore.

Sources in the channel say that that ad rates is quoted at Rs 4000 for a ten second slot. While the channel is looking at a break even in about two years, the aim for the first year is to reach revenues close to Rs 40 crore.

Hoardings have already been placed across Ahmedabad, Surat, Baroda and Rajkot as well as promotions on other ETV channels. Media planners and buyers are being reached out through e-mailers. Print and radio advertisements are not yet in the pipeline.

Distrubtion across cable networks in the state including the leading GTPL as well as Den and InCable have been secured. It is also looking at covering the border areas of Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. In Mumbai it is available on all national connections. DTH platforms are yet to be added.

“ETV is known as the voice of people in the entire country as we operate channels in different regional languages. Expansion will definitely help to reach out to a sizeable population of Gujarati speaking people in the state and outside,” says Raina.

Bulletins will cover both national and regional news. This apart, film based news, sports based news, business news and city bulletins will form a part of the FCP. Live bulletins will air from 6 am to midnight. Devotional and astrology shows in the morning and cookery and women’s magazine shows in the afternoon will be aired as well.

A popular ETV Hindi programme Central Hall will also be telecast.

June 21, 2014
Gujarat Samachar to launch TV channel; Thakkar to head ad sales

MUMBAI: Gujarat Samachar, the largest read Gujarati daily, is venturing into the television regional-language news business through one of its owners, ahead of the state assembly elections.

Shreyans Shah, co-owner of the daily newspaper, is floating a new company, Aas Pass TV, to house the television project. The Gujarati-language channel will have a prime focus in news while entertainment programming will also form a part of the mix.

Shah is planning to launch the channel in November. The name is yet to be decided.

Shah has tapped TV9 senior vice-president Nilesh Thakkar to head ad sales and marketing. Designated as director-sales and marketing, Thakkar will be reporting to Shah.

“We are aiming to launch the channel in the second week of November. The focus obviously will be on political news and our launch timing is favourable as Gujarat assembly elections are coming up,” Thakkar tells Indiantelevision.com.

Thakkar comes in with over 19 years of experience in sales and marketing. Prior to joining TV9, he was with Mahua as senior VP. He had also worked with MCCS, which runs Star News, Star Majha and Star Anand, as regional manager from January 2005 till 2011. In 2007, he was promoted as all India sales head for Star Majha.

The channel will also be airing advertiser-funded programmes (AFPs).

In the Gujarati TV news space, TV9 Gujarati dominates the market.

“Gujarat is a tough market,” admits Thakkar. “The viewership for Hindi general entertainment and news channels is very strong. But we have a business plan and Gujarat Samachar is a very well known newspaper.”

Gujarat Samachar is the largest read Gujarati daily. It is published from seven cities in Gujarat and also from Mumbai, the US and the UK.

September 3, 2012