ITV

Tag: YouTube

  • Helios Media bags YouTube channel – SanjeevKapoorKhazana

    Helios Media bags YouTube channel – SanjeevKapoorKhazana

     MUMBAI: Helios Media, the specialty services company for the broadcast sector is back in the news with another announcement. Helios has expanded its services and will now include digital media monetization. The venture has begun with bagging the mandate of representing Sanjeevkapoorkhazana, the largest non-Bollywood YouTube channel in India, that has so far generated 85 million views. Helios will work in embedding brand’s messaging within the content of the channel.

     

     Speaking on the assignment, Chef Sanjeev Kapoor said, “Sanjeevkapoor.com was one of the first websites to make its presence in the country. Being a pioneer in the space, it is quite evident that our YouTube channel has garnered a huge subscriber base of 2.7 lakh. Our popular videos generate as much as 1 million plus views. This therefore becomes a great destination for brands to not only reach a large consumer base but also to capture the most appropriate mind-space. Helios Media has been partnering us on monetising FoodFood for a year now and I believe in their understanding of the space and the skill to position brands in the right environment which will help SanjeevKapoorKhazana realise its full potential in terms of revenue maximization.”

     

    Helios Media has augmented its existing team with a central digital team in Mumbai under Kirtan Mankad who has earlier worked with UTV, Zoom and Hungama.

     

    Helios Media MD Divya Radhakrishnan commented, “Helios Media’s focus is on selling brands and not just commodities by appropriate positioning and working with brand custodians to provide seamless solutions that go beyond regular commercial advertising. We strongly believe that TV has grown beyond just providing reach and its content has the power to influence. Therefore it is important for commercial messaging to chase the content irrespective of the screen it comes on. It’s because of this approach that the SanjeevKapoorKhazana mandate came our way and we are delighted to be entrusted with this responsibility by Chef Sanjeev Kapoor.”

     

    This expansion adds to Helios’s existing portfolio of MTunes HD, Channel X, FoodFood and Fashion TV.

  • ‘India’s hunt for its Trendspotter’ has begun!

    ‘India’s hunt for its Trendspotter’ has begun!

    MUMBAI: India’s first online digital channel, Trendspotters.tv, has announced ‘India’s hunt for its Trendspotter’ – A Contest now live on Facebook & Twitter. Under this contest, you simply have to capture some unique trend setting phenomenon from your city and upload the image or video on the Trendspotters.tv fan page. This Pan India Contest entitles the trendspotter with maximum votes to win a grand prize of Rs. 1 Lakh. The last date to upload the happening trends is February 15, 2014.

     

    Kunal Kishore Sinha, Founder, www.trendspotters.tv said, “‘India’s hunt for its Trendspotter’ Contest is our latest endeavour to creatively engage our viewers and further extend our Trendspotting team. There is something always trending around you and this is the perfect opportunity to update the trend lovers about it. Spotting the most exquisite trend from the world of fashion, entertainment, music and so on could entitle you to a Grand Prize.”

     

    Participants have to simply register themselves, enter the details on the nature of one’s video/image and upload through Facebook or YouTube. Participants can upload more than one entry which will then appear in the Gallery. They can invite friends to vote for their entry and based on the votes received, their ranking will appear on the Leaderboard. They can keep a tab on the entries they have posted on My Profile.

     

    The top ranking participant will not only win a cash Prize of Rs.1 lakh but also get a chance to become the Trendspotter for India’s first online digital channel for a year! Answering a question about an existing video of Trendspotters.tv in the Watch and Win segment can enable participants to win some exciting prizes daily!

     

    Trendspotters.tv is giving eager enthusiasts with a streak for observing the quirky, the stylish, the extraordinary and the offbeat, the perfect platform to showcase their ability to spot a cool trend in their locality. Now everyone can become a Trendspotter!

     

    This campaign has been activated in association with Digital Brand Partner BrandAppz.

  • April Broadcast launches Choice HD

    April Broadcast launches Choice HD

    MUMBAI: Mumbai based, April Broadcast Pvt. Ltd., a privately owned company in the Technology and Media space, announced the launch of CHOICE HDTM, a new video Switcher/Mixer application, developed in-house, especially for the Indian Wedding Video editing market. Watch the video here: www.youtube.com/abChoiceHai  

     

    This was demonstrated at the All India Photographic Trade and Industry Association’s (AIPTIA) Consumer Electronics and Imaging Fair 2014. The event, popularly known as Photofair, is India’s largest expo for Photography and Videography products, and was held in Mumbai from 9-12 January.

     

    “This segment has been growing steadily over the past few years and we noticed that wedding videographers did not have too many options when it came to producing these typical wedding videos. With CHOICE HDTM, we have, literally, given them the freedom of choice to unleash their creativity and make something really beautiful for the bridal couple.” said Sandeep N Ohri, Founder, April Broadcast Pvt. Ltd.

     

    CHOICE HDTM leverages industry-standard video I/O cards to give the professional video editor a simple-to-use, yet powerful solution, that runs on Windows-based PCs.

     

    CHOICE HDTM is extremely versatile and simultaneously switch/mix 4 digital HD/SD or analog video inputs, 2 recorded media inputs, 2 graphics and 2 tickers (both in different languages). In addition, CHOICE HDTM has a variety of special transition effects, handles audio I/O and allows simultaneous recording in HD and web-streaming of the output.

     

    According to industry estimates, the Indian wedding market as a whole is around US$ 25 billion, (approx. Rs 1.5 lakh crores), and growing at 25 to 30 per cent a year. In India, no wedding is complete without the production of a wedding video to capture and preserve this all-important life event.

     

    Today, Indian wedding videos are increasingly inspired by Bollywood (the largely popular Indian Hindi film industry) and bridal couples aspire to have their videos shot to the tune of the latest popular film songs! This involves complex editing of videos captured from various cameras and angles, application of special effects and finally, expert editing to synchronize this to the background. With HD TVs and Blu-ray DVD players becoming cheaper, all of this is now required in full HD resolution.

     

    “In addition to handling existing legacy analog and digital SD video, CHOICE HDTM handles full HD digital video and is also upgradeable to handle 2K and 4K resolutions as well, making this a safe investment for videographers in this fast changing technology landscape.” said Salim Shaikh, co-founder, April Broadcast Pvt. Ltd.

     

    CHOICE HDTM will ship to customers in February 2014 and is the third application developed by April Broadcast in less than 9 months, since its inception. Other solutions are an entry-level HDMI-based virtual studio solution for Education and a high-end virtual studio solution for television broadcast.

  • NBCUniversal News Group announces strategic collaboration and investment in NowThis News

    NBCUniversal News Group announces strategic collaboration and investment in NowThis News

    NBCUniversal News Group announces strategic collaboration and investment in NowThis News

     

    NEW YORK: The NBCUniversal News Group, one of the most influential and respected news portfolios in the world, and NowThis News, the first exclusively short-form video news network built specifically for mobile and social, have agreed that the News Group will take a minority stake in NowThis News and the two companies will co-produce original short-form news videos to be distributed across mobile and social platforms. Content will be produced by co-located NowThis News and NBCUniversal News Group teams based out of NowThis News’s New York City studio.

     

    NowThis News is a news organization that specializes in creating unique, short-form video for audiences across social platforms that include, but aren’t limited to, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, Vine, YouTube and Snapchat. Videos are combined into NowThis News’s Android and Apple apps and a mobile website, allowing viewers to seamlessly watch updates delivered to their pockets, wherever they are.

     

    As more people consume news and information on mobile and social media, this collaboration will capitalize on the News Group’s world-class news operations and NowThis News’s approach to original, short-form storytelling to reach the next generation of users.

     

    “We know that news consumption among younger audiences continues to grow, but in order to reach that audience, we need to continue to create video for the platforms they use most. NowThis News does exactly that — delivering relevant news stories for the mobile and social platforms that resonate with this audience,” said Patricia Fili-Krushel, Chairman of the NBCUniversal News Group. “We’re excited to incorporate this relationship into our overall strategy – to innovate inside and outside the company – positioning the News Group for future success.”

     

    Kenneth Lerer, NowThis News’s Co-Founder and Manager Director of Lerer Ventures, said, “By working together, the NBCUniversal News Group and NowThis News can learn from each other and build a great digital news experience that’s a win-win for the new news consumer who wants all video, all the time, built for social and mobile. This partnership allows us to showcase our shared vision of combining the world’s strongest news brands with NowThis News to super serve consumers.”

     

    NBCUniversal News Group and NowThis News will collaborate to create original, short-form videos that fit where the audience lives. The teams will co-produce content for TODAY, MSNBC, NBC News and CNBC such as:

     

    Mashups: Covering daily political, pop culture, or business news
    Explainers: Breaking down business, political or financial news

     

    “Our partnership with NowThis News is another example of our commitment to emerging platforms so that our advertising partners can increase their audience reach,” said Linda Yaccarino, President, Advertising Sales, NBCUniversal. “With this collaboration we have the ability to innovate and harness the power of compelling video and create campaigns that resonate more strongly with consumers.”

     

    The partnership represents the latest in a series of moves that the NBCUniversal News Group, whose digital assets include NBCNews.com, msnbc.com, TODAY.com, and CNBC.com has made in the digital space. Together these assets reach more than 70M unique users. Recently, the News Group also announced an investment and content partnership with Kara Swisher and Walt Mossberg’s new venture, Revere Digital, launched a new msnbc.com, created new original video units for NBC News and CNBC and acquired live stream video platform, Stringwire.

     

    NBCUniversal News Group

     

    The NBCUniversal News Group is one of the most influential and respected portfolios of on-air and digital news properties in the world, reaching over 147 million people each month.

     

    The Group includes NBC News, a broadcast leader of global news and information for over 75 years and home to such respected programs as “NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams,” “Today,” “Meet the Press,” and “Dateline;” MSNBC, the premiere destination for in-depth analysis of daily headlines, insightful political commentary and informed perspectives reaching more than 96 million households worldwide; CNBC, the recognized world leader in business news reaching approximately 395 million homes worldwide as well as The Weather Channel and digital platforms including the NBC News Digital Group, msnbc.com, CNBC.com. The NBCUniversal News Group also extends on its nationwide network of owned and affiliate stations, NBC News and CNBC Radio; as well as MSNBC on Sirius XM radio.

     

    NowThis News

     

    NowThis News is a Lerer Ventures startup and portfolio company that has produced over 10,000 original 6, 15, and 30 second news videos for rapidly growing social and mobile audiences. The company was founded by Huffington Post co-founder and former Chairman Kenneth Lerer, and former Huffington Post CEO Eric Hippeau. From studios in New York, Washington DC, NowThis News produces over 50 daily video updates for Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter, Vine, YouTube, All of the NowThis News platforms can be found here: http://www.nowthisnews.com/whatsup

     

    Lerer Ventures

     

    Lerer Ventures is a New York-based, seed stage venture capital fund led by Managing Directors Kenneth Lerer, Eric Hippeau, Ben Lerer and Jordan Cooper. LV invests in founders in the earliest stages of a startup’s life, seeking out entrepreneurs with product vision, consumer insight, focused execution and unwavering ambition. Its portfolio includes Buzzfeed, Warby Parker, Thrillist, Percolate, Fullscreen, Food52, Songza, RebelMouse and Refinery29.

  • Dentsu Digital bags digital duties for Mandom’s Gatsby

    Dentsu Digital bags digital duties for Mandom’s Gatsby

    MUMBAI: Dentsu Digital has recently been awarded digital duties of Gatsby, a part of Mandom India.
     

    The account win was the outcome of a multi agency pitch process.

    Commenting on opening 2014 on a high by winning the Gatsby’s account, Dentsu Digital CEO Glen Ireland said, “It is a great feeling to start the year with a new business win – especially, if it’s in a category that continues to grow rapidly across markets. The mandate given to us is to create an overall online presence for the brand with a strong focus on creating engagement via social media. Given the TG definition of Gatsby – Facebook will play a dominant role in creating that conversation – other channels like YouTube would help deepen the brand experience via demo-based video content. We also plan to leverage Instagram and Pinterest – relatively newer social media platforms to enhance the visibility of Gatsby online.”

     

    Gatsby was launched in Japan in 1978 and the brand made its India debut in 2003 when Mandom Indonesia started distribution of Gatsby products in the country. The year 2008, marked a new chapter in Mandom’s India plans when it appointed Mumbai-based Gardenia Cosmocare as its distributor.

     

    Since then the brand has moved from strength to strength and resulted in the company establishing a direct presence in India through Mandom Corporation (India) in 2012, making it the 11th country where the company has a direct presence.

  • Stream TV to display 4KTVs with glasses-free 3D at CES 2014

    Stream TV to display 4KTVs with glasses-free 3D at CES 2014

    MUMBAI: Stream TV Networks is all set to showcase its consumer-ready 4KTVs featuring breakthrough Ultra-D glasses-free adjustable 3D technology during CES 2014. Of the various sizes to be brought to market by the company’s brand partners in 2014, the 50″ and 55″ models will be on display at CES 2014 to be held from 7-10 January at the Las Vegas Convention Center.

    Some of the TVs will be accompanied by the seeCube-4K™, an external device that converts a wide range of content – 2D or 3D stereoscopic sources –  to 2160p glasses-free 3D in real time.

     Stream TV has ported its real time conversion technology to the new Qualcomm 8074 processor, and a second version of the TV will carry the conversion technology built into a chip, significantly reducing costs. 

    Using complex algorithms, the Ultra-D technology converts 1080p/2 million pixel content into a 4K/8 million pixel viewing experience. Users can connect their satellite or cable service, VOD, Blu-ray player, Xbox or PlayStation, as well as watch internet content from Netflix, Hulu, YouTube, Baidu TV, PPStv, iQYi tv, Totou TV and other video sites with ease.

    “Ultra-D presents a never-before-seen glasses-free 3D viewing experience,” said Stream TV Networks CEO Mathu Rajan in a release. “There’s a lack of 4K content out there, but by generating millions of new pixels with depth information, we truly take advantage of what a 4K screen can offer,” he added.

  • YouTube ad revenue may rise by 50 per cent to $5.6bn

    YouTube ad revenue may rise by 50 per cent to $5.6bn

    MUMBAI: YouTube, the online video streaming giant, is growing than ever before. According to a new report by eMarketer, YouTube’s advertising revenue is expected to rise by more than 50 per cent to $5.6 billion in 2013, also posing a threat to traditional TV ads.

     

    The report by eMarketer claims that YouTube has become a huge favourite among advertisers and it will account for 11 per cent of advertising revenue at Google, YouTube’s parent. Earlier in May, Morgan Stanley predicted that YouTube’s gross revenue would reach $4 billion in 2013, while Barclays suggested a likely figure of $3.6 billion and Jefferies & Co’s $4.5 billion

     

    Google has not revealed YouTube’s earnings, but eMarketer research suggests that the search engine got a bargain when it paid $1.65 billion for the site in 2006. However, the streaming site does not keep all the advertising revenue as it has to pay a share to advertising partners and providers of content.

     

    Google’s public statistics for YouTube include the fact that the service attracts one billion people watching more than six billion hours of video a month, with 80 per cent of its traffic coming from outside the US, and 40 per cent of its viewing on mobile devices.

     

    Advertisers are keen to buy slots on YouTube because of its young audience, who prefer to watch TV programmes through their computers, tablets and mobile phones rather than conventional televisions.

     

    About 79 per cent of YouTube’s US ad revenue is from video advertising, with an estimated $850 million for the year. That would give it a 20.5 per cent share of the overall $4.15 billion US video ad market. eMarketer estimates that YouTube video-ad revenue would hit $1.22 billion in 2014, taking a 21.1 per cent share.

  • The Amazing Spider-Man 2 in theatres across India on 2 May 2014

    The Amazing Spider-Man 2 in theatres across India on 2 May 2014

     A global trailer has been launched for The Amazing Spider-Man 2 whichis slated for a 2 May 2014 release in US and India.

    Sony Pictures and the large network of companies within the Sony family has launched the studio’s teaser trailer for this highly anticipated film.

    The trailer is available in multiple languages including English, German, Italian, French, Spanish, Portuguese, Japanese, Chinese Simplified (China), Chinese Traditional (Taiwan), Chinese Traditional (Hong Kong), Korean, and Russian.

    The launch event was announced by Sony Pictures president of theatrical marketing Dwight Caines and Sony Pictures Releasing International president of marketing Nigel Clark.

    The trailer will appear on numerous Sony networks, internet sites, and other Sony properties, including the movie’s official site (TheAmazingSpiderMan.com) and social pages, the Sony Pictures YouTube channel; Sony Pictures Imageworks’ official site and social page; Sony Pictures Television Networks’ worldwide footprint of TV channels, digital networks, websites, social apps and platforms, including AXN, Animax, Sony Entertainment Television, Spin, Crackle, Kalixta, Sony Movie Channel, CineSony, FEARnet, and the Game Show Network; PlayStation (official site, blog, and social pages); PlayStation Storefront; Sony Entertainment Network (official sites and social pages); Sony Electronics social pages; Sony Mobile social pages; Sony Select service on Sony Mobile smartphones; and Sony’s Times Square billboard.

    Commenting on the announcement, Caines said, “We are always looking to reach moviegoers wherever they are, and when we have the opportunity to leverage Sony’s worldwide reach in this way, it’s an opportunity that we just have to grab. The filmmakers are delivering the epic Spider-Man movie that audiences truly want to experience, and we are thrilled to give the world its first real taste of the movie they’ll be seeing next summer.”

    Clark added, “Spider-Man is beloved by audiences all over the world, so we wanted to launch the trailer in a truly global way.  We have had great success launching trailers across Sony’s diverse entertainment platform – and when you have a character like Spider-Man, it demands a broad, fun way to reach moviegoers internationally as well as domestically. Everyone at Sony is just as excited as we are to see the next chapter in the story of Peter Parker begin to unfold in this way.”

    ‘We have always known that Spider-Man’s most important battle has been within himself: the struggle between the ordinary obligations of Peter Parker and the extraordinary responsibilities of Spider-Man. But in The Amazing Spider-Man 2, Peter Parker finds that a greater conflict lies ahead’, he added.

    Said Andrew Garfield, “It’s great to be Spider-Man; for Peter Parker, there’s no feeling quite like swinging between skyscrapers, embracing being the hero, and spending time with Gwen (Emma Stone). But being Spider-Man comes at a price: only Spider-Man can protect his fellow New Yorkers from the formidable villains that threaten the city.”

     With the emergence of Electro (Jamie Foxx), Peter must confront a foe far more powerful than he. And as his old friend, Harry Osborn (Dane DeHaan), returns, Peter comes to realise that all of his enemies have one thing in common: OsCorp.

    Directed by Marc Webb and produced by Avi Arad and Matt Tolmach. Screen Story and screenplay by Alex Kurtzman, Roberto Orci and Jeff Pinkner and is based on the Marvel Comic Book by Stan Lee and Steve Ditko.

  • Myntra.com urges people to shop online

    Myntra.com urges people to shop online

    NEW DELHI: In the last few years, online shopping has become big. It has been a blessing in disguise for people in the small town India who got an access to many brands which were almost unreachable for them earlier. With its new television campaign titled “Ayega, Ghar Baithe Payega”, ecommerce portal for fashion and lifestyle brands Myntra.com is stressing on the convenience that online shopping gives. The theme of the campaign is “Real Life Mein Aisa Hota Hai Kya”.

    The commercial was first launched on Myntra.com’s social media platforms Youtube and Facebook before being aired across major TV channels starting 30 November.

    The TVC establishes Myntra.com as the online fashion destination and positions it as one of the country’s most comprehensive online fashion stores. Demystifying the inbuilt inertias of shopping online, Myntra.com’s latest ad gives an innovative treatment to educate and captivate the audience on the perks of online shopping over offline.

    The ad showcases a mammoth parcel being carried across crowded streets by a large number of Myntra delivery boys. The parcel gets ferried across the river, over the bridge and through tiny lanes to reach its final destination. The parcel upon arrival unveils the numerous fashion apparel and accessory options that Myntra.com offers its customers, reiterating its position as the one-stop-shop for fashion. The catchy background score picks pace through the journey and conveys advantages of shopping with Myntra.com in a simple, realistic manner.

    Shot in Panjim, Goa, the film was directed by Nikhil Rao and produced by Jamic Films. The campaign was conceptualised by Agnello Dias from Taproot Agency.

  • Are Android STBs a step too far for India?

    Are Android STBs a step too far for India?

    MUMBAI: Even as the cable and television industry prepares to take on digitisation, there’s another advanced technology which has arrived rather quietly on Indian shores.

     

    We’re talking Android set top boxes (STBs) from Willett STB Technologies which are in the market since sometime last month. These hybrid STBs carry all the applications available on the Android Play Store and allow customers to switch seamlessly between television and the internet. Given the recent buzz about Google bringing YouTube on TV, such a technology may just be what the doctor ordered. However, for a variety of reasons, the Android STBs don’t seem to be finding enough traction in the industry.

     

    Speaking to indiantelevision.com, Willett STB Technologies director Deepak Wadhwa refuted the MSOs’ claim that STBs are not upgraded to carry YouTube as a Video-on-demand (VoD) service on television. “The STBs come in different models and frankly, we are ready with the technology. The Android box is the answer to this new development.”

     

    However, Wadhwa was quick to point out that the problem lies in MSOs’ unwillingness to accept the technology. “The MSOs are not ready to promote the boxes. Even though we are ready with the upgraded technology, there are deployment issues,” he said.

     

    So what was keeping MSOs from adopting the new technology? A major reason, according to Wadhwa, was the cost, where each Android STB carried a price tag of Rs 4,000. Additionally, customers would have to pay for video services.

     

    The Willett Android 4.2 STB is a hybrid box, with both Android and DVBC features. “The box allows customers to switch between Android play store and TV channels. It also converts a normal TV to a smart TV,” informed Wadhwa.

     

    Elaborating on the cost factor, he said: “The MSOs are already tied up with MPEG2 boxes. Also in smaller cities, where people are used to viewing TV at Rs 75 to Rs 100, they are opposing STBs which cost Rs 1000, so accepting the Android boxes seems a far thing to imagine.”

     

    Meanwhile, an MSO defended cable operators’ stance saying: “These OTT boxes don’t give us revenue which goes to the service provider instead. So why should we use them?”

     

    Media consultant Sanjeev Hiremath opined: “As far as the cable industry is concerned, technology gets adapted step-by-step. No one is ready to take two steps at a time. Obviously, the advantage of the Android box is that you can incorporate the experience of OTT service also in that. So then you can avoid cable and can directly take a broadband connection and experience both TV and the world of internet. If customers are not ready to pay Rs 1000-2000 for normal STBs, of course they will not buy these at double the rate.”
    Maybe, India needs to work towards faster adoption of new technologies just as it has in developing them…