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Tag: Zee5

  • Original Content is Going to Be the Winning Factor for OTTs like ZEE5!

    Original Content is Going to Be the Winning Factor for OTTs like ZEE5!

    The Indian OTT space is experiencing an exciting phase with the influx of new content. And leading the race is India’s home-grown platform, ZEE5. With a path-breaking bouquet of offerings spanning multiple genres, ZEE5 is set to wow audiences with an exciting line-up of original movies and web series. Ramping up its diversified content portfolio, the streaming giant has promised the audience a vast catalogue that will appeal to audiences of all backgrounds. Let’s explore how this strategy can be a winning factor for the OTT player. 

    An Exclusive Portfolio of Multilingual Content

    Smartphone penetration coupled with easy accessibility has enabled audiences from Tier 2 and 3 cities to get uninterrupted entertainment at their fingertips. Audiences are open to a wide range of content, pushing the envelope of creativity for content creators. From Hindi films to Tamil blockbusters, ZEE5 has an exclusive selection of movies that viewers can access from anywhere in the nation. With original content at the forefront, the streaming platform has a burgeoning selection of flicks that adds a silver lining to its popularity. 

    Manish Kalra, ZEE5’s Chief Business Officer, commented that “2022 will see fresh content from ZEE5 on the movies front as we have commissioned new inventory. The streaming platform will see 2X growth in original content with a special focus on regional content.”

    Along with Hindi films, the entertainment platform has movies and web series in over 12 languages. The multiple offerings connect people from varied demographics, regions, and cultural differences under one roof. The streaming giant is investing in building an exclusive library of original content in languages, including Tamil, Telugu, Bengali, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Hindi, Punjabi, and more. ZEE5 started the year with a bang by launching exclusive movies that include 36 Farmhouse, Mudhal Nee Mudivum Nee, Ellam Sheriyakum, and more. These movies received wide critical acclaim conquering the hearts of millions.  

    Entertaining Audiences with Original and Engaging Storylines

    Taking inspiration from India’s diverse culture, ZEE5 has a selection of movies that provide the audiences with different narratives, offering a fresh perspective. Many of the stories on the platform have original content inspired by the lives of ordinary people. From breaking stereotypes in 14 Phere and Rashmi Rocket to fighting injustice in 200 Hallo Ho, ZEE5 has a good line-up that features unique themes. Besides a solid screenplay with a stellar cast, these movies also tackle varied social themes plaguing our society today. Along with fiction programming, the platform also has non-fiction content for viewers, including chat shows, news stories, and more. ZEE5 has irrevocably changed streaming for Indian viewers for the better, bringing unique plots to viewers globally.

    Experimentation is the Driving Force Behind ZEE5 Originals

    While ZEE5 is increasingly focusing on regional content to retain viewers, the main driving force behind the success of ZEE5 Originals is experimentation. Hindi films like Bob Biswas, Kaagaz, 420 IPC, and more have received wide critical acclaim from reviewers and audiences alike. The streaming giant has also collaborated with various creators and filmmakers like Applause Entertainment, Red Chillies Entertainment, TVF, and more to churn out original content and explore new territories. 

    The streaming giant has created a creative outlet that audiences feel drawn to. With the vision of ‘Entertainment Inclusivity’, ZEE5 collaborates with creators to bring local stories that connect with audiences emotionally and give them a global stage by making them available across 190+ countries.  

    Upping its Entertainment Game with Every Release

    The regional film industry has created ripples in the Indian entertainment industry. This means that Indian cinema is no longer a place for formulaic storylines. By bringing diversity and authenticity to the cinematic landscape, ZEE5 has created a larger ecosystem of digital content creation. With new releases every month, the streaming platform provides quality entertainment to viewers with niche films bound to leave an impact. The OTT player has more than 40+ Originals lined up for release in FY22, promising viewers a new world for entertainment at the flick of a button. 

  • Zee5 unveils ‘India Ka Binge-a-thon’ campaign to celebrate fourth anniversary

    Zee5 unveils ‘India Ka Binge-a-thon’ campaign to celebrate fourth anniversary

    Mumbai: Video streaming platform Zee5 has announced the launch of ‘India Ka Binge-a-thon,’ a three-day campaign to celebrate its fourth anniversary between 12 and 14 February.

    This initiative is aimed at the platform’s long-standing goal of entertainment inclusion where consumers will get access to the top premium web series and movies across languages for three days for free.

    Titles such as “Uri: The Surgical Strike” and “Abhay” in Hindi, “Mulshi Pattern” in Marathi, “Lalbazaar” in Bangla, “Geetha Govindam” in Telugu, “Ka Pae Ranasingam” in Tamil, “Madhura Raja” in Malayalam, and “Kalidasa Kannada Meshtru” in Kannada, amongst a host of others, will be freely available as a part of the celebratory offer.

    Also in store for the upcoming event is another offering called ‘Zee5 Spark,’ which in partnership with Indie producers and digital content creators, aims to bolster the platform’s AVOD content library. ‘Spark’ has been launched to attract new viewers, especially the youth, onto the platform for a long-term duration with short films and web series that are free to stream.  

    “With OTT growing in prominence, content consumption got democratised, paving the way for creators to explore and expand the narrative with newer concepts and genres that have led to several consumer cohorts consuming differentiated content on the platform,” observed Zee5 CCO Hindi originals Nimisha Pandey. “Factors such as the shift in demand for authentic stories, the success of women-centric narratives, growth of family entertainment, genre-bending shows and acceptance of characters with multiple layers and shades have ushered in many industry firsts in content.”

    In addition to popular series such as “Holiday,” “Ready 2 Mingle,” “Dude,” “The Great Indian Wedding,” and “Happily Ever After,” short films like “Baarish Aur Chowmein,” “Half Full,” “Khujli,” “Kheer” and others, starring popular actors Taapsee Pannu, Naseeruddin Shah, Anupam Kher, Neena Gupta and Jackie Shroff will be available for AVOD users under Spark.

    Over the past 12 months, Zee5 has become the highest growing OTT platform in India as per AppAnnie’s latest industry report. The platform claims to have 101.9 million monthly active users (MAU) and 9.6 million global daily active users (DAUs) as of December 2021. Zee5 users watched an average of 201 minutes of content per month during the last quarter, with the platform releasing 51 shows and movies, including 11 originals during the period

    “We are entering our fourth year with great enthusiasm and vigour, riding high on the last one year which has been a blockbuster,” said Zee5 India CBO Manish Kalra. “The response from the last four years of our operations has been phenomenal as we trotted into new markets, partnered with industry stalwarts, introduced many firsts and moved a little closer to our goal of deeper regionalisation and entertainment inclusion.”

    “This year is going to be even bigger and better as we expand our content library further with premium offerings, improve our user experience, activate more value-driven partnerships, and set new industry standards. As the multilingual storyteller of India and Bharat alike, we will continue to focus on entertainment inclusion by producing relatable and entertaining content, keeping our diverse audience in mind,” he further added.

  • EdTech sees exponential growth during pandemic

    EdTech sees exponential growth during pandemic

    Mumbai: Education has been one of the severely-hit sectors during the lockdown as the entire education system had to go online overnight. But on the other hand, the Covid-19 pandemic also led the education sector to an unplanned demonstration of e-learning methods, which was not possible otherwise. Interestingly, remote learning, which started as a substitute for offline classes for some time, emerged as a complementary and supplementary mechanism.

    The latest ZEE5 Intelligence Monitor Report gave evidence of the speed and scale of business activities in online education. Conducted on a cross-section of ZEE5 viewers in over 146 cities and towns across rural and urban India, the primary survey included parents who were also regular ZEE5 viewers from tier I, II, and III cities.

    ZEE Entertainment Enterprises chief operations officer Rajiv Bakshi said, “Innovation lies at the epicenter of our business. Coupled with our consumer-centric approach, we endeavored to introduce a property that will educate and empower our audiences as well as partners. ZEE5 Intelligence Monitor knowledge series offers the tenets, roadblocks, and insights of the sectors that have witnessed a massive change in the last two years.”

    The ed-tech report is the first in the series and highlights the disruption witnessed in the Indian education sector, fuelled by tech solutions, convenience and a new-age mindset. “We are confident that the report would benefit brand custodians and product leaders and provide new information and insights for them to make advertising and business decisions,” said Bakshi.

    The report aimed to gauge the changes in consumption patterns and consumer attitudes towards e-learning in India.  This survey by ZEE5 unearthed some interesting insights about online education. Let’s take a look!

    E-Learning Grows As A Nationwide Trend

    As the schools shifted to remote learning, 46 per cent of the survey respondents considered e-learning applications for their children during the pandemic. While 50 per cent of the parents in metro cities embraced e-learning for their children, the corresponding figure for non-metro parents stood at 40 per cent. The figures indicate that e-learning has accelerated nationwide.

    Same Quality of Education For All

    One significant benefit of e-learning apps is that they ensure a similar quality of education for all, which is impossible to imagine in offline classrooms. “E-learning platforms offer the same quality of education across the country, from tier I cities to tier II and tier III locations to the farthest corners of India,” said Toppr founder and CEO Zeeshan Hayath.

    Parents Adopt E-Learning Methods for Kids

    Millennials who were among the early adopters of computers and the internet have also emerged as the first group of parents to adopt e-learning applications. The ZEE5 report highlights that 55 per cent of millennial parents adopted e-learning platforms for their children. As millennial parents include people born during the 1990s, they have grown to see significant disruptions in technology. Hence they were quick to adapt to the e-learning applications.

    Parents See E-learning Cost As An Investment In Child’s Future

    The parents are quick to adopt e-learning and are also open to spending on the platform. As per the report, 63 per cent of parents don’t consider the cost of e-learning as a limiting factor; instead, they see it as an investment in their child’s future. According to ZEE Entertainment Enterprises’ chief operations officer, revenue, Rajiv Bakshi, parents’ willingness to adapt and invest in the new e-learning mechanism is a testimony to the efficacy and value of ed-tech.

    Internet Connectivity Still Remains A Big Barrier

    The applications offering e-learning services interact and participate in activities via computer; thus, robust internet connectivity becomes critical to this new learning mechanism. But even after winning the trust of the majority of parents, ed-tech platforms cannot effectively reach many due to the unstable internet connectivity across the country. With all family members working from home and students studying remotely, internet connectivity is insufficient. Even while mobile phones are available across the nation, the bandwidth it offers doesn’t support e-learning platforms.

    At least 40 per cent of parents feel that internet connectivity is a barrier to effective e-learning. They find internet connectivity even a more significant challenge than the cost of e-learning applications.

    Moving Towards A Hybrid Future Of Learning

    While the lockdown has disturbed human lives like never before, it has forced us towards the things that we couldn’t even think of otherwise- for example- an MNC operating entirely from home or an education system performing remotely. While we all wish to get rid of the pandemic soon, the behavioral changes it has brought will stay with us for life. As far as the education system is concerned, the ZEE5 Intelligence Monitor Report clearly illustrates that e-learning has become very effective.

    E-learning empowers individual learners and has the potential to improve access to education at a broader level when used in conjunction with the traditional class-based model, commented Bakshi on the findings of the ZEE5 survey.

    The e-learning industry trends suggest that teachers and learners have become comfortable with e-learning, they even like this system over the traditional classroom setting. And while the e-learning applications are becoming more immersive, parents also like the fact that they can monitor their children’s academic progress throughout. However, the school environment and physical interaction are crucial for children’s overall growth. We can expect the learning system to move towards a hybrid model where e-learning platforms support classroom learning. 

  • Online Shopping Has Become Mainstream: Zee5 Intelligence Monitor

    Online Shopping Has Become Mainstream: Zee5 Intelligence Monitor

    Mumbai: The Indian e-commerce industry’s growth has accelerated over the past few years and emerged among the largest online shopping geos in the world, thanks to the penetration of smartphones and the Internet. And, the series of lockdowns has further fueled its growth. ‘Zee5 Intelligence Monitor- E-commerce Report Consumer Insights & Trends’ aims to comprehend this changing phenomenon of the e-commerce industry and analyse where the industry is heading.

    The report, based on a consumer survey by Zee5 in over 146 cities, dives deep into consumer insights and tracks the changes in consumption patterns and consumer attitudes in India. Let’s look at the report’s findings to understand expected and asynchronous trends of the e-commerce industry.

    Online Shopping Has Become A Mainstream Trend

    The survey found that 95 per cent of the respondents shop online and use more than one e-commerce platform to meet their shopping needs. The respondents include many shoppers who made their first online purchase during the lockdown. Further, the report also unearthed that 60 per cent of respondents have more than three apps, and 25 per cent use more than five e-commerce apps regularly.

    The figures reflect that e-commerce, which used to be one of many purchasing options in the pre-pandemic world, has now become mainstream. Note that the respondents include people from Tier I and Tier II and III cities. Lockdown served as an excellent opportunity for consumers to explore online shopping.

    Now, the figures of the Zee5 survey clearly show that while this shift was initially triggered due to limitation of movement, people started liking the convenience and ease of online shopping.

    Uptick In Frequency Of Online Purchases

    The untimely lockdown also marked an uptick in the frequency of online shopping. According to the report, while shopping online was an irregular trend before the lockdown, people now make frequent online purchases, with a whopping 60 per cent of users shopping online at least twice a month and 20 per cent at least five times a month.

    People over The Age Of 35 Started Spending More On E-commerce

    What makes the data more interesting is that online shopping, which used to be a Gen Z thing, has significantly become popular even among Gen Y, including people over the age of 35. If we speak of numbers, 55 per cent of Gen Y users spent over 20 per cent more on online shopping since the first lockdown. A critical reason behind this notable growth is the dissolution of the barriers between online and offline shopping.

    Male Shoppers Leading E-Commerce Race Over Females

    It is a common belief that women are key drivers of e-commerce growth, but the survey revealed that it is presently the male shoppers who are currently leading the race.

    As per the findings, 22 per cent of the male consumers made more than five online purchases against 14 per cent of female shoppers. The asymmetry of mobile users among men and women in Tier II and Tier III markets could be a significant reason for this demographic shift in e-commerce sales. Another factor could be increased use of social media, which exposes men to the latest fashion and lifestyle trends, resulting in e-commerce purchases. This shift opens a massive opportunity for brands dealing mainly with men’s products.

    E-commerce Window Shopping: Mood Upliftment

    As lockdown restricted people from going out and having fun, they found new ways to engage themselves. While some of them revisited their old hobbies, others found new pastimes. Interestingly, online window shopping emerged as a favorite activity for many people. The Zee5 report suggested that 25 per cent of their respondents consider online shopping to enhance their mood. Online platforms offer an unprecedented level of product discovery and a shift in perception of e-commerce from ‘need fulfillment’ to ‘mood upliftment’.

    OTT Shows Have Emerged As A Platform For Fashion Discovery

    Ever since the first lockdown was imposed, people unknowingly started spending more time online. Since everyone in the family was locked inside their homes, OTT content consumption recorded enormous growth. Interestingly, as an offshoot of increased consumption, OTT shows emerged as a platform for fashion discovery among consumers. Reportedly, 87 per cent of users look forward to discovering fashion and lifestyle products in the shows they watch online. This is not it; even 75 per cent of people are likely to buy similar products and clothes that their favorite actors use or wear. And, naturally OTT platforms have become a platform of choice for all ecommerce advertisers.

    People Conduct Online Purchase After Checking Products In-Store

    The report discovered that 70 per cent of male users do online shopping after checking the same products in-store. It wouldn’t be wrong to say that now consumers don’t differentiate online and offline and make purchases based on their preference. Brands must invest in hybrid and omnichannel models that will allow them to cater to their customers wherever they choose to be. As the lockdown eases with time, we can look forward to an integrated market where e-commerce will most likely complement the offline market.

  • Sports not the only way to grow OTT business: Punit Goenka

    Sports not the only way to grow OTT business: Punit Goenka

    Mumbai: “Sports is not the only way to grow the OTT business,” remarked Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel) MD and CEO Punit Goenka in an investor call on Wednesday. Zeel posted its third quarter financial results for the fiscal 2022. The company’s OTT platform Zee5 crossed 100 million monthly active users (MAUs) for the first time.

    While responding to a question on how acquisition of sports content will grow the OTT business, Goenka replied, “Until now we have not factored in sports in our OTT business. It is a faster way to grow the business but can it be done without sports? Certainly.”

    Streaming platform Zee5 posted impressive metrics during the quarter garnering 101.9 million MAUs and 9.6 million daily active users (DAUs) growing sequentially and over last year in terms of both MAUs and DAUs. The watch time on the platform also significantly improved to reach 201 minutes which is up by 15 minutes quarter-on-quarter. Zee5 released 51 shows out of which 11 were originals during the quarter.  The platform’s strong performance was registered on the back of a compelling slate of content launched during the quarter and enhanced user experience, said Goenka.

    Meanwhile, the merger process initiated between Sony Pictures Networks India and Zeel in December is making steady progress. The company noted that it will apply to National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) after receiving necessary approvals for its scheme by the stock exchanges. Furthermore, the company will seek the approval for the scheme from the Competition Commission of India (CCI) in parallel.

    On the linear business side, all India viewership share of the network decreased by 40 bps to 17.3 per cent. During the quarter, the company launched 25+ shows across markets resulting in lower margins. “There have been significant investments in content this fiscal which in turn will reflect in our margins in the short term,” noted Goenka. “This is in line with the content strategy implemented across various genres. As we launch new shows across markets to drive viewership on the linear side we will post strong growth across viewer metrics.”

    “Advertising spending and consumer sentiment saw a significant boost in demand and we see this trend continue as we move forward,” he observed.

    Also read: Zeel reports Rs 21,126 million revenue in Q3’FY22 | Indian Television Dot Com

    Zeel posted an increase in revenues by seven per cent quarter on quarter but saw a slight decline of three per cent year on year in the third quarter of 2021. Both subscription and advertising revenues were lower compared to the same period last year.  

    “In the previous fiscal, we were recovering from a nationwide lockdown which had led to a huge pent-up demand,” explained Goenka. “On subscription revenue, the embargo on pricing has significantly impacted the overall growth across the industry. With NTO 2.0 implementation pushed to the next fiscal year, it is still too early to predict how FY 2023 will look.”

    He added, “In the last 12 months to 15 months the pay TV market has seen an erosion of 4.6 million households which have moved from pay TV to free to air and this is largely caused by the pandemic situation. That’s the cause of further degrowth in subscription revenues. The total TV business has reduced both in terms of reach and revenues on account of a slowdown in the movie business. The lack of fresh movie content for the last two years on the linear side has definitely had an impact. We’ve also had a cricket world cup which impacts movie viewership.

    Speaking about the impact of NTO 2.0 on subscription revenues he said, “It’s still too early to predict. We’re in an uncertain environment with regards to NTO 2.0 implementation. We need a 45-day window to implement and we’re already on 2 February. We must get a clear go ahead on implementation of NTO 2.0 by 15 February.”

    Zee Studios released five films during the quarter out of which one was Hindi and the rest were in regional languages. The movie business faced pandemic induced headwinds but overall opening of theatres and strong pipeline of films augured well for the movie industry at large, said Goenka. “Our studios business has a strong pipeline of films for the year ahead and we are hopeful that the third wave of the pandemic will subside soon, encouraging consumers to return to the big screen. We remain hopeful for an improvement in creative revenues for the subsequent three quarters.”  

    On the impact of the third wave, he said, “The third wave and surge of infections in 2022 could potentially have an impact on the fourth quarter results although it is too early to predict the outcome. The faster rate of recovery during this wave assures the quick resumption of services and activities across markets. We are hopeful that we will end the financial year registering steady growth across our businesses.”

    Zeel posted Rs 21,126 million in the quarter out of which advertising revenue stood at Rs 12,608 million and subscription revenue at Rs 7902 million. Zee5 posted quarterly revenues of Rs 1459 million which is up by 11.8 per cent quarter-on-quarter.

  • Zeel reports Rs 21,126 million revenue in Q3’FY22

    Zeel reports Rs 21,126 million revenue in Q3’FY22

    Mumbai: Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel) on Wednesday reported its financial results for the quarter ended 31 December 2021. The media conglomerate has posted revenues of Rs 21,126 million for Q3’FY22, down three per cent from Rs 21,781 million in Q3’FY21.  

    Thr revenue from advertising and subscription stood at Rs 12,608 million and Rs 7,902 million respectively. The corresponding figures for Q3’FY21 were Rs 13,020 million and Rs 8,419 million. There was a six per cent increase in overall expenditure. 

    The A&P spends went up from Rs 1,798 million in Q3’FY21 to Rs 2,282 million in the quarter ended 31 December 2021.

    The company PAT showed a degrowth of 10.1 per cent, from Rs 3,321 million in Q3’FY21 to Rs 2,987 million this quarter.  

    Zee’s network share fell from 18.2 per cent in Q3’21 to 17.3 per cent this quarter. Share for the last quarter was 17.7 per cent. Total TV viewership went down, as compared to the previous quarter, due to lower contribution by movies.

    The company’s OTT platform Zee5 witnessed significant growth in MAUs on the back of robust content release in Q3. 51 shows and films (which includes 11 originals) released during the quarter.

    Global MAUs (Monthly Active Users) and DAUs (Daily Active Users) in December 2021 stood at 101.9 million (YoY up 36 million), and 9.6 million (YoY up 4.2 million) respectively.

    Q3 revenues reported were Rs 1,459 million; up 12 per cent sequentially. 9M revenues stood at Rs 3,882 million (up by 24.6 per cent).  

    Average watch time increased from 133 mins in Q3’ FY21 to 201 mins in Q3’FY22. The QoQ is up by 15 mins.

  • Zee5 Global launches second edition of Global Content Festival

    Zee5 Global launches second edition of Global Content Festival

    Mumbai: Leading on the success of its first Global Content Festival in 2020, Zee5 Global is back with its second edition. Transcending linguistic, cultural, and geographical boundaries, the initiative was launched to give budding and independent filmmakers a global platform to showcase their work to an audience across 190+ countries.

    The first edition of the Festival in 2020 witnessed entries from countries like Australia, Bangladesh, Netherlands, India, Dubai, Singapore, the UK, the USA and more. Singapore-based independent filmmaker Shilpa K Shukla emerged as the winner with three entries, “Kathaah@8,” “Tashi,” and “Dots” in the Drama films category.

    Zee5 Global chief business officer Archana Anand said, “After the huge response we got for the first edition of the Zee5 Global Content Festival, we are thrilled to now announce the second edition. The Zee5 Global Content Festival is a special initiative we started in 2020 to give independent filmmakers and content creators from across the globe an opportunity to showcase their work to audiences in 190+ countries. Last year, we saw some stellar entries coming in, and we look forward to this year being even better.”

    The festival provides content creators with an opportunity to attain global fame instantly and experience a diverse environment.

  • Zee5 partners with Garnier and Wavemaker for ‘Garnier Men BroCast’

    Zee5 partners with Garnier and Wavemaker for ‘Garnier Men BroCast’

    Mumbai: Zee5 has entered a partnership with Garnier and Wavemaker to exclusively stream “Garnier Men BroCast,” a celebrity podcast on male grooming conceptualised in partnership with Schbang.

    The brand has roped John Abraham and Tiger Shroff for the first episode of the podcast to initiate conversations about normalising grooming for the modern Indian man. The first season of the podcast is a three-episode series with each episode lasting for six to eight minutes, accessible to both AVOD and SVOD audiences on the platform.

    “An average Indian man spends 42 mins every day grooming himself. With search around men’s skincare increasing by 400 per cent over last five years and 22 per cent male consumers (aged between 18-34) turning to social media influencers for grooming tips, Garnier along with Wavemaker wanted to dedicate its latest property, ‘Garnier Men BroCast’ to change the perception around the idea of male grooming and address the stigma associated with grooming being a focus area only for women,” said the company in a statement.

    “Leveraging tech in beauty in collaboration with Zee5’s reach, we are confident of reaching the right audience, to drive talkability and consumer love for Garnier Men,” said L’Oreal India general manager – marketing Zeenia Shroff.

    “Garnier Men has been a pioneer in driving grooming conversation with Indian men,” said L’Équipe L’Oréal Wavemaker head Avinash Pareek. “In partnership with Zee5, we have been able to create an entire campaign around it with promotional elements leading to reach and buzz, giving BroCast stellar scale.”

    “We are glad to partner with Wavemaker to exclusively host the show, created by Garnier Men to lead conversations around this subject, along with lifestyle problems with their solutions,” stated Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd chief revenue officer – digital and SMB Gaurav Kanwal. “John and Tiger being the epitome of charm, will be the best examples to immerse and inspire across this trend of men’s grooming.”

  • Zee5 to exclusively stream Salman Khan’s ‘Antim: The Final Truth’

    Zee5 to exclusively stream Salman Khan’s ‘Antim: The Final Truth’

    Mumbai: Zee5 has announced that it will exclusively stream Salman Khan and Aayush Sharma starrer Bollywood film, “Antim: The Final Truth” on 24 December. This film is Khan’s third collaboration with Zee5, after “Kaagaz” and “Radhe: Your Most Wanted Bhai.”

    “We at Zee5 are focused on curating and creating good quality content to entertain the audience and bringing their favourite stars to their screens,” said Zee5 India chief business officer Manish Kalra. “It gives us great pleasure to associate with Salman Khan and Salman Khan Films once again after the tremendous success of ‘Kaagaz’ and ‘Radhe’ on Zee5. We are proud to not only present ‘Antim: The Final Truth’ to fans, just before their most loved actor’s birthday. We are eagerly looking forward to the premiere and hope that all Salman Khan fans cherish this birthday gift”.

    “The audience gave an overwhelming response to the theatrical release of ‘Antim: The Final Truth’,” said a spokesperson from Salman Khan Films. “We are happy that they can now watch the film at their convenience and post the success of Radhe, what better platform than Zee5 to premiere it.”

    “The astounding response to Rahuliya has been overwhelming for the entire team of ‘Antim: The Final Truth’,” said Aayush Sharma. “It was heart-warming to see the response the film received in theatres after a long time, now as the film hits Zee5, we are glad that it would reach a wider audience.”

  • #Retrace2021: 30-40 per cent of our investments will be in regional content: Manish Kalra

    #Retrace2021: 30-40 per cent of our investments will be in regional content: Manish Kalra

    Mumbai: Outlining the vision for Zee4.0 at the company’s 39th AGM held prior to the Zeel-SPNI merger, CEO Punit Goenka had said that the roadmap for the next three years is going to be driven by digital. The focus on digital meant greater opportunity as well as challenges for team Zee5, particularly in terms of scaling up the content library and providing enhanced customer experience, as emphasised by Goenka.

    For Zee5 chief business officer Manish Kalra who leads the B2C business for India, the year 2021 was largely about aligning the platform’s content strategy with these tangible business outcomes. With rich experience in leadership roles at digital-first companies such as Amazon, Craftsvilla, and MakeMyTrip, he is now responsible for growing the overall revenue, viewership, and driving subscription numbers for Zee5.

    Kalra strongly believes that successful businesses are built by teams with a great understanding of customer behaviour, which explains his zeal for the ‘customer-first approach’. Under his leadership, Zee5 placed the bet on ‘deeper regionalisation’ and TVOD services in an SVOD and AVOD-dominated market to build an expansive and diverse library of content comprising over 150 web series and over two lakh hours of on-demand content across 12 languages.

    In Q2 FY22, Zee5 reported 93.2 million global monthly active users (MAUs) on the platform. On the back of the Punjabi content slate announced in the year’s second half, it witnessed 2X growth in active subscription numbers with the highest contribution from Punjab and neighbouring states like, Haryana Delhi NCR and Uttar Pradesh. The average watch time per viewer per month as on September stood at 186 minutes. Another significant development in 2021 was the launch of the Zee5 Intelligence Monitor – a fortnightly knowledge series for advertisers.

    In this interaction with Indiantelevision.com, Manish Kalra talks about all these developments, and other happenings in 2021, and shares his plans for the year ahead.

    Edited Excerpts:

    On the content strategy for 2021 and going ahead

    Content is one of the strongest pillars of Zee5’s growth strategy. 2021 has been a phenomenal year in terms of churning out compelling content as we endeavoured to develop a robust content slate that caters to the diverse needs of our consumers. Right from launching tentpole properties such as ‘Radhe’, ‘Friends: The Reunion’, ‘Break Point’, and ‘Rashmi Rocket’ to collaborating with TVF, and offering the Punjabi content slate ‘Rajj ke Vekho’, we’ve ensured having something for everybody at our content store.

    In fact, with a concerted focus on ‘Deeper Regionalisation’, and a primary objective to drive ‘Entertainment Inclusion’, we also launched two successful campaigns – ‘Any Time Manoranjan’ and ‘Dekhtey Reh Jaogey’. Both these initiatives were aimed at democratising access to bespoke Indian entertainment for all, especially for markets that are new or underserved.

    We foresee the next wave of growth coming from the Tier II and III cities that are looking for diversity in original content and genres. While the big cities will have a definite influence, the larger share of the pie will come in from smaller markets over time. Content will still be king across all, and the diversity of content is only going to grow. Regional content is our forte and we want to continue to be the multilingual storyteller for multiple entertainment seekers.

    On the opportunities in regional and sports content

    A major part of Zee5’s strategy is to convey realistic and original tales from the heartland. Coming from the legacy content powerhouse, Zee, we have established our dominance in the regional content space. Almost 50 per cent of our viewership comes from regional language content. In fact, we were the first home-grown streaming platform to have been launched in 11 Indian languages (Hindi, Bengali, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi, Oriya, Bhojpuri, Gujarati, and Punjabi), offering access to one of the largest regional content libraries in the country.

    Going forward, around 30-40 per cent of our content investments will be in the regional space, and we expect this percentage to increase as we further cater to untapped regions. After the recent foray into original Punjabi programming, our aim is to double our Telugu and Tamil originals by early 2022. Bengali is on the radar post that.

    On the emergence of new business and subscription models

    The pandemic made us rethink the way we operated and accelerated the process of innovation. Since people were confined to their homes OTT adoption accelerated resulting in a surge in viewership and watch-time. Consumers’ willingness to pay has also increased, resulting in SVOD revenues growing at a higher rate than AVOD revenues globally for the first time ever in 2020. Zee5 being a hybrid video streaming platform saw an upsurge in traffic on both SVOD and AVOD. It was heartening to see how consumers sampled content on AVOD and further migrated to SVOD to enjoy uninterrupted content across genres and languages from our library.

    That being said, we had to continuously reinvent ourselves to give our viewers the best experience and value for their investment. With this thought, we introduced our pay-per-view subscription model ‘ZEEPlex’ to bring the box office home to Indian audiences. With digital consumption being at an all-time high we are positive that the TVOD subscription model will prove to be a success in the coming days. The concept of subscriptions was also once new, but it has picked up today. We expect TVOD to meet the same fate.

    On the evolution of movie business through 2021

    The pandemic-induced lockdown resulted in two trends – consumers stayed at home to enjoy movies and other forms of entertainment, while studios and filmmakers had to go back to the drawing board and rework their distribution strategy. Since the advent of streaming has fundamentally altered how the audiences consume content, OTT became the natural choice for filmmakers for premiering their movies – be it low-budget movies or blockbusters, giving birth to the concept of direct-to-digital. The TVOD (pay-per-view) model also emerged as a viable option. In fact, India also witnessed an industry-first, hybrid release of the magnum opus ‘Radhe’ on Zee5 and ZEEPlex.

    Now, even though the theatres have opened up, there are plenty of opportunities for both movie theatres and OTT platforms to leverage and co-exist in a profitable way. The way I see it is that movies will now first release in theatres and then come to our platform where viewers will have the flexibility to view them at their convenience. Both entities will have a synergistic relationship with each other.

    At Zee5 we are geared up for 2022 with our pipeline comprising both originals and acquired content including movies such as ‘420 IPCC’, ‘Bob Biswas’, among many others. Over and above this, we have a list of direct-to-digital releases lined up. It will be unveiled gradually in the coming days.

    On the road ahead; key focus areas for 2022

    Our customer is at the heart of everything we do. Hence, our focus has always been to enhance our technology prowess and provide high-quality video and best-in-class content viewing experience across devices.

    Moving forward, we want to focus on family entertainment along with regional content. Our aim is to make South-Asian content across languages popular, not only in India but also internationally. We aim to reach 50 per cent of the audience that is consuming content digitally. We will continue to offer differentiated shows and blockbuster movies and invest in content that is ‘real, relevant, and resonant’. These investments would drive our market share putting us in good stead going forward. In terms of content investments, it will be equally divided between original shows and acquisitions, primarily films and other shows.