MUMBAI: Cable TV is reeling courtesy the great Kerala delgue and flooding thereafter earlier this month. According to a letter being circulated by the Kochi-based Cable TV Operators Association (COA) of Kerala to the cable TV trade nationally, the situation is pretty dire in the areas affected by the floods, even as the waters are receding.

Says the letter which has been signed by its president K Vijaykrishnan : “..power and cable lines have suffered extensive damage and distribution has totally disrupted. Overhead fibre, amplifiers, transmitters, and related equipment,  and cable have been washed away. Equipments like amplifiers, nodes, erbium-doped fiber amplifiers (EDFAs) for optical fibre networks need to be put in place.”

According to Kerala Communicators Cable Ltd (KCCL) - a leading cable TV and broadband network in the state - chairman K Govindan, estimates are that his network alone could have suffered damage to the tune of Rs 60 crore.

KCCL accounts for about 2.5 million subscribers and is the largest cable TV consortium of 4,000 cable TV operators in the state. Asianet is the next largest with about 1.5 million subs and DEN accounts for about 500,000 subs.  Local sources point out that Asianet too was impacted with almost 25 per cent of its subscribers bearing the brunt of the flood’s havoc.  These reports have been unconfirmed.

Estimates are that cable TV operators across the state may have been set back by Rs 150 crore.

“Many local cable TV operators have been affected,” reveals KCCL CEO Shaji Matthews.

According to Govindan, he knows a case of a cable TV operator’s head-end which was totally inundated by water. 

“Around 400,000 set top boxes within our network were damaged due to water entering the houses of our subscribers and submerging them,” he explains.

Cable TV operations in the following areas have been gravely disrupted due to the floods: Pathanamthitta, Wayanad, Idduki, Allepey, Trichur, Ernakulam.

Govindan points out that the cable TV trade is not going to allow this fury of nature to bog them down. The COA has started its campaign making appeals to other MSOs and operators in other states and less affected areas to contribute optical fibre cable, EDFAs, nodes, coax fibre, amplifiers, or monetary assistance.

The association has committed to put Rs 1.5 crore in the till to assist affected LCOs even as KCCL is putting up a similar amount. Additionally, technical support and equipment is being hauled from unaffected operations to badly affected ones to bring the networks up back and running.

Sources reveal that broadcasters such as Star India have also decided to lend their financial might to help those hurt by the worst flooding in the state in a century. A cable TV operator unwilling to be named hopes that other broadcasters will also prove to be supportive and not demand subscription monies from them come the month end.

“Operators will get back on their feet. The trade will get back with support from one and all,” says Govindan.

NEW DELHI: The Indian government’s unambiguous and non-encrypted message to WhatsApp: set up a local entity in the country that is answerable to local laws, and find a tech solution to trace the origin of fake messages and content on the platform.

"I had a productive meeting with Chris Daniels, the CEO of WhatsApp. I complimented him for the awakening, which WhatsApp has led in the entire country... But there are also sinister developments like mob lynching and revenge porn, you must find solutions to these challenges, which are downright criminal and [in] violation of Indian laws," Minister of Electronics and Information Technology (Meity) Ravi Shankar Prasad was quoted by PTI as having said after meeting WhatsApp head Chris Daniels yesterday.

While admitting that the Facebook-owned messaging app has contributed significantly to India's digital story, Prasad said he has asked WhatsApp to set up a corporate entity in India, appoint a grievance officer and find a technical solution to tracing the origin of fake messages on its platform.

“I requested CEO WhatsApp Chris Daniels to set up a grievance officer in India; establish a corporate entity in India & comply with Indian laws. He assured me that #Whatsapp will soon take steps on all these counts,” Prasad said in a tweet.

Later talking to reporters in the capital, the minister added: "I had said earlier also; it does not take rocket science to locate a message being circulated in hundreds and thousands…you must have a mechanism to find a solution."

According to Prasad, Whatsapp could face abetment charges if no action is taken by it. The messaging platform has taken some corrective steps in the recent past like limiting the number of forwards that an individual can make in India.

In recent times, WhatsApp has been facing the heat as it had been accused of being the platform via which hateful messages and rumours were spread in India leading to violence and crimes. The issue, which some critics said was akin to shooting the messenger instead of upholding the law of the land, has also reverberated in the Indian parliament with lawmakers trying to put the government on the mat for WhatsApp-spread rumours-linked deaths and crimes.

While Prasad is on record saying he’s in favour of gradually evolving a policy for regulating the likes of WhatsApp, Facebook and Twitter, his ministry’s nudge has made the Department of Telecoms circulate a missive to telecom players and industry bodies seeking suggestions on ways to block services that ride the telecom infrastructure. The proposal has been criticized by many, including a chamber of commerce, Assocham.

Telecoms regulator TRAI is also exploring regulations for OTT services like WhatsApp.

MUMBAI: Way before Jio’s announcement of its broadband GigaFiber venture, MSO DEN Networks revealed its plan to explore the opportunities in the market. Following the rollout of broadband service in 28 cities by end of Q1 of this fiscal year as a part of its 100 cities plan, it has also signed up the agreement with 48 more cities. In terms of rolling out the service, the company is adding 20 more cities in Q2.

Talking to investors in an analyst call, DEN Networks CEO SN Sharma informed that cable partners are investing equally well with the same kind of enthusiasm. After the launch of Jio GigaFiber, the company mentioned it would be working with LCOs. Sharma was asked about the impact of this on the partners on ground to which he debunked the possibility of ant negative impact on LCOs. “The announcement of the telco has further brought in standards you see that has helped us in regularising this tenders and qualities to be followed by the gentlemen, i.e., our cable partners and that is helping the entire business environment,” he said. In addition to that, he also mentioned that hardly 6.7 per cent of the penetration level has been achieved in the market as of now.

Emphasising on the enthusiasm in the industry, he also said, “I am also surprised with the kind of enthusiasm that I am coming across and very soon we will be signing up with another 40-50 odd partners and then followed by LCOs and in Q2 we are supposed to deliver another 20 cities and I am quite confident that my team will give and overdo whatsoever assigned to them but that will be it is better that we talk at the end of Q2.”

As DEN Networks has recently rolled out its service, it will still now take time to pick up due to the lengthy process. Going through LCOs to approach subscribers and then the subscriber coming back for the wired service takes a long time. In that context, rather than giving a high prediction, Sharma said the company hopes to deliver close to 40,000 to 50,000 subscribers by March 2019 and by the end of Q1 of next year to touch close to 70,000 subscribers. He predicts a ramped growth in FY 2020 as then penetration level will reach to 10 per cent. MSOs enable the homes where cable fibre already exists.

“In the 28 new cities we have actually enabled one million home passes which are already there with us on the cable front so we are already reaching there but how many of those would actually get converted would depend on the interest levels. The moment the interest level comes in we obviously hook them up. We have already hooked up 8500 customers till now so we should be able to ramp it up,” DEN Networks CFO Himanshu Jindal said. For the 100 cities under the plan, 5 million set top box installations will be done.

DEN’s 100 cities model is based on Rs 500-550 ARPU while in the existing 28 cities, it is capturing an ARPU of Rs 562. Sharma denied commenting on the upcoming tariff war as the pricing model from telcos is still not revealed. But indicating the price could go down, he mentioned that DEN can easily sustain till Rs 500 ARPU. It is only in metropolitan cities like Mumbai and Delhi that consumers are already experiencing 100 MB data speed. There are cities where the speed being demanded is 5MB, 20MB, 50MB. So there’s a large chunk of broadband-deprived internet users across the country.

“So in any case the ARPU of Rs 500 where you are delivering 50MB speed and unlimited data is not a very conservative figure, I would say it is a very aggressive ARPU that we have put across and we should be able to justify it as things unfold and as times will come, we will handle the situation. In any case, the LCO partner is quite confident and they are coming forward and investing so that also adds the positivity with us,” Sharma’s tone reflected the preparedness for upcoming battle.

However, the company has claimed to undertake a very low capex based plan. In the current year, the company will not spend more than Rs 30 crore unless it experiences more than the expected rush of this subscriber base which could mean some minor changes in the network.

MUMBAI: The OTT players in India seem to have found telecom partnerships fruitful. Recently, ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) struck a three year deal with Airtel. Under the deal, the partners will do a co-branded promotion while the revenue model will be based on cost per subscriber and duration viewed.

“There is select premium content from ZEE5 library that will be available for Airtel consumers exclusively in addition to being available on the ZEE5 platform,” ZEE5 India CEO Tarun Katial says. Though this deal is unique, ZEE5 is open to striking deals with other telecom operators also.

“Revenue model is based on cost per subscriber and duration viewed for both in the three buckets. In the first bucket, it’s for cost per subscriber and there’s a minimum guarantee, in the second bucket it’s about volume deal for a subscription for a high-end Airtel consumer and the third model is about upscaling ZEE5 subscription packages,” he adds.

Katial thinks this co-branding promotion across platforms will enable to create an understanding of content among consumers of ZEE5 as well Airtel. “It’s also a really good opportunity to be able to do both consumer insight as well as big data and create a recommendation for Airtel TV consumers of ZEE5 premium content,” he says. The partners will leverage each other’s social media assets also.

Under the partnership, other than ZEE5 premium content, video content produced by ZEEL, including TV shows and movies will be available exclusively on Airtel’s digital properties like Airtel TV. Since ZEE5 already streams content produced by ZEEL along with its originals some of the selected curated content may be available on ZEE5 first while some will be concurrently available on both platforms but “deeper premium library” will be available only on its own OTT platform.

Recently ZEEL snipped its deal with Reliance Jio pulling off all its available content on Jio TV. Though this kind of incident happens due to the failure of negotiation of cost, both the companies remained tight-lipped about the problem.

However, the deal can boost Airtel also which has had its dominance in the telecom industry threatened after Jio’s entry. Reliance is already in a better position as it holds stakes in production companies like Eros International, Balaji Telefilms and Roy Kapur Films.

As ZEE5 is a late entrant in the market, it is still far behind other domestic players like Hotstar, Voot and Eros Now. Moreover, international rivals like Netflix and Amazon are also eying the same OTT market. Hence, the deal is very critical for ZEE5 to reach more consumers across the country as well as to increase the visibility of existing shows on the platform. The industry being in a nascent stage does not have any clear winner till now, hence, leaving enough scope for each of the players.

MUMBAI: Crafted by Godrej Appliances, the social media campaign #SochForIndia which reached over a million digital Indians, urged them to engage in an open dialogue about their dreams for the nation, on eve of India’s 72nd Independence Day. Initiated last week, the users were asked to describe their ‘SOCH’ (thought) for India in one word.  Adding yet another dimension to the campaign, among the users who partook in the event, the best entries were given personalized merchandise (T-Shirt) with their ‘SOCH’ printed on it, so that they could not only voice their ‘SOCH’ but wear it too.

Godrej Appliances launched the digital campaign #SochForIndia with intent to capture the underlying sentiments of the citizens and the way they envision India’s future.  The brand sought the support of citizens to make this a movement that goes beyond the usual norm of celebrating the iconic day and proudly voice their vision for the nation.

The campaign reached 2.4 lacs users and over 19k user engagement were observed.  

Speaking on the campaign Swati Rathi, Head-Marketing, Godrej Appliances added, "The campaign #SochForIndia was an excellent way to connect with citizens, across the nation, especially, Indian youth and enlist their participation, encouraging them to think about the nation. At Godrej Appliances, 2018 marks the completion of 60 years of being truly Indian. Patriotism is part of our fabric. We chose Independence Day to extend our core philosophy of soch ke banaya hai to #SochForIndia. We hope this will also reflect how Indians across the board have the same dreams as well as inspire them to act on their ‘SOCH’ and bring it alive.”

MUMBAI: What happens when a lifestyle problem turns into actual monster? This month, Star Movies Select HD presents a thought-provoking question about human nature in a unique style. A dark-comedy film starring Anne Hathaway, Jason Sudeikis and Dan Stevens, ‘Colossal’ will air for the first time on Indian television, on Saturday, 25th August at 1PM and 9PM only on Star Movies Select HD. The film strengthens Star Movies Select HD’s premium movie proposition of ‘365 days. 365 stories.’.

Colossal revolves around the life of Gloria (Anne Hathaway), and a mysterious monster that creates havoc in a seemingly quiet city. Eventually, Gloria comes to realize that she may have a connection to the monster’s actions. Colossal delves into human behaviour and tries to address the chaos that stirs up when one’s inner demons unleash themselves upon unsuspecting individuals. The film tries to explain how the monsters within us may cause harm to not just our loved ones, but also the ones who we may not even know. 

Written and directed by Nacho Vigalondo, Colossal uses Kaiju - a Japanese film genre, and blends it beautifully with dark humour. The combination impeccably portrays a facet of human nature that is not often spoken about.  The result is an entertaining film, one that the Washington Post can’t stop raving about when they say “In this observant, entertaining, wildly imaginative movie, just about everything has more than one meaning.” 

MUMBAI: Extensively winning hearts of audiences across the country, bringing alive the incredible story of the deity Ganesha, today marks a special day for Contiloe Pictures’ Vighnaharta Ganesha. Achieving a true milestone, the show, airing on Sony Pictures Entertainment, completes one year of being telecast and marks a landmark completion of 262 episodes today! 

'Vighnaharta Ganesha' showcases the journey of the deity Ganesha and presents a magical visual extravaganza with impeccable production design, costumes and ingenious audio-visual experience through Motion Capture technology. This technology helps replace the age old depiction of Lord Ganesha with an inert mask and bring alive the detailed life-like movements and facial expressions to the fore giving the viewers a delightful visual treat.

Commenting on this success, Abhimanyu Singh, the Founder and CEO of Contiloe Pictures said, “We have always used technology to tell stories in a bigger and better manner. Using motion capture technology on a daily basis has been one of the greatest challenge and I am grateful to my team on planning and executing this huge task. Needless to say that the creative team at Contiloe Pictures has taken great pain in researching and telling us some fantastic untold stories about Lord Ganesha. I thank the audience for the love and appreciation they have shown to our show.”

This magnum opus show Vighnaharta Ganesha is supported by a stellar star-cast that includes Akanksha Puri as Parvati, Malkhan Singh as Shiv, Basant Bhatt as Kartikeya and Anand Garodia as Narada Muni. This show reiterates the producer’s strength in telling some great historical and mythological stories to a new-age audience. Contiloe Pictures uses Motion Capture Technology in each episode, they have been the first production house in the world to use this technology on a daily basis, for 262 episodes straight within a year.

“Our focus on identifying the future of Indian Television and understanding the need of bringing better technology has worked for us” adds Abhimanyu.

MUMBAI: AV Integrated Systems Expo will debut in Mumbaifrom 30May – 1June, 2019 at the Nesco trade fair grounds. India is one of the largest audiovisual integration markets in the world. AV Integrated Systems are being deployed across sectors experiencing robust growth, chiefly education and hospitality. Investment into AV networking is massive in the corporate sector,which is redefining the Indian economy as an IT powerhouse. 

ITE one of the world’s leading trade exhibition organisers in association with ABEC is responding to the AV industry demand to create a meaningful platform closely connected with AV product distribution in India. 

Manish Gandhi, COO, ITE/ABEC affirms, “We are determined to establish AV Integrated Systems Expo which Indian AV industry expressed urgent need for a cost-effective, market driven AV platform, which will deliver business. Our performance is proven with the tremendous contribution of the PALM expo to the pro audio industry. Our commitment and investment to connect AV manufacturers and distributors with Systems Integrators (SI) and AV consultants will establish AV-ISE in 2019 in its first edition.”

AV Integrated Systems Expo will comprise the CAVS – Certified AV Specialist education, AV tech tour, AV Project Buyer Connect Programme. 

AV-ISE will also organize the AV Summit, which will comprise of a conference, seminar, workshop and training.    

Latest technologiesin audio video integration and communications technologies, networking on IP, laser projection, interactive displays and intelligent audio are among the range of AV equipment that will be showcased by leading brands at the show in 2019. AV Integrated Systems expo is an independent expo in Hall 3 at the Nesco grounds. Highlight Features at the show include LED Cinema Screen and Surround Sound Experience and 3D Projection Mapping. 

www.avintegratedsystems.in

MUMBAI: On the heels of success of their latest film, Dhadak, Zee Studios comes on board to release one of the most intriguing films based on human trafficking, Love Sonia, on September 14, 2018 which has got standing ovations across screenings.

Alongside marquee films, Zee Studios has always believed in also backing content-driven cinema. Following successful films under their banner such as Secret Superstar, Parmanu, and most recently, Dhadak, the studio is now all set to release this powerful film.

Director Tabrez Noorani expresses, "I am extremely happy to associate with Zee Studios, they have put their night behind content driven cinema and I am glad now they will be releasing Love Sonia in India. Both Amar, our Co- Producer, David and I are elated to have Zee Studios on board.”

On the association, Shariq Patel, CEO, Zee Studios shares, "As a studio, we believe in backing stories that need to be told, and support strong content that stays with audiences even after they leave the theatres. We are happy to come on board to release such a powerful story like Love Sonia."

Executive producer of the film Shalini Thackeray says, "I am extremely happy to have Zee studios partner with us again . We have made a very successful team earlier will replicate the same with Love Sonia . The movie is extremely important to us and it is good to have partners that believe in the content and want to make sure that it will reach  out to the audiences in India.”

The film is a hard-hitting story of a 17 year old girl who risks her life to rescue her sister from a vicious human trafficking network across India, Hong Kong and Los Angeles.

Tamasha Talkies and Samraaj Talkies in association with India Take One Productions, Cinemantra Entertainment & Dynasty Consulting Group are presenting Love Sonia. The film is Tabrez Noorani's directorial debut, produced by the Academy Award nominated producer of Life of Pi, David Womark andTabrez Noorani. Co-produced by Amar Butala and Executive Producers include Shalini Thackeray, Deepak Nayar and Pravesh Sahni. The Dynasty Consulting Group was instrumental in setting up the movie.

The film has a strong ensemble cast including Manoj Bajpayee, Richa Chadha, Rajkummar Rao, Anupam Kher, Sai Tamhankar, Adil Hussain, Demi Moore, Mark Duplass with Freida Pinto and introducing Mrunal Thakur and Riya Sisodiya.

Presented by Zee Studios, Love Sonia releases on 14th September 2018.

MUMBAI: Harpic, a pioneer in the toilet cleaning category, has reinforced its commitment for providing universal access to sanitation through its new campaign ‘Make India Toilet Proud’ coupled with the launch of ‘Swachh Bharat Pack’. 

The campaign aims to drive behaviour change by normalising the act of cleaning. It encourages every Indian to dissociate taboos linked with cleaning toilets and feel proud to own a sparkling clean toilet. The newly launched ‘Swachh Bharat Pack’ comes with new packaging that enables consumers to get a bottle-like experience with a single use pack only at Rs 5.

Commenting on the announcement, RB Hygiene Home CMO marketing director for South Asia Sukhleen Aneja says, “Harpic urges people to not just build toilets but, also take care of them, maintain it regularly and be proud of it. To make this possible, solutions need to be made available at a cost that is universally accessible for all. The Swachh Bharat Pack is a true revolution in an organic base that allows bio-degradation of waste in twin pit toilets.”

Commenting on the same Akshay Kumar, Harpic sanitation ambassador adds, “Together with Harpic, I would urge all of you to join us in the mission and make India toilet proud. Shame linked with the word ‘toilet’ is only for those who keep their toilets unclean.”

MUMBAI: Payback, Indian multi-brand rewards program, has enabled its members to make it special for their loved ones in the form of offers during Rakhi by redeeming points.

Payback points collectors get access to the largest rewards catalogue offering an impressive collection of gift hampers for upcoming occasion and shop for free through redeeming or using points at the Payback rewards catalogue on the website and app.

Rewards catalogue offers variety of hamper options including sweets, chocolates, dry fruits, cakes, combos in addition to a wide range of products from categories like apparels, travel, gadgets to appliances and more.

Furthermore, Payback this year sweetens celebrations with the first anniversary sale of its popular instant voucher platform VoucherWorld, where Payback Members can get exciting offers with up to 50 per cent extra on vouchers of leading brands like Myntra, Woodland, Levi’s, Shoppers Stop and more. Members can also earn and redeem points on all their purchases.

Payback is running a special shoppers’ contest, where every week one lucky winner wins 25,000 bonus points and by month-end, lucky winner wins 1 lakh bonus Payback points basis their shopping this August month.

Payback members can also enjoy double savings this festive month when they shop for top and most popular brands available across 70+ online sites such as Amazon, Flipkart, Myntra, Paytm Mall by earning new rewards points on the entire shopping over and above the online discounts available when they shop via website or app.

Sharing the excitement, Payback India CMO Ramakant Khandelwal says, “Raksha Bandhan is a beautiful festival of love and bonding and we have brought innumerable offerings for Payback Members to enrich their joy & happiness. At Payback , we believe in making peoples’ life more rewarding and always encourage members to accumulate points, so they can use them during such special occasions to make shopping with Payback partners worthwhile. Through our wide network of partners and platforms, we make sure our millions of members get access to best of deals & offers and enjoy a delightful shopping experience.”

MUMBAI: Audiences in India will very soon experience the magnificence of the world’s biggest live-entertainment phenomena, Cirque du Soleil, brought to India by BookMyShow. Citibank has come on board as the presenting partner for the world premiere of Cirque du Soleil’s ‘BAZZAR’ in India. The shows will start November 2018 finding their way home in Mumbai from 15th November 2018 and Delhi from 25th December 2018 before moving to other markets. 

BookMyShow’s long-term association with Cirque du Soleil is aimed at establishing India as a key market to open avenues for global entertainment. Cirque Du Soleil has brought wonder and delight to more than 190 million spectators in over 450 cities on six continents. The company sells over 12 million tickets per year and has close to 4,000 employees, including 1,400 performing artists from close to 60 different countries.

Unlike any other entertainment company, Cirque du Soleil will not just visit Mumbai and Delhi but will infuse in the city’s culture with the set up of The Big Top, the main tent, where the performances will take place. The Big Top itself is a wonder that is set up over a period of six days and stands tall at 19 meters (62 feet) high and is 41 meters (135 feet) in diameter accommodating 1500 people at once.

A cast and crew of 62 people will be travelling to India from over 13 different countries and close to 700 tonnes of equipment will be carried via 25 sea containers. The show will feature a range of acrobatic marvels ranging from teeterboard, portage, acrobatic bike, contortion, duo roller skate, duo trapeze, aerial rope, slackline and live music with one singer and two musicians on stage. With performances pairing imagination and impressive scenography, unique characters, remarkable aesthetics and acrobatic feats; ‘BAZZAR’ will feature key Cirque du Soleil elements. The tickets for the nearly two-hour spectacular will be available starting today exclusively on BookMyShow with prices starting just at INR 1,250 (different for both cities).

Written and Directed by Susan Gaudreau, Cirque du Soleil – BAZZAR will perfectly capture the high-energy excitement, collision of sounds and colours, and showcase a meeting place of diverse characters recreating a traditional Indian ‘bazaar’.  Lead by their maestro in the show, the troupe comes together to invent a whimsical one-of-a-kind universe in a place where the unexpected is expected, the colourful group reimagines, rebuilds and reinvents vibrant scenes in an artistic, acrobatic game of order and disorder.

“BookMyShow has been and will continue to play a huge part in the transformative journey of the live entertainment category in India. While it has personally been a lifelong dream to work with Cirque du Soleil, their entry into India with BAZZAR will re-imagine this category. We are excited to give our growing customer base in India the opportunity to get access to this global phenomenon,” said Ashish Hemrajani, Founder and CEO, BookMyShow.

"Cirque du Soleil has been looking at India as a potential market for quite a while now. We wanted to do things right and introduce the brand appropriately to this new audience that was never exposed to Cirque du Soleil before,” said Daniel Lamarre, President and CEO, Cirque du Soleil Entertainment Group. “It is for this very reason that we put our trust in BookMyShow, who’s deep knowledge and understanding of the Indian market is essential for our successful presence in this country. With their help, our long-term objective is to establish a strong and lasting presence in India and to share our creativity with as many people as possible.”

“Designing a show specifically to introduce Cirque du Soleil to a totally new audience was an exciting creative challenge,” explained Susan Gaudreau, Show Director. “It pushed the creators to find the essence of what we are and articulate it in a way that is universally understandable. With its story centered on the creative process and the energy found in the unexpected, BAZZAR shines a light on what is uniquely Cirque du Soleil. I am very honoured to be in India today to introduce BAZZAR to the Indian people and am very much looking forward to its premiere!”

Shinjini Kumar, Consumer Business Manager, Global Consumer Banking, Citi India, said, “We are excited to partner with Bookmyshow for the world premiere of BAZZAR, a unique show crafted for India and the world by Cirque du Soleil. We are always looking for opportunities to bring world-class entertainment through our partners to our clients, who like to indulge in exclusive international experiences. Citi customers can look forward to making this an even more memorable event with our special offers and privileges. We cannot think of a better way to celebrate this festive season than to facilitate wholesome entertainment for our customers and their families.”   

Honorable Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Devendra Fadnavis, has also expressed his support for Cirque du Soleil’s India visit as this would boost tourism in the state by exposing the audiences to new artistic and cultural experiences.

MUMBAI: Discovery, India’s leading infotainment channel, will give an all-access pass to the viewers to delve deep into the lives of India’s first generation of female combat aircraft pilots with its new series – Women Fighter Pilots.  It is a fascinating story of 3 women - Avani Chaturvedi, Bhawana Kanth and Mohana Singh - pioneers of our time, fighting the odds and changing mindsets.

The 2-part series premiers August 24 at 21:00 hrs on Discovery Channel and Discovery World HD. Veer by Discovery, India’s leading dedicated military channel on YouTube, will also showcase short stories on Women Fighter Pilots. The on-air broadcast of the show is Co-Presented by Flipkart while Kirloskar and Airtel have come on board as Co Powered by Sponsors.

Till 2015, the flight cadets of the Air Force Academy were given a choice between three flying streams - Helicopters, Transport and Fighters.  Fighter flying being the only stream reserved for men. Then, the Indian Air Force made a landmark decision to open the fighter flying program for its female cadets on an experimental basis for a period of five years.  Creating history, the first batch of three women fighter pilots — Avani Chaturvedi, Bhawana Kanth and Mohana Singh were inducted in Indian Air Force fighter squadron.  A significant milestone for the Indian Air Force, as this marked the first time it permitted women in combat roles.

“The women fighters have become a modern symbol of women empowerment – they have broken the last of all barriers by becoming a fighter pilot.  We are excited to showcase this amazing story to our viewers. Such purpose led content excites us,” said, Zulfia Waris, Vice President - Premium & Digital Networks, Discovery Communications India. “These Women Fighter Pilots have given wings to the ambitions of Indian Women who want to don the G-Suit and defend the country as a part of Indian Air Force. We have explored this captivating human story of ambition, of not saying no, in a manner that has not been done before.” 

The Women Fighter Pilot series captures the emotions of the 3 pilots, their families, colleagues in their squadron et al to delayer all aspects of their life. During the show, the 3 Fighter Pilots discuss about whether the media glare that followed them has created extra pressure. Bhawana Kanth, says, “I don’t think that there is pressure. I am doing my job; something which I have always wanted to do - serving the nation as a fighter pilot. If people are getting inspired; why should I feel any pressure, I am still doing my thing.”

Mohana Singh, adds, “I won’t say that it is about pressure, but yes, it is about performing in such a way that you can justify the people who are looking up to you. The development of Women opting for the Fighter stream has been highlighted to create awareness and to inspire more women to join the forces.”

Avani Chaturvedi says, “Being famous made it a little difficult to adjust in the squadron initially.  This popularity and over appreciation of things was a little difficult for us, because fauj (army) is all about working in a team. So, if entire team is not getting highlighted then why only three of us?”

The telecast of a special series on Women Fighter Pilots follows the successful premier of the Breaking Point series on Air Force Academy and Indian Submariners earlier this year. In the past, Discovery has given viewers a never seen before glimpse of the intense, gruelling training programs of the Indian Armed Forces through shows such as Breaking Point: Commando School Belgaum (2017), ‘India’s Paratroopers – Earning the Badge’ (2016) and ‘Revealed: National Defence Academy’ (2014). ‘Revealed Siachen’ (2016) shared the story of Siachen Glacier and the challenges faced by the Indian soldiers while on duty there.  ‘1965: India’s Battles and Heroes’ (2015) commemorated the 50th anniversary of the India-Pakistan war. Discovery’s crew traversed along with select officers of Indian Army during the Himalaya expedition for ‘Indian Army Women’s Expedition’ (2013).

MUMBAI: TIMES NOW, India’s leading English news channel from Times Network has launched a special programme, ‘Confront’ with Rahul Shivshankar, Editor-in-Chief, TIMES NOW.

TIMES NOW continues to raise the bar of television news in the country with its innovative journalism. Moderated by Rahul Shivshankar, ‘Confront’, the one-hour weekend show features two prominent panellists debate social and political on topics including State issues, economy, elections, etc., with a conclusive end to the discourse.

Moving away from the contentious debates where panellists often talk at each other rather than talk to each other, Rahul Shivshankar conducts the well-researched debate with decorum, focused to provide the viewers with clear, insightful information. Two weeks since its premier, the show has featured notable figures - Jay Panda, Former Member of Parliament, Yogendra Yadav, National President, Swaraj India, Sudheendra Kulkarni, Politician and Kanwal Sibal, Former Foreign Secretary. This week’s episode of ‘Confront’ on Saturday, August 25, will feature Mukul Rohtagi, Former Attorney General of India and Mohan Parasaran, Former Solicitor General of India as the panellists, where they will discuss claims that the NDA is meddling in Judicial affairs.

Speaking on the new new show, Rahul Shivshankar, Editor-in-Chief, TIMES NOW said, “Confront is launched with a clear objective to provide conclusive facts and information out of the confronting conversations. The show breaks away from the typical debate formats, which leave little room for conversations, where the viewers are left with no answers to the burning social issues. Through this show, we aim to provide uninterrupted, transparent and healthy discussions to burning issues that need to be addressed on priority”.

MUMBAI: Mashal Sports Pvt Ltd., the organizer and right holder of VIVO Pro Kabaddi League, announced the fixtures for Season VI, beginning October 5th, 2018. The sixth season of VIVO Pro Kabaddi will begin in Chennai, and will travel across 13 cities, with the final showdown in Mumbai on January 5th, 2019. Fans can catch the action at the stadiums as well as on the Star Sports Network and Hotstar.

The opening day will witness the clash of kabaddi giants, Telugu Titans and Tamil Thalaivas. The competition will intensify, as the neighbours renew their rivalry in the latest season. In the second match Anup Kumar, the 'Captain Cool' of U Mumba for the last 5 seasons, who moves to Jaipur Pink Panthers this season, will lock horns with his former team. 

The other highly anticipated matches through the week include, Tamil Thalaivas vs Patna Pirates, as the Dubki King Pradeep Narwal will dodge his way through defenders to break his previous seasons’ record of 369 raid points. VIVO Pro Kabaddi League’s highest paid player, Monu Goyat will begin his raid for glory as Haryana Steelers takes on Puneri Paltans in the fifth match of the season. 

Anupam Goswami, League Commissioner, VIVO Pro Kabaddi said, “We have had to adjust the Season VI window to October onwards, in lieu of the ongoing Asian Games that have nearly all the world’s  top Kabaddi athletes playing for their respective national teams.  We will return to a July start for VIVO PKL Season VII.  Meanwhile, I look forward to VIVO PKL Season VI being an intensely competitive affair, as well as a great celebration of Kabaddi”

The 12 participating teams have been divided into two zones of six teams each, where each team will be playing a set of 15 intra-zone and 7 inter-zone matches, prior to the anticipated play-offs. The play-offs stage will comprise of 3 adrenaline filled eliminators, 2 qualifiers and the finals scheduled to take place in Mumbai.

MUMBAI: Tata Salt, one of the most trusted and loved brands in the country, through an innovative form of salt art paid rich tributes to the nation’s heroes while calling for support to Indian athletes in the Asian Games that started on 18 August in Jakarta.

Celebrating India’s progress since independence, laurels in sports and commemorating India’s 72nd Independence Day, the salt art artistically encapsulates India’s growth story by highlighting a few of its defining moments.

What makes this initiative special is the connect between the magical art and the brand through the usage of salt metaphor ‘Namak Ke Waastey’. The rendition of these remarkable milestones was carried out using Tata salt by artist Nandakishor Nana Tatar.

The salt art video tagged as #NamakKeWaastey has already garnered over 2 million views on Facebook and YouTube in a day. It has received over 7k tweets and was trending at number 1 spot nationally on Twitter on 15 August. It was also shared by Mary Kom, Indian Olympic boxer and Geeta Phogat, a freestyle wrestler who won India's first ever gold medal in wrestling at the Commonwealth Games in 2010 on their social handles.

The video begins with the iconic speech of Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru and proceeds to highlight critical moments like the green revolution, wars, the launch of Aryabhata, and the nation’s achievements in sports. The salt art tribute was not only about reminiscing India’s glorious past, but also urging the nation to come together and support the Indian athletes participating in the upcoming Asian Games #NamakKeWaastey

Tata Chemicals head of marketing for consumer product business Sagar Boke says, “Tata Salt is widely christened as “Desh Ka Namak”. Reaching over 6 million households, Tata Salt has always been a harbinger of societal progress. Over the years, the brand Tata Salt has carved a very strong proposition for itself. Basis this proposition and the history of Tata Salt brand, the brand purpose of Tata Salt is simply stated as ‘unlock the individual potential to unlock nation’s performance.’ This purpose has been a driving force for all the activities we take up. Through this unique salt art, we urge the nation to come together and support the Indian Athletes participating in the upcoming Asian Games.”

The video has been conceptualised and developed by Ogilvy, Mumbai.

MUMBAI: Hej IKEA i Indien! This translates to 'Hello IKEA in India!' Unless you’re living under a rock, by now we’ve all heard and read about Swedish furnishing brand IKEA’s great and pompous launch in India!

Indians alien to the concept of assembling furniture themselves lunged at IKEA’s launch in Hyderabad City. This reflects from 40,000 customers trooping in on the opening day, where the retailer rang up sales of a little over Rs 1 crore the same day.

But what really made Hyderabad and the nation go gaga over a company that they had probably never even heard of before 2017? Well, the answer is simple - branding and marketing.

In the global advertising world, IKEA is often cited as a master of branding, marketing and advertising. The company has consistently won the marketing game on social media and traditional mediums to carve some of the finest campaigns to reach out to the masses but India is a different animal altogether. A global campaign or a standard tone would never connect or work with the audiences here as India is an amalgamation of several cultures, traditions and beliefs.

But how do you connect with a country that has a population of 1.35 billion, doesn't know a thing about the brand and can't connect with the concept of self assembling furniture? Labour is cheap here so you can just get your local carpenter to fix anything for you in a jiffy. Hire the best agency available and capture nuances in the communication. For this, the Swedish giant hired Dentsu Impact as its official creative agency to launch the brand’s maiden campaign for India. Its ‘Make Everyday Brighter’ ads resonated fantastically well with Ikea’s belief to create a better life every day and drove home a customer traction that none had ever expected.

And now, as IKEA moves ahead aggressively to eke out a niche for itself in the country, Dentsu Impact is steadily helping the brand to discover this new culture and expand its footprint, nationwide.

While we have all read about how the launch of IKEA is a positive step for FDI, generating local jobs and a tough fight for e-commerce players, nobody really knows what went into making IKEA’s launch in India grandiose. To understand this, Indiantelevision.com spoke exclusively to the men behind Ikea’s entry in India - Dentsu Impact president Amit Wadhwa and chief creative officer Soumitra Karnik - where they spoke about what went behind the planning, the agency’s strategy for Ikea, challenges while working for an international brand and much more. Excerpts:

How did Dentsu Impact end up bagging the IKEA business for India?

Amit Wadhwa: It was a long process that started way back in February 2016. They called us for the credentials sharing meeting which was more of a chemistry meeting. They shortlisted eight agencies basis the credential meeting and asked us on how they should launch IKEA in India and what should be their strategy. It was quite an elaborate pitch and they gave us three months to work on the pitch which was a little surprising considering how pitches normally happen in India. It took us a lot of time to understand the brand, how it functions and its tonality. Our creative team actually went to Hyderabad and stayed there for a few weeks to understand the Hyderabad market and the requirements for home furnishing there.

So when did you officially get the mandate?

Amit Wadhwa: We officially got the mandate in September 2016. But there’s a lot more that we’ve done for IKEA other than the launch campaign.

What do you mean when you say that? Were they pre-launch initiatives?

Amit Wadhwa: Yeah, we did an employee branding asking people to join IKEA where we used existing IKEA workers to promote the campaign rather than models. We also launched an experience centre for IKEA before the store launch where people could see the products but not buy them.

How was it working for an international brand like IKEA? How interesting was it for you to work on a brand’s entry in a market like India?

Soumitra Karnik: It’s been quite interesting and exciting because every adverting person around the world admires IKEA’s creative ads and it is a dream brand to work with for everyone. However, the challenge is that it’s not really easy to work for IKEA. IKEA is not only about award-winning ads and its products, it’s more than that and you realise that only after you’ve worked with them. The tonality of the brand is extremely exciting as they want to understand the local nuances of each market they enter into.

What was the brief that team IKEA shared with you when you said they want to launch their maiden campaign in India?

Amit Wadhwa: No two countries are exactly the same and moreover India is an amalgamation of many countries. What we have done for IKEA is take their belief and marry it with what India stands for. There are great similarities between brand IKEA and what India stands for. Family culture plays an important role for Indian and Swedish families and that’s well ingrained in IKEA as a brand and all their communications.

How will you ensure that you maintain brand recall through creativity in your campaigns for IKEA?

Amit Wadhwa: We have launched ad campaigns where it talks more about the products available at IKEA rather than just throwing out a good looking ad. We are creating things which are firsts in the IKEA world. The whole endeavour is to keep a balance between creating a brand language since IKEA has to be distinct and at the same time it needs to connect with the Indian consumers. They are very clear that the ads need to be locally relevant to connect with the consumers.

What will be IKEA’s strategy for India under your agency’s guidance?

Amit Wadhwa: It is not a typical client-agency relationship but more of a joint effort by IKEA and Dentsu to ensure we talk to many. Our focus will be on connecting with the family audiences but at the same time, they want to connect with the many.

Who were your target consumers when you created the campaign? Also, going forward, will the campaigns be targeted at anyone and everyone?

Amit Wadhwa: When we launched the first campaign, we wanted to target families and everyone. Now, going forward, while families will be at the core of our communication, we will look at targeting bachelors and elderly couples. You will see shades of many of them in our communication, but the core audience will always remain families with kids as IKEA wants to target families.

What is Dentsu Impact’s plan with IKEA going forward? How will you strengthen the relationship?

Soumitra Karnik: When we started working on the brand, we were super happy but now we are overwhelmed. It’s going to be an exciting journey with many more stories coming up. What the Mumbai store will bring to us is what we are really looking forward to!

Are there any constraints while working for a global retailer in India? For instance, how will a person sitting in Hyderabad connect with a brand that’s Swedish unless you really break it down to their level?

Amit Wadhwa: It’s definitely a challenge, but an interesting one! We understand that there could be challenge in terms of acceptance since it's a Swedish brand and Indians probably had never even heard of it, but with the right communication, you can overcome that challenge. We really think we were able to overcome that but are working towards creating better communication going forward.

MUMBAI: The Kerala cable and broadcast industry is just about keeping its head above the water, quite literally! The industry has been crippled due to the recent floods. We wrote about how cable operators bore the brunt of the calamity yesterday. Needless to say, broadcasters were also not unaffected.

Kerala Vision Digital TV general secretary Rajan KV said that there is no infrastructure loss for TV channels and 500-600 cable networks are still under water. “The viewership has seen 30-35 per cent downfall as many homes were not able to see a single channel both on DTH and cable networks,” he added.

According to BARC data, the incessant rains that derailed Kerala kept viewers hooked to their television sets that were relying on the medium to keep track of the situation. With 214.1 million impressions, week 32 (4-10 August) saw the highest peak for Malayalam news genre in 2018. The genre saw a 98 per cent growth in the week compared to the average of the previous 4 weeks.

In a letter dated 21 August 2018, Cable TV Operators Associations (COA) stated that the cable operators have been the worst affected because of their extensive presence in the flood-affected areas. The affected include human lives and damage to property across the state while power and cable lines have suffered extensive damage and distribution has been totally disrupted.

Mathrubhumi head-distribution Thampi P Joseph said, “Cable TV was the most affected industry by this natural calamity. No monetary losses have been faced by the news broadcasters. In the past two weeks, the GEC rating has gone down and a tremendous growth has been seen for the news channel. We saw a good spike in viewership ever since the floods had started.”

Kerala has a total TV population of close to 31.3 million, out of which, around 25.8 million people watched Malayalam news in week 32. This means that 8 out of 10 people in the state sampled news in this week. Out of the state’s total TV viewership, 17 per cent came from Malayalam news genre alone, with every viewer spending an average of 1 hour 3 minutes watching news.

Manorama director news Johny Lukose also believes that there was no substantial loss for the news channels and no channel in the Kerala market faced any infrastructural damage. “The news channels cancelled all the advertisements from the ad inventory to cover the disaster. Two of our channels, Manorama News and Mazhavil Manorama, have lost Rs 10 crore,” he said.

However, there is still some financial loss that has been felt. According to Insight Media City MD R Sreekandan Nair, the TV broadcasting industry across the state has been set back by more than Rs 50 crore. “We have stopped production of shows for our channels. Apart from the news channel, other players in the market are shifting or repeating the programs. Flower TV has lost almost Rs 10 crore in the disaster. News channels are not affected much because of less tariff, but the entertainment channels have faced huge losses because of the big productions,” Nair said.

Friday (17 August 2018) alone accounted for 34 per cent of the total news viewership for the week at 72.8 million impressions.

Asianet News stood at the top with 36 per cent of total news viewership.

Mathrubhumi News output editor Abi T Abraham said, “By and large, the facilities for the coverage were going as planned. As far as Mathrubhumi is concerned we had about seven Digital Satellite News Gathering vans and 10-15 reporters on the field with live units, except in the case of remote areas where network and electricity were not available. All the channels also did well in terms of covering the disaster but did not face any major damage of technology.”

It will be a challenge to restore conditions in the state and work to make up for the losses that companies have suffered.

MUMBAI: Week 33 of Chrome Data Analytics & Media saw the highest growth of 0.33 per cent compared to week 32. The infotainment genre was the top gainer with 0.33 per cent growth.

In the infotainment genre, NGC gained the highest OTS with 91 per cent in All India 1 Lakh+ market.

OTS is the actual census-based percentage connectivity of a channel spread across 81 million homes, as reported by Chrome DM, across analogue cable, digital cable and DTH. 

The second position was grabbed by English news genre with 0.08 per cent growth with Rajyasabha TV garnering the highest OTS with 96.9 per cent in six metros.

The other four genres in the previous week were Hindi GEC, youth, infotainment and music. All the categories grew a substantial per cent.

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Last week, the sports genre was the leader with 0.31 per cent growth.

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Religious genre was at the third spot with 0.05 per cent growth. Aastha channel was the most benefitted with 97.2 per cent OTS in HSM excluding less than 1L-market.

The average OTS for Hindi GEC genre in week 33 is 77.9 per cent in HSM excluding the less than 1L-market. Out of the 13 genres, 10 witnessed the loss in terms of per cent. Youth genre garnered an average OTS of 87.7 per cent in HSM excluding the less than 1L-market.  

MUMBAI: The future of the Indian entertainment market may be digital but the death of television is over-exaggerated. A recent survey conducted by Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) India found total TV viewership in India gone up by 12 per cent from 2016. On the other hand, recent data from PwC revealed the OTT video market in India is growing at a CAGR of around 23 per cent. While the main difference lies between the consumption habit of the older generation and millennial audience, QYOU Media’s Indian arm is thriving on the convergence between TV and online. In an exclusive interaction with Indiantelevision.com, QYOU Media CEO and co-founder Curt Marvis spoke about the Indian market and the company’s expansion plan in India.

Curt Marvis, a renowned media veteran in digital ventures of Hollywood, has had a vivid experience. Way back in 1999, he co-founded online movie retailer CinemaNow and then spent a considerable amount of time in Lionsgate as president of digital media. In 2013, he co-founded QYOU, a media and production business that provides curated internet video content for television, mobile, and video-on-demand viewing. A year back it actively started to run operations in providing and packaging content for Indian audiences.

Though the company is still in its early days, it is putting high effort to grow its presence in India. As part of its expansion, it has secured content partnerships with Pocket Aces, Culture Machine, Desi Hip Hop Inc., TheVibe, Power Drift, Arre, The Comic Wallah, FabForm, etc.  Its rebranded channel Q India is available on Tata Sky and Jio TV. It even appointed Andy Kaplan, former president of Sony Pictures Worldwide Networks, as chairman of board of directors for QYOU India.

“India has a thriving TV market and mobile is fast becoming the first screen for many TV audiences in the region. Andy has significant expertise in this area and deep knowledge of the Indian market, which will help QYOU develop the right programming to meet the needs for mobile-first digital content, which is becoming an ever-more important objective for TV providers,” Marvis commented on his appointment.

Marvis thinks TV is still hugely popular in India which isn’t going to change overnight. However, he underlines the difference in media consumption habit between younger digital-native audiences and older generations. Younger audiences are fond of streaming videos on social media sites and mobile devices remain primary medium for them to access video content. He claims that by providing linear feed and custom shows, QYOU is bridging these two worlds – offering the type of content that helps TV providers tap into digital-first creativity and use it to drive their programming agenda for younger audiences.

In India’s OTT market, outsiders like Netflix and Amazon have found it tough to break into the country given the popularity of Hotstar. “Hotstar is currently India’s most popular OTT platform, enjoying 70 per cent of video streaming app downloads. In contrast, Amazon and Netflix only account for 5 per cent and 1.4 per cent of app downloads. One of the reasons why Hotstar is so well-liked is because, it has an extensive library of regional programming available in a number of local languages including, Hindi, Bengali, Kannada, Malayalam, Marathi, Tamil and Telugu,” he said.

Rather than fall back on importing subtitled US TV shows and films, the international players need to invest in locally relevant original programming. Amazon and Netflix have recognised this and are launching Indian original series but Marvis thinks they’re still playing catch-up to local OTT services like Hotstar. “For QYOU, these trends have meant onboarding Indian content creators and making programming that is tailored to the territory and culture. This way we know our shows are more culturally relevant and therefore have more stickiness,” he added.

Though Hotstar’s AVOD model has worked well for its acceptability among the mass audience, Indian audiences are not simply going for the cheapest option. He reaffirms the common belief of OTT players that audience is going for the service that they believe is the best value with the best programming. “Ultimately, the model which will work best in India will depend on the value the audience places on the service and we believe that high-quality regional programming can dramatically increase that value,” he concludes.