IPL Season 8's growth has been unprecedented: Rohit Gupta

MUMBAI: The eighth edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has offered all that it is known for - full houses, power packed performances and nail-biting last over match finishes.
 
While the million dollar league offers a lot of players a chance to showcase their prowess, it also offers brands a platform that promises to multiply their reach and visibility. While Amazon India has upped itself as a presenting sponsor, brands like Hero Moto Corp, Cardekho.com and Vimal Pan Masala are debutants.
 
Official broadcaster Multi Screen Media (MSM) started the eighth edition with a packed ad inventory. When queried as to whether there was a possibility of new brands coming on board, MSM president Rohit Gupta said, “We have an absolutely packed inventory and there is no room for new brands to explore the option this year.”
 
It may be recalled that Sony, in association with BCCI, took an initiative to give on-ground experience to spectators who could not make it to the stadiums with Pepsi IPL Fan Park. Terming the initiative a huge success, Gupta said, “Fan Park was a joint initiative to make spectators feel more engaged. IPL is an event of happiness and joy, which can only come with mass gathering in India and Fan Park is the platform, which caters to that need of followers. There is no motive behind monetising or putting ads in Fan Parks. It’s just a joint initiative to give audience an enhanced experience.”
 
As the television industry goes through a rating dull phase due to unavailability of official records, Pepsi IPL season 8’s reach and viewership figures cannot be determined. Not the one to be perturbed by it, Gupta opined, “There is no problem with the non-availability of ratings. We have social media analysis, which signifies much more engagement. Not only that, IPL always offers something new and extraordinary and fans closely follow the tournament.”
 
On the response so far, he said, “The growth has been unprecedented so far and by the end of the tournament, we will have one of the best IPL in its history. All the advertisers are happy with the progress so far and that certainly makes me happy.” 
 
IPL in its history. All the advertisers are happy with the progress so far and that certainly makes me happy.”
 
 

Sony on correction course; set to launch 4 new shows.

MUMBAI: 2014 was a middling year for Sony Entertainment Television (SET). Though the audience saw the channel experimenting with new concepts and shows, a few earned some fame, while the others failed to grab eyeballs.

SET made some smart moves, whether it was getting out of the studio and moving closer to the audiences in season eight of Kaun Banega Crorepati or Amitabh Bachchan's television debut in the fiction format - Yudh, which was touted to be India's most expensive show in that segment (Rs 3 crore per episode). While the channel’s hopes were riding high on the latter, the dark content was unpalatable for the audience.

On the fiction soap front, the channel’s high bet with Itna Karo Na Mujhe Pyaar starring Ronit Roy did not do as well as expected. Other fiction series like Humsafars, Hum Hai Na and Tum Aise Hi Rehna only saw a glimmer of hope.

Reason: Female audiences didn’t stick on and male audiences continued to come on to the channel’s popular shows like CID, Aahat, Crime Patrol and Bhanwar.

However, now the channel is on a correction course and is all set to woo its existing audiences once again as well as rope in new viewers. SET SVP and business head Nachiket Pantvaidya revealed that in order to up the channel’s entertainment quotient, five new shows will go on air over the next two - three months.

Not just to intrigue the audience but to also provoke thought and reactions from them, the channel aims to attract newer audiences (mainly female) with high-concept shows backed by a powerful star cast.

First up, starting 13 April, the channel will launch Reporters, revealing the challenging world of news in a contemporary way. As reported earlier by Indiantelevision.com, the show, produced by Rose Audio Visuals, revolves around the life of journalists with an intense underlying love story.

It will air every Monday-Thursday at 9 pm competing with shows like Diya Aur Baati Hum (Star Plus), Chakravartin Ashoka Samrat (Colors), Laut Aao Trisha (Life OK), Chidiya Ghar (Sab) and Kumkum Bhagya (Zee TV).

Second up, the channel kicked-off auditions for its singing reality show, Indian Idol Junior 2 in Kolkata on 4 April. After Kolkata, the audition process will move to Delhi, Chandigarh and Mumbai on 11 April, 18 April and 25 April respectively. The show is expected to go live in the month of May.

The third new show from SET’s stable is the mythological show titled Sankat Mochan Mahabali Hanuman. Produced by Contiloe Productions, it will depict the life of Lord Hanuman. The series is set to hit television screens from 4 May. For the record, Contiloe Pictures is currently producing Maharana Pratap, Adaalat and Bhanwar on Sony.

With growing popularity of the mythological genre, Sony will add yet another show to its kitty titled Suryaputra Karn. The show is produced by Swastik Pictures, which had also produced Mahabharat for Star Plus.

Suryaputra Karn will cover life journey of the Great Archer of Indian history Karna, who always craved for legitimacy, had been extremely loyal to his friend and the only one who could defeat Arjun. The promos for the same have already created a buzz. Sources close to the channel say that the show will hit airwaves in May.

Last but not the least, the channel is set to further awaken the masses with period drama called Rani Mahal. Produced by Lost Boy Productions, it stars Sakshi Tanwar in a leading role and will hit television screens in June.

Rubbishing media reports of it being a remake of Game Of Thrones, producer Vikas Gupta said, “This is nowhere close to Game of Thrones.”

It may be recalled that as its first step towards a revamped programming strategy, Sony launched the Ram Kapoor starrer Dil Ki Baatein on 23 March, which is telecast from Monday to Thursday at 9:30 pm.

It remains to be seen whether Sony's fresh line-up of shows manages to propel the channel up on the ratings chart.

Sony to push digital platform Liv for 'Indian Idol Junior' auditions

MUMBAI: It’s time for all the little ones to strengthen their vocal cords and showcase their talent as Indian Idol Junior (IIJ) is back with a bang on Sony Entertainment Television. And this time round, Sony is looking at giving its digital platform - Sony Liv a push via the show’s auditions.
 
For the first time ever, IIJ will give a chance to the audience to be a part of the auditions through a digital process called Digital Ace.
 
To take part, all kids have to do is upload their best audio or video performances on the Sony Liv website or the Sony Liv app. A digital jury will review all the performances and will select 12 kids who will be called to Mumbai for the Jury Round. Out of the 12 performances, the top four will get an opportunity to perform in front of the show’s judges.
 
This second edition of IIJ will be judged by Vishal Dadlani, Salim Merchant and Sonakshi Sinha. Singer Shalmali Kholgade will be the special judge for the auditions. 
 
The first leg of the auditions kickstarted in Kolkata on 4 April and saw outstanding participation from kids. The city also saw the show bring in a new twist to the audition process with the announcement of digital auditions.
 
SET SVP and marketing head Gaurav Seth said, “After the over-whelming response received last season, we are delighted to announce the commencement of Indian Idol Junior auditions. We would like to urge all the kids to show their singing talent and be a part of the new season. Digital Ace will only help kids to give the long lines a skip and impress the judges through their audios or videos. It’s definitely an endeavor that will help aspirants all over.”
 
 
Dadlani added, “I am thrilled to be part of Indian Idol Junior once again. Looking at such talented kids is an inspiration in itself. Kolkata has always given us some of our best contestants and this time too we were not disappointed. We are also looking forward to the performances of the winners of the Digital Ace. We are sure this season is going to be an equally exciting one.”
 
After Kolkata, the audition process will move to Delhi, Chandigarh and Mumbai on 11 April, 18 April and 25 April respectively.
 

Sony set to explore the media world with new show - 'Reporters'

MUMBAI: Breaking News! A common phrase that is flashed almost on all screens everyday - from news channels to websites. Now Sony Entertainment Television (SET) has picked it up as a 'concept' for its new entertainment show.
 
While internationally, the backdrop of journalism has been seen in shows like The Newsroom starring Jeff Daniels, Dirt and The West Wings, amongst others; in India the concept was untapped until now.
 
The Hindi general entertainment channel (GEC) from Multi Screen Media’s stable is all set to explore the world of media with its new show - Reporters. A love story that will make breaking news is set to hit the television screens from 13 April at 9 pm. The channel has roped in Frooti as the presenting sponsor for the show.
 
Produced by Rose Audio Visuals’ Srishti Arya, it will reveal the challenging world of news in a contemporary way. Set against a backdrop of a media house, it follows the journey of seasoned and respected journalist Kabir Sharma (Rajeev Khandelwal) and a budding reporter Ananya Kashyap (Kritika Kamra). The show is a story of these two strong and conflicting individuals, who are destined to be together.
 
SET SVP and marketing head Gaurav Seth believes that today the country's perceptions, opinions and decisions are shaped by the world of television news and it is this world, which forms the setting of the channel’s new show.
 
According to Seth, there are two kinds of stories that work on television - love stories inside the house and outside. One such show that had a love story setting in a fashion house was Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahi.
 
“A show’s backdrop and context needs to change after sometime as it tends to lose the novelty factor. It is important for us to keep evolving the medium, stories, characters and that's where this new show comes in,” he said.
 
Behind the scenes
From visiting news channels to having in-depth conversations with journalists from the news medium, the actors have done it all. The actors met veteran journalist Rajdeep Sardesai to know how a newsroom functions.
 
Moreover, the production house also did research in the matter in terms of how news is created, what the first point of connection to the last point of delivery and the process followed amongst other things.
 
The production house did its R&D by seeking help from a senior journalist and made sure that the procedures that were being followed were on the right track.
 
“The journalist we worked with said that many a times a news channel’s agenda and point of view may differ from that of its journalist. We have to be able to identify with the crisis of the character. Unless we don't feel the need to take a side or stand, we are not going engage with the character. It is fascinating to see how news is created,” explains Arya.
 
Seth further points that people, who are from the news medium, will relate to it. “This is factual and not made up just for the sake of it. However, at the same time you have to take creative liberties because at the end of the day, it is a story,” he said.
 
Agreeing on the same, Arya asserts, “I would not say it is 100 per cent authentic because then it might not necessarily be engaging. We have tried to stay with the systems that a news channel follow.”
 
The channel has canned five episodes till now and the show is designed for a finite run with 120 episodes. Seth feels that one has to tell the story in a limited time period that is available. “You can't just keep on extending the show. If a story holds for 2000 episodes, by all means we can go for it but if it is conceptualised for a 100 episode pattern and then if you move it to 300, you will end up stretching the story,” he opined.
 
Having started his career as a journalist with the newspaper called Mahanagar, SET chief creative director Ajay Bhalwankar has lived this life closely. “I believe that there are lots of interesting stories to tell. Today individual reporters are known, unlike during my time. When I began my career as a reporter, a press conference would see maximum eight to ten journalists with notepads. There was not a single camera present. Today, there are more cameras, so times have evolved and so has the profession. However, not many people know what happens inside and we thought that will create a great amount of curiosity for people.”
 
Marketing buzz
 
This time round, the channel has decided to push its marketing efforts on the digital medium to get the maximum bang for its buck.
 
The first promo of Reporters grabbed one million views in less than a week. The channel ensured that the promo was interesting enough to create a splash. “It has been absolutely remarkable that people have noticed it. It's been trending on Twitter regularly and we have managed to build a lot of anticipation for the show,” Seth said.
 
Additionally, the channel has created a LinkedIn account for Khandelwal, where he is going to invite people to interview for jobs inside his network.
 

Star India’s Hotstar records 7.2 million views on IPL day 1

MUMBAI: After setting the record for the largest sporting event on digital with the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, Star India’s Hotstar is off to a stunning start with Pepsi Indian Premier League (IPL) 2015. 
 
The platform recorded 7.2 million video views for the first match between Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders on 8 February. This is six times the viewership on starsports.com last year for the first match of Pepsi IPL 2014.
 
Coming soon on the back of the World Cup, which recorded the biggest digital traffic for a single sporting event for a broadcaster globally, the surge in traffic for the start of start of Pepsi IPL 2015 suggests that the tournament is likely to set new global records for Hotstar.  
 
Hotstar is streaming all the 60 games of the IPL. With a dramatic surge in viewership on digital platforms in the last 12 months, the platform is likely to reach more than 100 million fans over the course of Pepsi IPL 2015. It is also likely to see a striking growth in video consumption over last year’s version, which was broadcast on starsports.com.
 
Hotstar will also be programming a digital-only pre-show that builds on the dramatic success of the two original shows it created for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2015, One Tip One Hand and Juicy Half Volley.

MSM unleashes high voltage plans for IPL season 8

MUMBAI: India is pumped up as cricket mania of another kind is all set to take the entire country by storm just as Chris Gayle’s massive sixes. As India Ka Tyohaar, the Indian Premier League (IPL) welcomes Indians in its eighth season, official broadcast network Multi Screen Media (MSM) is leaving no stone unturned to ensure that India’s hot selling multimillion dollar property reaches audiences across the length and breadth of the country.

MSM's newly launched channel Sony Kix will carry Tamil and Telugu feeds, Sony Six will have the English feed, while Max and Sony Aath will have Hindi and Bengali feeds respectively.

“Our flagship show Extraaa Innings will continue this year as well. It will be a pre-show, mid-show and post analysis of the match that will be common across feeds. Our marketing plans involve a nationwide campaign focused on a 360 degree plan, right from radio, print, television as well as outdoor. Along with the BCCI, we will have mass scale screenings in 16 cities with 10,000 odd capacities,” informs Sony Six and Kix business head Prasana Krishnan.

The commentators for the Telugu feed will be Venugopal Rao, Venkatpathy Raju, and MSK Prasad, while for the Bengali feed it will be Arun Lal, Devdas Gupta, Abhishek Jhunjunwala, Devang Gandhi, Savadun Mukherjee and Ranade Bose. On the other hand S Ramesh, Hemang Bhadani, V Chandrashekhar, Satyanarayan, and S Srinivas will be the match commentators for the Tamil feed.

The network is clearly betting big on outdoor to reach a wider range of audience. Throwing light on the marketing activations, Max marketing head Vaishali Sharma says, “Apart from mass media, we will come up with clutter breaking innovations. We have already started a countdown ticker at Juhu beach in Mumbai along with LED lights and it will continue till 8 April. Fireworks display will start before the opening match.”

Sharma also informs that LED projections along with the IPL logo and fireworks will be displayed on prominent buildings as projector vans move across Mumbai.

“We will also project our TVCs keeping in mind India Ka Tyohaar and it will continue for a couple of days. Something similar has also been planned in Kolkata besides Mumbai since the games begin there,” adds Sharma.

Speaking about the plan to stage screenings in 16 cities, Sharma opines that the concept is completely new to the country. People who do not have a chance to visit the stadiums will be able to experience the magnitude of the games and the in-stadia experience. A huge outdoor hoarding has also been displayed near Hotel Tulip Star Juhu in the western suburbs of Mumbai. Accompanying this hoarding is a photo booth where people can go and click pictures as India rejoices in an all new season of the IPL. 

“Canters will move across the city creating a high amount of buzz of dhol baaja announcing and encouraging people to come and visit these venues. The entry is free and people can come and cheer together,” says Sharma.

Sharma also adds confidently that year on year the network has increased its audience base and already has a cumulative viewership of 190 million so far. “It’s only going to go up further with the addition of all the language feeds we have launched this year besides the great season we have this year,” concludes Sharma. 

The tournament will feature a total of 60 matches, including the live telecast of the opening ceremony on 7 April, the home and away matches between the franchises, the qualifying playoffs and the finals. The knockout stage will be from 19 – 22 May and conclude with the final match on 24 May, 2015. As MSM bets big on this season of the IPL, we wish it all the very best.

BCCI to launch workshop for match officials before IPL

MUMBAI: Twenty six match officials, which includes umpires and referees, will participate in a two-day workshop organised by the BCCI in preparation of the upcoming Pepsi Indian Premier League (IPL) season. 
 
The Umpires and Match Officials Workshop will be conducted by Simon Taufel, a former member of the ICC Elite Umpire Panel, five-time winner of the ICC Umpire of the Year Award, and presently the ICC umpire performance and training manager. 
 
The workshop, now in its third year, is an ongoing initiative as part of the BCCI Match Officials development programme. 
 
With 60 matches scheduled, the Pepsi IPL will provide an opportunity for top Indian match officials and this workshop will prepare them for the eighth editing of the IPL.
 
The Pepsi IPL 2015 season will see 26 match officials, 13 Indian umpires and four match referees, who will be officiating throughout the tournament.
 
A wide range of topics, which involve the match officials in the conduct of the game will be covered during the workshop, from clothing regulations, to on-field player behavior and the overall playing conditions.
 
Taufel will travel with the Match Officials team during the initial part of the tournament to the various venues. 
 
The workshop will be held at the Cricket Centre Mumbai on 4 and 5 April, 2015.
 

Special Report | Five Reasons Why Hotstar is Hot

Special Report |

Five Reasons Why Hotstar is Hot

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With 10 million users in just 40 days, it set a benchmark in the digital space. In a record time span, Hotstar the new app from the Star India network, catapulted the audience's attention and is showing continued signs of growth.

While VOD platforms are being selective in drawing up their content map, Hotstar has opened its large library for users, that too in regional languages. With smartphones increasingly altering the consumption landscape in the country, Indiantelevision.com gives you five reasons why this is a must have app for your phones.

News Headline | Hot Star takes to cinema advertising to reach younger TG : Feb ’15 CAM report

Hot Star takes to cinema advertising to reach younger TG : Feb ’15 CAM report.

MUMBAI: Being the newest entrant on the bloc, Star India’s digital baby Hot Star has managed to create the necessary buzz around it. The digital app, in a bid to reach a wider segment of young audiences, has chosen cinema advertising as part of its mega marketing campaign. 
 
Using the movie Roy as a case study, the CAM report for the month of February 2015 found that out of the 200 screens, they were present in 32 per cent of the screens, which is close to 65 screens. "This number is more than the category that four wheeler and mobile phones undertake for their campaigns," said Interactive Television CEO Ajay Mehta.
 
According to industry experts and estimates, Hot Star undertook cinema advertising because of the demographics to reach out effectively to their TG i.e young audiences. The campaign for cinema advertising undertaken across the eight metros could have cost Star India close to Rs 50 - 70 lakhs. Such campaigns are usually undertaken for a period of four weeks. In the past, apps such as Free Charge, Viber and Hike have used cinema advertising extensively in similar patterns. 
 
The report also found that during the same period, a total of 297 brands were active. Banking and Finance have emerged as the top category spending with State Bank of India topping the list. F&B followed with beauty and Personal care coming third in the hierarchy. 
 
“There has been a three per cent increase in the number of brands active on cinema with the movie Roy in February 2015 round as compared to the earlier round,” adds Mehta.
 
There has also been a major increase in spending of clothing/apparels category from 45 per cent in January 2015 to 79 per cent in February 2015. The automobile category has increased from 34 per cent to 57 per cent during the same period. Online portals too increased their spending from 21 per cent to 48 per cent for the same period. Choc On has the highest recall with 24 per cent present in 152 screens followed by Syska LED with 20 per cent present in 136 screens.

MSM's Rohit Gupta bullish on IPL; 95% ad inventory sold.

MUMBAI: The “We won’t give it back” mantra didn't work, unwillingly though India had to give the cricket World Cup back as Australia defeated New Zealand in the finals to clinch the title. The ICC Cricket World Cup may be over but the cricket fever is far from over. The mania is set to unleash with the India Ka Tyohaar (India’s festival) - Indian Premier League (IPL) just around the corner.
 
Multi Screen Media (MSM), the official broadcaster of the flagship tournament, is leaving no stone unturned in order to ensure that the eighth edition is bigger and better. The channel has lined up multiple innovations to take the level a notch higher and produce an allusive presentation for both viewers and advertisers.
 
Sony, in association with BCCI, will project matches in huge screens in cities not hosting live matches to enhance ground awareness. This innovation will rope in more opportunities to local advertisers to use IPL as a platform to promote themselves and also fans will get an exclusive opportunity to witness the extravaganza at a mass gathering.
 
Multilingual feed is the other innovation that Sony has in store for the flagship tournament. IPL will be aired in English, Hindi, Bengali, Tamil and Telegu across various Sony channels. It must be noted that Star followed the same policy during the recently concluded ICC Cricket World Cup. 
 
Talking about the various innovations, MSM president Rohit Gupta said, “IPL 2015 is going to be bigger and better. Our association with BCCI will enable people to see match in big screens across various cities. And the multilingual feed is something that Sony has done before too. The FIFA World Cup matches were showcased in numerous languages.”   
 
“With 11 sponsors, we have sold 95 per cent of our ad inventory and this is the first time that we have managed to garner such a response before the start of the tournament. All the matches are played in prime time and fans don’t need to wait for a week time to witness a close encounter,” adds Gupta.
 
Many new brands have joined IPL as sponsors and a few elevated themselves across different categories. IPL, besides all the controversies, is still a destination for advertisers to endorse, as the viewership is always in ascending order.
 
Helios media managing director Divya Radhakrishnan said, “IPL is a much safer option for advertisers as all the matches are highly poised and the audience loves it. In IPL you don’t need to wait for an India match and all the Indian players are playing in different teams, which makes every match equally important for fans and hence advertisers like the tournament when it comes to promoting their brand.”
 
“The way the Indian team played in the World Cup (especially after a forgetful Test and ODI with Australia), is very encouraging. Am sure IPL will perform well and advertisers will be happy. IPL, over the years, has become a marketing campaign in itself for brands. Brands plan their campaigns keeping the IPL in mind. Whether it is being associated with teams (as sponsors) or through on-air spots, brands are using IPL smartly and will continue to do so,” asserted Maxus ESP client leader Jigar Rambhia.