Art & Entertainment

Counting Eyeballs, Every Hour, On The Hour

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Counting Eyeballs, Every Hour, On The Hour
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The product: a possible new English channel, apart from the existing Hindi one

Launch date: N.A.

Investment: Minimal

Positioning: Attain an all-India viewership. Wants to remain a mass channel thathas larger appeal.

Salient features: Uses easy language that can be understood by the lay viewer.Provides unbiased, neutral news without any leanings. Focus on exclusive news breaks toincrease ratings. Allow reporters the freedom to do innovative stories.

The products: Two channels, in Hindi and English.

Launch Date: April 1, 2003.

Investment: Rs 100 crore (industry estimate)

Positioning: Quality and classy channels, tilting towards a premium image.Target the domestic viewers and finally the Indian diaspora. Pursue a twin city strategy,with Delhi and Mumbai becoming editorial hubs. Delhi will focus on politics and Mumbaiprimarily on bazaar, business and Bollywood.

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Salient features: Common content, but distinct identities. Healthy internalcompetition between the two channels, but will not cannibalise on each other's viewers.While politics will remain important, content will look beyond that.

The product: Relaunch Star News in Hindi

Launch Date: April 1, 2003

Investment: Rs 250 crore (industry estimates)

Positioning: Mass brand, mass channel, mass appeal, but with a premium look andfeel. Relevant exciting news for everybody. Strong focus on niche areas like infotainment,women, civic utilities and health and lifestyle.

Salient features: Less emphasis on routine political stories or mundane nittygritties of regional political events. Pursue interpretative journalism, but to avoidcomplicated graphics. Innovative footage to be USP.

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The product: A new English channel, apart from the Hindi one

Launch date: Before March 2003

Investment: Minimal

Positioning: English channel will address young (18-35 years), funky, urban SECA audience. Will target Southern viewers, while the Hindi one focuses on viewers in northand west.

Salient features: English channel will concentrate on niche areas likeentertainment, health, lifestyle, science and technology. News you can use will alsobecome prominent. It will also have short, snappy stories.

The products: Two channels immediately, one national (Sahara Samay) and oneregional (Sahara Samay, UP). Followed by city channels in the NCR and Mumbai, and threemore regional channels in MP, Bihar and Rajasthan.

Launch date: Last week of February for the first two, and the next five byend-June

Investment: Total media projects (including print) will require Rs 600 crorePositioning: Offer regional, city-based news


Salient features: Positive news to exploit the feel-good factor. Plusinteractive programming.

Players: Videocon, Raj TV

The products: Videocon's Hindi business news channel and a bilingual (Tamil andEnglish) channel by Raj TV

Launch date: Videocon's by February, and Raj's by year-end

Investment: Rs 40 crore for the business channel

Positioning: Niche, focused; regional and local

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