Content Is King
Thadani, has worked with industry giants like Nadiadwala Grandsons Entertainment Pvt Ltd, Vijayta Films and White Feather Films, and will lead the conception of new creative projects and will be responsible for forging partnerships for producing web series and new content.
“We have been beating HBO consistently and now we are aiming to get the No. 2 spot in the genre. The second focus is of course digitization,” states Amogh Dusad, Programming Head, Pix
We don’t believe that Hollywood entertainment is all about action movies, a mix of genres is essential from a programming and scheduling perspective. Month on month we hand pick our movies to maintain a healthy movie mix. This clearly shows in the channel’s performance and the market share we have been able to garner. With such a strong line up of films PIX has beaten HBO all through the year of 2011. Now we want to move ahead and take the No. 2 position. We would need to do lot more things for it. There will always be latest blockbusters, animation, some Indian films, rom-coms, thrillers, horror on PIX to keep our movie mix strong."
When it comes to mobile, the rights are a little strange. Neo may go on mobile, but it may vary from event to event. A football event may have a very different right structure from that of a badminton event. There would be a Neo on mobile, but it would be programmed very different from television. There would be extremely short formats or mix of different sports put together.
“When it comes to mobile, the rights are a little strange. Neo may go on mobile, but it may vary from event to event,” says Mautik Tolia, Neo Sports Broadcast.
Our ambition and mission is to broad base the genre and ensure that each and every Indian is tuning in to our channel. We look forward to having History leading the factual entertainment genre and growing it progressively into an alternative to mainstream general entertainment channels… This is the general trend the world over: factual entertainment channels actually compete with regular mainstream entertaining channels and we expect that to happen here as well.
“We look forward to having History lead the factual entertainment genre and growing it into an alternative to mainstream GECs,” says Ritu Kapur, A+E Networks | TV18.
We are very passionate about bringing in different ideas to the market, to be innovative and do things differently. For instance, with reality shows, we are training producers to also learn how to film. We are leveraging the resources we have and combining that with finding fabulous talent here and training them so that we can do different things. We ensure we match audience preferences by doing systemic audience research and then tailoring our products to the number of niche areas available in the Indian viewer market. We also rely strongly on our global exposure and experience in the entertainment, media and television world to bring in strong differentiation.
We are very passionate about bringing in different ideas to the market, to be innovative and do things differently. We are leveraging the resources we have and combining that with finding fabulous talent here and training them so that we can do different things,” says Myleeta Aga is currently General Manager and Creative Head of BBC Worldwide Productions India.
(For a good television property) a great idea/ concept is key. For a reality show, I would either adapt a successful international format or create something entirely new. For a fiction series, personally speaking, I would now go for a ‘male’ dominated show. Something new and different! Followed by a fantastic set-up, great team who can deliver the concept as envisaged, and channel support – to give it the sort of push it needs on marketing and promotions. Then you cross your fingers and hope for the best!
In the areas of factual entertainment, there hasn’t been any success here yet and I don’t know why. Maybe it’s because potentially it doesn’t make a lot of noise. One of the reasons that some of the shows like ‘Idol’ or… ‘Millionaire’ have been successful is because they are big. It’s that second tier of international formats that have worked well in the western countries that have not yet picked up for the Indian market.
We will be more aggressive and we will pick up more topics of relevance for the people. We are going to be more insightful, indepth and comprehensive, serious and cutting-edge in terms of reporting and analysing various issues. Apart from that, now on we will be doing more and more campaign-based news content on issues of mass interest.
I think the biggest learning has to be what you make of yourself; because it is really easy to want to emulate other people, other styles, other techniques, which is great because you can learn and absorb. But it has taken me ten years to become comfortable with myself and the way I present on television and some people like it and some don’t. Some hate my hairstyle and some like my talking style. Everyone has an opinion and that’s fine because you are in a public forum. I am very comfortable with myself and how I have developed as a professional.
Prem comes with 17 years of rich experience in journalism with both print and online medium. As the Managing Editor of Yahoo! India, Prem is responsible for the editorial content for Yahoo! India, across its industry leading properties including- Yahoo! Home Page, Yahoo! Cricket, Yahoo! Movies and Yahoo! Finance amongst others.
If you chase TRPs, you never get it; if you chase credible content, you get the ratings and that is how it should be. Consciously, we never discuss ratings. Beyond a point one should not be chasing ratings on a micro basis, my experience shows that if you take care of the big picture and you chase good content, ratings would follow definitely. But if you consciously chase ratings like a statistician, very often they don’t come to you.
“In the areas of factual entertainment, there hasn’t been any success here (in India) yet and I don’t know why. Maybe it’s because potentially it doesn’t make a lot of noise,” notes Simon Spalding, Regional CEO, Europe and Asia Pacific, Fremantle Media.
From 1996 to March 2000 Nik Gowing was the principal anchor for the 90 minute weekday news programme The World Today and its predecessor NewsDesk. He has been a founding presenter of BBC's Europe Direct and has been a guest anchor on both the BBC's HARDtalk and the BBC's Simpson's World. He is now a main presenter on the news programmes re-launched in April 2000 and a regular presenter for the BBC's Dateline London. Nik's appointment draws both on his extensive reporting experience over two decades in diplomacy, defence and international security, and his presentation and chairing skills. As a principal programme presenter for the channel's extended, continuous 24-hour/7-day week coverage of major crises, Nik's invaluable experience was called on throughout the Kosovo crisis from March to June 1999. He was also on air for six hours shortly after the twin towers were hit in New York City on September 11, 2001 and the coverage won the 2002 Hotbird Award. He also fronted the unfolding dra
This is my belief as a journalist, I cannot follow the tabloid route, or do what other people are doing. I solemnly believe that if people get a sensible debate, you will get viewers – there is that interest in society and the developments that impact it. My concept for the programmes was very clear – follow the news and try to raise questions around it. It is the oldest trick in the trade but if you do it with sincerity and conviction, it still works.
The core proposition for both radio and TV is music. In radio, we deliver music to our listeners and in TV we deliver music to the viewers. The entire game revolves around how you engage them with giving them the music. There are other music channels as well, but the deal is what more apart from music can you give to create an attitude for the channel and to create that stickiness for the channel so that people come back. As far as 9XM is concerned, the brand is recognised by both kids and the youth. The platform is set and hence, it gives me a starting point.
India is more than ready for the science channel. Discovery Science has been receiving extremely positive response from the viewers. India is a young country and there is immense curiosity amongst the viewers for information. Knowledge is cool. The viewers want to be informed and entertained about the various advancements and technologies from around the world. As expected, we have received positive feedback from all parts of the country.
“India is more than ready for the science channel. Discovery Science has been receiving extremely positive response from the viewers. India is a young country and there is immense curiosity amongst the viewers for information. The viewers want to be informed and entertained about the various advancements and technologies from around the world,” says Vikram Channa, Vice President - Programming, India & Head of Production, APAC, Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific.
“The core proposition for both radio and TV is music. In radio, we deliver music to our listeners and in TV we deliver music to the viewers. The entire game revolves around how you engage them with giving them the music. There are other music channels as well, but the deal is what more apart from music can you give to create an attitude for the channel and to create that stickiness for the channel so that people come back,” observes Amar Tidke, Head – Programming, 9XM.
Unlike adults, whose preferences and entertainment needs are largely set, kids’ preferences and content affinities are constantly evolving, based on their experiences, exposure levels and influences. It is a delightful challenge to provide engaging, inclusive and responsible content to kids at varying life stages in the 4-14 year age group. Their entertainment needs are naturally varied, and with the three channels that we have, it is something that we aim to satiate.
We don’t want to be a magazine of record, we don’t want to give the re-run of stuff that the reader already knows. That is the way all good weekly magazines in the world are headed… Days of the traditional weekly newsmagazine are over. For that, there’s Google News. We will not put the week’s news on the cover unless it is a very significant event. Then also, as far as possible, we will try to look at it from a fresh and interesting perspective so that it stimulates the reader’s mind.
“We don’t want to be a magazine of record, we don’t want to give the re-run of stuff that the reader already knows. Days of the traditional weekly newsmagazine are over. For that, there’s Google News. We will not put the week’s news on the cover unless it is a very significant event… then also, we will try to look at it from a fresh and interesting perspective,” says Sandipan Deb, Editor-in-Chief, Open.
We want to be more serious and balanced and go beyond ‘breaking news’. We have a very clear focus on ‘Bharat’, which is distinguished from ‘India’.
“We want to be more serious and balanced and go beyond ‘breaking news’. We have a very clear focus on ‘Bharat’, which is distinguished from ‘India’. Most media leaders focus more on ‘India’, which is about 6-8 major cities. While I would love to cover the 10 biggest corporates, I would also like to cover Rampur, Indore, Kota,” says Rahul Dev, Editor-in-Chief & CEO, CNEB.
As the center of gravity in the world is shifting globally from the US and Europe to Asia, there is a shift in India, too, especially on the media front. Foreign multinationals have started understanding India much better now, and as their penetration rates increase, they are encountering the Indian language media.
“As the center of gravity in the world is shifting globally from the US and Europe to Asia, there is a shift in India, too, especially on the media front. Foreign multinationals have started understanding India much better now, and as their penetration rates increase, they are encountering the Indian language media,” says K Yatish Rajawat, Editor-in-Chief, Business Bhaskar.
Content remains the king. But with changing times, the definition has to be broad based. Primarily, you need good quality content to attract your reader/ viewer. It is good content which attracts the advertiser as well. Hence, advertising follows good content. But, it is a close second. Without advertising (read it as revenues), you cannot spend on promotions, marketing and retaining good talent through salaries. The effect is cascading.
“Content remains the king. But with changing times, the definition has to be broad based. Primarily, you need good quality content to attract your reader. It is good content which attracts the advertiser as well. Hence, advertising follows good content. But, it is a close second,” says Shishir Joshi, Group Editorial Director, Mid-Day Infomedia Ltd.
The media today is very dynamic and we need to continuously delight the reader to grab and retain his or her attention. There is just too much stimuli out there. So, the biggest challenge will be to keep the reader interested month after month. But keeping the reader interested is also an opportunity for us to keep innovating. Creatively, we have lots to explore.
On the Net you get only short stories, for example, about a car launch or so on, but you don’t get feature write-ups or stories around it. That is what a magazine is about. I agree that an Internet presence is very important today, but a magazine is acceptable and will always be acceptable in the long run. Magazine is the only solution – one can take it everywhere and anywhere, and read at leisure. The print medium is very strong and it won’t be replaced any soon. However, one can never predict about the next generation.
The first big crisis for journalism came after 9/11 and the media industry failed that test. The essential crisis was: ‘what is the role of journalism in the face of a national crisis?’ The media industry globally failed that test. They became polarised very quickly and began to reflect largely their governments’ views. This was particularly true of the British and the American media. Though the media industry has recovered from this, I am not sure whether it would be able to act substantially differently in the face of the next national crisis, which is very sad.
India is a very big and a very vibrant market. My understanding is that about 85 per cent of the homes watch the NGC channel. It’s is a huge audience we are talking about in India. However, the factual audience is very small in proportion to the several million in India. That’s one huge opportunity.
We have a three-fold vision – to create awareness among Indians all over the world about their rich heritage and inspire them to become guardians of the same; to share with people the world over, knowledge about this ancient land; and to keep alive this priceless legacy for future generations.
“Hindi channels have changed beyond recognition in the last few years…Hindi channels have become very energetic. The pace is phenomenal but they have also dumbed down the content and moved away from news. At times viewers question whether Hindi news channels are news channels or something else! I call them low-cost reality channels. A few have been converted exactly into that.”
Ashutosh, Managing Editor, IBN-7, says that Hindi news channels have changed beyond recognition in the last few years; the pace is phenomenal, but they have also dumbed down the content and moved away from news. He wonders whether Hindi news channels today are news channels or something else!
There are many magazines out there and if you look at a typical newsstand, the magazines are piled up one on top of the other. So, the key question is how do we survive in such a market? Ultimately, the bottomline is that there are two things that decide success – somebody has to come and ask for the magazine by name; secondly, when someone asks for us, we have to be there.
“I have seen that the Indian media is extremely sophisticated; the production values are great. Television is growing by leaps and bounds here. So by no means do I think that American or European television is more sophisticated. But what CNN is targeting is not the same as any national news network, and that includes the Indian news channels.”
Rena Golden, Senior VP, CNN International, points out that the most obvious difference between Indian and Western news channels is the difference in audiences being targeted. CNN-IBN, NDTV, Doordarshan, etc., and the others are competing in a national market in India and CNN is not competing with them. The audience is the prime differentiator, she says.
“In terms of technology, Indian television news has come a long way. But in terms of the content, we still need maturity. There is a mad rush for breaking news and everyone wants to be the first in that, which at times leads to misreporting. We have to learn all these things. We have to be mature enough to put in place some control mechanism. We should focus on responsible journalism.”
Sudhir Chaudhary, Editor & CEO, Janmat, says there is there is a mad rush for breaking news and everyone wants to be the first, which at times leads to misreporting. “We have to be mature enough to put in place some control mechanism. We should focus on responsible journalism,” he says.
I believe that the age of the niche has arrived in India. The business model is very different from that of the mass circulation paper, so I would like to differentiate between mass paper and class paper. I regard The Pioneer, Asian Age, and Indian Express as class papers. They have a committed readership, our readers know exactly what these papers stand for and what they get out of it, so they don’t mind paying more.
Veteran journalist, Member of Parliament and political commentator, Dr Chandan Mitra balances all these roles easily. Having joined The Pioneer as Editor in 1996, he took over its ownership in 1998 when the 140-year-old publication was threatened with closure. In this special conversation, Mitra makes several candid admissions.
"The biggest challenge for the vernacular press is from the vernacular press itself and not from anywhere else. If you take a closer look, television is not faring that well… People have become bored of TV. Nowadays, people can’t watch any one channel for more than a few minutes… there is the same news in every channel being presented in the same way, why would people view the same news over and over again?"
I feel there has to be an individuality that women need to be puffed up about. It’s all about a need and filling that need gap. We felt almost no one in the women’s magazine genre upheld this freedom of self and the freedom of expression. We believe in experiencing and expression, so there has to be a line that symbolises that. That’s the core editorial focus that we will raise the bar and we will reassure and help the Indian woman be her individual self.
Children have a natural attraction to media and this is a universal fact. We come with the belief that television is the most powerful teacher. Now we can argue whether it’s a good thing or a bad thing, but it is a reality. So, the question is not just television teaches, the question is what does it teach. What interests me is that despite huge economic challenges, television is reaching millions and millions of people in India, and if you can use it to promote some of the popular agendas that we have created here with our partners, it has the potential to have an enormous impact.
Gary E Knell, President & CEO, Sesame Workshop, says the question is not just that television teaches, but what does it teach. Popular for its programme 'Sesame Street', Sesame Workshop creates innovative Educational content for children from birth through age 12 in over 120 countries. For Indian children, Sesame Workshop is developing a multimedia initiative for 2-8 year-olds modeled on Sesame Street.
“I don’t think FDI is required. We have the monies. In fact, Indian companies should be encouraged to emerge as multinationals. Instead of looking at the US and Europe for a shop-out, we should look at publications there that we can grab. It is a reality. If I get the right buy at the right price in the right atmosphere, I will definitely venture into it.”
Gireesh Kumar Sanghi, Chairman & MD, Vaartha Group, and a Member of Parliament, holds that the Indian media industry needs another body parallel to ABC to ensure that publications and advertisers get the benefit of these studies. He also holds that there is no need for FDI as the media here has the monies.
<p align=justify>Other magazines like Savvy and Femina also try to empower women. Sananda is for a woman with roots and wings. It talks to a woman with an international bent of mind but with a Bengali heart… The readers feel that every section is relevant. There is no feeling of wastage. Many feel that it has given them the courage to overcome hurdles and work towards fulfilling their dreams. The magazine, they feel, has become much more interactive and, therefore, more credible and useful.
<p align=justify>TV is competing with every other medium – we are competing for a lifestyle and that means many things for our programming. It means our programming has to be more interactive and involving, maybe even more than just programming. Who knows, in the next five years it may not even be a standard television show any more. I don’t want to predict the future here – Ridley Scott has done a good job of that few years ago – but I think that the whole dream of the Internet that started and died is back, and if the government of India can give us broadband a little quicker, it might even keep on living.
<p align=justify>The thing about TV is that it is all too dynamic! TV channels are not complacent any more – Sony and Zee were not bothered about STAR Plus and they didn’t take STAR One also seriously and we have seen what has happened in that case. With this kind of a history, we can’t take any one lightly until they have shut shop. As long as they are still active, they will keep trying to make good programming and we will have to better it.
To explain his argument about the dog eat dog situation, Deepak Segal, EVP, Content & Communication, STAR India, mentions that Sony and Zee were not bothered about STAR Plus and didn’t take even STAR One seriously. “We have seen what has happened in that case,” he says.
<p align=justify>The one thing that really excites me about it (the Indian BPO industry) is that it’s open to anything, ready to try anything. I had some interviews with some of the leading BPO providers and the business models that they are going to try are so innovative, the emphasis, for instance, on results – not just like how much can I pay a worker per hour, they are looking at the output per hour, they are looking at the results. So, the payment is based on actual results and quality. I think that’s innovative, there are a lot of good ideas. I think there is competition in the BPO space that is helping to produce innovation. It is coming very rapidly. I am very excited about the Indian BPO space.
“What excites me about the Indian BPO industry is that it’s open to anything, ready to try anything”
Rusty Weston, Founding Editor, Managing Offshore, talks about the Indian BPO industry at length, its strengths and challenges, as well as CMP Media’s tie-up with Cybermedia to bring out an outsourcing publication, website and events.
<p align=justify>‘Not a newspaper but a movement’. We have been following, what I would call, civil society journalism. The paper has always given voice to the people. We have managed to stay in touch with our readers through initiatives like Aap ke Dwar (At your doorstep) and Pathak Manch (Readers’ Forum). Over the years, ever since I took over as editor 15 years ago, people have come to associate Prabhat Khabar as a newspaper giving information about their surroundings. We have a loyal readership base.
![Amar K Deb, Head, Channel [V] India](https://exchange4media.gumlet.io/news-photo/amar_interview.gif)
<p align=justify>“The awards are a pat on the back from our peers and a nod of approval from industry stalwarts who have judged the competitions. There is a great sense of elation… viewers love our content – one look at our ratings, and you’ll see. Advertisers are really seeing the value of the [V] brand today. It has the most creative product and the best innovations.”
![“Advertisers are really seeing the value of the [V] brand today”](https://exchange4media.gumlet.io/news-photo/fs_17700.jpg)
What had started as just music has now evolved into a more flanked offering, says Amar K Deb, Head-India, Channel [V]. The music channel has a young, raring-to-go team and is the country’s numero uno creative hothouse, he claims.
<p align=justify>“You should never underestimate a journalist’s power, who do a good amount of research, learning, can write a story, conduct an interview and handle production.”
Jason Dasey, a popular face on ESPN STAR Sports, sees the exclusive India focus of SportCentre as an exciting challenge. Production standards are what set ESPN and Star Sports apart from other sports networks broadcasting in India, he says.
Seventeen is every young girl’s definitive guide to an exciting lifestyle. It’s their big sister and best friend.
In a turbulent teen readership landscape, 'Seventeen' is perhaps one of a kind. The magazine is targeted at young women between the age of 12-24 years across India. Suparna R Motwane, Editor-in-Chief, 'Seventeen', discusses the strategy behind introducing Seventeen.
“In villages, people have a lot of time to read. Even in cities, they read. Chennai has not become as fast-paced as, say, Mumbai. Print will retain its place in spite of TV. That’s because of the detailing and specialty in our coverage of news. Besides regional news, we do carry our share of local interest content.”
RTV is focused on providing viewers with the best of true reality television. Our content focuses on the true stories and real life experiences of people.
Reality TV, the 24-hour channel brought to India by Zone Vision and distributed by Zee Turner, has successfully completed two years in the country. Chris Sharp, Chief Programming Officer, says the channel took its first step towards localisation of the channel in India by introducing India specific fillers in August 2004.
Making a Punjabi film is not a costly proposition. Besides, there is a huge market across the globe that is waiting to be tapped. Language is no barrier to films.
We have a vast network of reporters and stringers covering every conceivable place in the region that we cover. Further, to ensure seamless flow of information, every reporter and stringer is well wired up with our editorial offices. I must say that television can hardly ever reach the remotest corners that our reporters cover.
The overwhelming response that we get from NGOs, corporates and concerned individuals alike is proof that we are needed. We are on no one’s side and we want to prove that people want information that they can trust.
We know our limitations. We are in no way intending to fight with the Goliath. I know I am David, but I also have a sling in my hand. We will build a distinct identity for Dainik Statesman with unbiased content; that will be our strength.
HT City is all about colour and that’s what we infuse in the attitude of young people. A newspaper has to change according to the changing preferences and needs of the reader. We have to cater to the changing mindset. But we are also conservative. We are not living in a sexually rampant or promiscuous society. We do not wish to upset our readers; information that has a direct bearing on life is what we provide.
I think it’s very important to have a strong volume of cricket – to launch as a football channel, an extreme sports channel or a golf channel in India (as has been done elsewhere in Asia) makes no sense. Cricket is important.
I believe that television channels are dominated by print. Very few of them are hardcore broadcast people. That is why here at India TV, we have tried to converge the broadcast-centric people. This really helps in changing the quality of programmes.
Everybody else has taken a leaf out of our book. Whether it is reality shows or talent shows, we see people imitating our strategies. Star Plus pulled off its programmes at 8 pm and introduced daily shows just because we did so. We have our own gameplan while others do what they want to. So we don’t imitate others’ strategies.
Is there really a clutter? There are just around 8-10 women-centric magazines, and I don’t think that can be called a clutter. Compare this with the situation in the Western markets. The UK alone has 120 titles in the women’s segment! The US market has some 70-80 titles. And yet, see how well GH is doing in both those markets.
Our role is to keep up with new technologies, to take into account emerging markets geographically and in terms of media, and make sure we contact the right people. No other country in the world has this kind of an organisation for producers of fiction, non-fiction, animation and distributors.
Much of the Reader’s Digest’s content is about story-telling, true stories written in a fiction format. Every issue of the Digest also has two or three articles devoted to self-improvement. People like its package, because it is practical, and contains commonsensical ideas. There is also humour in the content. It is this huge range and variety in content and the fact that the articles are very well-written that has ensured its place as the most popular magazine in India.
What we are saying is that History Channel is where the past comes alive. ‘Alive’ is the single most important word for me and we are really trying to make the past alive and give it an aura. There is an old saying, which says what we are yesterday is what we are today and what we will be tomorrow is because of what we are today. This is our way of saying that if you know a little about what was happening in the past, you would know why we are so today.
I would love Brunch to have double the number of pages and become a bigger magazine but we will take each step at a time. At the moment Brunch is the USP of HT because it is so different and there is nothing like this in the market.
The beauty of soaps is that they have no beginning and no end. One can start watching any soap midway and still not feel lost. People have lost the patience to wait for a week to see what happens next. Soon we may even see soaps being extended to the weekends.
I am here to advise The Week on design. It’s a very involved process where the top management, the editor and the editorial team have to get fully involved. It’s not about doing a one-time grid. The journalists have to understand and imbibe it on a regular basis and we are hand-holding that process.
India TV stands for responsible reporting. We do not stand for any religion, ideology or political leaning or for that matter any individual. What we stand for are the people of this country. I want India TV to become the voice of the common man. The beginning has been good and our task is to carry forward this vision.
BBC’s reporting on the Indo-Pak tension is straight down the road. We are deeply sensitive to both sides. India and Pakistan cannot live separately…Our job is not to undermine Indian journalism and Indian media organisations. Our job is to be there as strongly as all other media organisations. People in this vast matrix of information have a choice; they have their favourite stations and their favourite channels that they go back to frequently because they feel comfortable with it.
Nik Gowing is one of the most familiar faces on television news. The Principal Anchor of BBC’s 90-minute news programme, ‘The World Today’, and its predecessor, ‘News Desk’, says while BBC’s coverage is “straight down the road”, he feels that India and Pakistan cannot live separately. He also talks about the role of the media in covering international events.
We’ve achieved a position where we can safely claim that ABP sets the agenda for Bengal. And, in the entire mission, our stronghold has been the editorial wing. Leave apart the bulk of the Bengali-speaking community for whom the daily is a part and parcel of everyday life, even the ones who are strongly against us cannot afford to put down the paper for a single day.
Sumon Chattopadhyay, Executive Editor of Anandabazar Patrika, describes the editorial and content policies by which this trendsetting Bengali daily has set the agenda for Bengal and also in journalism. With strong commitment to unbiased and bold journalism, ABP has developed equity as an institution which few newspapers can boast of. Credibility, authenticity and trustworthiness are the three guiding parameters shaping its content.
To mark its Golden Jubilee in India, the Reader’s Digest has come out with a commemorative ‘Collector’s Edition’ this month. Today, the paid circulation is around 600,000 copies, making it perhaps the largest circulated magazine in the Indian market. Editor Ashok Mahadevan talks about the reasons that have made the Digest such a huge success story.
Corporates today realise that they have to deal with NGOs and need to know much more about them on an incremental basis. This gives us a clear role as providers of information that can be relied upon, says Anand, Publisher, Civil Society.
Wildlife channels mostly present wildlife in it actual form. But I am completely against films that give wrong signals to human beings about beasts. Showing men jumping on animals or forcing them to open their jaws or claws is certainly against ethics.
We are never satisfied. I will give you an example. When we started with afternoon, the highest ratings that came then were around 3. We were hell bent to get 4 and when we did get it, we were excited but the target changed to 5. And currently we are rating at 13 plus, trying for 15.
STAR India ensures seamless cross-flow of ideas between production houses, writers, directors or anybody involved in programming. Brainstorming sessions determine the shape of things to come. For more on this, read Content is King.
ETC Channel Punjabi is an eclectic mix of spirituality and entertainment. Programmed in Punjabi, the content commands universal appeal. Language of spirituality, music and films cuts across boundaries, says channel head Rabindra Narayan. Read Content is King for more on this.
The speed of evolution in Indian media is mind-boggling. Today’s competitive Indian media is pro-active. It diligently covers all the different facets of political, civic and business journalism.
Evolution is the buzzword in today’s media world. And, Indian media is evolving at a robust speed. To meet the increasing demand for information and get the cutting-edge, Indian media is focusing on the content, believes Terry Friel, Chief Correspondent – India, Reuters.
Animation involves huge investments in people and technology. At this stage, the partnering for production with the western world is helping to grow the talent base by about 100 per cent every three years.
The world is changing and so are reader tastes and market requirements. A Newspaper must reflect these changes
Animation is a huge story waiting to happen on the Indian entertainment landscape. But, the emerging players in the industry need to understand the value chain in the industry end-to-end. Biren Ghose, Founder & CEO, Animation Bridge, provides the recipe for success in the latest Content is King.
Our challenge is in providing content that has local relevance. There is no point in picking international content as they are, because the information on products may not be relevant in the domestic segment.
The History Channel is a world channel. At this stage, the focus in India is on distribution. We will bring in new elements in due course.
There is indeed no dearth of information; the challenge is in packaging them to suit local needs, says Shyam Malhotra, Executive Director, Cyber Media India Ltd and Editor-in-Chief, Cyber Publications.
The dos of programming are ‘Dare to be Different!’ Always build on your strengths and push the envelope. Even if you fail, you must keep trying. Above all, never take your viewer for granted. She is much smarter than you think! As Ogilvy said, with regard to advertising, the consumer, in our case, the viewer, is not a moron – she is your wife!.
Marketing can bring potential readers to sample what is on offer, but a loyal readership is built only with relevant content. We meet the total needs of our readers and we pay a great deal of attention on localisation of news.
Programming is an art and one goes by intuition. Five or ten years is a long way off. The product cycles are much shorter. And success lies in keeping everything simple.
In time to come, technology will make television viewing an entirely different experience. The power of computing could make the existing TV programming formats redundant. BBC World Commissioning Editor Narendra Morar shares his perspective on this in this week’s Content is King.
Our approach to government policies is very Indian. Further, we maintain a strong focus on Indian business. FE would be a window for the world to Indian business, and not necessarily the other way around.
Chief Editor of The Financial Express, Dr Sanjay Baru, says that foreign publications like WSJ and FT will not pose a threat to FE so long as the contest is strongly India-focused. Baru speaks on a variety issues confronting business journalism in the latest Content is King interview.
India tends to make the whole liberalization process very complicated. There are far too many debates on the subject.
We take our readers for a spin in the car we are talking about. We undergo a learning process ourselves along with our reader and in the process end up telling them a good story about a car.
The average car-buyer in the country is highly price-sensitive but is not sufficiently informed about aspects like safety. BS Motoring saw a reason to tell much more about automobiles to a whole new generation of auto buyers and enthusiasts. Bijoy Kumar Y, editor of the magazine, explains why in the latest Content is King.
Economic liberalization in India, including the opening up of media to FDI, has moved in fits and starts, says Simon Long, South Asia Bureau Chief, The Economist. He believes it's too early to judge the feel-good factor. For more on this, read the lastest update in Content is King.
We are a much more rounded paper with our coverage extending to not only business news but also the political economy, the political risks and the political events.
Editor of the Financial Times, Andrew Gowers, attributes the newspaper's growth outside the UK to its 'pragmatic European multilateral approach'. For more on the subject, read the latest update in Content is King.
You see people at the pinnacle of change. That’s the best part of being a journalist.
“We are a much more rounded paper with our coverage extending to not only business news but also the political economy, the political risks and the political events.”
The Bureau Chief of CNN Jakarta has seen history unfold on several occasions. Read Content is King is know about her journey into political journalism, the trials and triumphs faced in the course of the journey and the nature of content that CNN stands for.
For niche segmentation, knowledge support is as important as journalistic skill
Education-based content is gaining ground in print, television and web mediums but Educare and Management Compass Editor, Rajiv Saxena, believes that content in this domain should be handled by people who are trained for the purpose. Read this week's Content is King for a ringside view of education-based media content development.
Storyboard’ has a ‘feature magazine’ approach. In the television context, this means that in addition to analytical and researched content, time and effort are spent on conceptualizing and presenting a story visually. How you tell the story is as important as what the story is.
An anchor is only as good as the news they have covered. He has to know the stories inside out. I spend many more hours off-air than on-air; in keeping myself up-to-date with everything that is happening around the world.
The mindset of the editors and newspaper owners is also changing and they are now giving importance to news graphics.
If you want quality, then content, photography, presentation and production value each has to be given equal weightage. Man’s World is a premium product and people have expectations. To deliver, one must excel in each of these inputs. We give equal attention to each factor to beat any kind of competition.
I think our industry has spoilt the reader to an extent that we are forced to depend solely on our advertisers. But what the reader doesn’t realize is that he is getting an inferior product as the content is sometimes compromised. I think the biggest issue faced by the industry is that we are heavily under priced.
Zee News is primarily content-driven. We show, without giving it any angle or slant, news as it happens. It is news first, views later.
Alka Saxena, Editor and Head of Programming, Zee News Channel, emphatically states that news empowers the common man and hence should not be subjected to any slant. Advertorials, in her view, have their own role but cannot take the place of editorials. Read more on this in this week’s Content is King.
Most content ideas that are seen in the gender centric feature magazine, Man’s World germinated when Publisher and Editor of the magazine, N Radhakrishnan was working for Business India. Commenting on his experiences, he explains that editing for areas as diverse as these really isn’t as different as it appears.
Definition of content has changed over the years. Now you see a little bit of the MTV factor everywhere. At times, one feels that the balance has changed more towards entertainment.
News is not PR. Whether it is entertainment or advertising, each organization should have a lakshman rekha. If an advertiser's message becomes so great that your news becomes PR, it is unacceptable. If the advertiser can benefit you, welcome him. It need not be an antagonistic relationship
Mindless entertainment on television will finally yield to news
Any ideal media product, which is meant for the masses, should reflect all the aspects of an Indian life. The key is the treatment, and the quality of the treatment. It's not about what you cover, it's about how you cover it
I am sure anyone who saw the final of Ranji Trophy could not watch for more than 20 minutes. I watched 15 minutes and I thought I was getting angry. It was the worst telecast in the history of India. It was shocking. And you get angry when you see your country showing a telecast like that
Mad race for breaking news is eroding the credibility of news channels
But, the news editor must be able to decide as the copy taster in print news room, whether a particular event is really a breaking news or he is just creating a breaking news.
I feel 'Secularist media' will either learn to behave it self, by realizing its mistakes, or it might get persuaded to modify its negativity.
We try to make news a personal experience, believes Aaj Tak. The 24-hour, buzzing Hindi news channel, initially started as a 30-minute news and current affairs program on DD Metro in 1995.
Quality has become a causality and the very foundation of journalism is getting weakened.
I feel the editorial quality does play a huge role in getting quality advertising. The time spent on reading a paper having quality editorial would be much more and that is an important aspect when different media are fighting for the consumers' time.
We are out to broaden sports audiences. We want to get higher females and be innovative in using mediums like SMS in conjunction with our programming.
Television Movies is a big business in US. My recent production Dinotopia is $ 85 million project. That's big! Today, I can afford big Hollywood stars and pay them comparable sums of money.
K Soaps on Sony and Star are very different. On Sony, serials focus on Individuals while on Star they focus on families.
Our philosophy is to cover all the news that the other newspapers would either not be able to access, or would not be able to publish. We always have sharp opinions and we always take a stand on issues.
Every newspaper and television channel has 'magazine' sections. Yet, there are certain things that you can do in a magazine that a news channel on business cannot do.
You can no longer afford to deliver a poor production quality programme to the Indian viewers.
I feel that the attention spans of the readers have become small. News is not sinking into the minds of the readers, and they are just skimming at the surface.
Femina doesn't want to produce content for which there are no takers. That would make us like the art specialists who come up with abstract art and try and sell it to people who are least interested.
Autocar India has evolved with the rapidly changing market place. First seen as a magazine for only enthusiasts, it now has wider footprint and caters to consumers as well.
Being a general entertainment channel, we target men, women and children and we get this target for our daily soaps. You will be amazed by the children viewership we have for the so-called Saas Bahu serials. For programmes like 'Kahiin Kisi Roz', we get a large male population. People want to watch this today. A 'Kehta Hai Dil', a 'Sanjivani' or a 'Saara Akaash' did not work until we brought in a scheming saas or a wrong marriage.
The content production adheres to the intrinsic theme - visually stunning and educational
Why is that only bad news is news for media? Why does the news channels believe that only bad news will sell? If one attempts to package some good, positive news in a decent manner, people will watch it and like it.
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