BUSINESS
TV ad spends to grow 5% thanks to T20 World Cup but its clash with IPL14 puts advertisers in fix
While IPL 14 will not eat into the ad spends of the T20 World Cup, many advertisers who would want to advertise on both the properties will now have to make a choice between the two as budgets are limited.
TRENDS
OTTs are ramping up content, ZEE5 partners with The Viral Fever to drive subscribers
Over the top (OTT) platforms are investing in new content, hoping to carry forward their success last year when the greater variety of their content prompted 1 crore Indians to shift from traditional TV broadcasts to video streaming on the internet
BUSINESS
States help struggling cinemas cut costs, but exhibitors desperate for liquidity
Cinema hall owners, particularly in small towns, say they urgently need liquidity without which they would not be able to resume operations and about 2,000 of India’s 6,000 single screens may go out of business.
TRENDS
Before IPL 14’s return, Star Sports is banking on WTC Finals 2021, targeting Rs 90 crore as ad revenue
The icing on the cake has been Team India’s recent test cricket performance. First their win in Australia and then against England at home has fired peoples’ imagination. Their performance during the India-England series resulted in receiving the highest test match viewership in the last four years
TRENDS
Battlegrounds Mobile India, remake of PUBG Mobile to drive game streaming market in India, say experts
According to Piyush Kumar, Founder and CEO, Rooter, a game streaming and esports platform, game streaming market will grow by 50 percent. "New game is an incremental number for the industry."
TRENDS
Limited unlocking poses challenges for film, web series production
Shorter shooting hours and working in bio-bubbles are the main hurdles for producers, escalating costs and delaying projects
BUSINESS
Multiplexes cheer phased reopening in key market, Maharashtra but new releases weeks away
Owners of cinema halls and multiplexes say it may take up to a month for various states to allow screens in most parts of the country to reopen. Viewers can expect new movies only after that, which means occupancy will be low to start with
BUSINESS
Zee's Marathi movie channel registers over 39% reach in opening week on Free Dish in Maharashtra
The company in a release said that the channel has garnered over two-thirds of the market share in the Marathi-speaking cluster and registered time spent per viewer (TSV) of 368 minutes in the opening week.
BUSINESS
Online leak of Zee’s Radhe heightens piracy concerns of film industry, OTT platforms
By the time Zee filed a police case against Radhe’s online leak, the damage had been done because experts say the first few days after the release were the most crucial. OTT players may lose an estimated $3 billion to piracy by 2022.
BUSINESS
PVR sees lowest screen addition in FY21, suspends CAPEX for all other screens
In conversation with Moneycontrol, Nitin Sood, CFO, PVR, said that this would be the lowest screen addition by PVR in last five to seven years.
TRENDS
ASCI comes up with guidelines, but do they have the teeth to make brands and influencers fall in line?
While there is a mechanism to file complaints against non-compliance, there is no mechanism to enforce the compliance of any recommendation. Hence, industry players are clueless about what the advertising council can do if brands and influencers flout the guidelines.
TRENDS
Zee appoints Nitin Mittal as president to drive digital portfolio
Mittal in his previous stint was with National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to build the Unified Payments Interface (UPI) framework for the country.
TRENDS
Hrithik Roshan's HRX ready to launch sports, fitness equipment in times of COVID-19
Activewear brand launches new category with Flipkart after receiving many inquiries on sports and fitness equipment. Co-founder and CEO Afsar Zaidi expects a 10-15 percent contribution from sports and fitness equipment to total revenues. HRX became a brand worth Rs 500 crore in the first quarter of 2021.
BUSINESS
TV body Indian Broadcasting Foundation includes OTT, forms self-regulatory council
The IBF has formed Digital Media Content Regulatory Council, a self-regulatory body which is formed as per the mandate of the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Rules, 2021.
TRENDS
Friends: The Reunion records over one million views on ZEE5
ZEE5 which is seeing strong growth in its number of users is adding premium content on the platform.
BUSINESS
Reruns of Ramayan, Mahabharat are back with high traction but it's not all good news for TV
A BARC India spokesperson pointed out that with partial lockdowns and limitations on movement in several parts of the country this trend (reruns) is once more clearly visible.
TRENDS
After Radhe, ZEE5 offers Friends: The Reunion to drive subscriber acquisition
The company is betting on the younger audience and believes that quality content will drive consumers to buy the annual pack. According to industry estimates, Zee5 has around 4-5 million subscribers now. Company sees a triple digit growth in subscription revenues during Q4FY21.
BUSINESS
Amazon acquiring MGM Studios will not impact cinema business, says expert
According to analyst Karan Taurani, Vice President of Elara Capital, while Amazon acquiring MGM will increase the platform's content depth, it will not impact cinema business in India.
TRENDS
YouTube, advertisers to gain but content creators fret over video-streaming giant’s new terms
YouTube’s new terms of service will help the video-sharing platform get more revenue from advertisers, or subscribers who pay to weed out ads, but popular content creators, some of whom have been getting a share of revenue, are upset.
ENTERTAINMENT
IPL resumption in Sept can lure big advertising bucks, but tough to get back foreign players
For the rest of the IPL matches, the challenge is not new dates, viewership or venue, but getting back foreign cricketers, who enhance the stature and stardom of the league. On the positive side, IPL at the start of festive season will attract heavy advertising
BUSINESS
Delhi HC directs WhatsApp to suspend services to numbers selling pirated copies of Radhe
The film, which was released on May 13 during Eid holiday, was leaked immediately online and was circulated on various platforms including WhatsApp and Telegram.
ENTERTAINMENT
Netflix film premieres in US theatres, will India mirror such a move?
A digital product releasing in theatres and streaming on OTT a week later will see a lot of resistance from national multiplex chains.
BUSINESS
New show launches on hold for Zee, other broadcasters as COVID-19 disrupts shoots
Broadcasters managed to continue with original content for ongoing shows for some time as they had contingency plans ready when Maharashtra imposed a lockdown, but with restrictions ordered in other states also, producing new shows is a formidable challenge.
ENTERTAINMENT
Zee confident of Radhe's release on ZEE5 and ZeePlex, will offer pay per view in overseas markets
For Zee5, Radhe's success is key because in the fourth quarter of FY21 revenue growth in Zee5 declined nine percent quarter-on-quarter (QoQ) despite a steady growth in monthly active users (MAUs) and daily active users (DAUs) which currently is 72.6 million and 6.1 million respectively.
