The Hindu Business Line : Sony to tune into younger, peppier look for 2004

SONY has been able to drive growth in terms of viewership and revenue over the past six months primarily by reworking some of its properties. But the big thrust for the channel was provided by its show — Jassi Jaisi Koi Nahin. Mr Sunil Lulla, Executive Vice-President, Sony Entertainment Television (SET), believes 2004 will be year when television programming will be younger, peppier and frothier. Excerpts from the interview:

Sony has been able to notch up good ratings in the recent past. Is it on account of Jassi or is there more to it?

Sony has grown by over 35 per cent from April 2003 to now. That growth began in July and accelerated in September when Jassi was launched. The growth came from some of our strong products such as Kya Haadsa Kya Haqeeqat and weekend movies, but the rocket fuel in the last three-and-a-half months has been Jassi. Our market share for the 9.30 p.m. slot moved up from 8 per cent to 30 per cent, of this 28 per cent share has come from competition.

Do you think you have arrived at the right mix of programming or is there scope for improvement?

This year will see us delivering a much stronger proposition to the viewer. We took a view in 2003 that you cannot win the entire marathon at one stretch but win a certain part of the race. Our race was to win back the key hour, the 9 to 10 p.m. slot. We tried a few things; notable among them is the launch of Jassi. We also reworked Kusum in such a manner that it can run for another two years. We needed something that stood out on our channel. Jassi has really broken the mould. The build-up of Jassi rests on two factors — create a character that stands out and the marketing of the show. Both these factors are equally responsible for the kind of response we are getting on Jassi. The first thing was to get the 9-10 p.m. bedrock in place. In 2004, our focus is to look at other hours. Our initiatives will start playing out sometime in March and April. In the last quarter, we have been able to strengthen some of our products such as Devi, Kya Haadsa Kya Haqueeqat. With Koi Dil Mein Hai we also introduced original programming on Sunday.

2004 is seen as a different year in comparison to the last two years, which went through a difficult phase. Does the buoyancy that is seen in 2004 get reflected in the kind of programming?

The winds of change have already stepped in with the launch of Jassi. Convention would have it that the protagonist should be pretty and that the serial would show the home and not the office. Will everything become like Jassi? The answer is no. But 2004 will have programming that will be younger, frothier and peppier, most definitely on our channel and may be on other channels too. Today television viewing starts at 7.30 p.m. and goes on until 11 p.m., the key hours being 8 p.m. to 11 p.m. I don't believe that is going to change very much. Demographics are not changing overnight. The number of viewers between the age of 15 and 35 will remain more of less the same. But there is going to be a lot more alternatives and different kind of programming.

How is 2004 positioned in terms of the advertising pie? Is this pie growing or is it that competition is going to bring in more ad revenue?

In the last two-and-a-half years, women and household product advertisement was sluggish but new advertisers neutralised the downturn. Newer advertisers included cell companies, financial services, retail business, petroleum and automotive sectors. News channels advertisement has had some growth, because they have a purer male audience. Although Sony as a channel has more male viewers than news channels, advertisers wanting to target male audience would go for news channels. These channels have recorded growth in advertising revenue, may not be in viewership. If everybody is reading the India Shining mood right and expecting all sectors to post good growth, then the overall ad pie should grow. We are the number two channel in the GE category and would like to consolidate and strengthen our position. There is a gap between Sony and Star Plus and between Zee and us. The gap between Zee and us is certainly growing and we want to inch closer to Star Plus. By and large we will remain a number two but we will be a much stronger number two.

Are GE channels too monolithic a representation when it comes to advertisement efficiency?

No. At the end of the day we are still a one television set home. Generally, four or five people watch TV together. That will not change immediately. A typical family would watch a GE channel which is why these channels have a programming mix that range from kids shows to daily family soaps to religious programmes.

In the last two years because of economic constraints the method of ad spends has changed. How does that come into play in 2004? What about subscription revenue?

Advertisers either want to reach out to a large audience or go for specific promotions. They choose the channel depending on their strategy. In a GE channel, the advertiser would not get a specificity that is there in a channel like MTV. Niche channels deliver impact promotions to smaller audiences, while GE channels deliver chunks of eyeballs. In the cable and satellite television universe, there are only so many channels that take you to the mass audience. Subscription revenue has grown over a five to six year period. I think a case of dominance of distribution over advertisement in India is hypothetical. The reality is that you are not going to get clarity and transparency in the distribution system yet. But distribution income will grow year on year.

It is said that you must not design ahead of your customers' taste. How does it work when it comes to content?

Very much the same. In GE channel, the format has to be very broad. You have to serve a dal and a roti, rice and sambar to the audience. You have to know if the mood is right, to add pepper or not. The audience never tells you what it wants, you have to just go ahead and give it to them. A large part of India is very conservative. Because we are dealing with a one-set home footprint it is very difficult to put a product that will work very well in Bombay and not work in Uttar Pradesh.