The Hindu Business Line : Sony's classic venture

A day away from routine. Lazy. No morning alarm. Flavourful coffee and breakfast in bed, the day's Page 3 to graze on, and then ... How about a Hollywood classic? " No better recipe for a great holiday!" many might say. "That's what our business is all about. This is precisely where we come into play," says N. Muthuram, head of Sony Pictures Home Entertainment. "India is a great catalogue market and classics sell well here for all studios. Though fresh titles do contribute to the business in a big way, the key is to work on the classics catalogue and push sales in this category," he goes on.

In Sony's case, Mackenna's Gold, Bridge on the River Kwai and Guns of Navarone all do very well and these are hot sellers any day, Muthuram says.

Sony Pictures Releasing India's home entertainment unit is all set to release around 300 titles including super hits such as Casino Royale and Ghost Rider in the DVD/VCD formats in 2007. The company, incorporated a year ago, has so far released 250 DVD/VCD titles in India. It also has dubbed 80 films into Hindi for VCDs and released 18 VCDs with Tamil sub-titles.

According to the company, The Da Vinci Code was the biggest grosser for any Hollywood film on home video selling over 50,000 units in one month since its launch. Each month, Sony releases about 10-12 titles. Apart from regular movies, Sony Pictures also produces and distributes titles that go straight to video, bypassing theatres. "We have films such as Robert Ludlum's Hades Factor and Final Fantasy in the segment," says Muthuram.

Talking about the dubbing market in the country, Anupam Sengupta — Head (Marketing), says dubbed products are an important part of the company's business. "We have actually dubbed titles in Hindi that were not done theatrically and met with good sales." He claims Hindi is the company's mainstay now, contributing over 20 per cent of the overall revenues.

According to him, Tamil and Telugu are the other focus `dubbed markets' for Sony. "More languages are being considered and we will explore possibilities from a business point of view. As a studio we will continue to focus on the dubbed market to expand the business," he says.

Though India still is predominantly a VCD market, Sony positioned itself much against the market norms. "We have been pushing the DVD format so aggressively through our marketing and promotions that the results are evident. DVDs account for almost 40 per cent of our revenues," Sengupta says.

Distribution, of course, is the key to this business. Sony has a strategic tie-up with Sony BMG to use its supply chain infrastructure and systems. This gives a nationwide network with warehouses across 12 locations, says Sengupta.

Asked about the company's marketing strategy, Muthuram said, "We keep upping the ante with our key releases. So whether it's the success of Stuart Little 3 or The Da Vinci Code, we have been very strategic in terms of our product offers and have given consumers a compelling reason to buy."

Mackenna's Gold

Packaging plays a key role in the business, hence, there is conscious effort to make it attractive as well as deliver value. For example, Open Season VCD pack had a board game built in, he says.

According to him, Sony's branding strategy is to ensure the products gain a distinct identity. "So whether it's a new feature, price promotions, budget DVDs or combo DVDs, all of them have a distinct positioning. Strong visual merchandising also ensures visibility at retail. Trade marketing also becomes crucial in our business and we have a year-long communication programme with our trade partners," says Muthuram.

Talking about the Indian market, he said the country is poised for a major growth as far as DVD consumption is concerned. "The home video market is still small but with retail poised for exponential growth, quality content, growth in DVD hardware and differential price points for movie software, consumers can expect a windfall in times to come." Also, the growth of organised video rental chains will add to the overall growth. New technologies such as Blu-Ray will also affect consumption in a big way.

Asked about the pricing strategy, following the news that Moser Baer would soon offer DVDs and VCDs of Indian movies at Rs 34 and Rs 28 each, Muthuram says, "Sony has its own manufacturing plant which incorporates good technology and there is a constant endeavour to offer consumers the latest at an affordable price."