Your ‘disruption’ strategy seems to be working in the GEC space. With the erstwhile dominant players in this space constantly at your heels, how do you plan to sustain the viewership trend, having crossed the crucial 100 GRP mark?

We started with differentiation by means of content and disruption by means of scheduling. The strategy was to enter the household through our reality content and create a habit through our fiction shows. This seems to have worked for us as the viewers were desperately looking for a change and that’s exactly what we have done. Currently, we have four shows on air which are doing well; we are slot leaders between 8 p.m. and 9 p.m. (Balika Vadhu and Jai Shri Krishna), and are the number two channel in the remaining slots (Bigg Boss and Bandhan Saat Janmon Ka). The trend for the remaining shows is also looking in the upwards direction, with the exception of Bigg Boss all other properties are here for a long haul as the Colors ‘think tank’ believes in running a long-term sustainable model. Our effort would be to average above the 200 GRP mark.

While content is king, most of the serials seem to be produced and sourced from the same production houses, such as Endemol and Balaji. In this scenario, how would you manage to differentiate content in the already cluttered GEC space?

While big banners definitely matter, differentiation is in the idea or concept, and the way it is executed. We have consciously opted to work with ten different production houses. Ours is a potent combination of young as well as some experienced production houses.

You have yourself been with Star and Endemol in the past. How have you leveraged your past experience towards making Colors stand out in the GEC space?

Learnings from both sides — production as well as broadcast — have clearly helped in launching the brand Colors. However, launching the brand has clearly been a team effort and the success is reflective of the effort and the experience of the entire team.

Media planners claim that it is getting difficult for them to strategise sales, especially when leading channels like Star have seen viewership fall, and that they would like go for property-based deals rather than buying from a bouquet of channels. Have you witnessed a similar trend, especially for your flagship properties such as Bigg Boss and Khatron Ke Khiladi, which have enjoyed high TRPs?

Channel ratings tend to operate in a band. This band is a mix of base platform created by long-running fiction shows layered with spikes of non-fiction. Advertisers generally prefer packaging non-fiction with popular fiction shows as annual deals.

What is the size and rate of growth of ad revenues in the GEC space today and what would be your share in that space and your projections going forward?

The television industry is currently estimated at Rs 8,000 crore. Of this GECs make up around 40 per cent. The pie has been growing at around 20 per cent. Moving forward we would expect to garner a share commensurate with our ratings. However, the impact of the current economic slump still needs to be assessed by the industry.

Do you feel Viacom18 is now in a position to make money and profits in India with Colors’ healthy GRPs compared to its niche channels such as Vh1, Nickelodeon and MTV? Has the joint venture with TV 18 helped the network in making its mark with Indian audiences?

Clearly the parentage of Viacom and Network18 gives brands the benefit of funnelling and cross-pollinating audiences to each other through on-air promotions and marketing efforts. Also, the network clout helps in the arena of distribution thereby aiding in reaching a wider audience base

Your strategy of differentiating between India and Bharat and taking care of small-town viewership preferences seems to have helped. What are viewership patterns like across the segments for your various shows and properties and the kind of trends you have observed in them?

Colors offers a basket of shows and concepts that have a universal appeal providing something for everyone and everything for someone. This trend is reflective in scheduling and viewership patterns. Balika Vadhu and Jai Shri Krishna have managed to cut across all age groups with refreshing story lines pulling in viewers from metro and non-metro audiences. Also, for certain shows we have focused on specific markets. For example, Bandhan Saat Janmon Ka is set in Lucknow, while Bigg Boss appeals more to metro audiences. So far, this strategy seems to be working and helping us carrying our India and Bharat theory.

Slowdown in the economy combined with the global meltdown — any repercussions felt by the Viacom group and its business in India?

So far so good but if this global trend continues it definitely would hurt.

More Stories on : Interview | Marketing Research | Radio/TV

Article E-Mail :: Comment :: Syndication :: Printer Friendly Page