Multi Screen Media, owner of the Sony Entertainment channel, wants to strengthen its presence in the regional markets, besides focusing on a turnaround of its flagship channel with the launch of new shows such as the upcoming fiction drama Yudh starring Amitabh Bachchan.

NP Singh, CEO, Multi Screen Media, said: “Our presence in the regional space is small and in the next one to two years we are going to expand our regional footprint. We are looking at various markets in the southern and western regions, both through inorganic and organic route. We are also re-evaluating investing in Maa Television, which is in the Telugu space.”

About two years ago, the company had expressed its intent to acquire 30 per cent in Maa TV, but the agreement did not go through.

Talking about the flagship channel of the network Sony Entertainment, Singh said that his single biggest focus area is the channel’s turnaround. The company has rejigged the management in the past and is focussing on new content pipeline.

“Within the last two months alone we have seen growth of about 20 per cent in viewership with the changes that we have brought in; content is also being revamped. Besides Yudh , our marquee show, we have commissioned six daily shows which will come on board in the next few months,” Singh said.

The company is also looking to launch a general entertainment channel in the next few months. “We believe there is a strong unserved segment viewership that is available for TV content,” he said. The company could also look at a sports channel if it acquires more rights. It recently launched Max 2 and an HD feed for its English channel Sony Pix and currently has nine channels.

Poised as one of the biggest shows on Hindi Television, Yudh has been co-produced by Amitabh Bachchan’s company Saraswati Creations, in collaboration with Endemol India. Anurag Kashyap is the creative director, while Shoojit Sircar has been roped in as creative consultant. The series is directed by Ribhu Dasgupta.

Related Topics
comment COMMENT NOW