Television- a new vision

The television continues to hold the lions share of audience interest and this tim this industry too, saw a lot new things thanks to digitization yet again. India continues to be the favorite of some broadcasters. The industry has been aggressive in increasing their presence across international market. Digitization phase two has already happened and is still in progress. New players are entering the market giving rise to better television viewing experience.

Television replacement has contributed to a large chunk of the industry while people switched from simple television sets to HD, flat screens, LCD television sets for a better viewing experience. Complete digitization will give rise to more transparency and people are eager to witness these changes.

General entertainment is still the spice of television while the family entertainers still rule the roost with innovative ideas and shows. Besides relaity shows on the segments have seen a rise moving away just from singing. Dance, comedy, action seem to have taken better shape in the reality segment.

Movies continue to be a strategic method to create a buzz and hold viewerships. Some of the biggest movies have been aired on television to penetrate amongst audience.

Besides, television shows or even channels to have realized the online potential for the channel and individual shows too. This has increased audience engagement and created a community of loyalists.

Challenges to the television industry will be the new rule being limitations in advertising durations which has created a buzz. The advertising rates will boom to keep up to the competition but will also have to plan better strategies in order to stay up to the production costs.

The big box office

Last year, Bollywood served a buffet of movies. Most movies were received very well drawing the success growth to an exciting shape. The domestic revenues grew by 23.8% contributing 76% to the INR 112.4 billion film industry. Driving force being digitization which provided the distributors a god quality movie experience at a give away price.

The indian film industry will be growing further with digitization and a global reach. The Indian film industry also saw new trends in film productions such as a crowd funded films and online release of films.

In the wide spread platter of films, indian films offered new concepts without the typical stories and a song list. Movies are getting more story centric and focuses on better scripts. However action films too seem to be having a good market. Films like English Vinglish set new trends again with women centric films which was a blockbuster again.

Movies are now more easier to reach. They appear on television faster than before and new concepts such as ad free streaming, DTH services is improving the films scene.

In short, Indian film industry is growing bigger both in terms of reach and quality of movies.

A promising player-New media

Even the world economy doesn't seem to have stopped the new media to grow. it managed a 40% growth in advertising revenue. Mobiles are the new carriers of the trend. Wireless devices have driven the penetration, taking it to a whopping 124 million connections! the digital interface has increased internet penetration in whole. Fixed line connections have grown by 11% while wireless connections have grown by 50%.

India currently has 174 million internet users which is expected to grow triple fold. With smartphones leading the market and integrations doubling, it is taking a wave in the industry. India is on the highway to the internet revolution.

Study says that indians spend about 2.5 hours everyday on mobile data and less than quarter on voice calls or texts. This privies that internet is engaging. There is a desire for more content and power to buy the same. Data consumption is the key to mobile technology.

Online mobile users in India is on a rise too. Facebook recently claimed an increase of 81% in mobile. Mobile phones have enhanced entertainment with engaging content such as videos, music, print, news, social media.

The industry is seeing something new on a daily basis. New technology is knocking doors and the pricing is coming down. Internet is much cheaper and affordable which is again increasing the engagement.

The application industry also is seeing a rise with most brands and products coming on the application platform in form of games and interactivity.

Other online services such as ebooks are also seeing a rise in consumership with books going digital on the mobile platforms.

PC and TV games are being converted to applications leading to a convergence.

E-commerce too saw an unbelievable growth with new players filling the market with innovative ideas and niche products. Not just nothings, all commodities are now available on the internet.

Online payments, which earlier was a not so trusted method of transaction, saw a boom with new players who converge all the utilities in direct payments using secure gateways for transfers and credits.

Print-not so good news

Last year was not bright and happening for the print industry. The industry grew by only 7.3% while it was estimated to grow 8.3%. This was essentially due ti high level of dependence on advertisements being dampened by a gloomy macro-economics scene. However the print industry has made better moves by starting new editions in existing areas. It has also cut corners in it's running costs. Dainik Bhaskar leads the market here by bringing down its delivery radius from 350 kms to 200 kms.

On the other share of print being magazines, it has not been a great year. The magazine industry witnessed a decline in readership. However the niche publications continue to grow with a special focus on the genre.

Advertising continue to be the dominating contributors of the print industry. The industry seems to be ready to cope with the new trends ad are focusing on tier two and three cities for readerships. New trends have also increased the subscription costs and rural market makes up to 70% of this industry.

Most print players are going digital in lot more than few forms. The big players have social med to instantly update on latest news, social media to interact with readers. Mobile applications saw a steep increase as more interactive form of reading.

Mobile technologies and digital interfaces are giving raise to new trends in the print industry making a better branding for the players.

While magazines seems to be disappearing from the stands, they are making themselves visible on the mobile platform. Some players also moved to complete digital with online subscriptions.

All though print is vanishing, its essence remains the same and offers large verity to readers. It is certainly good as this is also becoming digital which directly cuts down on usage of papers which is environmental friendly.

Who are you?

Digital Natives: People born during the digital era. Technically, these are the people who are exposed to digital interfaces and use devices for more than one purpose. From education to networking. Here people are exposed to digital revolution to a wider use and are in most cases upgraded with new technologies. The use of technology is more, learning is faster, more dependency and more faith in info available on the internet.

Digital Immigrants: A generation before the digital era. People in this case are less exposed to technologies. They have practiced everything practically by using other traditional methods. Lesser awareness, lack of usage more dependant on other sources of info such as books.

There is a great deal of cultural differences one could encounter due to lack of knowledge in the digital era. Firstly the cultural differences. Since the natives are exposed to greater amount of info, there is a lot more perspective attached which has its own pros and cons.

Immigrants on the other hand do not appreciate the easy approach towards everything creating a gap. Further some can be a sport and might show interest in learning.

Radio on a roll

 Radio on a roll

Radio-renewed hope as FICCI calls it is completely right. With a growth rate of 10% and a total revenue of INR 12.7 Billion, the radio industry is evolving to better and bigger. The growth owes a large chunk to the bigger players like Radio city and Radio march by pushing to different quarters and providing innovative solutions and business.

Radio has reached a 100%  mark in the metro cities and now moving towards the tier two and tier three cities. This indeed marks the trademark of radio for being the only medium to have a 100% reach. Besides, the big players, the non-metro players have given the business a boost. My FM and radio mantra operating in tier two segments have emerged as leaders with a quick growth.

Post reduction of royalty costs, after the union cabinet ministry passed the copyright amendment bill, the reduced costs have created a larger profit base. However a radio stations have other high priced equipments and resources.

Radio on the other hand has developed as an interactive medium giving a better scope for brand engagement, advertising, interactivity. Radio is far more effective considering the local connect and emotional connect with listeners. Besides, it is far more cheaper compared to the television campaigns. This will only get better with the phase thee auctions pitching at 300 more cities.

Being on mobile platform, radio has evolved to be more efficient. In contrast to television or print, radio is very interactive and very handy. Yet, radio continues to be the outdoor entertainer being a car's best companion.

Radio has also evolved in terms of content creation in listener engagement. Innovation is the key indeed. Some of the biggest brands believe in the efficiency of radio. Fastrack, a big player has always believed in radio advertising. Radio also have their engagement with the listeners through social platforms creating better visual content too. This has increased in better emotional engagement and created better listeners.

Interner radio has also emerged as the new industry. Players here believe that the lower costs helps in creating more stations on the internet platform giving the niche audience an almost personalized radio experience. This also caters to corporate audience and engagements at other segments.

Radio industry is green and growing. With television advertising slots squeezing, radio will most certainly be the immediate choice of advertisers 

Better than the Billion

With India emerging as the second most populated country with a whooping count of 1.2 billion, the population has grown tremendously and all though the media has not been really able to knock at each door, digital technology has a promising entry and is looking forward to glorious success. The penetration of digital technologies have been carefully observed by FICCI. However the eurozone crisis and global economy slowdown has left the media and entertainment industry to face some tough questions.

The real challenge for the media firms is in formulating a multi platform distribution stratergy and to reach out to regional pockets of the country while keeping the services affordable for every consumer. A cleaner segmentation is required to customize services to keep it relevant. Alive app from the times group is one such examples that keeps its audience hooked with the edge to interact with the news segment which keeps the reading experience more by interaction and feedback mechanism.

India being loaded with social concerns and youth growing strong in their values, media has a chance to influence the same and engage large number of consumers to creare an awareness and bring reality closer to them. Responsible journalism has a need and to look out for opportunities to enlighten consumers on social issues. Satyameva Jayathe is one such success stories on the television segment.

While the GDP has slowed down, the sun is brighter towards the media industry. The industry has embarked on 12-6% growth rate which is a large growth from 728 Billion rupees in 2011 to 821 billion in 2012. Given the growth of the digital technologies it is expected to gross up to 917 billion rupees.

The television viewership iis at 730 million, 181 million readers, 159 radio listeners and 176 million internet users. The potential only grown larger.

The television continues its position on the top of the list. Music grew at 18% and the animation industry bounced back with a growth of 21%. Radio will continue to grow with phase three to begin the bidding process. The new advertising regulations for television to restrict to limited slot for advertising, radio being the next resort will have stronger aspects in the sales revenues.

With the growth in every sector the advertising sector has grown immensely and the total spent over 2012 was 327.4 billion. The advertising rates too have increased.

Print continues to have the largest portion in revenues despite digitization besides the print having its share in the digital sector with online editions and larger subscriptions.

Digitization of television with phase two reaching to 38 cities, it is changing the television experience. The movies too, have moved on to digitization with distribution Up to 50% movies chose digital while it is expected to turn 100%.

In the overview, Indian literacy rate growing and digitization taking new heights traditional media will have to share the limelight with digital media.

Personally, it will be interesting to see new ventures in the radio sector with the licensing in the new phase and changes in the royalty and regulations the industry can look forward to new concepts and creative challenges in the sector.

Fitting in the right shoe: Brands

Honestly, the term brand was loaded in my dictionary not more than about five years back. Probably while transiting from school to early college in a pathetic attempt to feel belonged to a place that I didn’t really want to be a part of.

I was exposed to brands when almost all of us wanted a fastrack watch because it was a statement more than a watch. Sometime when it really mattered which store was the faded pair of jeans picked up from and I remember few friends using the fancy tags of jeans as book marks in the Chetan Bhagat books which again was merely following a culture that we begged to be a part of.

With evolution, this is what I feel of brands.

Brand to my renewed knowledge is what the company calls itself as strictly their product and the consumers find it to be their product in terms of comfort and luxury. A company or a product could become a brand comfortably if they successfully convince their pocket of consumers with continued support and consistency. To my grand mom, her fragrant incense sticks from her trusted company is her brand but does that mean everyone else is using the same? No. It simply means that the incense sticks has managed to stick on to someone’s life without giving a chance of replacement. With loyalty of consumers, a product becomes a part of someone’s life making them a testimony to their existence.

Subsequently, an aggressive effort to top the leads, brands thrive to create a need for themselves through strategies and efficient marketing. I remember how subtly fastrack made its impact on the youth. “How many you have man” was a straight challenge to have a collection of the accessories from fastrack which would in turn increase the cool quotient. “Move on” was yet another campaign on the fast moving culture by fastrack which was well accepted. While blackberry tried accommodating themselves among the youth, it couldn’t really make a mark simply because it didn’t seem to come in terms with what a typical student needs and what one could afford.

Ultimately what really counts is what goes best with the built-in attitude of a consumer and how influential are advertisements on the mindset. Individualistic minds are often not taken away by advertisements or a culture while some tend to give everything to try what a large number is using.

To me everything that I use is a brand. Not too long ago, I was in heavy impression that using a well known brand was what made me a updated denizen. Thanks to the company I keep now, I have a mind of my own and go by what the product has in store for me and not what the world has found it to be. 

Once an apple fan , forever an apple fan

My loyalty to apple has been intact and irreplaced just like any of the line of apple products I own. From my iPod shuffle to MacBook Pro, I clearly start my day with apple and live on. Perhaps I have not known of any other brand I have been connected to. IS that what apple does to one? Well a true apple lover would never always agree that apple is what sorts them the best.

SO what’s the chicken of apple? What makes apple most addictive than any other product? Why not a Samsung or a Sony?

Firstly, it is the very look of  an apple product. Sophistication, class, precision and the attitude that apple carries as a brand. From the simplest advertisements to the best layout website, apple commands over style elements and simple elegance. Apple clearly competes with itself in proving themselves to be better than themselves and creating the best in class operating systems, Apple always surprises its loyal fans with being better than the best.

It is surprising when someone says “apple is complicated” because it is actually the simplest in every sense. Who else could think of a master button that lets you live in the multiple windows of a sleek pocket fitting phones? It is rather surprising when someone who carries a phone bigger than the pocket and has to wrap it like a note book. A phone should appear like a phone which apple masters in. It is that one button that lets you do everything that world wanted from life.

Class apart- Apple is a class apart product, the world knows it. It is actually a blessing that most of theirs apps are paid. Obviously, just because apps are free, doesn’t mean one could download everything. An app should be used to what it is designed for and definitely not for the heck of it. A paid app for me is technically for more efficient, fully loaded, no hidden version and most importantly sanitized. I can blindly download an app without really doubting its authenticity.

Quality is something what apple has always stood for. I have not known of any other music player that can redefine a musical experience. The ear fitting earphones and gesture sensing interface changing every aspect of a smart device that has ever existed.

Apple is for everyone. From simplifying a businessman’s schedule and finance, it can be a child’s best friend in learning, a teenagers best companion in any time entertainment, apple can change the same for everyone without changing its significant features. Unlike any other operation system, the apple interface is uncomplicated, simple and user friendly.

If all of this isn’t enough to prove itself to be the best, its after sales service is spectacular. No other brand can dare to promise an instant replacement in any case of damage. An apple product is unaffected from any threats such as virus. All of these interesting features of apple makes what it is.

In an open relationship with- Technology

Being alumni of the 90’s, I can’t escape but enjoy every bit of lime light that I share everywhere I go. Be it on the dinner table or endless coffee conversations.  Little do I realize that I owe technology for sailing me through. From the embarrassing student in early school to a dynamic media professional, a tag I carry even before I let my graduation hat fly. Perhaps, its technology who has been a better friend leaving behind the good old saying “books are man’s best friend” to the generation I took over.

Computer happened to me quite later than usual. To me, technology meant computer and computer meant the screen saver. It’s strange how I could stare at the endless maze of red bricks on my father’s computer that I claimed to be partly mine. It would hurt when I couldn’t switch on the computer myself; wait for someone to build the bricks once again while I thought this was the only reason why computers were called fast. For this was the childhood I like to believe technology and I grew up together.

Like they say time is the best teacher, soon I found myself closer to the computer. My assignments grew up from ruled lines to word documents. Chart projects turned power point presentation while sound effects were like brownie points. I enjoyed every second of being there. Sooner I realized that I was much different that how I aspired to be. From wanting to be a doctor, I changed lanes to media. The world around me was changing but the world within me saw a revolution. My new hobbies were searching for my favorite artists, stalking was a secret affair and my assumptions of my favorite artiste’s email addresses were ridiculous. I listened to music which appeared Greek and Latin while my mother blamed my over indulgence to my new cravings and eating habits. Megabytes became gigabytes. I woke up something new every day. 

My affair with the Radio took off amidst all these hassles. I realized I am much talented than I thought. I could speak spontaneously, play music in little gatherings and behave every bit of a DJ, without being branded a wannabe. I was just lucky. Soon, my hobby drew my focus. I researched, reached out to people, stalked and worked my heart out to achieve what I aspire to be.

Today, I boast of an enviable fully loaded laptop hogging all my attention while the background is of fancy disks, coffee mugs, my jumbo headphones and a few more music gadgets. I record; I remix, rearrange and relive every day of my life. I don’t give space for screen savers now for my system seems to have taken the load of my life. I juggle between multiple windows surfing on one and completing pending conversation with friends. I edit memories on pictures and I schedule myself for a neater tomorrow. Every day is a clean slate where I scribble, over and over again because I know the memory of my computer it won’t leave my way, it will not let me down.