• Egmont ties up with producers for 'Badhaai Ho Badhaai' merchandise

    Egmont Imagination India, that claims to be one of the largest children’s entertainment company in the world has join

  • Media firm UTV issues clarification on 15.8 per cent, Rs 460 million private placement

    Submitted by ITV Production on Mar 29, 2002

    Media firm UTV has clarified reports about a foreign investor picking up a stake in it

    These reports appeared in some dailies on 29 March 2002 and were in respect of a fresh round of equity that UTV is receiving from Mauritius-based CDP Capital. These stated that the latter‘s application to invest 15 per cent at a cost of Rs 585 million in UTV Software Communications was given government clearance.

    In a press release issued today UTV says the facts are as follows:

    a) UTV, one of India‘s largest media and content companies, is involved in TV production, Animation, Motion Picture production and distribution and Allied content activities like corporate ad film production and post-production studios. UTV has agreed to a private placement of fresh shares to CDPQ of Canada.

    b) CDPQ headquartered in Montreal Canada, is one of the largest equity investors in the world, and the largest in Canada, where it controls the pension funds of all citizens of Quebec. CDPQ has holdings in media all over the world, and owns close to 12% of MGM Hollywood.

    c) CDPQ has made a fresh equity investment in UTV of Rs 46 crore (Rs 460 million) and picked up a 15.8 per cent stake. It has also bought shares from other investors including Warburg Pincus, thereby having an equity holding of approx 30 per cent in UTV

    d) Post this transaction, the promoter group lead by Ronnie Screwvala will continue to hold 40 per cent, CDPQ will hold 30 per cent , News Corp/Star will hold 15 per cent and the balance 15% is held by various Financial investors including Mitsui of Japan and IL&FS.

    e) At a time when the overall equity market is sluggish, this is the one of the few placements, especially in the media industry.

    f) For UTV this placement comes as a precursor to the possibility of an IPO next year.

  • Media firm UTV issues clarification on 15.8 per cent, Rs 460 million private placement

    Media firm UTV has clarified reports about a foreign investor picking up a stake in it

  • Cricket to drive Sony bid for the top with World Cup rights officially in the bag

    Submitted by ITV Production on Mar 28, 2002

    The World Cup Network is what it is now calling itself. Sony Entertainment made it official today that it has acquired the Indian television satellite broadcast rights for a six-year package of ICC (International Cricket Council) tournaments, including the World Cups in 2003 and 2007.

    The declaration comes over a month after SET had made what was virtually an advance announcement that it had it all in the bag (on 15 February). SET had issued a release then that it was in advanced negotiations with Global Cricket Corporation (GCC) & World Sport Nimbus (WSN) for acquiring the same. The GCC is a joint venture between WSG and News Corp and is managing the commercial programme for the ICC Cricket World Cup 2003.


    SET India CEO Kunal Dasgupta

    Announcing the mega acquisition, Sony Entertainment Television (SET), Kunal Dasgupta, CEO, said: "We have bagged the rights to beam live all the matches of all three key ICC Cricket tournaments, namely, two ICC Cricket World Cups, three ICC Champions Trophies, and three Under-19 Cricket World Cups."

    The terrestrial rights rest with national broadcaster Doordarshan and it will be telecasting all matches involving India, including the semi-finals and finals of all the ICC tournaments, Harish Thawani, co-chairman World Sports Nimbus, said.


    World Sports Nimbus Co-Chairman Harish Thawani

    At a reported $ 250 million, this is the "single largest broadcast licencing deal" in cricket history and has involved a long and meticulously managed bidding process. From six players during the initial bidding, the field was narrowed down to three players at the final stage.

    According to the information available, left in the race at the end were SET, ESPN Star Sports and Sahara India. Though Sahara, which is also the official sponsor of the Indian cricket team, reportedly made a higher bid in value terms, SET was able to sell its pitch that it had the better credentials to showcase an event of this magnitude having already successfully telecast Sharjah cricket.


    World Sports Nimbus Co-chairman Seamus O‘Brian

    The deal was finally signed and delivered after some intense negotiations over the fine print only on Tuesday night, said Seamus O‘Brian, co-chairman, World Sports Nimbus.

    As far as the cricket is concerned, it works out to a total of over 300 international matches over the next six years. Next year‘s World Cup (February 2003) will have 54 matches covered. But before that in September, there is the ICC Champions Trophy tournament which will have all the cricketing nations participating. This will be followed by the ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup to be played in New Zealand in January-February 2003.


    SET Max Exe VP and Business Head Rajat Jain

    World Sports Nimbus, which is also doing the television production for the events, will have a 350-strong crew and commentator team with 23 cameras covering every possible angle during the tournaments, Thawani said.

    Rajat Jain, executive V-P and business head of sister channel MAX, which will be telecasting the matches, gave some indication of what was being lined up when he said the effort would be to build viewer interest for non-India cricket as well (India matches are a gauranteed draw). This would be done through innovative presentations as well as contests and promotions around the event. There are also plans to leverage the Youth World Cup into a major event. A whole slew of initiatives are planned the details of which will be announced in due course, Jain said.


  • Cricket to drive Sony bid for the top with World Cup rights officially in the bag

    The World Cup Network is what it is now calling itself.

  • Digital satellite Telugu channel Maa TV launching soon

    Submitted by ITV Production on Mar 28, 2002

    After a barren period, channel launches appear to be again happening. In the offing is a new digital Telugu regional language channel - Maa TV.

    The channel is being launched by Maa Television Network Ltd, a Hyderabad-based broadcaster and entertainment company that plans to unveil the new channel very soon. Test transmission will commence from 11:42 am on Sunday.

    Disclosing this D Rajendra Prasad, executive director and spokesperson for Maa TV, informed that the channel will be a combination of programming that ranges from dramas, serials, long plays, sitcoms, chat shows, music, current affairs, interactive programmes, documentaries, movies and live performances. The channel will telecast for 18 hours a day.

    An initial investment of Rs 250 million is going into the launch of Maa TV which will be a pay service from Day 1 of operations.

    The channel is promoted by Ramakrishna, the founder of Siti Cable in Andhra Pradesh, an official release says. The promoters expect to generate a total business of Rs 220 million in the first year of operations.

    On the sales and distribution front, Maa TV hopes to reach 75 per cent of viewers in the state in the first three months of its launch. The promoters claim that their long experience in the cable industry will enable them to reach the targets that they have set themselves.

    The channel will be beamed off APR -1 (Insat 2E) satellite and 3/3 (Zonal Beam) transponder.

    Together with Maa TV, a cable channel - Maa Cinema - is also in the pipeline. The company claims it already has more than 2650 films in its kitty and is planning to procure rights of more films.

    Whatever be the plans of the channel, it will be taking on two well established free-to-air channels in Gemini TV (part of Kalanithi Maran‘s Sun Network) and Ramoji Rao‘s Eenadu TV. And how subscribers are expected to take to a brand new pay channel when there are two free channels offering quality fare already in existence is anybody‘s guess.

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