MUMBAI: Big CBS Networks is launching the latest season of ‘American Idol‘ on 15 October.

The eleventh season of the singing reality show will simulcast on three channels of the bouquet - Big CBS Prime, Love and Spark.

To be hosted by Ryan Seacrest, the show will air from Monday to Thursday at 9 pm across all three channels.

The panel of judges includes Steven Tyler, Jennifer Lopez and Randy Jackson.

The channel has partnered with brands like Reliance Mobile, Microsoft and Nivea for the property.

Big CBS Networks business head Anand Chakravarthy said, "This show, once again, is in keeping with our endeavor of offering the latest-freshest-hottest of global entertainment to India. American Idol the pioneer of all singing reality television shows, promises to generate excitement on television amongst the relevant audiences. We are happy to be offering audiences with exciting content while offering marketers the perfect platform to reach their audiences with maximum return."

MUMBAI: Reliance Broadcast Network (RBNL) has appointed Ashwin Sashital as vice president for Big RTL, Minal Sharma as sales head - West and South for Big CBS and Preeti Nayyar as national sales head impact and sales head South and West for Language TV.

Sashital‘s last stint was with Star Pravah as AVP. At Big RTL, he will oversee the business operations across the functions of marketing, revenue, creative and operations for the business. In his new role, he will be reporting to Language TV head Sunil Kumaran.

Sashital said, "Big RTL is in an exciting phase where it is set to grow in leaps and bounds and I would like to steer and accelerate it in the right direction and make it a part of the leading network of channels in India."

Sharma‘s new role entails revenue generation for the channels along with her team. She will report into Big CBS channels business head Anand Chakravarthy.

"With digitisation set to bring in transparency, improved quality of service and fair play, I am excited to be at the core of the revolution, as we offer marketers tremendous measurable value," Sharma said.

Nayyar‘s last stint was with Radio Mirchi where she witnessed the evolution of radio, while handling functions including retail and corporate sales. She will report to Language TV sales head Arjun Singgh Baran.

In her current profile, in addition to overseeing the sales function Nayyar will also make multi-media solutions for marketers, which see integration across television, radio, OOH, print and on ground.

Nayyar said, "The growth story for Indian Television lies in the regional space, and am glad to come on board RBNL in these exciting times. I look forward to working with the team, as we together offer marketers solutions that are tailored to reach their regional audiences, while delivering optimal RoI and minimal spill-over."

Prior to joining Big RTL, Sashital has also worked across companies like Star, Zee and Radio Mid Day.

Armed with over 12 years of work experience, Sharma has worked across media brands ranging UTV Bindaas(Disney), Zoom, Zee TV, India TV and India Today.

Nayyar too comes in with over 12 years of understanding of activation and sales. She has worked across the M&E industry spanning radio and print.

MUMBAI: As part of its programming strategy to simulcast shows across its channels, Big CBS Network is readying to launch its latest home grown property in the next few weeks.

‘India‘s Prime Icon‘, the new show, will be dual-cast across the two male targeted channels, Big CBS Prime and business news channel Bloomberg TV India.

The show aims to get Indians choose their icons ? successful and celebrated personalities who inspire and influence them the most! According to the broadcaster, the USP of the property is to allow people to choose their icons from across all sectors of life, be it sports, entertainment, business, politics, social welfare.

Big CBS Networks business head Anand Chakravarthy said, "Our country boasts of some of the most influential men and women who are an inspiration, role model and icons for the people. India‘s Prime Icon is a new concept, which has not been explored in the past and which indicates at an opportunity to connect with audiences. Both Big CBS Prime and Bloomberg India are both premium channels, making them perfect platforms to reach out to the right audience mix, both for this show as well as for marketers."

With Big CBS Prime and Bloomberg TV India both targetting premium audiences, the show has been designed to ensure it meets the entertainment penchant of the upwardly mobile males, seeking content. India‘s Prime Icon will bring forth the lifestyle of Indian society‘s elite personalities and evaluate them based on the qualities which have made them the prime icons of the country.

Recommendations for India‘s Prime Icons will come from none other than the audiences themselves, through a voting system, and will see prominent personalities from across business tycoons, sports personalities, entertainers and Bollywood celebs making it to the list. Following this, an eminent jury will qualify the entries and shortlist the top 20 icons.

The 20 icons will be revealed on the Channel each evening during prime time and a voting window will be kept open for 24 hours so that viewers can vote for their favourite icons, which decided the Top 10 icons.

‘India‘s Prime Icon‘ is designed to give audiences a peek about the life stories of distinguished Indian men and women. Seagram‘s 100 Pipers will collaborate in this initiative as its brand represents "True Legends" and believes in the legacy of achievers whose sense of accomplishment goes beyond professional excellence to something deeper.

Pernod Ricard India VP marketing Bikram Basu said, "Seagram‘s 100 Pipers stands for True Legends. Our association with Big CBS Prime‘s India‘s Prime Icon show reiterates our common values, and brings our brand closer to India‘s true icons."

The Top 10 icons will battle it out to the coveted title of India‘s Prime Icon, with each episode unveiling one icon showcasing the stories of their lives, style statements, achievements, sex appeal, philanthropy popularity and more...

To ensure optimal reach, Big CBS Networks has planned an extensive marketing campaign for the show. The network will engage audiences on multiple touch points ranging radio, television, out of home media and social media.

The show targets the urban Indian audience who live life in style.These viewers will see popular personalities from across the country.Eventually one person will be awarded the title and declared ‘India‘s Prime Icon‘.

MUMBAI: Big CBS Networks has appointed Anand Chakravarthy as its business head.

This will be Chakravarthy?s additional responsibility. He continues to be chief marketing officer of Reliance Broadcast Network Ltd (RBNL). Big CBS is an equal joint venture of RBNL and US-based CBS Studios International.

Chakravarthy replaces Vishal Rally who recently quit the company to start something of his own.

Chakravarthy, who has been associated with RBNL right since its launch, will take on the mandate of the overall profit and loss and brand development for the joint venture?s English Channel portfolio -- Big CBS Prime, Big CBS Love and Big CBS Spark.

Chakravarthy will report to RBNL CEO Tarun Katial.

Katial said, "Anand is one of our finest and most committed senior management associates. As the business takes a new leap with some amazing content - America?s Got Talent, American Idol, X Factor, Dexter and more, along with the impending digitization which will catapult these channels into another level, no one is better equipped than Anand to lead this initiative and focus on great content and communication, subscription revenue, and building greater value for advertisers."
 
"CBS is thrilled to have an executive of Anand?s caliber guide our channels to their next level of success. Anand was very involved with the initial launch phase of our business in India, and we look forward to working with him in this expanded role," CBS Studios International executive vice president- International Channels Reed Manville added.

Chakravarthy said, "Reliance Broadcast is a dynamic company and I?m proud of what we have achieved in a short span of time. The Big CBS Network which launched with a promise to change the way English entertainment was served to Indian audiences stands today as the No.1 English Entertainment Network, and I look forward to working with the young and vibrant team to growing it further while building value for consumer and customers alike."

Chakravarthy has over 15 years of experience across research, advertising and marketing. He had joined RBNL in 2006. Prior to joining RBNL, he was at Lowe India and has handled clients like Unilever stable, ICICI Prudential Life Insurance, ICICI Bank, Tata Mutual Fund, IL&FS Investsmart and HSBC.

MUMBAI: Big Magic, the regional general entertainment channel serving the core Hindi heartland, is launching a crime-based show titled ?Pyaar Ya Dehshat?.

The show will be aired from Monday to Thursday at 10.30 pm from 27 August.

Pyaar Ya Dehshat is a thriller based on love stories gone wrong. The show presents to its audience dramatised real life cases where love affairs led to murders, rape and assault.

The show has been designed to feature one story per episode, without revealing the identities of the characters.

According to the channel, Pyaar Ya Dehshat is being launched on the back of the success of the channel?s other crime-show Police Files.

Big Magic business head Anand Chakravarthy said, "Our prime time shows consistently rank amongst the top shows in the region, providing advertisers with an ideal platform to create greater impact in this region. We are confident of the show doing exceedingly well and offering unparalleled entertainment to audiences while delivering incomparable value to advertisers."