MUMBAI: Subhash Chandra’s Zee Media Corporation Ltd (ZMCL) is targeting to launch its English news channel in the first quarter of the next financial year (April – June 2016).

A senior ZMCL executive tells Indiantelevision.com that while the name of the channel has not yet been decided, the recruitment has already started. “We are building a team, which in the long run will turn out to be a formidable one,” the executive says.

As a first step in recruitment, ZMCL has already got on board Rohit Gandhi as editor-in-chief (English News and Current Affairs) to steer the proceedings.

The channel will be distributed globally as a part of the Living Bouquet. “Pay model will be the biggest source of revenue when it comes to global market, but initially in India, we will focus on advertising,” informs the executive.

The English news channel will produce content, which will cater to the global audience.

Zee’s English news channel will be totally different from its existing Hindi news channel Zee News, which caters to the Hindi Speaking Market (HSM). “We are creating an entirely new infrastructure and putting up new studios for the new channel. It will be under ZMCL but totally separate from Zee News both in terms of operations as well as editorial,” asserts the executive.

Currently, ZMCL has in its portfolio three national channels Zee News (Hindi News), India 24X7, and Zee Business. In addition, its regional news channels’ portfolio comprises Zee Marathi, Zee Madhya Pradesh / Chhattisgarh, Zee Rajasthan, Zee Punjab Haryana / Himachal and Zee Kalinga (Odisha). The company also operates two regional news channels through its subsidiaries namely 24 Ghanta (Bengali) through Zee Akaash News Pvt Ltd and Maurya TV (Bihar & Jharkhand) through Maurya TV Private Limited.