TV5 GETS AGGRESSIVE

TV5, the French-language channel beaming into India through Asiasat-2, has decided to make aggressive forays into the Indian market, almost two years after it first appeared on South Asian skies. According to Delhi-based Catvision's Sudhir Damodaran, which is responsible for TV5's marketing and distribution in India, "We have decided to target 35 more cities apart from the metros to increase out viewership base." Damodaran said that at present TV5, a digital pay channel but marketed as a free-to-air channel, has a penetration level of about 8 million cable homes.

Though, the Indian cable and satellite industry watchers feel that this claim is on the higher side as, for example, ESPN's current penetration level is about 11 million. However, Damodaran is unfazed by such criticisms. "Our penetration figures are not inflated because we have been distributing decoder boxes to cable operators and don't charge any subscription fee unlike other pay channels like Star Movies or ESPN," explains Damodaran.

TV5, which earlier received flak from Indian media critics for airing French movies replete with nudity, has also drawn up plans to introduce English sub-titles in its programmes from January. Though currently there are about 125 TV5 decoders in the country, Catvision-TV5's gameplan include tying up with big MSOs in smaller Indian cities like Pune and Chandigarh. These moves, Damodaran feels, can also help TV5 garner some advertising from India of products which are targeted at a pan-Asian viewership.