News Broadcasting
ABP Network revamps sales team for channel growth
Mumbai: ABP Network, a media house, has announced a series of strategic changes within its sales leadership team aimed at optimising operations, fostering enhanced collaboration, and positioning the company for success in the forthcoming year.
As the organization reflects on the achievements of the past year and gears up for an eventful election cycle, these changes, scheduled to take effect from 1 May 2024, are designed to instil a sharper and more focused approach to its business. The new structure will empower sales teams, promote accountability, and enhance the company’s agility and responsiveness to market dynamics.
Key highlights of the restructuring include:
Elevations at the National Level:
● Parul Kamra elevated to National Sales Head for ABP News & ABP Asmita
● Gautam Dutta elevated to National Sales Head for ABP Ananda
● Shailendra Hegde elevated to National Sales Head for ABP Majha
At the regional level, the following leaders have been elevated:
● Saurabh Goel elevated to Region Head – North
● Suman Mukherjee elevated to Region Head – East
● Madhvi Gajwani elevated to Region Head – West for ABP News, ABP Ananda, and ABP Asmita
● Mahesh Borde was elevated to Region Head for ABP Majha in the West, in addition to his current role overseeing the Network for the rest of Maharashtra
The company has also made changes to strengthen its branch-level sales leadership:
● Sonali Chauhan to lead sales for ABP Ananda & ABP Majha in the North
● Rishabh Dua to lead sales for ABP News & ABP Asmita in the North
● Saheli Dhol to lead sales for Consolidated & Team in the East
● Kumar Luthria to lead sales for ABP News + ABP Asmita in the West
Furthermore, to drive the strategic growth of Spotlight, a key IP for the company, the following changes have been made:
Dhruv Bhattacharya has been elevated to lead All India Sales for Spotlight. He will continue to manage state business for the North. Surabhi Kesarwani has been elevated to Spotlight Head for North while Nishant Chaturvedi has been elevated to Spotlight Head for West & South. Prashant Kumar will join the Spotlight team for West, based out of Mumbai.
This revamped structure reflects ABP Network’s unwavering commitment to innovation, customer-centricity, and market leadership. By empowering the teams and streamlining operations, ABP Network is poised to drive sustainable growth and deliver exceptional value to its stakeholders.
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI: Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
