News Broadcasting
AXN goes mobile to spread the buzz
MUMBAI: The mobile is increasingly becoming a way for channels to reach their consumers. A case in point is the action oriented AXN.
AXN Mobile, a mobile Wap entertainment portal by AXN, is ready to be launched in Asia and will be available to consumers from early November 2006.
Now viewers acros Asia will not only get to catch high-octane action and adventure programmes on TV; supplement their programme knowledge and have fun with games and contests via the website; live the AXN lifestyle by participating in specially formatted made-for-TV challenge-reality shows… but to top it all off, AXN Mobile is now available to continue providing the AXN buzz while on the move – giving consumers an adrenaline-charged “power snack bar” to get them freshened up for their next appointment.
Through the mobile AXN is looking to catch viewers whether they are on a lunch or coffee break from work, commuting on public transport to meet friends, or soaking their stress away in the Jacuzzi.
AXN Mobile offers exclusive streaming video on demand (SVOD) services and downloadable personalisation products such as ringtones and wallpapers from the channel’s flagship programmes that have garnered a huge loyal following around the region.
In Singapore and Malaysia, AXN has expanded its partnership with affiliates like StarHub to carry the mobile products on their platform and with Astro to distribute AXN mobile to major telcos. In the Philippines, AXN has partnered with Smart Communications. Direct deals with major telcom firms are also in negotiation in Hong Kong and Taiwan, which will be announced at a later date.
The channel says that a clear differentiation about AXN Mobile, is the exclusive made-for-mobile contents offered to consumers, in an effort to ensure the desirability and relevance of AXN Mobile. Unlike other mobile TV services that are mostly an extension of the TV contents (like news updates or the linear channel service), AXN offers a library of video clips from its stable of signature shows that are specially produced for streaming via mobile.
AXN Mobile will be available in various Asia markets in early November, in conjunction with the much-awaited premiere of AXN’s biggest original production – The Amazing Race Asia. Special made-for-mobile contents have been created that will allow viewers of The Amazing Race Asia to supplement their knowledge of the show – like host Allan Wu’s Host Video Diary, where he shares his thoughts at the end of each race day; interviews with eliminated teams on their reflection of what may have caused their elimination and their thoughts on which team they believe will emerge victorious.
In the final stages of the race, viewers can also download clips of interviews with the remaining teams after every episode to see what would be each team’s strategy going into the next leg of the race. These videos will serve to “whet the appetite” of viewers as they wait in anticipation for the next episode. Of course, there will also be the ever-popular “unseen footages” or “behind-the-scene” shots of the funny moments, big arguments or even too-hot-for-TV catfights…
Similar offerings from other shows like Mondo Magic Singapore and The Contender are also in the pipeline, as well as a special segment known as AXN Moments featuring great moments of fun, courage, and laughter from some of the best daredevil record-breaking challenges from AXN original productions and events.
SPE Networks Asia GM Ricky Ow says, “AXN has always been a leading trendsetter, being the first action and adventure channel, the first to bring the reality craze to Asia, the first in Asia to take on such a mega scale production like The Amazing Race Asia. And now we will also be the first to provide a true-blue entertainment WAP portal that allows our viewers to have a seamless, well-rounded, enriching entertainment experience that complements their TV viewing.
“Mobile technology is very much a part of our viewers’ lifestyle, our core audience being the working executives and professionals. With the rapid advancement and pick-up of mobile technology in Asia, we feel that it is the right time to venture into mobile TV, and I am confident that our viewers will appreciate the unique content offerings we have.”
News Broadcasting
Rajesh Sundaram joins NDTV Profit as senior editor, assignment
The 32-year newsroom veteran has launched channels on three continents and covered everything from 9/11 to South African television
MUMBAI: NDTV Profit has bolstered its newsroom with a hire who has done rather more than most. Rajesh Sundaram, a journalist with over three decades of editorial, managerial and consultative experience across India and international markets, joins as senior editor, assignment, tasked with sharpening the network’s newsgathering and real-time response.
Sundaram’s career reads like a tour of Indian media’s most formative moments. He began at Businessworld in 1994, moved to Zee News as bureau chief across Mumbai and Chennai, then joined NDTV in 2002 as part of its political bureau during a particularly febrile period in Indian politics. A stint as India correspondent for Al Jazeera International followed, where he covered key geopolitical developments and got his first serious taste of the global newsroom.
What sets Sundaram apart, however, is his serial channel-launching habit. At NewsX, he helped get the operation off the ground. At Headlines Today, part of the India Today Group, he served as editor. At News Nation, he helped launch the Hindi news channel and its digital ecosystem. He then crossed continents to lead the launch of ANN7 in South Africa as editor-in-chief, overseeing both television and digital. Back in India, he launched Tamil news channels News7 Tamil and Cauvery News, and later served as principal consultant for the launch of Marathi channel Lokshahi. Most recently, he helped build and lead the Press Trust of India’s video service and content studio, before stints consulting for Business Today and The Himalayan Times.
Rahul Kanwal, chief executive and editor-in-chief of NDTV, left little doubt about what Sundaram is expected to deliver. “The assignment desk is where a newsroom’s intent becomes action,” he said. “Rajesh brings a rare combination of field experience and leadership in building news operations at scale.”
Sundaram has reported from across India and the world, covering elections, civil conflicts, the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks and the 2008 US presidential election.
At NDTV Profit, he will lead the assignment desk, driving editorial coordination and real-time response across markets and breaking developments. For a business news network sharpening its focus on speed and multi-platform delivery, it has hired a man who has built newsrooms from scratch on three continents. The assignment desk is in good hands.
