iWorld
Viacom18 and Turner India tie up for Voot’s kids content
MUMBAI: Viacom18 and Turner India have announced a strategic tie-up that will see Turner’s popular kids shows play on Viacom18’s over-the-top service Voot.
With this deal, Voot will add to its already existing powerhouse list of close to 100 characters that cut through broadcast affiliation. Shows likeThe Powerpuff Girls, Ben10, Roll No. 21 and Chotta Bheem alongside Dora, Spongebob, Motu Patlu, Shiva and Pokemon are among the few.
Commenting on the tie-up, Turner India South Asia senior vice president and managing director Siddharth Jain said, “We at Turner are dedicated in engaging consumers and collaborators in new ways to develop immersive worlds that enable our fans to experience our brands, franchises and content wherever, whenever and however they like. The collaboration with Viacom18 is a strategic move towards achieving this objective of being where our fans are and we know from our own New Generations 2016 research that 71% of today’s plurals are mobile phone users and 30% of them are on surfing the internet.”
Viacom18 group CEO Sudhanshu Vats said, “Online kids content is one of the major white spaces that exists in the country today. Through a dedicated offering within VOOT, called VOOT Kids we had started our journey to create the largest online destination for kids’ content in India. This vision saw us aggregate content from both within our network brand Nick and outside, to launch with over ~7000videos of kids content. This strategic partnership with Turner India will further bolster our content repository for VOOT Kids. Additionally, this also brings two powerhouses of kids content on a singular platform to bring forth the best viewing experience for our loyal little viewers.”
Viacom18 Digital Ventures COO Gaurav Gandhi further explained, “With close to one-fifth of all viewing on VOOT coming in for VOOT Kids already, we clearly have managed to catch the attention of one of the most discerning audiences and the true digital natives. With this multi-year strategic tie-up with Turner India, we are adding to the depth and variety of content for this audience.”
eNews
Piyush Thakur steps down as Inshorts’ chief revenue officer
Former vice president and cro says exit marks a new chapter after close to a decade of building revenue and partnerships at Inshorts Group.
NOIDA: Piyush Thakur has stepped away from Inshorts Group after nearly 10 years with the company, marking the end of a long tenure that culminated in his role as chief revenue officer.
In a farewell note, Thakur said he was “turning a new page” after almost a decade at Inshorts, calling it one of the hardest professional decisions he has made. He added that his exit was not driven by uncertainty about the future, but by reflection on a long association with the company.
Thakur joined Inshorts in October 2016 as vice president and spent around seven years in the role before being elevated to chief revenue officer in April 2024, a position he held until April 2026.
He said his tenure was defined by “thousands of mornings, late nights, product debates and breakthrough moments”, as the company evolved into a large-scale digital news platform used by millions.
In his note, Thakur emphasised that Inshorts’ growth was a collective effort across teams, adding that engineers, designers, sales teams and customer support staff all contributed to building the platform. He said the company’s success was not the result of individuals but of “everyone who stayed, passed through, and left their mark”.
Before Inshorts, Thakur worked across several digital media and business development roles. At ESPN, he served as senior regional manager from October 2015 to October 2016, focusing on growth initiatives, strategic opportunities and video distribution.
At Times Internet, he worked for nearly three years, including as head of business development from April 2015 to September 2015 and chief manager from January 2013 to March 2015. His responsibilities included monetisation of mobile platforms, managing media and developer partnerships, and driving revenue across digital properties such as The Times of India and The Economic Times.
Earlier, he worked at Brandmovers as head of business development from June 2012 to June 2013, handling digital, mobile and social media marketing solutions, client development and strategic consulting. During this period, he also worked on advertising revenue, brand strategy and CRM-based solutions.
At Inshorts, Thakur’s role focused on revenue strategy, mobile and media partnerships, and growth initiatives across platforms. His profile highlights experience in mobile product management, digital business models, partner ecosystems and revenue expansion in high-growth environments.
