MAM
DD strikes Rs 11 million barter deal with Express group
NEW DELHI: Prasar Bharati, overseeing the functioning of Doordarshan and All India Radio, is slowly starting to shed its `babu’ (bureaucratic) attitude. It is increasingly going in for deals that are more in tune with the changing scenario. India’s pubcaster Doordarshan has now commenced inking barter deals with print media publications for advertising purposes, something which private satellite channels do from time to time.
In one of the biggest deals till now, DD has signed a barter deal with The Indian Express group (controlled by Vivek Goenka) worth about Rs. 11.5 million.
The barter deal will give DD the option of advertising in various editions of the Express on various subjects, including special programming. In return, the Express group can use airtime on DD channels, including DD National, to put out its own ads on air for wider reach.
The Express group does advertise outside its own newspapers and magazines and has run a series of ad campaigns on satellite channels like Star News and CNBC India. Mostly, these campaigns have revolved round the brand Express and also the award which the newspaper group gives out annually for showing courage in news reporting – something which the newspaper, founded by the firebrand newspaper baron Ramnath Goenka, has always prided itself for.
Some other barter deals, according to Prasar Bharati sources, which have been sewn up by DD include those with Outlook magazine (about Rs 6.5 million), Malayala Manorama and South India-based Varta.
The sources indicated that negotiations are on with other regional language dailies like the Dainik Bhaskar, the largest circulating Hindi language daily published from several centres in Central and North India.
The rationale behind such barter deals is that DD has airtime at its disposal that can be hawked to extend and spruce up DD’s image. The proposal got the nod of the Prasar Bharati board some time back.
This initiative is part of the suggestion of the marketing advisory committee of DD headed by marketing whiz and former chief executive of Zee Telefilms, Vijay Jindal.
MAM
Paramount set to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery in $81 billion deal
Shareholders back merger, combined entity could reshape streaming and studios.
MUMBAI: Lights, camera… consolidation, Hollywood’s latest blockbuster might be happening off-screen. Shareholders of Warner Bros. Discovery have voted in favour of selling the company to Paramount in a deal valued at $81 billion rising to nearly $111 billion including debt setting the stage for one of the biggest shake-ups in modern media. The proposed merger, still subject to regulatory approvals, would bring together a vast portfolio spanning HBO Max, CNN, and franchises such as Harry Potter under the same umbrella as Paramount’s own heavyweights, including Top Gun and CBS.
At the heart of the deal is streaming scale. Executives have indicated plans to combine HBO Max and Paramount+ into a single platform, potentially creating a stronger challenger to giants like Netflix and Amazon’s Prime Video. Current market data suggests HBO Max holds around 12 per cent of US on-demand subscriptions, compared to Paramount+’s 3 per cent, together still trailing Netflix’s 19 per cent and Disney’s combined 27 per cent via Disney+ and Hulu.
Paramount CEO David Ellison has signalled that while platforms may merge, HBO’s creative identity will remain intact, stating the brand should “stay HBO” even within a broader ecosystem.
Beyond streaming, the deal would redraw the map for film production. Combining two of Hollywood’s oldest studios Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros., the new entity aims to scale output to over 30 films annually, while maintaining a 45-day theatrical window. Warner Bros. currently commands around 21 per cent of the US box office, compared to Paramount’s 6 per cent, underscoring the strategic weight of the acquisition.
But scale comes with scrutiny. Critics warn that fewer players could mean reduced consumer choice, rising subscription costs, and potential job cuts as the combined company looks to streamline overlapping operations while managing billions in debt.
The news business, too, faces a reset. CNN would join forces at least structurally with Paramount-owned CBS, raising questions about editorial independence and positioning. The merger has already drawn political attention in the United States, particularly given perceived ties between the Ellison family and Donald Trump, though the company maintains that newsroom autonomy will be preserved.
If approved, the deal would mark another milestone in Hollywood’s consolidation wave shrinking the industry’s traditional “big six” studios to a “big four”, with Paramount joining Disney, Universal, and Sony at the top table.
In an industry built on storytelling, this merger may well become its most consequential plot twist yet.
