MAM
KBC propels Sony to new heights
MUMBAI: The angry “old” man of Indian cinema, Amitabh Bachchan, has once again proved his charisma as he took the fifth season of the game show Kaun Banega Crorepati (KBC) to new heights on Sony Entertainment Television.
Albeit, it was a joint effort as in the history of KBC, it was the first time that a winner was taking home the grand prize of Rs 50 million. The two episodes, on 1 and 2 November, clocked a TVR of 7.2 and 8 respectively, as audiences swelled to watch a common man – Sushil Kumar from Motihari, Bihar, win the amount.
KBC has helped Set to add 51 GRPs (gross rating points) during the week ended 5 November as it marched ahead of Colors, which was at par with the channel last week.
As per TAM data (C&S, 4+, HSM), Set closed the week with 287 GRPs (last week 236), second among the Hindi general entertainment channels.
Set senior EVP and business head Sneha Rajani said, “We are extremely satisfied with the ratings of KBC and humbled by the way audiences have connected to the show. It strengthens our belief and philosophy ‘koi bhee insaan chhota nahi hota‘. The success of Sushil Kumar in KBC is an emphatic endorsement of the fact that KBC is not just a game show, but a melting pot of knowledge and aspirations of the aam aadmi.”
The Wednesday episode (2 November) of KBC5 has, in fact , became the highest TVR grosser among all shows since 2009 when Uttaran on Colors had achieved a 8+ TVR.
Set said that KBC reached out to 25 million people on Tuesday and 27 million people on Wednesday, with 18 per cent reach and 43 minutes of average time spent, the highest for this season.
Set‘s climb was also supported by other fiction properties including Crime Petrol (4.2 TVR), C.I.D. (4 TVR) and Bade Acche Lagte Hain (3.7 TVR).
Set has also broken its nine-year record to reach highest ratings. However, last time, it was on the back of the blockbuster film 3Idiots while the present rise is on pure programming.
Even after scaling to 287, Sony stayed behind genre leader Star Plus which climbed to 335 GRPs (last week 273). All the fiction properties of the channel saw an increase in viewership, helping it to surge ahead.
Colors closed the week with 240 GRPs (last week 236), while Zee TV ended with 143 GRPs (last week 131).
Sab remained in fifth position with 121 GRPS (118 GRPs last week) followed by Imagine TV with 70 GRPs (from 61 GRPs).
Star One closed with 43 GRPs (from 40 last week) and Sahara One with 34 GRPs (30 last week), according to TAM data.
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UpGrad to acquire Unacademy in share-swap deal, founders confirm
Proposed share-swap could unite two edtech rivals as sector eyes consolidation
MUMBAI: The Indian edtech sector may be inching toward another wave of consolidation, with online learning platform upGrad signing a term sheet to acquire rival Unacademy in an all stock transaction.
If completed, the deal would bring together two of the country’s most prominent education technology companies at a time when the sector is adjusting to slower demand and a sharper focus on profitability after the pandemic driven boom.
UpGrad founder and chairperson Ronnie Screwvala confirmed the development in a post on X, stating that Unacademy co-founder and chief executive Gaurav Munjal would continue to lead the company following the acquisition.
“We at upGrad have signed a term sheet to acquire Unacademy in an all stock deal, with founder and ceo Gaurav Munjal staying on to build Unacademy and focus on what it does best, creating online education products that learners love,” Screwvala wrote.
He added that the agreement includes a break fee provision if the transaction fails to close. Screwvala also said the combined entity could strengthen upGrad’s integrated learning model spanning K12 education, professional training and lifelong learning.
Unacademy confirmed that the proposed transaction will be executed through a 100 per cent share swap, with the valuation to be disclosed only after the deal closes and regulatory filings are completed.
Announcing the development on X, Munjal described the agreement as the beginning of a new chapter for both companies and the wider edtech ecosystem.
He noted that Unacademy had spent the past year reshaping its operations to focus more sharply on online education products. Among the steps taken were consolidating company operated offline centres with franchise partners and launching a Rs 50 crore employee stock ownership plan buyback, in which around 40 per cent of former employees have already participated.
Munjal also highlighted the traction gained by Airlearn, the company’s language learning product, which he said is expanding in markets including the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and Canada.
“Our cash reserves as of today are more than $100 million,” he said.
The proposed deal also marks a turnaround from earlier talks between the two companies that had stalled over disagreements on valuation and structure. Previous discussions had placed Unacademy’s valuation in the range of $300 million to $400 million, according to media reports.
If the transaction goes through, Munjal will continue as co-founder and chief executive of Unacademy, focusing on building online learning products for students in India and global markets.
For upGrad, the acquisition would broaden its footprint across the education spectrum, from school level learning to professional upskilling and lifelong education.
The move comes as India’s edtech sector enters a more sober phase after years of rapid expansion. Companies across the industry have been trimming costs, restructuring operations and seeking scale to build more sustainable businesses.
Against that backdrop, the potential combination of upGrad and Unacademy could signal that the next phase of edtech growth may be driven less by blitzscaling and more by strategic partnerships and consolidation.
