Hindi
Rentrak to buy Nielsen film-tracking arm for $15 mn
MUMBAI: Rentrak Corp is snapping up Nielsen Co’s EDI division for $15 million, a move that will make it a powerhouse to provide box-office information to studios and other subscribers.
The sale, expected to close in the first quarter of 2010, will help Portland-based Rentrak expand its footprint across 15 countries for capturing theatrical box-office results.
Having presence in markets like India and Russia, Rentrak will gain from Nielsen’s strong footprint in major markets such as Britain, France, Spain, Mexico, Argentina, Brazil and Australia.
Rentrak’s Box Office Essentials business, an online database that provides real-time ticket sales information, will be integrated with Nielsen EDI.
Nielsen will get to shed its non core assets while retaining its focus on the core business. Last week, Nielsen agreed to sell seven trade publications, including the Hollywood Reporter and Billboard, to a consortium of investors led by print media mogul James Finkelstein.
Hindi
Rashmika Mandanna, Shanaya Kapoor and Naila Grrewal climb IMDb’s Indian celebrity rankings
Upcoming films and returning shows are driving fan interest across Bollywood and streaming
MUMBAI: Bollywood’s popularity contest has a new weekly scorecard, and the numbers are telling. IMDb’s Popular Indian Celebrities list for this week places Shanaya Kapoor at number six, buoyed by buzz around her film Tu Yaa Main. Naila Grrewal slots in at seven on the back of the returning comedy series Maamla Legal Hai, while Rashmika Mandanna climbs to eighth, riding mounting anticipation for Cocktail 2.
The list, available exclusively on the IMDb app for Android and iOS, tracks trending Indian entertainers and filmmakers each week, drawing on data from more than 200m monthly visits to the platform worldwide.
Further down the rankings, Raaka is keeping two of its biggest names in the spotlight. Deepika Padukone holds 11th position, with Allu Arjun close behind at 13th, as the film continues to find traction with audiences.
The list offers fans a weekly pulse on who is breaking through, who is holding steady, and who is fading. It is a barometer as unsparing as the box office itself.
