iWorld
AT&T to launch video service with Chernin Group
NEW DELHI: American telecom service provider AT&T and The Chernin Group are acquiring, launching and investing in video services.
It is understood that this will be more than a $500 million venture. The massive investment is seen as a response to the ongoing merger talks between Comcast and Time Warner Cable (TWC) and fiber-led Internet ambition of Google.
AT&T announced its video investment plan hours after Comcast shared its Q1 2014 revenue that rose 13.7 per cent to $17.4 billion. Comcast Q1 income grew 16.3 per cent to $3.56 billion. Out of this, Cable Communications revenue increased 5.3 per cent.
AT&T, which has invested more than $119 billion in the United States over the last six years, said it wants to tap the online video and OTT video market.
Comcast, which is currently negotiating a $45 billion merger with TWC, said it added 124,000 cable customers in Q1 2014 and reached 26.8 million. It added 24,000 video customers in the first quarter of 2014. The company also added 383,000 high-speed internet customers. Internet revenue growth of 9 per cent is the strongest growth rate in two years.
AT&T chief strategy officer John Stankey said: “Combining our expertise in network infrastructure, mobile, broadband and video with The Chernin Group’s management and expertise in content, distribution, and monetization models in online video creates the opportunity for us to develop a compelling offering in the OTT space.”
One-day before the video announcement, AT&T said it would expand its high speed internet network to an additional 21 cities in the American internet network. It also suggested that the online video venture will make AT&T a leader in the American broadcasting industry. It seems internet search engine Google may not be the big rival for AT&T, but Comcast and others.
The Chernin Group, which invests in media businesses, brings assets and expertise to the venture, including contribution of its majority stake in Crunchyroll, a subscription video on demand service.
This alliance positions AT&T and The Chernin Group to take advantage of the rapid growth of online video and OTT video services. The strategic goal of this initiative will be to invest in advertising and subscription VOD channels as well as streaming services.
AT&T has over 110 million wireless subscribers and more than 16 million total broadband subscribers. Video makes difference to better customer experience. At present, Google and AT&T are competing in high speed internet network roll outs. AT&T will benefit from video as it will compensate possible revenue loss from voice services.
iWorld
Ankuur Rajesh Kapila named national sales head – India at ZEE5 & digital
Former sports-gamification executive to drive revenue strategy and digital monetisation across India
MUMBAI: A seasoned dealmaker across television, sport and digital, Kapila steps in as national sales head – India, charged with sharpening revenue strategy, widening market reach and deepening digital monetisation. The mandate is clear: convert scale into sales and attention into advertising.
The move bolsters the streaming ambitions of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited as competition intensifies in India’s crowded OTT market. The focus will be on stronger advertiser tie-ups, smarter packaging and monetisation that keeps pace with shifting viewer habits.
Kapila arrives from JioStar India Pvt. Ltd., where as vice president – sports gamification he helped scale Jeeto Dhan Dhana Dhan into one of the country’s largest live play-along ecosystems. During the Indian Premier League and major international tournaments, the platform engaged over 300 million fans, blending branded integrations with sponsorship-led revenues.
The appointment also marks a homecoming. Across a 14-year earlier stint at the company, Kapila handled brand solutions across regions and genres, led key account management for the GEC cluster and oversaw programming and content acquisition at Zee Studio. Few executives have worked as many sides of the revenue engine.
For ZEE5, the signal is unmistakable: monetisation is back in the spotlight. With advertisers chasing measurable impact and platforms chasing profitability, Kapila’s brief is to make growth pay. In the streaming wars, scale is vanity, revenue is sanity, and momentum is everything.
