News Broadcasting
Cellebrum develops contest for BSNL, MTNL
MUMBAI: Cellebrum, a MCorpGlobal group company and an integrated telecom VAS solutions provider has announced its tie-up with BSNL and MTNL in North India to launch its Kaun Banega Lakhpati contest. The contest, developed by Cellebrum, aims to provide a rewarding experience for subscribers of the telecom operators.
Subscribers of BSNL and MTNL will be able to win total cash prizes worth Rs 5,00,000 (Four prizes of 1,00,000 each, 20 prizes of Rs 4900 each) as part of the contest. The contest will be available for all GSM and landline subscribers of BSNL and MTNL from 15 October to 30 November, states an official release.
While playing the contest, the subscriber will have to correctly answer five simple questions. However, subscribers can participate in the contest as many times as they wish to. Winners of the contest will be chosen by Cellebrum after a lucky draw of the eligible subscribers who managed to correctly answer all questions in the contest, the release adds.
Speaking about the contest, Cellebrum COO Saket Agarwal said, “BSNL and MTNL are two of the largest telecom conglomerates in the country. We believe that our association with these operators will help us reach the virgin territories of this country, vis-Ã -vis the value added services market. Moreover, with the festive season of Diwali in the offing, we believe that a contest like Kaun Banega Lakhpati will definitely touch millions of aspiring individuals who want to make it big in a short span of time and we are sure that the contest will be received with great enthusiasm across all telecom circles where it is being launched.”
“At Cellebrum, we have always prioritised on providing new, innovative and rewarding services to our customers and keeping them at the forefront of the revolution,” Agarwal added.
How does the contest work?
BSNL/ MTNL Users
Through IVRS: Users in Haryana and Delhi will have to dial 126300 to access the service while subscribers in Punjab and UP (W) will have to dial 12630000 to participate in the contest.
Charges as follows:
BSNL Mobile/GSM subscribers: Rs 3.60 / minute
BSNL Landline subscribers: Rs 1.20 / 30 secs
MTNL Mobile/GSM subscribers: Rs 4 / minute
MTNL Landline subscribers: Re 1 / 30 secs
Through SMS [for Mobile subscribers in Delhi, Rajasthan, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, J&K, UP (E) and UP(W)]: Users are required to register for the contest by sending SMS “KBL” to 6300 and follow the instructions thereafter.
Charges will be levied as follows:
Messages to 6300 for contest will be charged at Rs 2 per SMS.
News Broadcasting
News TV viewership jumps 33 per cent as West Asia war draws audiences
BARC Week 8 data shows news share rising to 8 per cent despite T20 World Cup
NEW DELHI:Â Even as individual television news channel ratings remain under a temporary pause, the genre itself is seeing a clear surge in audience attention.
According to the latest data from Broadcast Audience Research Council India, television news recorded a 33 per cent jump in genre share in Week 8 of 2026, covering February 28 to March 6.
The news genre accounted for 8 per cent of total television viewership during the week, up from 6 per cent the previous week. The spike in attention coincided with escalating geopolitical tensions involving the United States, Israel and Iran, which have kept global headlines firmly fixed on West Asia.
The rise is notable because it came at a time when cricket was dominating television screens. The high-stakes stages of the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup, including the Super 8 fixtures and semi-finals, were being broadcast during the same period.
Despite the cricket frenzy, viewers appeared to be toggling between sport and global affairs, boosting the overall share of news programming.
The surge in genre share comes even as the government has enforced a one-month pause on publishing ratings for individual news channels. The move followed regulatory scrutiny of the television ratings ecosystem.
While channel-level rankings remain temporarily out of sight, the genre-level data suggests that when global tensions escalate, audiences continue to turn to television news for real-time updates.
