News Broadcasting
Govt. taskforce to chalk out Entertainment sector’s Venture Capital funding plans on 13 Dec
NEW DELHI: The much-touted high-powered committee set up by the government, under the chairmanship of Planning Commission member N K Singh, to look into ways of inducing venture capital funding in the entertainment industry would meet here on 13 December to deliberate on the issue.
Government sources said that considering Singh’s penchant for liberalisation, the committee’s recommendations may be “radical”.
The terms of reference of the committee on VC funding are two-fold: suggest a roadmap outlining a strategy to attract venture capital companies/funds to invest in the entertainment sector and study the existing investment regime in India in order to identify areas for policy changes to facilitate such investment.
According to an Arthur Andersen Ficci (AA Ficci) study, the entertainment industry can be conservatively estimated at about Rs 96 billion, which is expected to grow to about Rs 286 billion by the financial year 2005.
The other members of the committee, which has been given six weeks’ time to submit recommendations, include ICICI CMD KV Kamath, additional secretary in the department of banking in the finance ministry Vinod Rai, I&B ministry secretary Pawan Chopra and directorate general of foreign trade L Mansingh.
Though the VC funding panel has been set up for the entertainment sector, which also includes TV and radio broadcasting, apart from films, the industry representation is dominated by those active in the film sector.
Until now, according to the ministry, approximately Rs 7,000 million financial assistance has been sanctioned by financial institutions and banks after the film industry was granted an industry status. Out of this Rs 2,000 million has been sanctioned by Industrial Development Bank of India,
while the rest has been by various banks like the State Bank of India.
“Part of our efforts have been focussed on making the regimes covering the flow of finances such as the FDI and the lending regimes of commercial banks and the IDBI more encouraging,” according to information and broadcasting minister Ravi Shankar Prasad.
News Broadcasting
Mihir Bhatt appointed as chief content officer at News18 Studios
The media veteran brings two decades of experience across television, digital and radio to one of India’s biggest broadcast networks, Disney+ Hotstar, Discovery+
NEW DELHI: Network18 has a new strategist in the building. Mihir Bhatt, one of Indian media’s more versatile operators, has joined News18 Studios as chief content officer, stepping into a role that will see him shape content strategy, build multi-platform properties and drive brand partnerships across the network.
Bhatt brings more than two decades of experience spanning television, digital and radio, with a track record of doing something rare in Indian media: combining editorial ambition with hard commercial results. At Times Network, where he served as managing editor and chief business officer of Times Influence, he built one of the industry’s more respected content studios, launching marquee properties such as the India Economic Conclave, the Times Now Summit and Leaders of Tomorrow. He also pushed the network into premium OTT territory through tie-ups with Disney+ Hotstar and Discovery+.
His resume stretches well beyond the studio. Bhatt has led Global Investor Summits for multiple state governments, worked alongside the World Economic Forum and played a pivotal role in launching the Indian Pickleball League. Earlier, as editor of Zee Business, he pioneered investor education initiatives that are still cited as industry benchmarks.
At News18 Studios, Bhatt will report to chief executive S Shivakumar and will oversee the studios execution vertical alongside revenue verticals covering emerging markets and campaigns. Sidharth Saini, Hemanth Kumar and Nimar Sarkaria will work under him.
Rahul Joshi, managing director and editor-in-chief of Network18 Group, made the announcement in an internal communication. “Mihir’s ability to build enduring brands, foster strategic partnerships and navigate a rapidly evolving media landscape will be instrumental as we continue to strengthen our position and explore new avenues of growth in the Studios business,” Joshi said.
In a media industry lurching between disruption and reinvention, Network18 has bet on a man who has spent two decades thriving in exactly that chaos. Whether he can do it again, at greater scale, is the question worth watching.
