Movie Channels
HBO’s ‘Sex and the city’ draws to a close in 2004
MUMBAI: HBO’s critically acclaimed comedy series Sex and The City with Sarah Jessica Parker will bow out next year. Its sixth season will be its last.
A Reuters report indicates that 20 half-hour episodes of the Emmy-winning comedy will be produced for the concluding season, with shooting set to start on 31 March in Gotham. 12 episodes will air from June, with the remaining eight unspooling in a sort of mini-season that will begin in January 2004.
The network’s gangster saga The Sopranos is also expected to wind up next year following the conclusion of its fifth season. In India the show airs on Zee English. HBO has been reluctant to bring Sex and The City for Indian viewers so far as the network is unsure of how well it will gel with the desi viewer. However HBO is said to be keen on another season for The Soprano’s and talks are on with the series’ creator David Chase.
For the US, HBO has set its documentary schedule for the first half of this year. Among the upcoming documentary specials are Oliver Stone’s Commandante, a portrait of Fidel Castro; The Kid Stays in the Picture, based on Robert Evans’ autobiography; RFK daughter Rory Kennedy’s five-part Pandemic: Facing AIDS; and Unchained Memories: Readings From the Slave Narratives, based on interviews with former slaves. In addition production of Six Feet Under’s third season is under way, and rookie drama The Wire has been renewed for a second season.
Whether any of the shows will air in India this year remains to be seen.
Movie Channels
Zee5 launches five free FAST channels on Samsung TV Plus India
New genre-led channels bring comedy, drama, horror, classics and South films to Smart TVs.
MUMBAI: Zee5 just turned Samsung Smart TVs into a free entertainment buffet because when premium content costs nothing, even the remote control starts smiling. Zee5 has launched five curated free ad-supported streaming TV (FAST) channels on Samsung TV Plus India, making high-quality, genre-specific entertainment available subscription-free to millions of Samsung Smart TV owners across the country.
The five channels now live are:
Zee Comedy Nation – Popular comedy shows and movies
Zee Dil Se – Compelling drama series
ZEE Horror Nights – Horror and supernatural content
ZEE Cine Classic – Timeless Indian films
ZEE South Flix – High-energy South Indian films dubbed in Hindi
All content is drawn from Zee5’s extensive library and programmed in a lean-back, always-on format ideal for large-screen viewing. This launch strengthens Zee5’s Connected TV strategy at a time when 64 per cent of its premium content watch time already comes from connected devices.
Zee5 chief business officer Siju Prabhakaran said, “At Zee5, we believe accessibility and scale will define the next phase of digital entertainment growth in India. Our presence on Samsung TV Plus strengthens our Connected TV strategy, enabling viewers to discover curated, genre-led content in a seamless, free, and premium environment.”
Samsung TV Plus India head of partnerships Kunal Mehta added, “Local partnerships are at the heart of how we grow Samsung TV Plus in India. Zee Entertainment is one of India’s most iconic media brands, and bringing their channels to our service means millions more Samsung Smart TV owners can enjoy premium local content, subscription-free.”
The channels are available directly through the pre-installed Samsung TV Plus app with no login or subscription required. This marks another milestone in Zee5’s CTV expansion and builds on its growing international presence, with Zee channels already available on Samsung TV Plus across Southeast Asia, Australia and New Zealand.
In a streaming world where paywalls often block the fun, Zee5 and Samsung have quietly opened the gates, proving that sometimes the best things in life (and on your TV) really are free especially when they come with a side of comedy, drama, horror, classics and South Indian blockbuster energy.
