News Broadcasting
New ‘plug-in’ movie channel Cine World set for February launch
MUMBAI: A wider choice of English films is what is promised when new movie channel Cine World makes its debut in the first week of February (the launch date is still being finalised).
Cine World is promoted by Channel Guide India Ltd, which already runs what it says is India’s first and only FTA digital info TV channel catering to the promotional needs of the entire entertainment industry – television, films, music and events.
Speaking on the new “plug-in” English movie channel was Channel Guide COO Ravi Deshmukh. Says Deshmukh, “We will be providing quality English films that have not been seen before by most viewers.” Cine World has sourced its movies from Australia, South Africa and Hong Kong as well as from the smaller Hollywood studio offerings, says Deshmukh. This will have kept acquisition costs low no doubt but Deshmukh assures that the films are of good quality.
Cine World is not planning to take on the big boys of the business like HBO, Star Movies or Zee MGM but will operate as an English cable movie channel on the lines of INCableNet’s CVO or Hathway’s CCC. Additionally, Cine World will be showcasing one blockbuster Hindi film a week, says Deshmukh.
Cine World is beaming of the Insat 3A satellite in C band and will become encrypted from Day 1 of official launch unlike its sibling Channel Guide which is an FTA channel.
Channel Guide is currently showcasing a film a day at 11 pm so that viewers get an idea of the kind of films that will be on offer, says Deshmukh.
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.
