News Broadcasting
Over 60% of BBC APAC’s revenue is from native advertising: Alistair McEwan
NEW DELHI: When native advertising had entered the marketing world, just a few years ago, many questions were raised regarding its feasibility for both advertisers and publishers. From people not trusting sponsored content to it diminishing the credibility of a news publication, doubts loomed large over its future. However, the much-maligned ad format has risen above all that, and how. Forecasts from BI Intelligence, IAB and eMarketer show that global native advertising has grown by 213 per cent in 2020 as compared to 2016. Another report by ADYOULIKE, a leading in-feed native advertising technology, indicates that it will further grow by 372 per cent from 2020 to 2025, reaching a total global value of $402 billion.
In a recent virtual fireside chat with Indiantelevision.com founder, CEO, & editor-in-chief Anil Wanvari, BBC Global News SVP – commercial development for Asia & ANZ Alistair McEwan claimed that around 60-65 per cent of the organisation’s commercial revenue in the Asia Pacific region is driven by native advertising, which they’ve dubbed “commercial content marketing solutions.”
McEwan was speaking on day one of Indiantelevision.com’s virtual conference PubNation (digital & print), organised in partnership with Quintype Technologies and Gamezop.
“We are either producing content directly with and for the brands, or we are commissioning advertiser-funded editorial programming. The sponsorships are thus a very significant amount of our output. But we create this content with the same editorial standards that we do for our other editorial outputs. And actually, that’s why we have seen this enormous growth in branded content,” he elaborated.
McEwan, who had joined the conference from Sydney, added that he is seeing a massive growth coming from India too.
He also highlighted that to tap the full potential of the Indian and global market, when it comes to native advertising, BBC has also put in place its in-house content agency called BBC Content. “We launched in India two years ago and we are now producing a lot of branded content for different organisations, both in public and private sectors.”
PubNation (print & digital) is a two-day-long virtual confluence of the leading publishers, advertisers, and agencies across India. Launched on 9 December 2020, it will dissect hot-button issues including advertising opportunities, the content that will define the future of publications, and technologies that will aid that. You can watch the event live on Indiantelevision.com and its social media handles. For more information, visit (https://www.indiantelevision.com/pubnation/index.html).
News Broadcasting
CNN-News18 to air live counting day coverage for five state election results on May 4
The channel is rolling out its biggest election coverage machinery yet for results day on 4th May
NOIDA: The votes have been cast. Now comes the reckoning. CNN-News18 is pulling out all the stops for results day on 4th May, when counting begins across five battleground states — West Bengal, Assam, Kerala, Tamil Nadu and the Union Territory of Puducherry — in what promises to be one of the most closely watched electoral verdicts in recent memory.
The channel’s coverage, titled Battle for the States: The Verdict, kicks off at 7am and runs through the day across linear TV, connected television and YouTube. It is the culmination of CNN-News18’s multi-format editorial initiative, Battle for the States, which has tracked the polls from the beginning under the theme Road to Power.
At the operational heart of the coverage will be the Live Results Hub, the channel’s central command centre built to collate, verify and process real-time data flowing in from reporters stationed at counting centres across constituencies. The hub combines newsroom intelligence, analytics and on-the-ground reporting to deliver what the channel promises will be the fastest and most accurate results coverage in English news.
Leading the on-air charge will be primetime anchors Rahul Shivshankar, Anand Narasimhan, Aman Sharma, Nabila Jamal and Shivani Gupta. They will be joined by a wide panel of commentators including author Chetan Bhagat; GVL Narasimha Rao, senior leader of the BJP; Smita Prakash, editor of ANI; activist Saira Shah Halim; political analyst Sumanth C Raman; Abhijit Iyer Mitra, senior fellow at IPCS; Amitabh Tiwari, founder of VoteVibe; columnist Abhijit Majumdar; Nalin Mehta, managing editor of MoneyControl; political analyst Tehseen Poonawalla; senior journalist Subir Bhaumik; and political analyst Manojit Mandal.
Shivshankar, who serves as editorial affairs director at CNN-News18, set out the stakes plainly. “Counting day is one of the most watched events in the electoral cycle, where speed and credibility are tested in real time,” he said. “Battle for the States: The Verdict is built on that promise, combining ground reporting, sharp analysis and cutting-edge election technology to give viewers the clearest and fastest route to the verdict. On May 4, CNN-News18 will once again be the nation’s most trusted channel to witness democracy in action.”
Smriti Mehra, chief executive of English and Business News at Network18, framed the coverage in broader terms. “Elections are defining national events, and audiences turn to brands they trust in moments that matter,” she said. “CNN-News18 has consistently led from the front in every election coverage, and this special programming reflects the scale of our ambition and editorial strength.”
The channel has form here. It claims to have been India’s most preferred English news destination for election results for the past 20 years, covering everything from the 2024 general elections to the Delhi, Maharashtra, Bihar and BMC polls on the back of what it calls an “Always First, Always Right” record. Five states, one day, and a nation waiting for answers. The clock starts at 7am on 4th May.
