GECs
Quarantunes for the quarantined!
MUMBAI: Vh1 is turning the boring quarantine into lovely Quarantunes! As more and more stay-at-home people are tuning in to home entertainment options in these times of COVID-19 pandemic, Vh1 has got something special in-store: a playlist with the most popular songs handpicked.
It recently launched a new special – Vh1 Quarantunes. The channel will curate a special playlist daily which will encompass the most popular songs handpicked just to ensure viewers don’t get bored. For example, tracks from international sensations such as Justin Bieber, Post Malone, Travis Scott, Kayne West, Katy Perry, and Miley Cyrus featured on the playlist on Thursday.
Through this initiative, Vh1 India is asking viewers to stay home while they groove to tunes of the globe’s top-notch artists. Vh1 Quarantunes began on 18 March and will air at 1 pm daily.
Vh1 Quarantunes will be in line with the channel’s other shows such as Vh1 Top 10, a weekly playlist of the top 10 songs in the country which airs on Saturdays at 7 pm and Vh1 Trending which airs the most trending songs of the week across cities and in India which airs on Sundays at 7 pm.
Analysts are predicting that consumers’ media consumption tends to rise during broadly disruptive events. As India’s biggest cricket showbiz IPL has been delayed, GECs have stopped churning new episodes; niche channels now have the opportunity to pick up on the back of innovative programming.
GECs
Swift TV Announces Strategic Content Partnership with Kutingg, a Subsidiary of Balaji Telefilms Limited
Swift TV has announced a strategic content and distribution partnership with Kutingg, the digital entertainment subsidiary of Balaji Telefilms Limited, as part of its strategy to strengthen its premium content offering across Connected TV (CTV) and Free Ad-Supported Streaming TV (FAST) platforms.
As part of the partnership, Swift TV will onboard and distribute a curated portfolio of Kutingg’s premium, original, and exclusive digital-first programming across its expanding CTV and FAST ecosystem. The move is aimed at enhancing Swift TV’s content library while increasing access to high-quality entertainment for audiences consuming content on smart TVs and connected screens.
The collaboration brings together Balaji Telefilms’ long-standing content creation expertise with Swift TV’s growing connected TV distribution footprint, which spans smart TV OEM partnerships, CTV operating systems, and FAST channel integrations. The partnership is expected to significantly improve content discoverability and audience reach, while creating new monetisation opportunities across the connected TV value chain.
Kutingg, as Balaji Telefilms’ digital entertainment arm, has been focused on developing contemporary, digital-first programming aligned with evolving viewer preferences. Through Swift TV’s CTV and FAST distribution network, Kutingg’s content will now extend beyond mobile-first consumption and reach living-room audiences at scale, supporting the studio’s broader digital expansion strategy.
For Swift TV, the alliance aligns with its focus on building a differentiated, premium FAST and CTV content proposition in India. By adding Kutingg’s original and exclusive titles, Swift TV aims to drive higher engagement, longer viewing sessions, and increased time spent on connected screens.
From an industry perspective, the partnership reflects the accelerating shift of video consumption toward connected TVs and the growing role of FAST platforms in delivering free, premium content to large audiences. With smart TV penetration continuing to rise in India, such partnerships are becoming central to how studios and platforms expand reach and monetisation beyond traditional linear and subscription-based OTT models.
The collaboration also strengthens Swift TV’s offering for advertisers, enabling brands to access premium, brand-safe environments and large-screen audiences through FAST and CTV inventory. The integration of Kutingg’s content is expected to further enhance the platform’s appeal to advertisers seeking scalable, high-impact connected TV reach.
Overall, the partnership underscores Swift TV’s long-term strategy to build a robust connected TV ecosystem while supporting Kutingg and Balaji Telefilms in expanding their digital footprint across the fast-growing CTV and FAST segment in India.
