News Broadcasting
SifyMax launches city-centric broadband portal
BANGALORE: www.sifymax.in, the broadband portal from Sify Limited, has launched www.bangalorelive.in, the country’s first city-centric broadband website.
Bangalorelive.in will showcase original Bangalore-centric video content, created exclusively for an online audience. The videos will focus on city news and events, entertainment, celebrities, lifestyle, commerce and politics, anchored by Net Jockeys (NJs), a new concept introduced by Bangalorelive in India. The Net Jockeys will also present daily news bulletins on video, covering the latest happenings in the city extensively.
The broadband website also features, for the first time in India, live video feeds from traffic web-cams stationed at key junctions of the city including Brigade Road and Hosur Road, states an official release.
A key aspect of Bangalorelive is the options for users to publish their views, participate in Bangalore-specific discussions and upload their own content in images and videos, the release adds. They can also message greetings through Short Message Service (SMS) to their friends who are using the site that will scroll across the home page on a ticker. The idea is to make Bangalorelive the online resource and home for Bangalore’s citizens, and the perfect way for Banglorian living elsewhere to stay in touch with what’s happening in their home city.
Nikhil Chinapa, the popular MTV VJ from Bangalore, now based in Mumbai, says, “Considering that people from Bangalore have a really strong emotional bond to what they consider ‘their’ city, a site like Bangalorelive.in is a great way for them to stay in touch with all that’s happening in the city. No matter where they are now, Bombay, Delhi, Canada or the US, every Bangalorean can keep up to date on what’s happening in Bangalore-the clubs, the music, the buzz, news, hot topics, and in recent times, the latest traffic as well.”
Sify Limited senior VP Surya Mantha says, “This is one of the most exciting web initiatives in recent times, and we believe that the people of Bangalore will embrace it and truly make it come alive! The site is India’s first city-centric broadband website designed to be the Bangalore citizens community media channel for airing their views, discussing hot local topics and building their own personal space online”.
Mantha added, “With 24×7 live video coverage of the city’s traffic, news & events, reviews, news from around town presented by India’s first Net Jockeys, television-style newscasts and most importantly, video and image galleries for users, Bangalorelive is all set to change the online experience of people from Bangalore, whether they are in the city or elsewhere. The website also features Bangalore-specific classified advertisements for jobs, matrimony, real estate and automobiles which can be posted and viewed by the users free of cost”.
Bangalore residents who log on to www.bangalorelive.in can take part in the four-week long contest, which ends on March 18th 2006, offering the all-new Scorpio as the mega prize! Users just have to watch three videos, and answer one question on each, to be eligible to win the Scorpio. Contestants also win iPods and World Space Receivers every week!
The launch of Bangalorelive began with a four week-long event across the city billed the “Battle of the DJs”. Three of Bangalore’s best DJs are competing for the ‘Favourite DJ’ title. Bangaloreans can vote for their choice by sending an SMS to 4545, Sify’s short code for text messages. The DJ with the most popular votes wins! The grand finale starts at 7 pm on 18 March at Freeway 19, Palace Grounds.
News Broadcasting
Network18 channels lead YouTube news viewership in March 2026
CNN-News18, News18 India and CNBC channels top categories with record views
MUMBAI: When the world hit refresh on breaking news, Network18’s channels were already streaming ahead. As geopolitical tensions and war-driven headlines fuelled a surge in global news consumption, the network’s digital playbook delivered big clocking record Youtube viewership across English, Hindi and business news categories in March 2026.
At the forefront was CNN-News18, which emerged as the clear leader in the English news segment with 130 million live and video-on-demand views. The channel edged past competitors such as Times of India (126.5 million), Times Now (101.1 million), India Today (88.2 million) and NDTV (77.5 million), according to Databeings data for March.
In the Hindi news arena, News18 India delivered a commanding performance, racking up a staggering 3,297 million views on YouTube. The channel comfortably outpaced NDTV India, which recorded 3,119 million views, underlining its deep reach and consistent engagement with mass audiences, as per Playboard data.
The network’s dominance wasn’t confined to general news. In the Hindi business segment, CNBC Awaaz topped the charts with 92 million views, narrowly ahead of Zee Business (90 million) and well ahead of ET Now Swadesh (57 million). Meanwhile, its English counterpart CNBC-TV18 posted a strong 58 million views, reinforcing the network’s cross-category strength.
The spike in viewership reflects a broader shift in audience behaviour, with viewers increasingly turning to digital platforms particularly Youtube for real-time updates and in-depth coverage during high-intensity news cycles. For Network18, the numbers signal more than just scale; they underline the effectiveness of a multi-platform strategy that blends speed, credibility and continuous coverage.
In a month where the news never paused, it seems viewers chose to stay tuned where the stream never stopped.
