Movie Channels
Star Gold gears up to premiere Salman Khan’s ‘PRDP’ on 14 February
MUMBAI: Salman Khan has been a fan magnet with people flocking to theatres or for that matter on television, whenever his movie is on. Riding on this wave, Star Gold, which had earlier premiered the star’s previous hits like Kick and Bajrangi Bhaijaan, is now gearing up for the world television premiere of his latest flick – Prem Ratan Dhan Payo (PRDP).
The movie will be premiered on Star Gold and Star Gold HD on 14 February.
According to a source close to the development, Star India acquired the satellite rights of the movie for Rs 50 crore. “Just like Salman’s previous movie’s Bajrangi Bhaijaan’s satellite rights commanded a price tag of Rs 50 crore, Prem Ratan Dhan Payo has also been picked up for the same amount,” the source tells Indiantelevision.com.
In an earlier conversation with Indiantelevision.com, Star India Hindi movie business executive vice president and general manger Hemal Jhaveri has said that in most cases, channels acquire satellite rights for a period of 10 years from the production house for every film.
For big ticket movies, Star Gold concentrates more on high sponsorship value. A senior media planning executive, on condition of anonymity, says, “For a big movie like PRDP, the title sponsor’s package will be close to Rs 1 crore. The channel tries aggressively to have at least one title and one associate sponsor on board. The associate sponsor package is sold at a price of approximately Rs 65 lakh. Major part of the air-time is sold as a part of the package and hence the 10 second ad slots generate minuscule revenue.”
It may be recalled that Star Gold premiered Bajrangi Bhaijaan last year on 11 October and according to Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC) India’s all India ratings, Star Gold emerged as the number one movie channel in the Hindi movie genre riding on the back of the movie’s world television premiere.
As reported earlier by this website, 74.5 million people across the country tuned into the television premiere of Bajrangi Bhaijaan on Star Gold, which is close to three times the number of people that watched the movie in theatres.
Whether PRDP will manage to create the same magic, only time will tell.
PRDP saw Khan reuniting with director Sooraj Barjatiya after a span of 16 long years and playing his quintessentially endearing character of Prem. The movie also stars Sonam Kapoor, Anupam Kher, Swara Bhaskar, Armaan Kohli and Deepak Dobriyal.
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.
