Movie Channels
Star Gold in revamp mode; makes big buys
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MUMBAI: Looks like Star India’s Hindi movie channel Star Gold is finally about to see some serious glitter. With movie telecast rights acquisitions in high overdrive, Star has aggressively signalled its intent to take on rivals Zee Cinema and SET Max this year.
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“We are revamping and ramping up Star Gold. We have acquired Bhagnani’s library, Virudh and Paheli. We will be aggressively buying movies to push Star Gold this year,” says Star India chief operating officer Sameer Nair. |
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Star’s strategy is to pull movies out of its Hindi entertainment channel Star Plus which has Amitabh Bachchan hosted game show Kaun Banega Crorepati running at prime time on weekends. Movies will premier on Star Gold. “Star Plus has no place for movies as on weekends we have KBC on the channel. We will pump in big movies to push Star Gold,” Nair says.  With Star Gold getting attention this year, the stage is being set for a big fight among the movie channels. Besides Zee Cinema and Max, Sahara is planning to launch a movie channel later this year while B4U Movies is working out a revival strategy with infusion of funds. |
Star has bought Vashu Bhagnani’s library at an estimated cost of Rs 150 million. Bhagnani’s movies include Silsiilay, Shaadi No 1, Coolie No 1, Hero No 1, Om Jai Jagadish and Deewanapan.
The mega movies Star has bought this year are Virudh and Paheli. For the Amitabh Bachchan launched AB Corp movie Virudh, the acquisition price is around Rs 40 million, industry sources say. Paheli, produced by Shah Rukh Khan’s Red Chillies Entertainment, attracted a price tag of around Rs 50 million. 
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.
