News Broadcasting
TWI extends contract with FA Premier League
MUMBAI: TWI has announced that it was re-appointed by the FA Premier League to be its production partner. TWI will produce and distribute all its matches of the season for the TV market.
The three-year-deal will offer international licencees of the Premier League all 380 matches of the season live via satellite. It also covers annual production of 41 weekly preview shows and 33 highlight shows.
The new venture will be known as FA Premier League Productions and is based at TWIs UK production base in Chiswick London.
TWIs director of programming and production, sport Graham Fry added, “Our relationship with the Premier League has been ongoing for the past six years. The Barclays Premiership continues to be a global success and together with the FA Premier League, TWI is confident that we will be able to achieve even greater heights in building its popularity and profile worldwide over the next three years.”
Premier League CEO, Richard Scudamore said, “The Barclays English Premier League is broadcast in over 160 countries with a global home reach in excess of 570 million, making it the worlds most watched domestic league competition.
“To ensure that we consolidate and develop this position, it is crucial the quality of production matches the quality of our competition, especially given the increase in the number of games available. We have every confidence that our continuing relationship with TWI, in the guise of FA Premier League Productions, will ensure the high standards our international broadcast partners have come to expect will carry on and improve.”
News Broadcasting
Mihir Bhatt appointed as chief content officer at News18 Studios
The media veteran brings two decades of experience across television, digital and radio to one of India’s biggest broadcast networks, Disney+ Hotstar, Discovery+
NEW DELHI: Network18 has a new strategist in the building. Mihir Bhatt, one of Indian media’s more versatile operators, has joined News18 Studios as chief content officer, stepping into a role that will see him shape content strategy, build multi-platform properties and drive brand partnerships across the network.
Bhatt brings more than two decades of experience spanning television, digital and radio, with a track record of doing something rare in Indian media: combining editorial ambition with hard commercial results. At Times Network, where he served as managing editor and chief business officer of Times Influence, he built one of the industry’s more respected content studios, launching marquee properties such as the India Economic Conclave, the Times Now Summit and Leaders of Tomorrow. He also pushed the network into premium OTT territory through tie-ups with Disney+ Hotstar and Discovery+.
His resume stretches well beyond the studio. Bhatt has led Global Investor Summits for multiple state governments, worked alongside the World Economic Forum and played a pivotal role in launching the Indian Pickleball League. Earlier, as editor of Zee Business, he pioneered investor education initiatives that are still cited as industry benchmarks.
At News18 Studios, Bhatt will report to chief executive S Shivakumar and will oversee the studios execution vertical alongside revenue verticals covering emerging markets and campaigns. Sidharth Saini, Hemanth Kumar and Nimar Sarkaria will work under him.
Rahul Joshi, managing director and editor-in-chief of Network18 Group, made the announcement in an internal communication. “Mihir’s ability to build enduring brands, foster strategic partnerships and navigate a rapidly evolving media landscape will be instrumental as we continue to strengthen our position and explore new avenues of growth in the Studios business,” Joshi said.
In a media industry lurching between disruption and reinvention, Network18 has bet on a man who has spent two decades thriving in exactly that chaos. Whether he can do it again, at greater scale, is the question worth watching.
