Movie Channels
Zee Classic ushers in phase two of revamp with new positioning, campaign
MUMBAI: Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited’s (Zeel) Hindi movie channel Zee Classic, which changed its look in June last year, is now gearing up for the second phase of revamp.
The channel, which is known for playing timeless ever green movies, has launched a new TVC reinstating its brand positioning of ‘Woh Zamana Kare Deewana’ in order to connect better with its target audience.
Aiming to reach out to an audience with the same brand ethos, the new brand film will be showcased during the telecast of Zee Classic’s celebrated showcase – RD Night – The Concert on 26 April at 1 pm. The messaging through the TVC will take viewers back to the all-time classic eras of Indian cinema truly brought alive after all these years by the channel.
RD Night – The Concert, will see renowned artists from the music fraternity come together to commemorate the unconventional legend and celebrate the life’s work of a man who irrevocably changed the world of music with his chart topping compositions – RD Burman.
Speaking to Indiantelevision.com, Zee Entertainment Enterprises deputy business head, Hindi movie channels, Ruchir Tiwari says, “In phase two of our revamp, we have to come up with the positioning and will take it ahead with our multi-media marketing campaign. These great movies that we showcase on our channel are unmatched and very different and through this campaign, we are pushing the boundaries.”
The channel took six months to design the campaign. Designed and developed by Whyness and produced by Abstract Films, the two films are directed by Pariskhit Vaidya.
The TVCs encapsulate the ethos of bringing alive an era of films that not only enchanted but were also revered by the audiences. Rehashing the cult classic path-breaking films such as Padosan and Sholay, the brand films reconstruct the scenes merged with contemporary situations and characters.
Tiwari believes that Zee Classic has now been accepted by the audience and has a loyal base, which was one of the reasons behind unveiling this campaign. “To up the ante, with the New Year and also with new dynamics coming, you know that you have to broad base and get in newer audiences. Our another main objective is to increase the awareness of the channel.”
On the marketing front, the films will travel across network and on non-network channels too.
Future roadmap
In order to have a better connect with the existing audiences and attract newer ones, Zee Classic is also looking at original programming in terms of getting new weekly shows on-board in the next quarter. “The work is still in progress,” Tiwari informs.
On the movie library front, the channel has been adding fresh movies to its kitty like Ganga Jamuna, which is slated to premier on 3 May. “We are also working to get two Gulzar movies namely Parichayand Khushboo,” he says.
According to Tiwari, the first two months of 2015 have been successful months for the channel. “From the last two months, the channel’s viewership is steady and has grown. Every second week, we had a very good viewership score card,” he adds.
When queried as to how the network divides its strong movie library on its channels like Zee Cinema, &Pictures and Zee TV, Tiwari says that the network has a very focused and sharp approach with different teams handling different movie channels. “Classic and Zee Cinema are very focused in terms of their mindset and approach and the common usage is very few,” laughs Tiwari.
He further opines, “Consumers don’t really give us the feedback that movie is aired on various channels. They are very clear that which movie comes on which channel. In fact the recall on all our three channels has been positive in terms of what kind of content they expect and recall.”
Moreover, Tiwari reveals that the network is aiming to expand its HD portfolio by bringing in exclusive movies only for HD. “We have already taken the first step by airing Haider on Zee Cinema HD,” he adds.
Tiwari says that the on-going Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket tournament has not impacted Zee Classic’s viewership. “IPL is not a new event and over the years, we have our own learnings on how to approach a big event. I think it gives an opportunity where much more people sample the event and then come back to the movies as the second destination. Movie channels had witnessed a growth during last year’s IPL and this year too, we are confident that we will either sustain or grow from our numbers last year.”
Zeel has its learnings on what kind of movies work during this period and what works post cricket. “It is about buying the right movie at the right time,” says Tiwari.
With satellite rights of as many as 200 films still lying unsold over the last three years, the dream run had faced a few hurdles. However, now with TV channels pulling up their socks on film acquisitions with renewed vigour, Tiwari believes that the television movie market has seen a self correction, which was the need of an hour. “The satellite rights prices had gone through the roof and it was high time that it got corrected. The industry is also now rallying around it and understanding the perspective in terms of why it is not viable to pay those high prices. With the industry working around the module, everything will fall into place.”
When queried as to whether Zeel will continue to acquire blockbuster movies for a huge sum, Tiwari says that it depended on the function of the market. “We will buy whatever will make sense in terms of viability and ROI. It is about buying a right movie at the right time.”
With Star India launching Hotstar and movies being premiered first on digital and then on TV, Tiwari reveals that Zee too has been following the model with its VOD platform, Ditto TV. “All the mediums can co-exist, whether it is a mobile TV viewer, a user wanting high definition experience via a home theatre or the satellite market, which reaches out to a large majority of the population,” Tiwari concludes.
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.
