News Broadcasting
Zoom begins test signals
MUMBAI: The Times Group’s non-fiction entertainment and lifestyle channel Zoom has started its test feed as of noon yesterday.
Bennett, Coleman & Company Limited president Arun Arora provided this update to indiantelevision.com about the first of the four “premium, unique niche channels” that the Times stable expects to launch over the next 12 to 15 months.
It is all going like clockwork thus far and the next phase of the channel’s pre-launch activity is scheduled to be initiated on the 16th evening, which is when actual programmes will be introduced into the test feed.
According to Times Television Network COO Apurva Purohit, the full gamut of programmes that will be available for viewing will be run through on the test feed and prior to the Zoom’s officially launch.
The marketing and promo efforts have already kicked in with teaser hoardings going up over the city’s skylines. Times has strategically taken up space on bus shelters as well, as part of the pre-launch activity.
Lemon, which bagged the Zoom creative account, has shot the promo campaign for the channel in Dubai.
News Broadcasting
Book Cricket gets a digital century on News18 amid T20 fever
Nostalgic classroom game revamped in English, Hindi plus Telugu on web and app.
MUMBAI: When the T20 World Cup fever hits fever pitch, News18 decides to flip the script straight back to the classroom. The digital news platform has revived the timeless schoolyard favourite Book Cricket as an interactive online game, perfectly timed to ride the cricket wave gripping fans across the globe. The reimagined Book Cricket ditches textbooks for smartphones, blending old-school nostalgia with modern gameplay. Once a sneaky recess pastime played by flicking book pages to score runs, the digital version now offers seamless fun for anyone craving a quick cricket fix between overs.
Available in English, Hindi and Telugu (with more languages planned across News18’s network), the game sits within the platform’s fast-growing gaming portfolio of over 20 titles, all built in-house. It joins event-driven hits like ‘Kursi Catcher’ and ‘Result Rewind’ during the 2025 Bihar Assembly Elections, plus festive specials such as ‘Durga’s Astras’ for Durga Puja and ‘Mouse Modak’ for Ganesh Chaturthi.
News18 Digital CEO Mitul Sangani said, “Gaming is a key pillar of our engagement strategy. At News18, we uniquely combine our newsroom agility with immersive gaming experiences. By blending credible content with interactive formats, we are creating meaningful engagement in an era defined by shrinking attention spans and evolving consumption habits.”
Select titles have expanded beyond News18.com to CNBC-TV18.com and Firstpost.com, reflecting the network’s push to deepen user interaction across platforms. The Book Cricket game is live now at https://www.news18.com/games/book-cricket/.
In a tournament where every boundary counts, News18’s digital Book Cricket proves the simplest games can still deliver the biggest smiles no syllabus required, just pure cricket joy one page-flip at a time.
