English Entertainment
Award changes for 66th Primetime Emmy Awards
MUMBAI: The Television Academy’s Board of Governors has voted to approve several Award and category changes for this year’s 66th Primetime Emmy Awards. These changes were carefully considered by the Television Academy Awards Committee along with the Board of Governors to ensure that the Primetime Emmy Awards accurately celebrates the excellence in our ever-evolving industry. The following changes will be implemented into this year’s award competition:
Separation of Outstanding Miniseries and Movie Program Category
Outstanding Miniseries or Movie will now be split into two separate program categories. The new categories will be Outstanding Miniseries and Outstanding Television Movie. This separation is only for the program category with all other awards in the category remaining combined between the two formats. Movies and Miniseries were consolidated into a single program category in 2011 due to a general industry downtrend of the genre. The Television Academy acknowledges the increased programming of both movie and miniseries over the past three years and returned them to their pre-2011 status as separate program categories.
Split of Outstanding Reality Program Category
Outstanding Reality Program will now be separated into two categories – Outstanding Structured Reality Program (i.e. “Antiques Roadshow,” “MythBusters,” etc.) and Outstanding Unstructured Reality Program (i.e. “Pawn Stars,” “Duck Dynasty,” etc.). As with miniseries and movies, there is a general industry uptrend in two different types of narrative reality programming and the split accommodates that trend.
Split of Outstanding Voice-Over Category
Outstanding Voice-Over Performance will now be separated into two categories – Outstanding Narrator and Outstanding Character Voice-Over Performance. As with longform and reality, this split acknowledges and accommodates a general industry uptrend in the distinctly different achievements that are VO narration and VO character performance.
Increase in Number of Nominees for Directors, Writers and Performers in the Miniseries/Movie Category
The number of longform nominees in writing, directing and performing has been increased from five to six nominees. Additionally the final voting procedure has been changed from a preferential vote in which nominations are ranked one against the other in a head-to-head competition to a ratings-score vote, in which each nomination is considered on its own terms and given its own score (with the top scorer emerging as the award recipient).
Implementation of the 2% Rule for Outstanding Comedy and Drama Series Categories
The 2% rule will now be applied to the comedy and drama series program categories. Under this change, a comedy or drama series whose total first-round votes are within 2% of the sixth place series would also receive a nomination, creating the possibility of seven nominees in each category. Previously the 2% rule had only applied to categories with five nominees.
Outstanding Technical Direction/Camerawork/Video for a Series
This award will now be classified as an area award with the possibility of one or more than one award. The nominations would continue to be proportioned according to the entries. Additionally, the number of nominations will be increased from five to six.
The 66th Primetime Emmy Awards are scheduled for Monday, Aug. 25, 2014 live coast-to-coast (8-11 PM ET / 5-8 PM PT) on NBC from the Nokia Theatre L.A. LIVE in Los Angeles.
English Entertainment
ZEE5 UK partners Narrative Entertainment to add UK channels
Six FAST channels added as platform sharpens hybrid play in Britain
LONDON: ZEE5 UK struck a first-of-its-kind deal with Narrative Entertainment, bringing mainstream UK television channels onto an Indian streaming platform as it pushes to deepen its footprint in a crowded, mature market.
The partnership adds six of Narrative’s FAST channels to the service, including Great! Movies, Great! Romance, Great! Mystery and kids brands POP, Tiny Pop and POP UP, widening ZEE5 UK’s appeal across genres and age groups.
The move reflects a clear shift in strategy. ZEE5 UK is betting on a hybrid model that blends on-demand content with curated, always-on channels to drive discovery and increase time spent on the platform.
“This partnership represents a meaningful evolution in how we serve audiences in mature markets like the UK, where viewers are defined by habits, convenience and choice rather than geography or language alone,” said Parul Goel, territory head, Europe, Zee Entertainment. “By bringing trusted mainstream UK channels together with our premium originals, movies and kids’ content, we are building a more consumer-centric platform that simplifies viewing while increasing depth and relevance.”
Fateha Begum, commercial director, Narrative Entertainment, said the tie-up would fuel growth for both sides. “Our portfolio of quality programming, with such wide and enduring appeal, is a perfect complement to ZEE5 UK. This is a strong partnership that will support growth for both parties, and we share Zee Entertainment’s vision of an increasingly partnership-led future for the industry.”
ZEE5’s global library spans over 4,000 films and more than 500 originals, with over 130 new titles added annually. The addition of Narrative’s channels strengthens its kids offering and introduces genre-led linear experiences alongside its on-demand catalogue.
The deal also gives Narrative access to ZEE5 UK’s fast-growing user base, extending reach without diluting brand identity, while reinforcing ZEE5 UK’s network of more than 40 live channels.
As streaming wars intensify, ZEE5 UK is widening its playbook, blending content, convenience and partnerships in a bid to win screen time in one of the world’s toughest markets.
