English Entertainment
KI’s ‘Rising Star’ selected as flagship entertainment show to launch on new Cambodian Channel
MUMBAI: Keshet International (KI)’s trailblazing interactive talent format Rising Star has been licensed by the brand new Cambodian broadcaster Town TV. Building on its existing talent management agency and production company, Town Group will launch its new free-to-air channel in late 2016/early 2017 with RISING STAR as its flagship, prime-time weekend entertainment show. The must-see series will be produced in-house by Town TV.
Keshet International Asia head Gary Pudney said, “Rising Star is only just starting its life cycle in Asia. A success for CCTV China and RCTI Indonesia – which is soon to air its second season – it has proven its appeal with Asian audiences. I’m delighted that Town TV has chosen to brand its exciting new channel with Rising Star as the tent pole in its weekend schedule and am certain this is the first of many more deals throughout the region.”
RCTI will begin airing its second season this winter. Season one aired successfully and won a Panasonic Gobel Award for Best Program Talent Show & Reality Show in 2015. The format has also aired across China on state TV channel CCTV-3, where it achieved higher ratings than The Voice and a 30% growth in audience share from the first episode to the last. The finale was also the leading programme of the night across the whole of China.
Earlier this week KI announced two new hires in Asia, Sales Managers Cherry Lu (Beijing) and Kelvin Ko (Hong Kong). Both will report into KI’s Head of Asia Gary Pudney who has outlined the company’s intention to develop fully-fledged local production entities in China and India over the next two years. Since the opening of KI’s dedicated Hong Kong Asia HQ in late 2015 – following earlier successes such as the first season of MASTER CLASS China, which amassed more than one billion views online alone, RISING STAR China and Indonesia, and Spy(MICE) Korea – KI has licensed a number of its hit formats and premium dramas across Asia. The company recently announced the Indian remake of its premium award-winning drama format, Prisoners of War with one of the country’s leading general entertainment channels, Star Plus. The second 12 episode season of its children’s singing format MASTER CLASS, produced locally by 3C Media, has just finished airing on Beijing Satellite TV and Sichuan Satellite TV, and was the no.1 most engaging TV show (by click rate) on the social media site Weibo. KI Asia has also closed deals for MASTER CLASS in Vietnam (TTN Media Corp.), its branded entertainment car game show Trade Up in China (CCTV-2) and its original variety game show Who’s On Top in Indonesia (RCTI). RCTI is also home to series two of KI’s interactive talent show RISING STAR which will air this Winter. As well as selling into Asia, KI is actively acquiring content from the region and staffing up its local operations.
Produced by Tedy Productions for Keshet Broadcasting, Rising Star became the fastest-selling talent show on record when it launched in October 2013, now more than 250 episodes of the show have aired with upwards of 160 million votes tallied worldwide. In Brazil it has become one of the country’s most popular shows with unprecedented activity on social media – some 41 million votes were cast across two seasons and a third season is currently in the pipeline. The show aired successfully in Portugal and beat off competition from the World Cup football fixtures throughout season one. Both season one and two of the show also rated well in Argentina, with more than two million users downloading the Telefe app and 22 million votes cast across both seasons.
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.
