MUMBAI(1 April 2010 10:40 pm): The Hindi general entertainment channels (GECs) are learning to live under the shadow of the Indian Premier League. While the top 10 shows have held ground, it is the others lower down that have weakened as audiences have warmed up to the batting supremacy of Sachin Tendulkar, Jacques Kallis and Yusuf Pathan.
The overall television viewing pie has seen an upswing with the onset of the celeb-cash-rich tourney. But the Hindi GECs have seen a 10.5 per cent drop in the overall share during the IPL period.
The genre has slid from 42.6 per cent that it registered before the IPL period (28 February-13 March period) to 38.1 per cent during-IPL period (14-27 March), according to Tam data.
The Hindi GEC genre has witnessed a continuous fall in its total GRPs (gross rating points), considering the before-IPL period versus the during- IPL period. The genre clocked 1482 GRPs in the week ended 6 March; 1395 in week ended 13 March; 1290 in week ended 20 March; and 1286 in week ended 27 March.
GEC players, however, believe that the shift in this genre viewership has happened only within the "flirting audience community" while their loyal audience set continues to stick around.
Also, in the IPL versus GEC game, the top three channels (Colors, Star Plus and Zee TV) have lost out the least, while the second rung (Sony Entertainment TV, Imagine TV and Sab) have crumbled more.
Explains a media observer, "The top rung channels do have a huge base of loyal audience, which do not shift. So even among the top three channels, Star Plus and Zee TV will be saved. Colors, being a new player, will not have that much of a guarding."
On an individual basis, Star Plus has lost out the minimum in the IPL-GEC tug-of-war (6.9 per cent share) whereas Colors and Zee TV have lost 9.2 and 10.1 per cent share respectively.
Surprisingly, Sab, which has a very different positioning, has lost out the least (9.1 per cent) among the second rung channels, while Imagine TV and Sony Entertainment TV have lost 40.7 and 26.2 per cent share respectively.
Says Sony Entertainment TV business head Ajit Thakur, "Yes, IPL has impacted us a bit. And, we have done a few scheduling adjustments. We have launched our new show in the 7.30 pm band which is a pre IPL time band and we have placed our YRF shows at 11 pm band, a post IPL slot. Rest of the prime time shows remains as they are, but viewers can catch them in their afternoon repeats."
A part of Imagine TV's fall, however, was inevitable after the completion of the 'Swayamvar' series, Rahul Dulhaniya Le Jayega.
And in case of Sony, retaining its male-skewed audiences during the IPL would have been hard, observers say.
So will the advertisers move to IPL with its viewership signaling an upswing? Explains Medison Media group CEO Punitha Arumugam, "There has not been much drop in Hindi GEC viewership. Yes, advertisers are cautious about the clash with the IPL, but that has not impacted the GECs much as their inventories still remain full."
Lintas Media Group Delhi SVP and GM VS Mani notes that while brands do use IPL to catch visibility and expand reach, they anyway continue with the GECs because the T20 audience mainly comprises the male set.
"A lot of mobile and financial institutions find the IPL a firm ground to grab attention. But the largest advertising sector, FMCG, still continues to bat on GECs because their prime target rests with them. Male skewed products may pull out of GECs and reallocate resources during IPL, but FMCG will still continue with the bulk of their investments on GECs," Mani elaborates.
Multi Screen Media (formerly Sony) is targeting an ad revenue of Rs 7 billion from the IPL during its 45-day run. |
MUMBAI(1 April 2010 10:40 pm): The Hindi general entertainment channels (GECs) are learning to live under the shadow of the Indian Premier League. While the top 10 shows have held ground, it is the others lower down that have weakened as audiences have warmed up to the batting supremacy of Sachin Tendulkar, Jacques Kallis and Yusuf Pathan.
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