In the earnings call on Wednesday, The Walt Disney Company announced that they will be launching a general entertainment streaming service under the Star brand in 2021. 
Bob Chapek, Chief Executive Officer, The Walt Disney Company said that given the rapid changes in consumer behaviour, it's more important than ever to continue to grow their direct relationship with consumers. He said, “We plan to launch international direct to consumer general entertainment offerings under the Star brand in the calendar year 2021. The offering will be routed to the content we own from the critically acclaimed production engines and library of ABC Studios, Fox Television, SearchLight Pictures and 21st Century Films.

NEW DELHI: Recently, Indiantelevision.com came out with a story on the aftermath of the untimely demise of Bollywood actor Sushant Singh Rajput and the media circus that followed sharing crucial details of his reported suicide. While many attributed it to the constant race to gain TRPs, some indicated that Indian audience thrives on the unnecessary frivolous drama that channels propagate.

Addressing the same concerns in a virtual fireside chat with Indiantelevision.com founder, CEO and editor in chief Anil Wanvari, ABP Network (earlier ABP News Network) CEO Avinash Pandey stated that another issue forcing Indian news channels to indulge in dramatic reportage is the outdated measurement system deciding the ratings.

As Ayodhya gets ready for the ‘bhoomi pujan’ for the grand Ram Temple on August 5, CNN-News18 has lined-up exclusive programming for the viewers. Under ‘Mandir in Ayodhya’, the channel aims to cover every facet of the ground breaking ceremony, giving exclusive insight to the viewers in this historic event.

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The programming on CNN-News18 will comprise engaging yet in-depth news reports on the foundation laying ceremony. Starting August 1, the channel is showcasing non-stop programming capturing major highlights ahead of the event.

From laying the foundation stone of the temple to the political history behind Ram Mandir along with marking the one-year since the abrogation of Article 370, the channel claimed to bring its viewers the most discerning and exhaustive coverage of the historic event.

The channel will also air half hour special shows on August 3 and 4. CNN-News18 will also spotlight key newsmakers who played a significant role in the Ram Mandir movement for years including L.K. Advani; M.M. Joshi and Uma Bharti, Kalyan Singh; Bal Thackrey, Lalu Prasad yadav among many others.

As the Indian Premier League (IPL) readies to go live on September 19, certain categories of brands are likely to full throttle on their advertising spend while several big spenders in the past may go slow.

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Star India, the official broadcaster of IPL, is also likely to gain a large chunk of the festive ad spend, even though the overall season is likely to be sombre.

The tournament is set to begin on September 19 till November 10 in the UAE across Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah. This will not be the first time IPL will be held outside India.

A leading media planner said Star India is likely to clock somewhere between Rs 1,500 crore and Rs 1,700 crore as ad revenue, which is likely to be 20-30% less than last year’s Rs 2,100 crore plus ad revenue.

In week 29, as per Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC), India witnessed a slight increase in the total number of ad insertions in the top ten advertising and brands category. In this week,  the top ten advertisers category saw an increase of 2.72% as total count stands at 668, 736 as compared to 651, 003 in the previous week. Similarly, the brands category too saw an increase of 6.83%. The total insertions for the top ten brands stand at 141, 223 as compared to 132, 195 insertions in week 28.

The exchange4media Group is all set to unveil the ninth edition of its ‘50 Most Influential Women in Indian Media, Marketing & Advertising List’ brought out under the aegis of its weekly magazine, IMPACT. The list for the year 2020 will be unveiled in a virtual setting on Wednesday, August 5, 2020 from 5 pm onwards. It will be attended by an invited audience including nominees for the award, jury members and industry leaders. The event will also be streamed live on the IMPACT and exchange4media Facebook pages.

NEW DELHI: BARC India COO Romil Ramgarhia has put down his papers. He joined the organisation in 2014 as a chief business officer and was elevated to COO role about two years back.

“Romil Ramgarhia has resigned from the services of BARC India effective 31 July 2020,” shared BARC India.

Ramagarhia was one of the founding members of BARC India. In his previous stints, he has worked with Zee Entertainment Enterprise as CCO, Viacom18 Media as head of the commercial, Bharti Airtel as manager and at Asian Paints as an account executive.

Romil Ramgarhia, Chief Operating Officer of BARC India, has called it quits, today being his last day at the joint industry body. Highly placed industry sources have confirmed this development with BestMediaInfo.com.

Ramgarhia had joined BARC India in August 2014 as Chief Business Officer and was elevated to COO role about two years back.

When contacted, Ramgarhia said, “It has been one of the most satisfying professional stints to launch the largest TV audience measurement company amid all challenges. I want to thank all the colleagues, stakeholders and specially Punit and Partho for giving me this opportunity. There was no better time than this to take a break and spend some quality time.”

He was leading the overall business and operations verticals which include Sales and Marketing, Product leadership and excellence, Communications, Commercials, Management Assurance and Legal.

Ramgarhia brings with him over 18 years of experience across Media, Telecom and Manufacturing sectors, and has been associated with ZEEL, Viacom18, Bharti Airtel and Asian Paints in various capacities.

New Delhi: As Ayodhya gets ready for the ‘bhoomi pujan’ for the grand Ram Temple on August 5th, CNN-News18 has lined-up exclusive programming for the viewers. Under ‘Mandir in Ayodhya’, the channel will cover every facet of the groundbreaking ceremony, giving exclusive insight to the viewers in this historic event. With a power-packed lineup, the channel is all set to take the viewers on an enthralling journey that will mark the beginning of the temple construction.

In line with their commitment to bring the most incisive reportage, the programming on CNN-News18 will comprise engaging yet in-depth news reports on the foundation laying ceremony. Starting August 1, the channel will showcase non-stop programming capturing major highlights ahead of the event. From laying the foundation stone of the temple to the political history behind Ram Mandir along with marking the one-year since the abrogation of Article 370, the channel will bring its viewers the most discerning and exhaustive coverage of the historic event. The channel will also air half-hour special shows on August 3rd and 4th. CNN-News18 will also spotlight key newsmakers who played a significant role in the Ram Mandir movement for years including L.K. Advani; M.M. Joshi and Uma Bharti, Kalyan Singh; Bal Thackrey, Lalu Prasad Yadav among many others.

Amongst a star-studded evening, a new star was born as D2H, a brand of Dish TV India Limited, India’s leading DTH Company declared Sukhwinder Singh as the winner of the talent reality show ‘D2h Singing Star’. Powered by Songdew TV, in a first of its kind event, d2h Singing Star Grand Finale was conducted live in the virtual format, wherein the top 10 finalists battled it out to claim the winning spot.

The evening was topped with live acts of some of the best music artists – Neeraj Arya’s Kabir Café, Fiddlecraft, FusedheaD, and Astitva. Apart from being mentors to the contestants, these artists lit up the stage with stupendous performances. Further, the virtual event was graced by legendary artist Bobby Cash with a surprise performance of him. Based out of Ludhiana, Sukhwinder Singh not only won the hearts of the judges but also took home a music record deal with Songdew.

Commenting on his win, Sukhwinder said, “This is the best moment of my life. I am speechless! With the mentoring and the training I have received, I am thankful to d2h and Songdew TV for providing me with this opportunity. Winning the competition still feels like a dream to me”.