Set to enthrall the audiences with spectacular stories:Star India's Vaz

A brand new English movie channel  showcasing stellar and new stories starting July 9

ADRENALINE PUMPING ACTION/ANIMATION has been the focus of almost all the Movie Channels so far. However the broadcasters have realized that the genre is no longer niche and more and more clients are ready to invest money on it. With competition heating up in the genre each is trying their bit to attract newer set of audiences while keeping their loyal audiences happy.

In a bid to cater to the ever changing preferences of audiences Star India, the broadcast network that runs sports and entertainment channels in India, has launched its third English movies channel Star Movies Select HD, an exclusively high definition channel bringing in fresh content in the Indian Market every day. Kevin Vaz, business head-English cluster at STAR India opines “As much as viewers need their action and superhero blockbusters, they need freshness and new stories ranging from dramas, comedies, thrillers and animation. With this thought in mind we are launching Star Movies Select HD to cater to the market needs.”

Star Movies Select HD will be available on Tata Sky, Dish TV and Videocon d2h. While for the Airtel digital customers it will be available in a few weeks.

This brand new English movie channel will redefine the movie viewing experience for a Hollywood buff.  The unique proposition of 365 days, 365 stories is based on the insight that this audience seeks new and enhanced experiences in life. Every day of the year at 9pm Star Movies Select HD will delight its viewers with the promise of a great story.

On the rationale for launching a new brand Kevin Vaz address the issue by saying “ This is the 20th year of Star Movies, it is known for showing the biggest blockbuster movies full of action and superhero movies. Clearly it means that Star Movie reaches out to a much younger TG hence we showcase movies like Captain America, Wolverine, and Transporter. Secondly we launched Star Movies focusing on the theme of people wanting 100% action. So we thought this time we will focus on content which are beyond superhero’s and bring in the flavour of drama, comedy and romance. Thus Star Movies Select HD was created for this discerning audience.”

Adding further “Star Movies Select HD is not just a new English movie channel, it’s a promise - to deliver best of storytelling from the house of Star India. We have brought in some of the best content from Hollywood and are ready to enthrall the audiences with the sheer strength of spectacular stories.”

Star Movies Select HD will be the first English movie channel in the country to showcase films that were never released in India. The channel will celebrate the finest stories by creating festivals based on the strong consumer insights – movies based on True Stories, Book Adaptations, Iconic movies, Biopics and many more. Some of the movies that will premiere on the channel are Gone Girl, Fault in our Stars, The Grand Budapest Hotel, Boyhood, Theory of Everything, Birdman to name a few.

Kevin Vaz said “The Channel will have 30 premieres a year, out of which 7 out of 10 would be movies that have been nominated for Oscars or Golden Globe. We are bringing in fresh Content for the Indian Viewers and will showcase drama, romance all in one platform. The new Channel will only have 10% overlap in terms of content with Star Movies. The 10 per cent overlap has to be a really big movie like ‘Life of Pie’, which offers both a great story and a visual treat.”

Star Movies Select HD has an output deal with three of the leading studios in Hollywood. With 21st Century Fox it has exclusive output (the rights of the movies will stay with them) and with NBC Universal and Disney they have first output deals where the movies will come first to them and then all the other networks can bid for them. Other than this, there will be movie festivals across genres such as murder mysteries, true stories, biopics and book adaptations, among others. All in all, the channel will have 50 premieres in its first year itself.

Adhering to the regulations set TRAI Star Movies Select HD will have 12 minutes of ad airtime in an hour.  Expressing his ecstasy on advertisers’ response to the Channel he says “Whenever we have presented the channel to clients, all of them have really loved the product. Pernod Ricard has come on board as a channel partner and will be sponsoring the major festivals and premieres on the channel and the other Brands associated with the Channel are BMW, Yamaha, FLIPKART and Jockey coming aboard from Day 1.” 

On the Distribution & Marketing strategy he said “We have got the biggest portfolio in the Country, so you will see it across all our HD channels across all genres. You will see a complete roadblock for the next three to four days. We will advertise it across our non HD channels so that people can see it and upgrade to HD. We will be huge across all platforms from radio to digital.”