Exclusive | TV is not going anywhere while Digital will also grow

Talents shows are something that we all are fond of and we try to empathize where we fit. When it comes in the television space one has to be conscious about the way he/she is performing in front of a live audience and in front of the camera. This fear might not be when one is with his friends or otherwise.

Seeing the need for this, Fremantle Media India, which is best known for producing international brands like Indian Idol and India’s Got Talent has for the very first time got an Online version of the talent show called “India’s Digital Superstar.” One need not fear about being shy about performing in front of an audience and can showcase his/her talent in a small recording which can be done at home or otherwise.

To know more about the whole concept and the ideation of this Adgully caught up with Anupama Mandloi, Managing Director, FremantleMedia India.

Insights on the show

Fremantle Media for a number of years has consistently been doing talent hunt shows. And I think I can say with confidence, being an associate with talent hunt shows, we have developed, created and sourced talent across genre and that’s the reason why today we felt that we are able to be on the digital platform as well. It’s the right mode in terms of extending ourselves on the digital platform. Also to build a talent expertise on the digital platform. The other reason is that as a production house, there is only do that much that you can do with all the sources. So it is strength to expand this show and an opportunity outside the television space which is what the digital platform is readily available and it allows you to retain your IP and build assets. So that’s the reason why we thought that it makes sense to get into digital.

As a production company we can’t just rely on television, we need to go beyond that. And so we are developing other avenues of creating content and most important is that digital allows us to retain the IP which is important. Secondly, when you create content or associate with it that, eventually it is accepted and that what we're trying to do here.

Concept

It’s a talent hunt show, obviously it’s been crafted for the digital space because it’s more immediate and gratification is immediate plus the responses would be immediate, whether you like it or dislike, is very immediate. In a way this suits the platform. all you are going to hear about is additions, about people leading the brigade and seeing what kind is following is going to accumulate and 4 weeks from now the property will go live, in the sense that accumulating and putting together all the things and finally arrive at a conclusion. The content is going to be the contestants that will upload videos on the website. it’s an ongoing show, it’s not like if I don’t upload the video within the first four week then I’ll be disqualified, anyone can upload their videos till the last week of the show and that’s the best part about the digital platform.

Process

The auditions will span across 13 weeks, and in this platform the competition never stops. In the 14th week, the grand finale will be held in Mumbai. The indiasdigitalsuperstar.com platform will encourage participants to upload multiple videos of the talent that they wish to showcase, and will be judged by the audience through the number of views and likes across Youtube, ZengaTV and Facebook.

Internet practically doesn’t cost us anything and is an unrestricted medium for fresh videos that can be uploaded till the Finale Night. The host will come online thrice a week - Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays for 10 continuous weeks starting from the 5th week of audition.

How to Participate

The best part about this contest or talent show is that whenever you’re ready you can shoot your video and upload it on their website www.indiasdigitalsuperstar.com. This power packed digital show with non-stop auditions, non-stop opportunity, 24/7 content and non-stop fun will be judged by the audiences. Not to forget that the auditions are open to all Indians across the world.

This will be a 14 week epic journey in search of a Digital Superstar where Musicians, DJ’s, comedians, mimicry artists, dancers, contortionists, jugglers, singers, acro gymnasts and many more across all ages are welcomed to participate. Indiasdigitalsuperstar which began auditions on January 19th and will culminate with a finale in May. Indeed there is a lot in store for the winner apart from a Rs.20 Lakhs contract with Fremantle Media and OneDigital.

Marketing Strategy

There's Radio and Print that will be supporting the digital medium when it comes to promoting this property. But largely it’s going to be on the digital platform, not television because we want to keep it exclusively for this show so that we can build that base. So if you were to look then we can expand and create interest among non-users of this mode so there is an opportunity as well. At the end of the day you are going to get an opportunity, so you don’t need to feel that you've missed the bus. You can jump on it anytime.

In the year to come we will see a lot of collaborations from this production company and at the same time if this property is a success then we might get to more in this format.

On a concluding note, Mandloi adds, "After the super success of Indian Idol, India's got Talent, we at Fremantle are delighted to launch a platform that will be accessible to everyone with internet access. Given that India is a priority market for FremantleMedia and a popular destination for many of our hit international brands, we want to continue driving our strategy of aggregating talent across media with India's Digital Superstars. We have been instrumental in sourcing, discovering and unleashing talent across television and this is the obvious next step for us to take the talent hunt to the internet which is a world unto itself.” By Archit Ambekar | Twitter: @aambarchit