Trends'14 | The television moguls cite trends to watch out for 2014

In the whole of the media industry, the television industry is the one industry which has been and shall continue to be more attach to its direct consumers. The transformation from a not-so-good-looking box to a swanky shiny screen, the renewed television space has continued its efforts to remain in sync with the changing needs and desires of viewers. The year gone-by has been a talking point for all reasons, good and bad. In this issue of Adgully’s 2014 opening special, we at Adgully talk to the minds behind the ever changing landscape of television channels, to get an insight about what the television industry is planning out this year. Edited excerpts below:

Alok Agarwal, CEO, ZEE News
I feel in 2014 regulatory frame work is still going to be tough as the battle isn’t resolved yet. First half of the year news will focus on election and public issues as elections are coming up. There is some amount of consolidation which is going to take place as the industry has become quite fragmented. It would be really nice for the industry if news channel focus on strong content, rather going for non-news content for TRP's.

Ajay Trigunayat, CEO, English Entertainment Channels, Times Television Network
Digitization will add significant value to the TV industry in the coming year with newer platforms/opportunities for content distribution which will be good for both the consumer and the businesses. The volatility in the TV ratings system due to digitization is expected to reduce. The introduction of BARC will also be a welcome move for the industry.

Anooj Kapoor, EVP and Business Head, SAB TV
I expect and hope that following the success of fresh formats in the year 2013, GECs will get bolder in experimenting with fresh storylines and thereby reduce dependence on the clichéd formulae in vogue for a few years now. I also expect and hope that the dynamic changes of 2013 in the distribution landscape will settle down and broadcasters and distributors, be it cable or DTH operators, will be able to find a common ground. I also believe that the advertisers would be generous in understanding the revenue pressures on the broadcasters due to FCT limitations and respond accordingly!

Rahul Johri, Senior VP and GM – South Asia and Head of Revenue, Pan-Regional Ad Sales and Southeast Asia, Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific.

2014 will see digitisation continuing to open doors to a vast range of opportunities including access to the global market, multi-platform distribution, greater consumer engagement and enriched collaborations. With deeper penetration into additional areas, this also means more prospects for channels in terms of interesting new formats, fresher narratives and original themes. In a highly competitive and changing environment with fragmented viewership, brand differentiation and innovation will be the game changers. I am certain though that the coming year, while being challenging, will prove to be a turning point for the broadcast industry.

Ajit Thakur, GM, Life OK
All I believe is that, 2014 is going to be period of growth, consolidation and experimentation!

Sunil Punjabi, Business Head, AXN India
In 2014 there would be newer formats coming in, as channels are moving progressively from 

vigorous content to good content. This year we'll also see loads of partnerships to take place between cable operators, broadcasters and distributors. I believe this year is going to be the year of consolidation; also premium reality days are back and are catching up on English GEC's. Genre establishment is happening and will continue to happen in coming years.

Nikhil Madhok, Sr. Vice President - Marketing, STAR Plus India
I think shows in terms of good quality and content will be launched in 2014. I foresee heavy investment would be done in terms of content strengthening and fiction shows are set to go through the routes of technology and content.

Vaishali Sharma, Marketing Head, Sony Max.
The previous year was a year of innovation; so even in 2014, I think in the marketing space there is going to be more innovation and experimentation. Also there'll be focus on creating fresh content for the audiences.

Ajay Bhalwankar, Content Head, ZEEL
There are loads of changes bound to happen and we as an industry are consolidating it very well and 2014 is going to be one step further. Apart from changes on the content front, there'll be changes which will take place in television industry which will affect the content like newer formats, distribution and others. The coming two - three years is going to be interesting for television industry on the whole.