We’re signing new sponsors every day for Bigg Boss 14: Mahesh Shetty, Viacom18

Colors’ hit reality show, ‘Bigg Boss’ is returning with Season 14, which is slated to go on air on October 3, 2020. The broadcaster has roped Mobile Premier League as 'Presenting' Sponsor, while Dabur Dant Rakshak Ayurvedic Paste and an HUL brand (the name of which is not revealed yet) have come on board as 'Powered By' Sponsors.

The interest in associating with ‘Bigg Boss 14’ remains strong as categories like auto, e-commerce, handsets, appliances, grooming brands, and foodtech have shown advertising interest. “We’re signing new sponsors every day,” remarks Mahesh Shetty, Head, Network Sales, Viacom18.

This year, Viacom18 launched their subscription video on demand OTT (Over-The-Top) service VOOT Select and the ‘Bigg Boss’ property will leverage this platform to create value for its viewer base. VOOT Select will offer unlimited access with 24-hour Live feeds from the Bigg Boss house on weekdays and stream the episode before TV ad-free.

Shetty observes, “In the past six months, we’ve all been living a Bigg Boss kind of life. This year, we will have sets which will represent all the things we missed during the lockdown. There will be malls, movies, restaurants and spa/ massage parlors in the show. These luxuries won’t be easily available to housemates as they will have to complete tasks or challenges to enjoy them. This innovation creates an opportunity for many brands to come in.”

He adds, “Since our sponsor, Mobile Premier League, is a gaming brand, we are planning an interesting innovation called Bigg Boss Fantasy League, which will help the brand with awareness, downloads and platform engagement.”

Starting October 3, new episodes of ‘Bigg Boss 14’ will air for 106 days and clash with the Indian Premier League 13 in the months of October and early November. However, Shetty is unconcerned about the scheduling conflicts. He observes, “There is an overlap of 37 days, from October 3 to November 8. From a viewership standpoint, IPL starts at 7.30 pm and ends at 10.30 pm, while ‘Bigg Boss’ starts at 10.30 pm. So, a consumer can watch both IPL and ‘Bigg Boss’. The clash is only for four weekends. For a 106-day property, an 8-day clash isn’t much.”

Last year, ‘Bigg Boss’ had signed on eight digital sponsors. According to Shetty, the property is well on its way to sign 8-10 digital sponsors this year as well. MPL is already on board.

“There’s a lot of pent up demand across the board, which will come out strongly during the festive season. That’s the trigger we’re seeing as interest for ‘Bigg Boss’ as a property. We want to air throughout the festive period in India and become a strong pull for brands. I don’t really see brands cutting spends on TV and digital in H2, because they have already cut spends in H1,” he signs off.

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