What we’ve achieved with News 1st Kannada is nothing short of a miracle: S Ravikumar

Less than three years of its launch, News 1st Kannada is touted as becoming Karnataka’s fastest growing Kannada news channel, capturing the imagination of advertisers and viewers alike.

As per recent BARC data, News 1st Kannada has garnered >40% reach and 75% growth in viewership in one year vis-a-vis the competition. The channel has also become home to the biggest brands, as well as a channel of choice for Politics, Cricket and Cinema. The channel also claims to have garnered over 300 crore YouTube video views.

With a young, driven, hands-on management and an experienced team, News 1st is on its way to be the news start-up in the Kannada television news ecosystem.

In conversation with Adgully, S Ravikumar, MD & CEO, News 1st Kannada, about the channel’s performance, programs and plans.

Please take us through News 1st Kannada’s performance and growth in the first half of 2023?

The perception created by News 1st Kannada and the expectation we generated ensured that we were on top of mind even before our first BARC numbers were released in March 2022 o a good 19 months after news channel ratings were disbanded by BARC in October 2020, almost coinciding with our launch in September 2020.

In fact, News 1st Kannada has been on the ascendency even prior to launch. We broke into the Top 5 when our first BARC numbers became public. Ever since, we have constantly seen an upsurge or upswing in our reach, average time spent and hence, GRPs.

The first half of 2023 was no different.

In fact, the launch of special shows, like ‘Naanu Mukhya Mantri’ (Me and the Chief Minister), the Karnataka Assembly Elections and the new state governments’ Guarantee Schemes helped us reach more people, grow quickly and more consistently.

Every week, Prime Band’s ‘India First’, Afternoon Band’s ‘Mane Mane Meenakshi’ and Innovative Show ‘AI MAYA’ have ensured our leading positions.

‘Mane Mane Meenakshi’ (aired 1.30pm to 2.00pm on weekdays; Sat and Sun at 1.30pm to 2.30pm) is the top rated show almost every week since our launch in September 2020. ‘India First’, after breaking into the Top 3 position eight weeks back, has held its own. Today, it stands at No. 2 in its band.

AI MAYA, a recent technological leap and innovative show has taken the Karnataka market by storm. ASK MAYA, a Q&A between viewers and AI MAYA, a meta human TV anchor, has generated significant reach for News 1st Kannada, while doing wonders to our perception.

Our performance in the morning band is growing steadily. In fact, we start at Rank 2 at 6am. Revamping of the morning band content has contributed quite a bit to this performance.

With 75% growth – the highest growth in the market, between May 2022 and May 2023, News 1st Kannada is definitely on the fast lane to a strong performance in 2023.

In today’s fast-paced digital landscape, how do you see News 1st staying competitive and relevant?

Let’s face it, TV viewership is not what it used to be until a few years back. Digital has played a huge role in weaning away TV audiences, more so news audiences. However, this doesn’t mean that dedicated news viewers don’t exist. They do, especially in the morning and prime time bands. We keep serving what audiences in these bands need to remain relevant and successful.

News 1st Kannada is focused on delivering solid content in innovative programming formats, using latest broadcast technology, deploying state of the art graphics, employing interesting story telling techniques, using short news formats, etc. Innovative shows, catchy program titles, relatable language, etc., also play a huge role in ensuring existing audiences remain and new audiences sign up for us.

We also understand that digital is already in play and a significant future play. We keep balancing, adopting and adapting our satellite TV content with our digital content, so that both audiences relate to News 1st Kannada in their own ways.

What strategies are you implementing to adapt to changing audience preferences and technological advancements?

I was part of the leadership team that brought live news to Kannada audiences in 2006. Live, action and story angles mostly worked then.

After the advent of social media and other personal media platforms, getting audiences to sign up for and stick to satellite TV news has undergone a sea change and becoming challenging. The viewer today prefers fast paced news and strong content.

At News 1st Kannada, we have managed to get audiences on board by focusing on Snackable Content, Solid Prime Time Programming and Trending Content. Short format news makes up a chunk of our news content. Seven super fast news formats are spread through the day.

Prime time shows are where the serious news audience habits. We have adapted here by telling current news stories well, by choosing solid stories, using strong scripts, tasteful graphics and top notch editing.

Trending Content is news of the moment. The most eye catching stories of the day have a ready audience nowadays. We have dedicated shows such as ‘Daily Dose’ to ensure these audiences too are served.

Presentation, too, is a key aspect of getting audiences to relate to what we show. We’ve made sure our presentation stands out by using Augmented Reality (AR), Special Graphics & Animations, adopting interest generating delivery styles while unfailing maintaining brand standards.

News consumption patterns have shifted significantly, with social media and online platforms playing a major role. How is News 1st Kannada leveraging these platforms to reach and engage with a wider audience?

We were the first movers who made the market realise the potential, patterns and processes of digital media. This is despite the legacy channels operating on digital platforms for long.

News 1st Kannada has always moved with the times. We had a headstart on YouTube even before our satellite channel launched. In under three years of launch, News 1st Kannada has garnered over 300 crore views on YouTube. This is no mean achievement in a market with decade old players.

I would attribute this success to our willingness to experiment, understanding the ways of digital medium, focussed content strategy, understanding changing viewer needs, the language we use, consistently following brand guidelines and a very aware and enthusiastic team.

Going forward, too, we intend making the most of what Twitter (now X) has to offer, ramping up our digital team with digital specialists, exploiting the News 1st Kannada brand by foraying into different popular content categories and content categories that have a future. Diversifying into other languages, too, is in the works.

News 1st Kannada recently unveiled Maya as its AI Anchor. With this, where do you feel the future of journalism is headed?

News 1st Kannada has always been at the forefront of innovations in the South Indian media space. AI MAYA is but a sophisticated technological innovation by News 1st Kannada. AI MAYA is the first AI-based meta human news anchor in South India. The response to AI MAYA has been nothing short of phenomenal. Audiences across demographic and psychographic groups are lining up to question AI MAYA through ASK MAYA, our Prime Time Q&A intervention.

The future of TV news will largely remain the same. Human anchors will continue be the backbone of TV news. But innovations such as AI-based anchoring, like AI MAYA, will create a niche for themselves. They may appear like a novelty for now. A freshness, unseen in TV news. But the future of AI MAYA is definitely dependent on how we evolve the concept, the canvases we provide her, how we adapt and integrate her into news.

News 1st Kannada has an array of plans to integrate AI MAYA in news programming through the day. They are plans, so nothing can be revealed for now.

What steps are you taking to foster a strong and sustainable revenue model for News 1st Kannada?

TV News revenue models are quite established. FCT still remains the prime revenue source. Several known alternative revenue models – AFPS, Activations, Brand Integrations, etc. – are already at work.

News 1st Kannada is consistently optimising FCT and alternative models. In a highly competitive news landscape that a late entrant such as News 1st Kannada has delivered is testimony to the fact that we have managed to build a reasonably strong and sustainable business model.

This apart, in keeping with our intrinsic innovative abilities, we are constantly looking at newer ways of generating revenues, be it through digital platforms or app monetisation, etc.

What are your growth targets set for FY 2024?

While I cannot reveal specific growth plans, I can say we have an exciting line of new shows, digital innovations, brand integrations, etc. These, we believe, give News 1st Kannada the necessary impetus to rise quicker and higher in FY 2024.

In this era of generative AI and greater technological integrations, how can brand loyalty and brand identity be maintained? What can be the key differentiators?

Any brand needs to stay true to its core. Any innovation, too, is but a subset of the master brand identity.

I don’t believe AI-based interventions will or should change the basic character of News 1st Kannada. So, AI MAYA, too, will stay true to News 1st Kannada’s identity. It’s only a matter of adapting AI MAYA to News 1st Kannada’s brand standards – be it voice, tone, colours, language, design and layout – and staying the course, every single time.

What do you envision for the future of News 1st Kannada? Are there any upcoming initiatives or projects?

A bright future! Jokes apart, what we have attempted and achieved with News 1st Kannada is nothing short of a miracle. Early missteps, Covid Wave 1, absence of BARC ratings within few weeks of launch, Covid Wave 2, distribution challenges pulled us back in short measure. But we didn’t give up. We didn’t lose heart.

We continued to do what we believed we were good at:

• Strong Content
• Programming
• Innovations
• Digital Focus
• Partnerships

Enough can’t be said about the resolve, support and hard work of the team. When we could survive despite a once-a-generation Covid, sustain even without ratings for close to 20 months after launch, then succeeding and soaring is but a logical extension of our determination.

We have lots of exciting plans for the future and our viewers – both TV and Digital. We’ll share the same, when the time is right.