Both programming and channels are getting younger. Be it the launch of new entertainment channels like Bindass, 9X and Zee Next or the programming rejig on Zee TV, Channel V, Star One, Sahara and Star Plus, broadcasters are leaving no stone unturned to attract the younger generation as well as the advertisers.
While Zee Next, 9X and Bindass are clearly targeting the 18-35 age group and selling their programming properties to advertising categories like soft-drink, fast food, credit cards, mobile phones etc, broadcasters like Star, Zee and Sony have engineered changes in their existing programming.
"The tilt towards the youth is fast catching on. At one end of the spectrum are the singing talent hunt shows on both Star Plus (Voice of India) and Zee TV (Saregama) that are now banking big on kids and young singers. At the other end are Zee Next, 9X, MTV, Bindass and Channel V that have more young actors and video jockeys playing the central characters," says a marketing executive of a youth channel.
The launch of Zee Next, a youth-oriented channel from Zee's stable, is an effort directed at opening up a new revenue source for the media group.
"Zee Next is for the 22-35 age group. We have a separate sales team and have identified companies who would like to advertise on our channel because of our reach to a certain section of society. It is a strategy to attract both the youth and the advertisers," says Tarun Mehra, head (marketing), Zee Next.
According to industry estimates, the youth channels together are hoping to rake in Rs 250-300 crore (Rs 2.5 to 3 billion) in the first year of their launch as advertising revenue.
"With the growing penetration of direct-to-home (DTH) services, a more vibrant category of Indian viewers is emerging that spends a good 180-240 minutes per day on entertainment, movies and youth shows. Broadcasters want to cash in on this hence there are more youth-centric shows," explains an industry observer.
Even the three-month-old Bindass channel from the UTV group is targeting the 15-34 age group, while the existing players like MTV and Channel V have roped in fresh faces for their shows. The two music channels have also started six-eight new programmes in the last six months, each targeted at the 18-28 age group.
Explaining the rationale behind the flurry of youth-centric television programmes, a senior media planner says: "The average monthly spend of the youth in Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore and cities like Pune, Baroda and Lucknow is in the Rs 7,000-10,000 range. And since they are influenced a lot by what they see on television, broadcasters have been forced to rejig their shows and channels to suit them. In turn, the channels hope to get advertisers thereby making it a win-win situation for everyone."
According to a Star TV executive dealing with programming, Star One has been bitten by the youth bug. "With shows like Funjabi and several more to come, we have been briefed to find younger faces and think of concepts that will attract the youth, even if it is for six-eight weeks," says a Star One executive.