NDTV Imagine takes away No. 3 slot from Sony

Sony Entertainment Television had settled comfortably into the No. 3 position, but it finds now that NDTV Imagine is uncomfortably close

Where channel supremacy is concerned, the general entertainment space hasn't offered many surprises. STAR Plus has occupied the top spot since it launched the first season of Kaun Banega Crorepati in 2000.

Change to circa 2008 and STAR Plus is still the No.1 general entertainment channel (GEC). The gap between STAR Plus and Zee keeps fluctuating. For instance early this year, Zee has come very close to STAR Plus, but then the gap widened in the coming months. However, that's not the story here.

It is the third position for which the battle seems to be heating up. Sony Entertainment Television has comfortably enjoyed this space for long since Zee took away the second place among GECs.

Now its third position also seems to be under threat. In January 2008, its launch month, NDTV Imagine commanded a relative channel share of 3 per cent, whereas Sony commanded 8 per cent among GECs. But week after week, NDTV Imagine got closer to Sony Entertainment Television (see table). In week 15, SET and NDTV Imagine were at par with 8 per cent channel share, each. Finally in week 16, Sony has lost its number three position to NDTV Imagine with the latter commanding a 9 per cent channel share while Sony is at 8 per cent.

Media planners see tremendous potential in the new kid on the block. "What worked for them when they launched was their complete understanding of what would work with the audiences," says Anita Nayyar, chief executive officer, MPG India.

The channel's daring move of putting mythology on prime time, she believes, needs to be applauded because nobody has ever done that before. "They did it and got many viewers to sample the channel. Once they were able to attract a large sample size and offer programming that the viewers liked, it obviously led to stickiness," explains Nayyar.

During the launch of the channel, Sameer Nair, CEO, NDTV Imagine, had clarified, "We are not different for the sake of being different." The channel wanted to stand for fresh programming instead. From Angrezi Mein Kehte Hain and Nachle Ve with Saroj Khan, both new concepts, to Dharam-Veer, all its offerings have worked wonders for the channel and combined to give it a strong opening.

Manoj Vidhwans, executive vice-president, research marketing and communications, NDTV Imagine, says, "We also introduced the trend of weekly one-hour shows, such as Ek Packet Umeed and Idea Dhoom Macha De, on prime time after a long time."

Meanwhile, 9X is claiming to be the No. 3 GEC in the C&S 15-24 category. "If 9X is doing well in the 15-24 years age group, the channel can attract advertisers looking to target that audience," Nayyar says, adding that in media planning, the numbers can be reflected in whichever way possible.

Indrani Mukerjea, founder and CEO, INX Media, is happy. "We perceive this age group to be very important, as this is where advertisers put in the maximum amount of money," she says.

However, if the audience is expanded to the 4+ age-group, the channel is the No. 5 GEC, as per the TAM Week 16 data. In this spot, 9X (7 per cent) faces stiff competition from SaharaOne (6 per cent) and STAR's second GEC, STAR One (5 per cent). 9X has properties such as Jalwa, Chak de Bachche and Kya Dil Mein Hai. In order to consolidate its position, it has also launched a mythological show, Jai Maa Vaishno Devi, at 8pm on weekdays.

SET hasn't taken the challenge lying down. Albert Almeida, executive-vice president and business head, SET India, says, "We have our plans to be in the top slot in the GEC space. That will always be the vision. Sony is perceived to be a leader channel in this space and we want to be like that in real terms too. As far as speculation about positions and stuff is concerned, I have no comments to make. Time will tell."

Sony is gearing up to meet the challenge with numerous new shows. The channel recently launched two fiction shows in the 10pm and the 10.30pm slots – Sujata and Waqt Batayega Kaun Apna Kaun Paraya, respectively.

Basabdutta Chowdhury, CEO, Madison Media Plus, is of the opinion that Sony hasn't had much luck with its fiction shows. "Sony does well with male oriented and youth oriented shows. In the case of reality shows, what will really matter is the content and format," she says.

The channel is planning a variety of reality shows as well. Waar Parriwar is a music based reality show, in which families will participate. And there is the second season of Comedy Circus. The much delayed Indian adaptation of Extreme Makeover, hosted by Mona Singh (Jassi), will go on air soon. On the back of the IPL, there is another reality show, the Indian adaptation of Power of Ten, hosted by Bollywood actor Salman Khan.

The big question is, Kaun Banega No. 3? Only time and TAM will tell.