Movies OK plans seven movie premieres for seven consecutive days

The one month old channel from the STAR stable has announced the premieres of Kahaani, Jodi Breakers and Ekk Dewaana Tha, amongst others, right after IPL ends.

As the Indian Premier League (IPL) comes to an end, Movies OK has announced the launch of a programming block, 7 Days 7 Premieres, to air premieres of seven movies for seven consecutive days, starting May 28 (today).

The channel has announced the premieres of Kahaani, Jodi Breakers, London Paris New York, Bumboo, Gali Gali Chor Hain, Saat Khoon Maaf and Ekk Dewaana Tha, right after the IPL ends.

Post IPL, though, SET Max, the broadcaster of IPL, will be back with similar content and increase competition for other channels in the Hindi movie genre. It is understood that Movies OK has taken this step in an attempt to retain viewers.

Channels across all genres have been experimenting with content since the first season of IPL started in 2008. However, Hindi movie channels have to keep a check on their content after the culmination of the league, too.

Hemal Jhaveri, general manager, Movies OK, says, "7 Days 7 Premieres is an innovative stance by our channel, something that no other channel has ever tried before. At a time when audiences are spoilt for choice, it is imperative for any channel to offer something distinct in terms of content and programming. We have evaluated the family audience psyche and our latest offering is a step to appreciate their requisites."

Karthik Lakshminarayan, COO, Crest, says, "I feel the strategy should work as it will help increase the visibility of the channel in the initial period, thereby creating an audience base for the channel."

He adds that the channel will face a major challenge if the strategy pays off well as the audience expectations from the channel will increase. If it is unable to find such movies and place them regularly on the channel, the initial gain could be lost.

Interestingly, this step to build a stronger foothold in the market comes a month after the launch of the channel. Media persons opine that this may be a deliberate step on its part on two grounds: first, it ensures that its distribution is in place and settled. Else, it may have wasted efforts and monies that go into the marketing of such a property.

The second reason could be that the IPL was going on and the channel wanted to ensure complete exposure for the property. "I feel it's a rational move because immediately after the league is over is the correct time to tap the viewers who are looking for a shift," says another media expert, who doesn't want to be named.