A PROJECT REPORT ON

MEDIA SELLING: HSM REGIONAL CHANNEL

A detailed study done in

PTC Networks
Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the award of degree of Masters of Management Studies (MMS) under Mumbai University. Submitted by BALAJI SHANKAR RAJ ROLL NO: 46 BATCH: 2008-2010

Under the guidance of Dr. MANISHA DUBEY SHUKLA

(Internal Guide)

Bharati Vidyapeeths Institute of Management Studies & Research Sector 8, CBD-Belapur, Navi Mumbai 400614

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I take this opportunity to convey my heartfelt gratitude to Ms. Sherin Dcruz, Head of Sales, PTC Networks, for her direction and guidance throughout the scope of the project. I would like to thank her for his praiseworthy delegation and for underlining the industry viewpoint of the study. Her support from the initial to the final stage enabled me to develop a better understanding of the subject.

I would like to thank my project guide Dr. Manisha Dubey Shukla, whose constant encouragement and round-the-clock availability helped churn out this project. Her constructive assistance was particularly helpful during concluding stages of the project and adding finishing touches.

I would like to express my sincere thanks to Dr. D.Y. Patil, Director Bharati Vidyapeeth's Institute of Management Studies & Research, for providing me the opportunity to perform this project.

I want to take this opportunity to thank my family for their unwavering support in bearing with me throughout the span of the project.

Signature of the student

(BALAJI SHANKAR RAJ)

(i)

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Indian television started off channel Doordarshan, which in the was early 1980s with only owned. one national

government

The Ramayana and

Mahabharata both were the first major television series produced which notched up the world record in viewership numbers for a single program. Though there was a single channel, television programming had reached saturation. Hence the government opened up another channel which had part national programming and part regional. This channel was known as DD 2 later DD Metro.

This industry saw a dramatic change post Liberalization. Under the new policies the government allowed private and foreign broadcasters to engage in limited operations in India. Foreign channels like CNN, Star TV and domestic channels such as Zee TV and Sun TV started satellite broadcasts.

The study endeavors to present a panorama to understand the Media selling in HSM (Hindi Speaking Market) regional language channels. It studies USPs HSM regional channels have to sustain in Media market which is dominated by National channels. Also it presents the Media Selling as well as Media Buying Process in Television. The study is carried on two regional media market viz. Marathi regional channels and Punjabi regional channels. Two different media market is considered, so that the results then obtained can be generalized for all the other regional channels.

(ii)

PLEASE PASTE HERE THE CERTIFICATE FROM THE COMPANY

(iii)

PLEASE PASTE HERE THE CERTIFICATE FROM THE INSTITUTE

(iv)

TABLE OF CONTENTS
PARTICULARS Acknowledgement Executive summary Certificates Chapter 1: Introduction of the Project
1.1: Concept & Significance of the Study 1.2: Scope 1.3: Objective of the Study 1.4: Literature Review PAGE NO:

(i) (ii) (iii) 7

8 8 9 9

Chapter 2 Introduction to the Industry

2.1: Television Industry 2.2: Merits and Demerits of TV Advertising 2.3: Media Selling and Buying 2.4: Factors affecting the choice of Television 2.5: TAM

11
12 13 16 20 23

Chapter 3 Introduction to the Company/Organization

3.1: About PTC Network 3.2: PTC Networks SWOT Analysis 3.3: PTC Events 3.4: PTC Networks Competitors

27
28 30 31 33 34 35 35 35 36 37 38 48 59 60 60 61 62 63

Chapter 4: Research Methodology

4.1: Research Design 4.2: Data Collection Techniques and Tools 4.3: Sample Design 4.4: Limitations

Chapter 5: Data Analysis and Interpretation

5.1: Results & Inferences (Punjabi Viewer Survey) 5.2: Results & Inferences (Marathi Viewer Survey)

Chapter 6: Conclusions, Limitations and Suggestions

6.1 Conclusions 6.2 Limitations 6.3 Suggestions

Bibliography Annexure

Chapter 1

INTRODUCTION TO THE PROJECT

1.1

CONCEPT & SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY

The Television industry is witnessing a spate of new channels being launched every year. TV is also penetrating into the rural areas and is a promising segment. Homes with TVs are expected to grow from 112 million to 200 million in a few years. India boasts of being the third largest television market in the world today. And cable penetration (pay TV market) is expected to grow from the present 70 million to all TV homes. More than 350 channels (paid and free) are available to viewers in India today. Over the next five years, the subscription revenues are poised to be the growth driver of the Indian television industry. The number of pay TV homes and the increased subscription rates will increase the subscription revenues. The spread among the lowerincome groups is very low and offers a wide scope for growth. The fact that 40 per cent households of India are still without television connectivity highlights the scope of growth in the segment. The majority of the revenue generated in the television industry is through advertisements, followed by subscriptions. The Indian television advertisements market is expected to grow at a rapid rate with the increase in the number of channels and the television viewers.

1.2

SCOPE OF THE STUDY

With more than 350 TV channels available in the market, the customer is spoilt for choice and thus making it a tad bit difficult for Channels to stand out in this rapidly growing market. Also the TV industry is heavily dominated by big players in the market which are the general entertainment channels. It is a challenging task for the regional channels to continuously keep hold of their viewers. The study endeavors to present a panorama to understand the Media Selling of HSM Regional channels.

1.3

Objective of the Study

Primary objective of the study was to understand media selling and buying and provide a useful snapshot of the industry. In order to justify this primary/main objective the research set out to find answers to the following objectives: To understand the TV channel viewers choice To understand how TV channels provide programs as per viewers choice To understand the buying behavior of the Media Planners To understand the revenue generation at TV channels

In totality, to develop a comprehensive study in HSM Regional Channels. 1.4 Literature Review

Based on the media survey Nielsen company has the following findings: Media Is On Demand - But Content Is Still King: The Three Screen Trifecta: Mobile, Television & Internet. Whoever said content is king was prescient. In today's world, media is an on-demand experience with an array of platforms delivering rich content to on-the-go consumers via multiple devices. The fight for share of wallet is being played out on three screens: mobile, television and the Internet. So far, TV is winning.

No doubt about it, the media landscape has changed dramatically for consumers and advertisers alike. The tectonic plates of media options have shifted, and once-familiar terrain has experienced a radical make-over. There appears to be no upper limit on the public's appetite for video, and the number of digital video alternatives, but three screens dictate the terms of entertainment: television, mobile devices and the Internet. Apparently, cross-platform users opt for the best screen available, making their selection based on the quality of the screen experience, convenience, availability and schedule compatibility.

Channeling TV Several unique attributes account for television's preeminent position: the ability to capture attention, create awareness and convey novelty effectively even in a cluttered environment. Together, these features are largely responsible for TV outpacing Internet use by a factor of 10. TV actually benefits from cross-platform viewing behavior. When people access multiple screens, general TV viewing rises. Despite the growing popularity of time-shifted viewing, with 3 of 10 households owning a digital video recorder, live TV is still a clear favorite with video fans.

Chapter 2

INTRODUCTION TO THE INDUSTRY

2.1 Television Industry

Television is the broadcast form of media. Television is often referred to as the "king" of the advertising media. But it is also the "king" of advertising costs as well. It has proven its power to influence human behavior again and again.

Strengths Reaches a wide audience

Weakness Expensive for time and production

Sight sound and colour gives dramatic Bad quality transmission problem and poor possibilities Larger than life image Achieve viewers empathy anchors may put the viewers off Fleeting Tends to make people home birds and asocial High on credibility Too much viewing can have adverse effect on impressionable minds Wide choice of channels without incurring Best shows have limited availability extra cost A family medium Transient messages

2.2 Merits and Demerits of TV Advertising

Merits of TV Advertising TV has immense impact: No other medium can ever complete TV as far as

effective presentation is concerned. It attracts attention immediately. Computer graphics has made it still more effective. It arouses interest in the product. Excellent Quality of Production: TVs sponsored programmes and DD programmes

have been improving in terms of quality content wise as well as product wise consistently over a period of time. Some sponsored programmes are lavishly made.

Retailers also watch TV: Both consumers and distributors are TV viewers. The

retailers might miss out the ads in print media. But they are exposed to TV ads. Thus they fell inclined to stock these products.

Comprehensive Technique: In TV, there is a unique blend of sight, colour, movement, sound, timing, repetition and presentation in the home. Put together it has more attributes than any other medium. It, therefore, produces quick results. Only the product should be a nationally marketed consumer product.

Evocation of Experience: It stimulates the experience of using and owning the product.

Demonstration: Product benefits can be shown most effectively by TV. Benefits may accrue over a period of time. But by using the technique of time compression, product benefits can be shown in a 10 second spot.

Animation: It is possible to vest the product/logo with human qualities. Animated characters do not alienate us.

Image Building: TV succeeds in building a powerful image of the company and its products. It can also project an image of the users rendering it excellent for life-style advertising.

Emotional Content: TV triggers off nostalgia, tenderness, generosity kindness and such other emotions. The special effects enhance the impact. You have to be extremely genuine on TV.

Demerits of TV Advertising It takes time to produce commercials and sponsored programmes: This medium requires planning and deliberation. It lacks the flexibility of press and radio. If not rightly produced, the ads look very crude.

It is a transient medium: Here the commercial flickers for a few seconds and goes off the air. We work over hard with insistent jingles and repeated sales message. Sometimes, the commercial is repeated frequently. TV ads alone may not be sufficient. They need supportive ads in other media. More than one or two spots are necessary to be as noticeable as one insertion in print.

Time gap to purchasing: The buy now pressure exerted on the TV viewers is totally wasted because the stimulus is often lost by the following morning. This is one of the reasons why TV needs a very high frequency to sustain the impact.

An immobile medium: Radio can be listened to either in car or while walking. Newspapers are read in locals, in offices and at many other locations. Right now, TV is watched only at home.

Difficult to gain enquiries: Detailed enquiries cannot come. It is difficult to note either the telephone number or the address. Another major problem is that too much is compressed in a TV commercial lasting for a few seconds. It is a digest, and is easily assimilated and absorbed. At first viewing, there is novelty. But on absorption,

this wears off. On repeated viewing, it becomes monotonous. Everything is anticipated.

Time Constraint: In a few seconds, we can put forward only one selling proposition.

Production Costs: Cost of producing a commercial is high as compared to costs of the print production.

Hardware Capability: The T.V. set of the viewer and its technical capability determine the overall impact of the commercial.

Statutory Controls: T.V. commercials have to conform to a broadcast code strictly.

Fragmentation of Audiences: All channels have a diversity of programmes to attract viewers. They intend to penetrate the viewers of other channels by a diverse programme mix. This naturally leads to fragmentation of audiences and lower regularities of viewer ship.

Effect of Clutter: The viewership of commercials is less than the viewership of the programme which accompanies them. The lengthier the chain of commercials, the less is the viewership.

2.3 Media Selling and Buying

Media selling and buying includes: Client: These are buyers of the media space. It can be any Organisation/Company, Government, NGO or Institutions. They buy the media space to advertise. Agency (Media Planners): These are the mediators between the client and the TV channels. They help client to buy the correct media space based on their requirements. TV Channel: These are the media sellers. Most of the revenue is generated by selling the media space for advertising. In following sections we will study in detail how these entities work in detail.

Media Planning

Media planning is the process of designing a course of action that shows how advertising space and time will be used to contribute to the achievement of the marketing and advertising objectives. The media plan is created by the media planner from information about the market and prospective customers. Media decisions are primarily based on the creative strategy established for the campaign and the characteristics of the target market. Media Planner is the person at the advertising agency who develops and executes your media plan.

Media planners perform four basic functions: Conduct media research Determine media objectives and strategies Determine the media mix Do the actual media buy

Proper media planning enables the selection of the right media: selection of the right media is crucial in the entire planning process. It helps to allocate the advertising funds to the right products in the right media. for example, ads for chocolates will be placed in a slot where there is maximum children viewer ship. And channels like Nickelodeon, Cartoon Network or between 5-7 pm when most children watch cartoons.

It indicates the period or the season in which the advertiser need to concentrate advertising efforts. For example all the paint advertisements concentrate on the festive seasons. A few months before the festival like Diwali the ads are released. It helps achieve the advertising objectives.

It minimizes wastages of advertising funds. When money is used in the right direction there are minimum wastages. A media plan helps the ad agency to obtain approval from the client. Proper media planning will help the advertiser to reach the right target audience. It helps to finalize the frequency of advertisements: how many repetitions of the advertisement should be done and are required also specified in a media plan.

Criteria Considered in the Development of Media Plans The media mix Target market coverage Geographic coverage Scheduling Reach versus frequency Creative aspects and mood Flexibility Budget considerations

Steps in the Media planning process: Market analysis Media objectives Media strategies Media Mix Budget and Media Buying

Market analysis Activities involved in developing the Market analysis: a. Situation analysis b. Marketing strategy analysis c. Creative strategy analysis

Media Objectives There are broadly five elements in media objective statements: 1. Target Audience 2. Reach 3. Frequency 4. Message Weight 5. Message Distribution

Media strategy Activities cover decisions taken in the areas of: a. Geographic selectivity b. Scheduling of the ads c. Media selection
d. Cost efficiency of the selected media.

Media Mix Media mix means the advertising strategy encompasses the use of more than one type of advertising media to get its message across the target audience. A combination of media types is known as the media mix. No advertiser can rely only on one medium to reach his audience. Factors considered while selecting a media mix: Budget Competitors Strategy Frequency v/s Reach Increasing distributors support Continuity Flexibility Franchise Position Standard of Acceptance and Codes of Ethics Cost Per Thousand Creative considerations The medium and Target Consumer Match Language Prestige of media The Editorial Environmental Nature of the product or services and nature of the market to be covered Availability of Media Time and Space

Media Buying a. Occurs once plan is approved b. Buyers work with media representatives to negotiate final prices for the various activities

2.4 Factors affecting the choice of Television 1. Television Rating Point: TV advertisers evaluate the medium according to the delivery of certain target audiences. In the case of networks and large affiliates, advertisers tend to look for exposure to fairly broad audience segments. The basic measure of television of Television is the rating point. The rating expressed as a percentage of some population (Usually TV households), gives the advertiser a measure of coverage based on the potential of the market.

2. Share of audience: Although the rating is the basic audience-measurement statistic for TV, another measure, the share of audience (or simple, share), is often used to determine the success of a show. The share is defined as the percentage of households using television that are watching a particular show. It is used by advertisers to determine how a show is doing against its direct competition.

3. Up-Front and Scatter Buys: Purchase of TV time by advertisers during the first offering for the coming season by networks. Among the major up-front trends are: a. Greater demand for time b. Agency using computer models called optimizers which provides additional data to major prime-time advertisers, which gives them confidence to spread their budget. c. Globalization d. Special events

The up-front season is followed by a second phase known as scatter plan buys. Scatter plans are usually bought on a quarterly basis throughout the year. They are designed for larger advertisers who want to take advantage of changing marketing conditions or, more often, for smaller advertisers who are shut out of upfront buys. Generally, scatter plans will sell at a higher CPM than up-front spots because there is less time inventory and smaller advertisers do not have the leveraged to negotiate the CPM levels of larger networks.

4. Spot Television or Spot Buys: When national advertisers buy from local or regional stations, the practice is known as spot television or spot buys. i.e. purchase of time from a local or regional station, in contrast to purchasing from a national network. The term comes from the fact that advertisers are spotting their advertising in certain markets as contrasted to the blanket coverage offered by network schedules.

The primary disadvantages of spot television are that it requires a great deal more planning and paperwork than National Network since each market must be bought on a one-to-one basis and its more costly on a CPM basis than National Network buys.

Primary purpose for Spot Buys: To allow network advertisers to provide additional GRPs in those markets with the greatest sales potential. To provide businesses with less than national or uneven distribution, a means of avoiding waste circulation incurred by network Television. Spot buys allow network advertisers to control for uneven network ratings on a market-by-market basis. National advertisers can use spot to support retails and provide localization for special marketing circumstances.

5. Negotiation: Negotiation is the key to the Television buying. Since each advertising package is unique to a particular advertiser, there are no rate cards for network television advertising. In Negotiation process advertisers negotiate for time across a number of Television options.

6. Pre-emption rate: A considerable portion of spot TV advertising time is sold on a preemptible (lower-rate) basis, whereby the advertiser gives the station the right to sell a time slot to another advertiser that may pay a better rate for it or that has a package deal for which that particular spot is needed.

7. Run of Schedule (ROS): An advertiser can earn a lower rate by permitting a channel to run commercials at its convenience whenever time is available rather than in a special position.

8. Product protection: Every advertiser wants to keep the advertising of competitive products as far away from its commercials as possible. This brings up the question of what protection against competition an ad will get. Although some station say that they will try to keep competing commercials 5 to 10 minutes apart, and guarantee that they will not run them back to back.

9. Stripping: Scheduling a syndicated program on a five-day-per-week basis. That is, they will run two shows, Monday through Friday in the same time slot. This practice is called stripping since the show is stripped across a time period. It is cost efficient to buy fewer shows for multi-showings and allows a station to build a consistent audience for selling commercials to potential advertisers. Channels do not want huge rating or audience composition swings from one day to another.

2.5 TAM

We just heard that a TV Show was ranked #1 in the TV ratings. What does that really mean? How does Media Research "rate" TV shows? Why do shows you think are really pretty good get canceled? The answers to all these questions end up with a small abbreviation TRP. The companies engaged in finding the ratings include A C Nielsen and ORG-MARG. Television ratings provide the television and advertising industry with a currency to buy and sell television airtime, and to plan and schedule television Nielsen Media Research is the sole provider of the television audience measurement currency for the television industry. Television ratings are the numeric estimate of the television viewing audience collected from a representative sample of households. This information is available on a both a subscription and an ad hoc basis. Nielsen Media Research Television Ratings represent the industry currency for television audience measurement with a fully national PeopleMeter panel of 470 households. This equates to approximately 1100 people 5 years and over. The service measures permanent private dwellings so viewing in institutions, pubs and clubs, etc. are not included. The Nielsen Media Research Television Ratings service provides ratings data 365 days of the year projecting for 3.6 million people and 1.374 million households Within television networks, programming, statistics, sales teams, publicity and promotions use TV Ratings. These departments rely on Nielsen Media Research Television Measurement Services to: Provide a sales tool for marketing their advertising strengths Evaluate the effectiveness of programming Establish the value of commercial air time Rank the top rating programmes and look at their audience loyalty over time Produce demographic information on the size and profile of television audiences Assist with scheduling programmes and promotions Research changes and trends in television viewing behaviour

Within advertising agencies, TV Ratings are used by strategists, researchers and media planners and buyers to: Provide a demographic profile of target audiences and track their viewing habits Create reach and frequency objectives and set realistic targets Plan advertising campaigns As a tracking device for progressive or post-campaign analysis Provide demographic information for effective media planning

Nielsen Media Research provides a comprehensive service to subscribers, including ratings data, a suite of software analysis tools and an experienced Client Service team to guide clients in understanding and analysing the data. Methodology The Nielsen Media Research Television Ratings service uses people meters to measure television audience viewing. PeopleMeter units are installed in a representative sample of households and provide accurate daily data for a wide range of demographics. Nielsen Media Research conducts annual Establishment Surveys to gather extensive details on channel reception, ownership of TV-related equipment and a full breakdown of household and individual demographics. From this sample, plus information from the latest available census, a panel of households is recruited to represent the population. Procedure for finding the TRP Ratings The way that Media Research finds out about who is watching is to measure what a sample of television viewers are watching. For national ratings estimates, they use a sample of more than 5,000 households, containing over 13,000 people who have agreed to participate. Since there are over 99 million households with TVs, it might seem that a sample of 5,000 is just not big enough to represent the nation. There are many ways to reach the final findings. In order to provide all the information which the TV and advertising industries need, Media Research actually measures all of the above. They

report the amount of TV usage on every set in a sample household - those are homes which have agreed to participate in the Nielsen TV sampling for a specific period of time. They have various means of collecting data. They combine the information in a way which projects the viewing pattern. Accuracy of TV ratings No measurement system is perfect, whether it measures the entire population or just a sample. Errors are always a possibility. When measurement is based on a sample, there is the additional source of error which comes from sampling variation For this reason, Media Research regularly cross-checks the information obtained from different samples and different measurement methods. Different measurement methods completely separate samples-and a vast difference in sampling size-yet they both produce similar estimates of audience. In addition to this, they have ongoing audits and quality checks to make sure that all of their procedures are working correctly. They carefully draw sample in a way that offers every television household an equal chance of being selected. Once the homes are selected and agree to participate, Media Research protects their privacy by keeping their identities confidential. Benefits of TRP ratings to various sectors Media Research's role is to measure both what is transmitted and what is received. By doing this, we provide the programmers and advertisers with vital feedback on their audience. TV ratings are used like currency in the marketplace of advertiser-supported TV. When advertisers want a commercial to reach an audience, they need to place it in TV programs which deliver an audience. The more audience a program delivers, the more the commercial time is worth to advertisers. So the amount charged for advertising is usually

a negotiated rate per thousand viewers multiplied by the Nielsen Media Research audience estimate (in thousands). Programs are expensive to produce, whether they attract large audiences or not. TV Ratings are used by strategists, researchers and media planners and buyers to: Provide a demographic profile of target audiences and track their viewing habits Create reach and frequency objectives and set realistic targets Plan advertising campaigns As a tracking device for progressive or post-campaign analysis Provide demographic information for effective media planning

Media Research provides a comprehensive service to subscribers, including ratings data, a suite of software analysis tools and an experienced Client Service team to guide clients in understanding and analysing the data. grammars can't pay more for a program than they can earn from selling advertising in it. Rating & Share The terms rating and share are basic to the television industry. Both are percentages. A rating is a percent of the universe that is being measured, most commonly discussed as a percent of all television households. As such, a rating is always quantifiable, assuming you know the size of the universe (TV households, persons, women 18 34, and so forth). A share is the percent of households or persons using television at the time the program is airing and who are watching a particular program. Thus, a share does not immediately tie back to an actual number, because it is a percent of a constantly changing number TV sets in use. Shares can be useful as a gauge of competitive standing.

Chapter 3

INTRODUCTION TO THE COMPANY

3.1 About PTC Network PTC Punjabi, PTC News & PTC Chak De, are leading Punjabi Entertainment, Punjabi News & Punjabi Music channels under the aegis of the company G Next Media (P) Ltd. The channels are commitment bound to the overall objective of being relevant to Punjabi viewers through various programming initiatives. G-Next Media (P) Ltd comprises the team of professionals who had successfully launched and managed ETC Channel Punjabi & Zee Punjabi. The same team had come together to launch and make PTC network of channels as the leading Punjabi Satellite Channels Network. About the Channels PTC Punjabi, launched in August 2008, showcases the true spirit of Punjabiyat in all its myriad moods. A 24-Hours Punjabi satellite channel in the General Entertainment Genre. The key service of the channel is the daily telecast of Gurbani from Sri Harmandir Sahib every morning and evening, fiction serials, reality shows like Ghar Ghar Vich Ghuggi, Watno Door, Beauty and Talent hunt show i.e Miss PTC Punjabi, Miss World Punjaban, Music Awards- an event which recognizes and showcases the best of the years Punjabi Music as well as power packed musical extravaganzas. PTC News, the leading Punjabi News channel, has already created a revolution in the Punjabi satellite scenario. The Channel is dedicated to the soul and heritage of Punjab offering authentic updates on current events, news, happenings and people that are of interest to Punjabis all over. The channel has State-of-art production studios in Delhi and Mohali. PTC Chak De is a 24 hour Punjabi music channel launched in March 2009. The channel offers Refreshing non-stop Music to the Punjabi viewers, and is a hit with the youth and the elderly alike. PTC Network, the No.1 Regional Punjabi Network, under which the bouquet of three channels i.e PTC News, PTC Punjabi and PTC Chak De exist in India, has now launched a Punjabi channel in Canada and U.S.A. specifically catering to the South Asian Community.

The flagship property of PTC Punjabi in Canada is Gurbani from Sri Harmandir Saheb, Amritsar. Apart from this, the channel will air Punjab- centric news and Current Affairs. In the primetime, the channel will provide Entertainment content to Punjabi audiences in Canada through a bouquet of programs belonging to the genre Talent Hunt, Comedy, Musical, Travel Show, Bollywood News, Talk Shows and so on. In USA, PTC Punjabi showcases the culturally relevant programming i.e. Gurbani from Sri Hazoor Sahib (Nanded) every morning, News from Punjab, Current Events, Family Drama, Live Musical Shows, Bollywood News, Talent Hunts, Talk Shows and so on... Sworn to professionalism, the channel and its team are committed to serve both the industry and the viewers with zeal and dedication. Channel Availability PTC Punjabi is available on all Cable Networks in Punjab as well as DTH platforms; Airtel DTH on Channel 583; TATA SKY on Channel 888; DISH TV on Channel 807; BIG TV on Channel 953; SUN Direct TV on Channel 666;Videocon D2H on Channel 751 & MTNLs IPTV on Channel 165. PTC News is available on all Cable Networks in Punjab; DTH: TATA SKY on Channel 886; DISH TV on Channel 1350; DD DIRECT on Channel 201; MTNLs IPTV on Channel 166,SUN Direct on Channel 589, Airtel DTH on Channel 584; Big TV on Channel 955 and Videocon D2H on Channel 757. PTC Chak De is available on all Cable Networks in Punjab and MTNLs IPTV on Channel No. 167 and Big TV on Channel No. 996. Internationally Channel is available in USA and Canada (Rogers Platform Channel no. 853). The channel offers the best digital picture quality of viewing, by being available in the latest MPEG-4, FORMAT.

3.2 PTC Networks SWOT Analysis

Strengths Seen as leading Punjabi channel Regional Content True spirit of Punjabiyat Gurbani Reality Shows Dedicated news and music channel Opportunities Other Show Formats Lifestyle Shows

Weakness Too Punjab centric Product offering narrow Non-availability on cable networks pan India

Threats Competitors like MH1, Zee Punjabi Economic Downturn

3.3 PTC Events

PTC Punjabi Music Awards 2010 PTC Punjabi Music Awards is not just an event but a Festival that showcases and recognises the best of the years Punjabi Music - the singers, the music composers, the choreographers - displaying the best of Punjab to the World

Simple wordings and high energy level of contemporary Punjabi music makes it instantly popular among all generations. The versatility and vibrancy of Punjabi songs appeals to all, irrespective of their individual language preferences in music.

PTC Punjabi Music Awards is the flagship property on channel. It is a commemoration of the talent of the Punjabi Music Industry. This is the third year that PTC Network is involved with the conduction of these Awards and with every year channels effort is to take these Awards to the next level. Their Network has grown considerably in the last three years, adding one channel every year since the last three years. This year Music Awards will be telecast LIVE on PTC Punjabi, PTC News and PTC Chakde.

The final presentation ceremony witnessed some scintillating performances from some of the biggest names in the Punjabi & Hindi Artist Fraternity. This year the event was anchored by Gulshan Grover and Mona Singh. The whole event was set to be a thrilling and entertaining experience for the viewers as well as the venue audience.

Voice of Punjab

In keeping with its philosophy of offering innovative and distinct content, PTC Punjabi has launched a singing talent hunt show 'Voice of Punjab'. The show is aimed at exploring and recognising the next generation singers from the grassroots level, thereby providing them with a platform to fame and glory. The contest is open to girls and boys in the age group of 18-27.

'Voice of Punjab' invites entries from all across Punjab, with six centralised audition centers in the cities of Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Patiala, Bathinda and Chandigarh. The auditions have already commenced in Amritsar from May 19.

This reality show will give the people of Punjab the opportunity to chase their dreams and the power to make two talented aspirants the voice of Punjab. The contest winners one boy and one girl - will get a chance to record an album with a reputed music company.

3.4 PTC Networks Competitors

MH1 is the short for Music Hits One. Positioned behind ETC Channel Punjabi in ratings, MH1 is a music and entertainment channel promoted by Mahendra Batla under the BCI Optical Group banner. The channel has synergy as Batla has interests in music publishing business. This 24 hour channel is also known as Music Hits One though people refer to it as MH1.

The channel, which has been going slow on events, has a new strategy in place for this year. With just three events last year, this year the channel plans to do one event every two months. The channel, which primarily competes with Zee Punjabi and Balle Balle, planned to foray into the UK, US and Canada by the end of March 2006. The success of the channel in the well-defined Punjab market created much interest in the NRI market and also a constant demand from the Punjabi community visiting India to show the same channel overseas.

The success of their popular programme, `Awaaz Punjab Di`, a talent hunt programme, has also been responsible for such decisions. In fact, they have been getting constant responses and requests to begin such events across the border for the Punjabi community, which they shall be doing shortly; hence, the decision to enter these markets was taken. MH1 is amply visible in Pakistan and UAE through various cable networks. The channel focuses on music and entertainment for the foraying abroad. The programming mix is balanced in line with Indian heritage, which is what most of the NRI community looks for, and a feel of modernity for the younger generation. MH1 adopted a long-term strategy, which has paid off as far as advertising is concerned. The Punjabi music channel is also contemplating to start a Hindi music and entertainment channel.

Chapter 4

Research Methodology

4.1: Research Design Research methodology is a particular procedure or set of procedures that guides the research and provides an underlying assumption of being able to collect accurate results.

Objective To study the factors that have helped HSM regional channels to sustain in Media market which is dominated by National channels.

Formulation Of hypothesis The Regional and fresh Programs have helped the channels increase its impact amongst the target audience.

Research Methodology Methodology is Quantitative Method 4.2: Data Collection Techniques and Tools Research Instrument Questionnaire to viewers

Data Collection Techniques: Survey, Interview Data Collection Tool: Questionnaire, Interview Guide 4.3: Sample Design Sampling Techniques: Random Probability Sampling Sampling unit: TV channel viewers Sample size: 50(Male and Female) Area of Research: Mumbai

4.4: Limitations The primary limitation is the sample size. Media planners are tied up with their work and view responding to surveys a waste of their time and hence refrain from encouraging researchers for such purpose. Also the responses from the viewers were based on the current shows on the respective channels. These responses may change with change in channel broadcasting. Also the research is done only in Mumbai. Thus cannot completely represent the Punjabi viewers.

Chapter 5

Data Analysis and Interpretation

5.1 Results & Inferences (Punjabi Viewer Survey) 1. Personal Details of Viewers Male: 12 Female: 13

Viewers
52% 48% Male Female

For analysis purpose almost equal number of men and women are being surveyed. Although majority of the viewers for Punjabi regional channels are women.

2. TV Viewership

There is 100% TV viewership. So Television channels are effective Media Channels available for Media Communications. It can be used to reach even the remote places in India through regional language television channels.

TV viewership

Viewers 100%

3. Most Channel Viewed Category Entertainment Music News Knowledge Sports Movies Total No. of Viewers 18 23 8 6 7 11 73

Category
15% 25% 10% 8% 11%

31%

Entertainment

Music

News

Knowledge

Sports

Movies

Punjabi people are known for their love for music. It is observed Music Channels have a greater share. Also Entertainment is a major part. Hence most of the television channels provide programs formats based on music and entertainment.

4. Channel Preference by Viewers

Channel

No. of Viewers

PTC Punjabi MH1 ETC Punjabi Zee Punjabi Total

16 8 5 6 35

Channel Rankings

17% 14% 46% PTC Punjabi MH1 ETC Punjabi 23% Zee Punjabi

Channel ranking by Gender

18

16
14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 PTC Punjabi MH1 ETV Punjabi Zee Punjabi Female Male

Channels Male Female

PTC Punjabi 6 10

MH1 3 5

ETV Punjabi Zee Punjabi 3 2 3 3

PTC Punjabi has the highest share in Punjabi Regional Language channel category.

5. Favorite Shows of Viewers

Shows GURBAANI SIMRAN GURMAT GYAN ANAHAD BANI MANKE Ghar Ghar Vich Ghuggi Hadippa Preeto Top 10 Watno Door Chak De Dholia Total

Male 8 0 5 4 3

Female 9 6 8 6 7

Total 17 6 13 10 10

5 7 8 4 6 50

8 8 6 8 5 71

13 15 14 12 11 121

18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 Female Male

Among the Shows Gurbaani, Music shows are top viewing shows.

Category Drama Music Entertainment History/Cultural Total

Male 4 19 14 13 50

Female 14 21 19

Total 18 40 33

17 30 71 121

Percentage

Drama Music Entertainment Devotional/Cultural

Music is major part of Punjabi Shows. Also it is apparent that Devotional shows are USP of the Channel, Gurbaani being the Major USP.

6. New Shows viewers would prefer to watch

18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0

Female Male

The audience both men and women would like to watch new shows based on Culture/Devotional, Talent shows both in Music and Dance, and also Reality Shows. Few also would like to watch cookery based shows.

7. Favorite Channel voted by Viewers

Favorite Channel
32% PTC Punjabi 68% MH1

It was observed that 68% voted PTC Punjabi as their favorite channel. It has a mix of show formats like reality shows, music shows (Preeto Top 10), reality shows (Voice Of Punjab) and Devotional (Gurbaani) and many other format shows.

8. New shows noticed by Viewers It was observed that majority of viewers could recollect Voice of Punjab.

9. New reality show noticed by Viewers It was observed that majority of viewers could recollect Voice of Punjab.

10. Advertisement Viewership

Advertisement Viewership
8

Axis Title

6 4 2 0 Viewers Non-viewers Viewers Non-viewers 6 5

Female
Male

Male Female

6 8

It was observed that 56% of viewers watch advertisement, while others would practice zipping and zapping.

11. Impact of Advertisement Among the advertisement viewers many would recollect ads of Tata Docomo (as a sponsor for Voice of Punjab), Lux, Colgate, Mahindra tractors, etc. Viewers also liked it as the ads were in their regional language and could connect themselves with it.

12. Effectiveness of Advertisement

The Ads are quite effective. Most of the viewers who were unaware of the new products actually purchased the product after viewing ads.

13. Effectiveness of Channels feel of regional Marathi Culture

Viewers liked the feel of regional Punjabi culture they felt from the channel. Most of them watched regional language channel because they could connect themselves with their culture. Also people are devotional and can connect through shows like Gurbaani.

14. Look Of Channel The look of channel was felt as more cultural, aesthetic and gave viewers a feel of their culture. Most of them liked the look of the channel and didnt want any changes in the look of the channel.

15. Suggestions for the Channel

There were few suggestions for the channel which were:

To show less of Drama serials Would like to see shows related to Music and Dance. Shows dedicated to Movie songs Showcase cookery related shows for women Also shows related to culture, history, fashion and fitness

5.2 Results & Inferences (Marathi Viewer Survey) 1. Personal Details Male: 12 Female: 13

Viewers
52% 48% Male Female

Though men are being surveyed, it is observed that majority of the viewers for Marathi regional channels are women.

2. TV Viewership There is 100% TV viewership. So Television channels are effective Media Channels available for Media Communications. It can be used to reach even the remote places in India through regional language television channels.

TV viewership

Viewers 100%

3. Most Channel Viewed Category Entertainment Music News Knowledge Sports Movies Fashion Total No. of Viewers 22 19 8 6 7 11 8 81

Category
10% 27% 14%

9% 7% 10%

23%

Entertainment

Music

News

Knowledge

Sports

Movies

Fashion

It is observed that Entertainment and Music Channels have an almost equal representation. Hence most of the television channels provide programs formats based on music and entertainment.

4. Channel Preference by Viewers

Channel

No. of Viewers

Zee Marathi MI Marathi DD Sahyadri ETV Marathi Star Pravaah Total

19 5 4 7 8 41

Channel Rankings

19% 44% 16% Zee Marathi MI Marathi

DD Sahyadri
9% 12% ETV Marathi Star Pravaah

Channel rankings by Gender

20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 Zee Marathi MI Marathi DD Sahyadri ETV Marathi Star Pravaah Female Male

Channels

Zee Marathi

MI Marathi DD Sahyadri 3 2 1 3

ETV Marathi 5 2

Star Pravaah 5 3

Male Female

8 11

Zee Marathi has the highest share in Marathi Regional Language channel category.

5. Favorite Shows of Viewers Shows Brahmaand Nayak Kunku Anubandh Shivaji Maharaj Sa Re Ga Ma Pa Fhu Bai Fhu Bajirao Mastaani Others Total Male Female 4 0 1 8 9 8 6 5 41 3 4 2 3 11 6 3 3 35 Total 7 4 3 11 20 14 9 8 76

20 18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0

Female Male

Among the Shows SaReGaMaPa , Fhu Bai Fhu, Shivaji Maharaj, Bajirao Mastani are top viewing shows.

Category Drama Music Entertainment History/Cultural Others Total

Male 1 9 8 14 9 41

Female 6 11 6 6 6 35

Total 7 20 14 20 15 76

Percentage

Drama

Music
Entertainment History/Cultural

Others

6. Disliked Shows by Viewers

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 0 Gojirvaane Gharaat Kunku Anubandh Comedy Express Char Divas Sasuche Female Male

It has been observed that though women like to watch Drama based serials they dislike to watch the same if the serial is telecasted for a prolonged period. Most of the reasons given to dislike the particular serial were that the serials were stretched for a long time.

7. New Shows Viewers would prefer to watch

18 16 14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 History/Cultural Music/Dance Reality Shows Others Female Male

The audience both men and women would like to watch new shows based on Culture/History like Shivaji Maharaj, Talent shows both in Music and Dance, and also Reality Shows. Few also would like to see Stage shows, Naatak and Fashion related shows.

8. Favorite Channel voted by Viewers

Favorite Channel
8%

Zee Marathi
92% Others

It was observed that 92% voted Zee Marathi as their favorite channel. They liked the channel because it was under Zee network and provided good serials. It has a mix of show formats like reality shows, music shows (Sa Re Ga Ma Pa), Dance shows (Eka Peksha Ek) and many other format shows.

9. New shows noticed by Viewers It was observed that majority could not recollect any new shows they have noticed on air. Though there were some exceptions. Most of them replied that were werent any new shows launched recently.

10. New reality show noticed by Viewers It was observed that majority could not recollect Sa Re Ga Ma Pa show. As it was the only new and running reality music show on air.

11. Advertisement Viewership

Advertisement Viewership
8

Axis Title

6 4 2 0 Viewers Non-viewers Viewers Non-viewers Female Male

Male Female

8
6

4
7

It was observed that 56% of viewers watch advertisement, while others would practice zipping and zapping.

12. Impact of Advertisement Among the advertisement viewers many would recollect ads of Vodafone, Rin, Close-up, Tata Docomo, Lux, etc. Viewers also liked it as the ads were in their regional language and could connect themselves with it.

13. Effectiveness of Advertisement

The Ads are quite effective. Most of the viewers who were unaware of the new products actually purchased the product after viewing ads.

14. Effectiveness of Channels feel of regional Marathi Culture

Viewers liked the feel of regional Marathi culture they felt from the channel. Most of them watched regional language channel because they could connect themselves with their culture.

15. Look Of Channel The look of channel was felt as more cultural, aesthetic and gave viewers a feel of their culture. Most of them liked the look of the channel and didnt want any changes in the look of the channel.

16. Suggestions for the Channel

There were few suggestions for the channel which were: To show less of Drama serials Would like to see shows related to Music and Dance Shows dedicated to Movie songs Should have dedicated shows for Marathi Naataks Also shows related to culture, history, fashion and fitness

Chapter 6

Conclusions, Limitations and Suggestions

6.1 Conclusions

Television is often referred as the "king" of the advertising media and also the "king" of advertising costs as well. It has proven its power to influence human behavior again and again. Both Television and Advertising industries support each other. Advertising is the major contributor to television industries revenue and in return television being the most effective medium for advertising. Buyers and sellers of Television medium play an important role in the industry. Buyer evaluates the medium based on various factors of marketing mix. Research in the industry is important, such as TAM which provides a tool for media planners to evaluate various channels within Television industry. Media space is bought based on which target audience is to be reached. Channel viewers choice varies across various segments. Every viewer segment is unique. For a channel to be successful there is no single category of shows liked by viewers. Every channel has to provide a variety of shows across all categories viz. music, entertainment, movies, reality shows, etc. Regional language channels provide variety of shows. Show related to Culture, Devotion and history of the region being USP for the channels. This works for any regional language channel. Also they showcase considering choice of the viewers. The current trend is reality shows. It may be Sa Re Ga Ma Pa in Marathi channel or Voice of Punjab in Punjabi channel. 6.2 Limitations TAM provides ratings as a tool to evaluate television channels. Since the ratings are based on sampling, it may not be very accurate at times. So media planners usually do refer to various survey results for evaluating a particular media. Also any media channel does not guarantee to reach the expected target audience. Even though television being most effective medium, media planners do opt for a mix of media channels other than television like print, radio, OOH, etc. At present there are more than 200 and these channels provide general entertainment, news, movies, music and many other specialized shows. So zipping and zapping is

practiced during commercial breaks. Also due to advertising clutter, viewers lose interest in watching ads. This doesnt serve the purpose for advertising.

6.3 Suggestions

Both the Television channels as well as the media planners should work together avoid clutter during a particular FCT. Viewers would be able to recall ads and the related product/service and hence serve the purpose of advertising. Viewers usually complain about drama serials being dragged for several years. Television channel should not drag these shows till there is a drastic drop in TRPs of the particular show. It should end the shows at appropriate time.

BIBLIOGRAPHY Books:
1. Integrated Marketing Communications; by Belch & Belch, 6th edition, Tata McGrawHill 2. Advertising And Promotions An IMC Perspective; by Kruti Shah & Alan D Souza, 4th edition, Tata McGraw-hill

Websites:
1. http://enus.nielsen.com/content/nielsen/en_us/insights/consumer_insight/april_2009/media_is_on_de mand.html 2. http://www.coolavenues.com/know/mktg/prasun_2.php 3. http://www.managementparadise.com

ANNEXURE
Questionnaire for Viewers [Punjabi]
1. Person Details: a. Name: b. Gender:

c. Age:
2. Do you watch TV? Yes/No

d. Contact:

3. Which TV Channels do you watch more often?

4. Which Punjabi Channel do you Prefer? Rank them.. a. PTC Punjabi b. MH1 c. ETC Punjabi d. ZEE TV Punjabi 5. Which Programmes do you like in PTC Punjabi? a. GURBAANI b. SIMRAN c. GURMAT GYAN d. ANAHAD BANI e. MANKE f. Ghar Ghar Vich Ghuggi

g. Hadippa h. Preeto Top 10 i. j. Watno Door Chak De Dholia

k. Any other_____________________ 6. Any new shows, you would like to watch on PTC Punjabi?

7. Which Punjabi channel is your favorite?

8. What are the new shows that you have noticed?

9. Have you noticed the new Reality shows?? a. Voice of Punjab b. Miss PTC

10. Do you watch the advertisement during the commercial breaks?

11. Can you recollect any advertisement among those?

12. Have you bought any product only after watching the advertisement?

13. Does the channel give you a feel of a regional Punjabi channel or just another General Entertainment Channel? And Do you like it?

14. How do you feel about the look of the Channel?

15. What do you think PTC should do to make it better?

Questionnaire for Viewers [Marathi]

1. Person Details: a. Name: b. Gender:

c. Age:
2. Do you watch TV? Yes/No 3. Which TV Channels do you watch more often?

d. Contact:

4. Which Marathi Channel do you Prefer? Rank them.. a. ZEE Marathi b. MI Marathi c. DD Sahyadri d. ETV Marathi e. STAR Pravaah

5. Which Programmes do you like on Marathi Channels? a. Brahmaand Nayak [MM - Devotional] b. Kunku [ZM - Drama] c. Anubandh [ZM -Drama] d. Shivaji Maharaj [SP] e. Sa Re Ga Ma Pa [ZM Reality Show] f. Chaar divas Sasuche [EM]

g. Gojirvaane Gharaat [EM] h. Bajirav Mastaani [EM] i. Any other_____________________

6. Any shows/programmes you dont like? And why?

7. Any new shows, you would like to watch on any Marathi Channel?

8. Which is your favorite channel? What makes your favorite channel different from other Marathi channels, according to you?

9. What are the new shows that you have noticed?

10. Have you noticed the new Reality shows?

11. Do you watch the advertisement during the commercial breaks?

12. Can you recollect any advertisement among those?

13. Have you bought any product only after watching the advertisement?

14. Does the channel give you a feel of a regional Marathi channel or just another General Entertainment Channel? And Do you like it?

15. How do you feel about the look of your favorite Channels?

16. What do you think your favorite. channel should do to make it better?