ZEE to rebrand Alpha channels

Come March-end and ZEE Telefilms will shed the Greek alphabet Alpha from its regional channels. According to reliable sources, the Alpha bouquet, which currently comprises channels in Marathi, Gujarati, Punjabi, Bengali and Telugu, will be rebranded as ZEE.

The exercise is a crucial one and is being initiated to bring about a synergy between the mainline brands (ZEE TV, ZEE Cinema, ZEE Music, ZEE Movie Zone and ZEE News) and the regional bouquet of ZEE Telefilms.

ZEE has buoyant plans for its regional channels, and the rebranding initiative marks the first decisive step in this direction. On the cards is a change in the on-air packaging, logo, graphics and music of the channels.

Content will be overhauled over a period of time, depending on the requirement of the channels. Even Alpha Telugu – the channel that was soft-launched in September last year – may see a spruce-up in terms of programming to coincide with the overall rebranding exercise.

The Subhash Chandra-promoted ZEE Telefilms is looking to aggressively scale up operations in South India with regional channels in Tamil, Kannada and Malayalam apart from the one in Telugu.

The company recently appointed ex-ETV hand Ajay Kumar as senior vice-president and business head of ZEE Alpha South. Based in Hyderabad, Kumar is responsible for pushing ZEE’s broadcasting foray in the region.

No estimates are available about ZEE's investment into this project, though sources say the amount is sizable.

Even as it gears up for the rebranding of its Alpha channels, the company is readying itself for the big-ticket ZEE Cine Awards, to be held in London on March 26.

The Cine Awards went international for the first time last year with the show held in Dubai. This year, Londoners will be treated to Bollywood, and given the NRI population residing there, action is guaranteed to be huge.

© 2005 agencyfaqs!