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SaharaOne asks TAM to explain Dial One numbers
SaharaOne is crying foul over TAM declaring that the channel’s interactive game show, Dial One, is getting a TVR of only 0.4-0.6, despite receiving around 17 lakh calls per day
SaharaOne is crying foul. On Tuesday morning, the channel has asked for an explanation from TAM Media Research – the currency of television audience measurement in India – on the reason behind the low TVRs of the channel’s game show, Dial One.
Confirming this development to agencyfaqs!, Purnendu Bose, chief operating officer, SaharaOne Television, says, “On an average, we receive almost 7-8 lakh calls every day for our live game show Dial One. In fact, from June 20 onwards, we have been receiving 15-17 lakh calls every day. In spite of this, our TVRs are still between 0.4 and 0.6.”
Bose adds, “The number of calls has been audited by Ernst & Young. Even BSNL has validated this data.”
“We assume that if 17 lakh-odd people are calling for the show, they would be also watching it. But the numbers are not visible on our television ratings. To be precise, the number of callers has almost doubled from June 20, when we changed it into a one-hour show. But still the TVR ratings of the show are stagnant at 0.6.”
Talking about his future stand on this matter, Bose says, “We are waiting for a reply from TAM. Based on that, we will take a call.”
According to Bose, the most successful game show in the past on a competitive channel got 8-10 lakh calls per day; the show received a TVR of 10+.
When asked whether the maximum number of calls were from towns with a population of less than 1 lakh (these are towns which do not fall under TAM’s coverage), Bose says emphatically, “We have received calls from Kashmir to Kanyakumari. The demography of the callers is evenly spread across all strata.”
For the record, Dial One is an interactive live game show. Viewers call up at the Sahara Group's call centre in Lucknow, which has been built with the help of Reliance Infocomm. A few lucky viewers/callers are then randomly picked and called back by the show host. Viewers who give correct answers win handsome prizes. The entire process of the game show is audited by Ernst & Young.
© 2005 agencyfaqs!