Sony goes back to family soaps on weekdays

The second series of ‘Indian Idol’, in its last stages currently on Sony Entertainment Television (SET), has not lived up to the success of its first edition. So much so that in the last two weeks, SET has slipped to No. 4 position among the general entertainment channels (GECs), behind even SaharaOne, which saw an upswing in viewership thanks to the India-England cricket series.

In Weeks 12 and 13, SET could manage only 12.6 per cent and 12.88 per cent of the market share in the general entertainment genre. In comparison, in these two weeks, SaharaOne got a share of 14.39 per cent and 16.66 per cent, respectively.

However, it seems that SET has learnt from this setback and is now focusing on two family shows to get back into the reckoning.

The channel is all set to introduce two family shows on its weekday prime band, 9-10 pm, from April 24. The shows will take over the ‘Indian Idol’ slot.

While ‘Thodi Khushi Thode Gham’ (‘TKTG’) is a family drama, ‘Aisa Des Hai Mera’ (‘ADHM’) is the saga of a young girl. ‘TKTG’ is a concept based show, which focuses on women and their position in the modern, yet still patriarchal, world. ‘ADHM’, which spans three generations, is the story of a London-bred girl coming to India in search of her roots with a flashback to the time of the partition.

Thus, SET is replacing a reality show with two new fiction shows. Gursheel Walia, creative director, programming, SET India, says, “Reality based programmes are short-span shows, while soaps are long-running programmes which deliver high TVRs consistently.”

About the target group for these shows, Walia says, “Our main target groups are women, 15-35 years in age, belonging to SEC A, B and C. But the channel strategy is to be inclusive, not exclusive. We do not want to limit ourselves to these target groups.”

Speaking to agencyfaqs!, Walia outlined SET’s marketing strategy, “We have planned a lot of activities around the two shows. We are talking to the media in every city. We are even planning print and electronic promotions. Besides promoting the shows individually, we will be promoting them together as an umbrella brand.”

But why did SET feel the need to introduce two shows in the prime-time band? Walia maintains, “The 9-10 pm slot has been SET’s stronghold. We will build these shows on this volatile spot which SET enjoys.”

Walia concludes, “‘ADHM’ will run for about two years as it has a fine story line. ‘TKTG’ will have a longer running story as its concept and story line are different.”

© 2006 agencyfaqs!