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ET Now runs soft launch

ET Now, the business channel from the stable of Bennett Coleman & Company, began its soft run in select C&S markets on June 17

The latest English business news channel on the block, ET Now from Times Global Broadcasting, had a soft launch on June 17. It is learnt that the channel will be formally launched in July, coinciding with the announcement of the Union Budget 2009-10.

In its June 17 edition, The Economic Times (ET) prominently announced the debut of the channel by carrying a masthead advertisement with the ET Now logo and the tagline, ‘Now the power of knowledge on your screens’.

ET Now runs soft launch
The newspaper masthead also carried quotes from senior industry people representing various businesses, illustrating the power and prestige they associate with the brand, ET. The people quoted include Peter Sands, chief executive officer, Standard Chartered; Lakshmi Mittal, chairman and chief executive officer, ArcelorMittal and Indra Nooyi, chairman and chief executive officer, Pepsico.

In addition, the news broken by ET Now a day before was carried as print stories in ET. Along with a few business stories, the business news channel aired an exclusive interview with the economist, Nouriel Roubini, as well.

Rahul Joshi, ET’s executive editor, will also head ET Now. As far as the content line-up is concerned, the morning band on the news channel begins at 7 am. The morning news will be followed by the second band, called Markets Now (9 am-4 pm). The afternoon band has been segregated into different segments, such as Opening Shots and Closing Shots.

ET Now also has in its kitty a programme called Garam Masala, focusing on commodities. Every Wednesday, it will have a show titled Brand Equity -- the namesake of the print edition’s supplement on advertising and marketing.

News on global business will be featured in ET Now’s flagship band (9 pm-10 pm). This segment will bring to viewers corporate and business news.

ET Now is the fourth English business news channel; the other players in this market are CNBC TV18, NDTV Profit and UTVi.

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