CHannel [V]: From music to musicians

Apart from music, properties such as Panga, Goddess, Crush and Popstars 2 add that much-needed depth and variety to its overall programming

When your core offering (read music) is common to most other channels in your genre, it is allied programming reflected in innovative concepts, formats, elements and features that strike you apart from the rest. For CHannel , this is precisely what gets it going, and, after Popstars 1, which saw the launch of the first all-girl band in the country last year, there has been no looking back for the channel.

"The entire process of Popstars 1 from the auditions to the on-air telecast took place between January and June last year," says Keertan Adyanthaya, vice-president, content and communication, CHannel . "We achieved a channel share of 0.3 (15-34, SEC ABC, six metros) in January-February last year and the graph has been going upwards since then. We picked up a channel share of about 0.5-0.6 in April this year and subsequently we touched 0.7 in early July, that is, in week 27."

The channel has reason to smile because the second edition of Popstars too has augured well for the channel. "The promise made last year to present four young talented people was translated into reality with VIVA. So the challenge this year was to do something different. Hence, the idea of a mixed band consisting of two boys and two girls."

The on-air telecast of Popstars 2 began on June 15 and will be on for 17 weeks, that is, till early October. The channel has plans to launch the mixed band by the end of August, though Adyanthaya refuses to put a date to it. "The two boys and two girls have been selected and I won't break the suspense," he says.

The channel has also launched a couple of shows and interstitials on the back of Popstars 2 and is gearing to introduce Freedom Express on August 15 this year. "Movie Number 1 was introduced last month where we identify one big movie per month and support it in every possible way, while Cool Stop, a 4-5 minute interstitial looks at the latest trends in fashion, style, happening places et al."

Taking a cue from sister channel STAR Plus, CHannel has been using the platform provided by Popstars 2 to migrate audiences to other programmes. "Last year, most of our energies were focused on Popstars 1 with the result that rest of the content on the channel suffered. We did make amends subsequently, but this year, we ensured that the entire team wasn't working on Popstars 2, creating content concurrent to our prized property."

Shows launched post Popstars 1 were Panga, Freedom Express, Jammin and Goddess - each one different from the other. "Panga is about taking on a challenge while Freedom Express is a once-in-a-year phenomenon happening at Independence Day where a couple of veejays set off to different parts of the country and mingle and interact with the people there. Jammin is a unique idea of making two Indipop artistes jam with each other while Goddess provides an opportunity for the audiences to get to know female stars better, at the same time, presenting the women on various shows including Crush, which is a romantic show as well as Hotline where they play the role of a conventional veejay handling requests from the audience."

Apart from allied programming, a mix of Hindi and English music with interesting promos and fillers combine to make the CHannel product. "Different day parts cater to different audiences," says Adyanthaya. "Mornings are targeted at housewives. Hence the music is Hindi, which is popular in taste including film as well as Indipop numbers.

Afternoons are devoted to the kids who are back from school or college hence the skew is towards the latest Hindi film or Indipop music. In the evenings, there is a wider audience tuning in hence the music is international while late nights are devoted to international rock, hip hop, R&B with shows such as Smash Hits and Juice."

However, with the music space a tad too crowded and gasping for breath, it is to be seen how competition reacts to CHannel 's surge. © 2003 agencyfaqs!