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: general entertainment space will result in challenges galore and better content production. He adds, “There is no specific formula for a successful genre. Women are generally glued to soaps especially in the afternoon slots, the younger age groups of 15-20 stick to reality shows and comedy is popular among male members.”

Experts say the need of the hour is to gauge the potential of GECs in such a cluttered environment, leading us to the TV markets share numbers. According to Audience Measurement and Analytics Ltd. (aMap), among established players like Star, Zee, Sony, Sahara One and Star One, the market share of Star Plus was estimated at 10.7% in the second week of 2008 TG CS4+ with Zee and Sony coming in second and third at 7.2% and 2.4% respectively.

Among the new entrants, 9X was pegged at 1.3%, whereas both Zee Next and Bindass acquired a market share of 0.5%. With established players like Star Plus, Zee, Sony and Sahara already owning a sizeable portion of the market share, the new GECs are experimenting with novel methods of marketing to grab eyeballs. The key is to find a concept that ensures stickiness and most channels are using an encapsulated format to cover all mediums like television, radio, print, Internet and on-ground promotions to make viewers take notice. Channels like INX Media, NDTV Imagine, Bindass and Zee Next have launched extensive promotions and spent around 30% to 40% of their budget on marketing. INX Media managed to create curiosity with hoardings and teaser campaigns of ‘9 times more entertainment’, Zee Next used the ubiquitous dabbawalas Mumbai clad in purple (the channel’s trademark colour) and strategically placed air balloons in various parts of the city to advertise their channel. Anthony Pettifer, group director, brand and communications INX Media, says, “As a new player, we have positioned ourselves with leaders like Star, Zee and Sony. Our biggest marketing challenge was to create a brand from a weak standing. We have met that challenge by using conventional and unconventional methods. Instead of having our own TV platform, we managed to achieve 45% of the awareness through cricket when we bought the ground rights during the Indo-Pak cricket tournament.” Pettifer further adds that INX road blocked radio spots and used integrated brand messages to grab viewer attention.