Reliance-backed Viacom18 has appointed Kiran Mani as the chief executive officer (CEO) of its digital business, informed sources have told FE. Mani was previously with Google, where he was the general manager and MD for Android and Google Play for the Asia Pacific region.
Viacom18 declined to comment when contacted. However, sources in the know said Mani will be responsible for driving JioCinema, Viacom18’s digital platform, which has disrupted the market with its free streaming strategy.
Shankar, who was appointed to the board of Viacom18 in April this year and has also invested in the company through Bodhi Tree Systems, which has a nearly 16% stake in the firm, has been putting a crack team of top executives in place over the last few months, to drive Viacom18’s entertainment and media business.
The team includes Kevin Vaz, who took over as CEO of the TV business at Viacom18, in July, after stepping down as Disney Star’s head of network entertainment channels in April. Among executives who came in earlier are Anil Jayaraj, who joined Viacom18 as CEO of the sports business in September 2021. He moved from Disney Star, where he was executive vice president for ad sales, global syndication and cross-screen design and measurement.
However, Mani’s role will be in focus, say informed sources, as Viacom18 has been positioning JioCinema as a go-to medium for entertainment. At the just-concluded APOS Convention, organised by Media Partners Asia, in Bali, Indonesia this week, Shankar made a strong case for JioCinema, saying that it could be an alternative to television.
“We think the time is right in India to create an alternative through an app. Anyone who is willing to consume content is our customer and we have to simply innovate ways to reach them and create value,” he said.
Viacom18 has also been picking up the digital rights of top sporting properties such as the Indian Premier League (IPL), the Women’s Premier League (WPL), and most recently, the television and digital rights for the Indian cricket team’s international and domestic matches at home in a bid to strengthen its content.
Parallelly, the company has been building its library of entertainment shows, tying up with Warner Bros Discovery Inc in April, followed by NBC Universal Media in May. Hindi entertainment is fronted by reality shows such as Bigg Boss OTT and Khatron Ke Khiladi on JioCinema, apart from tie-ups with Indian studios for Hindi and regional-language films.
The company has also introduced a paywall for English entertainment as part of its move to selectively monetise content.