Local content key for entertainment, decides Reliance Broadcast

RBNL's trial with English entertainment via Big CBS failed to click

Reliance Broadcast Network Ltd (RBNL), the company looking after Anil Ambani’s television, radio, outdoor, television production and events business, wishes to strengthen its core and focus on one or two areas, rather than spreading itself thin.

RBNL is putting all its eggs in the local content basket, after its experiment with English entertainment via Big CBS failed to click. Looking ahead, the company will focus its energies on developing the Big Magic brand. The TV channel has almost 60 per cent market share in the Hindi heartland (UP, Bihar and Jharkhand mainly) and chief executive officer Tarun Katial has his eyes set on taking it national.

This means the channel will not only see measures for penetrating new regions but a rejigging of content to appeal across the country. Efforts have already started in distribution, with the channel being available on DD Direct, the free direct to home service from public broadcaster Doordarshan. This ensures penetration into LC1 towns (population less than a million) and cities, and rural territories. In the urban sectors as well, RBNL is aggressively placing the channel on leading digital cable operators of the region. As the channel enters new territories, the team aims to ensure the content warrants stickiness with viewers.

For example, the channel has recently been added to the GTPL network in Gujarat; in preparation, Big Magic launched a show based out of Gujarat, which it feels will have appeal there. A similar strategy will be employed in other new markets, says Katial.

But won't that risk loosing the core audience in the Hindi heartland? Katial is prompt to point out that the viewers of Big Magic also consume a lot of national GEC content and thus having varied content is not a threat as far as thew core audience is concerned.

The channel will also see comedy or light entertainment content and plans to enter the space that is solely occupied by Multi Screen Media's Sab Tv currently. Being a non-cluttered space, Katial feels that the comedy/light entertainment  genre gives scope to Big Magic for growth and expansion. For this, he reveals that they are looking at non-fiction content and are even open to licensing an international format.

Katial also has his mind set on maximising the potential of RBNL's radio business (Big 92.7 FM) to aid the growth of the television business. RBNL will be using the platforms to cross promote properties more aggressively and will also look at synergising content on the two mediums. Plans are already on and one of the radio jockeys, Nilesh Sharma may have his own television show pretty soon.

With the dissolution of the joint venture between RBNL and American commercial broadcast network CBS, the former is now left with two channels – Big RTL Thrill and BIG Magic. Under the RBNL CBS joint venture, the company operated three channels – Big CBS Love, Big CBS Prime and Big CBS Spark. While the former was available in English and aired shows like Sex and the City and Excused aimed at the urban woman, the other two aired English content aimed at the urban male and youth respectively in dual audio feeds of English and Hindi. The channels were launched in 2011 and went off air in a phased manner in 2013.

Katial explains, “Both Reliance and CBS did this (the JV) in good earnest and expect success out of it. The way the media environment and the macro level has turned out, we see more future and growth in local original content rather than international content. Audience for international content have moved to digital rather than to linear television. I think the long term scope for any broadcast company lies in channels where they own IP and content and have mass local connect.”  

He concedes that there are players in the English general entertainment space that have managed to sail through. “I think everyone has their own business strategy. I firmly believe that as you enter new businesses, you also decide which are the ones you need to exit. Running a business is not about just launching new product lines, but its also about understanding which are the most profitable out of the lot and accordingly allocate mind space, bandwidth, financial resources and management time to,” he adds.

In the latter half of 2013, RBNL went for delisting from the stock exchange. For the September quarter in 2013, the television business reported a loss of Rs 16.97 crore. The company's reported losses to the tune of Rs 18.69 crore on a consolidated basis.