Turner to launch world movie channel in India

Turner International India, a Time Warner company, is likely to launch a world movie channel for the Indian audience.

Sources said that the channel would be an alternative movie channel to HBO, the English movie channel of the company.

If sources are to be believed, the new channel would be on the lines of Times Classic Movies-owned by Turner-which features classic films from the 1920s to 1980s. When contacted, a company spokesperson said, "We do not comment on speculation."

The entertainment company has plans to increase its foothold in the India market. In December 2007, it formed a joint venture with Miditech to launch a Hindi entertainment channel to begin with.

Under the joint venture, it will roll out other language and genre channels in the country. In addition, Turner also holds 29 per cent stake in Miditech which continues to function as a separate production house.

The Turner-Miditech joint venture headed by Sunil Lulla, former CEO, Times Now, is yet to be named. An announcement on its association with Miditech and plans going forward is expected soon.

Currently, the company operates Cartoon Network, Pogo, HBO, CNN through its tie-up with Network 18 in India.