 "ZEEL forays into Thailand")
After the successful launch of itsIndonesia operations in January this year, Indian media conglomerate Zee Entertainment Enterprise Limited (ZEEL), entered the Thailandmarket with the launch of a new channel, Zee Nung. The channel is a24/7 Bollywood channel dubbed in Thai, customized and packaged forthe local audience airing Bollywood blockbuster movies targeting thepay-TV subscriber base in Thailand.
Zee Nung will be launched in Thailand in partnership with Cable Thai Holding (CTH, a Thai cable network)and will be available on Channel 77 in their movie pack. It will havea robust programming line-up with segments such as Kings ofBollywood, Queens of Bollywood, Love Stories, Friday Blockbusters andWeekend Family movies. It will showcase Bollywood movies across alleras and genres including romance, comedy, action and drama, thusproviding Thai viewers the opportunity to watch their favourite starslike Shahrukh Khan, Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan, Priyanka Chopra,Deepika Padukone, Ranbir Kapoor, Kareena Kapoor and Katrina Kaif.
The network recently announced thelaunch of its general entertainment channel Zindagi in India whichwill showcase content sourced from Pakistan. On the occasion, thenetwork's MD and CEO Punit Goenka had revealed that the Thailand andVietnam are the next destinations on the global map for ZEEL.
He had also revealed that theinternational expansion is part of the network's strategy to combatthe dipping international subscription numbers. "In the last fewyears, international (subscription revenues) have either been flat ordipped. That is basically because its dying population. The third andfourth generation Indian does not connect with the kind of contentproduced in India. Until we see that there is a critical mas outthere for which you can create content specifically, one would notmake that kind of high investment. So, our expansion strategy isdifferent to combat the international growth," Goenka said.
The Asia Pacific region is one of thefocused and fastest growing regions for ZEEL. It currently has Zee TVAPAC (Hindi channel), Zee Variasi (Malay channel), Zee Bioskop(Bahasa Indonesia channel) and Veria Living (English channel) asdedicated feeds, with offices in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Jakarta,Sydney, Guangzhou, Mumbai and now in Bangkok. Subhash Chandra, chairman, ZeeEntertainment Enterprises Ltd. (ZEEL) said, "Thailand and Indiashare deep-rooted cultural and social traditions, which is reflectedin many aspects of Thai culture including architecture, art, drama,dance and literature. Our entry into this market reflects ourcommitment to build a strong bond with Thailand, thereby embracingour corporate philosophy of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam. Thailand is agrowing market with close to 30 per cent penetration of pay channelsand hence falls in our priority for expansion."
Sharing more details on ZEEL's launchin Thailand, Sushruta Samanta, business head - Asia Pacific, ZeeEntertainment Enterprises Ltd. (ZEEL) said, "We believe that the APAC pay-TV market displays a tremendous potential for growth. Ourresearch has revealed that Thais have a high positive perceptiontowards Bollywood with growing awareness of this industry due to thelarge number of Bollywood films being shot in the country. Thais alsoshow affinity for Bollywood dance numbers, with language not provinga barrier to enjoyment. ZEEL boasts of a huge Bollywood library whichwill boost our efforts to entertain Thai viewers in a consistent andcompelling way. We thank CTH for partnering with us and believing inour product. I am sure Zee Nung will reach new heights and capturethe hearts of all Thai movie lovers." Speaking about the channel, VaishaliKasturia, country head-Thailand said, "We want to reach out topeople who want to experience contemporary, imaginative andhigh-quality entertaining films. Zee Nung (Nung means movies in Thai)is specially created, designed and packaged to suit the Thai palate. I am confident that Zee Nung will truly live up to its tagline ofBollywood Nai Thai (Bollywood in Thai) by offering Bollywoodblockbusters localized in the Thai language. With the setting up ofour local team in Bangkok, we stand committed to making Zee Nung abig success in this market."