Colors, the general entertainment channel from Viacom18, has come out all guns blazing, mopping up close to 259 GRPs within seven months of launch. Within striking distance of Star Plus, the current leader in the general entertainment channel (GEC) space, Colors is making an aggressive pitch of its arsenal of seven new shows expected to go on air in the next fiscal. And through this pitch, it is hoping to lock-in annual deals with advertisers. The channel is also doing its first show with Balaji Telefilms. Arcopol Chaudhuri spoke to Rajesh Kamat, CEO, Colors and Ashvini Yardi, programming head, Colors, to find out more. Excerpts:

How are you pitching these shows?
Rajesh: This is the first time where we're pitching shows that will launch up to 12 months ahead, at one go. So far, we've nibbled away bits and pieces which were left. Now we'll do our first annual deal. Till now, (for advertisers) reach was achieved with Star Plus. We are pitching our reach now. We have about 200 advertisers and the GEC space can accommodate about 275-300. I still have the potential to add the remaining ones. The TV advertising scene is looking okay, I think. Otherwise we wouldn't commit this kind of money. If all goes well, in the next couple of months, we should lock-in all the advertisers.
With regards to advertisers in the television space, the economic downturn is currently a sentiment. What's happened now is that TV advertisers have started holding back. There are 300 advertisers, and each of them has a specific financial year. A few of them just jump in, because the year is coming to a close, and they need to spend the remaining monies. In the coming months of April-May, the IPL and not the economic slowdown will be a worry, but one will be able to average out with the election ad spends. So at every point, there is hope.

What kind of deals are advertisers looking for?
Rajesh: We spoke to some of the biggest advertisers in the marketplace and figured out that a piecemeal approach works, but only up to a certain point. They know that we are doing good, but they still need a certain comfort level — that can be achieved by doing an annual deal. So we decided, why don't we put all our cards on the table and then ask them to lock. When we launched, we had a one year plan, but a lot of things changed as the year went along. So we decided, let's not just panic and keep reacting. Do I need to launch an afternoon slot, because it's in fashion? Not really. We will do it when the time is right. We'll do it in a very structured, phased manner. And what's worked, will come back. But it doesn't mean we'll cut-paste the same thing.

What have you learnt in the last seven months? Any dos and don'ts that you'd be keeping in mind henceforth?
Rajesh: Every day we learn something new. We started off on our basic premise of differentiation and disruption. And we stuck to it. The difference between each channel is clearly in fiction programming. But we did learn in terms of specific treatment of shows and formats. Say, a show like Ek Hasina Ek Khiladi. Very novel, and it worked very well. But our learning from that — take on shows which only you can handle.
Ashvini: We had both, cricketers and celebrities on that show. What we ended up doing was that we changed the format so much to accommodate the time and schedules of the show's participants, that in the end, people ended up getting confused about what the show really stood for. With soaps, we learnt that it is very important to stick to the basic storyline and the message of the show; what happens usually is that soaps tend to run into many episodes and hence start at one point, and end up at another. Since viewers watch it every day, they identify it because of a particular character, and when you change that, they don't like it.

Zee's Chhoti Bahu is doing very well in the 7:30 pm slot. Do you find competition for a certain slot advancing a bit?
Rajesh: Our dream is to go back to the 12-14 TVRs. The fight for the top slot is between 8 pm and 9 pm — 8 pm on Colors versus 9 pm on Star Plus. And it's not that others have suffered and gone out of the race.
Ashvini: It's just about having a good show, anywhere. Earlier, when TV started, there was this thing about starting a 10 pm slot for news. But then things advanced, there was this thing about 10-11 pm slots delivering the highest ratings. In fact, if we would tell our producers that their shows are going to air at 7:30 pm, they would come to our office and cry all day.

But would it be fair to expect 4-5 TVRs instead in the coming days? There's Real (a GEC from the Turner stable) coming up, with grand plans...
Rajesh: See, fragmentation is bound to happen, and the only exit barrier is the remote. We're trying to propagate the second television home concept (smiles). And if you don't keep infusing fresh content, you'll never be able to sustain. The famous cliché, content is king, is a given. And now, distribution is God, because the pipeline is also choking. I think the same worldly wise words are still applicable. If you're playing at a 280 GRP (gross rating point) level and that goes to 290 GRP or falls to 260, then it's a psychological war. It's not something that dramatically impacts your position. Because you're not playing at cost per thousand. Technically, your base has gone up. So you're playing on a cost per rating point. If you really are playing that game, then as an advertiser you have to pay the broadcaster on a cost per thousand — which does not happen.

You've acquired a few blockbuster movies that include Jaane Tu Ya Jaane Na and Ghajini. Are you expecting better returns, considering that satellite rights have come down?
Rajesh: We've got the movies for the first airing. We'll syndicate them later on. I think the returns are substantial when you go for the first airing. As a 250-280 GRP platform, monetising the first airing is not going to be difficult. Also, advertisers buy as a package. Our offering is balanced. For a show like Balika Vadhu, profitability goes through the roof. But for a non-fiction show, it goes down a bit. Few of them are lost leaders. Movies and events get you that spike in money. Today, at seven months old, we're at a point where we'd evaluate total costs and total revenue.

Arcopol Chaudhuri/ DNA-Daily News & Analysis Source: 3D Syndication