MUMBAI: Ananda Bazar
Patrika's presence in the
television entertainment
space will end on 7
November as Sananda TV
shuts down 15 months after
launch.
The Kolkata-based media
group, which had launched
the Bengali general
entertainment channel on 25
July last year, could not
make an impact in a market
dominated by Star Jalsha,
Zee Bangla and ETV Bangla.
"Bengal is a tough market
to operate in. Even though a
lot of channels have
launched, the market
continues to be dominated
by these three players. It's
a unique market as it is only
the city of Kolkata which
contributes bulk of the
viewers and ad revenue. The
creative talent in Kolkata
unlike a city like Mumbai is
also limited," said the
business head of a rival
network on condition of
anonymity.
"This is to inform all the
MSOs, Distributors, and the
General public at large that
the 'Sananda TV' channel
shall no longer be available
through any medium
whatsoever with effect
from 07/11/2012. We state
with deep regrets that we
are being constrained to
terminate the broadcasting
of the channel due to
various business
exigencies," a notice from
Goldvision Entertainment
read.
Leading direct-to-home
operator Tata Sky also
issued a notice saying the
same. "Please note 'Sananda
TV' will cease to be on our
DTH platform from 7
November 2012 as the
channel is being shut down
by its broadcaster. Please
note that the intimation has
only been provided by the
channel provider to Tata
Sky on 18 October 2012."
When contacted, Sananda TV
CEO Madhumita
Chattopadhyay refused to
talk about the development,
"At this point, we would not
like to make any comment,"
Chattopadhyay said.
Sananda TV drew its name
from ABP's women
magazine Sananda and was
targeted towards modern-
day women. ABP had hoped
to draw synergy from its
women magazine for the
GEC channel.
On 19 September, a
Kolkata-based company
NVD Solar had announced in
its website that it was
acquiring the channel from
ABP Group. However what
happened post the
announcement is still a
mystery. The company,
which is engaged in the
manufacture of renewable
energy products, had even
announced that the channel
would be renamed NVD
Sananda TV.
Queried about the NVD
Solar deal, Chattopadhyay
clarified that no sale took
place and the channel is still
with ABP.
Sananda TV had launched
several fiction shows
including big ticket ones
like Naayika produced by
Raj Chakraborty and Jabab
Kinte Chai, the quiz show
produced by Big Synergy.
The quiz show was inspired
by the British game show
Sell Me the Answer.
However, it failed to get
ratings and ABP decided it
couldn't provide long-term
financial support. The
decision also comes at a
time when ABP has to pay
for buying out Star India's
26 per cent stake in Media
Content and
Communications Services
(MCCS) that runs a slew of
regional-language news
channels.
ABP also has to protect its
turf in the flagship print
business. The Times of India
Group has launched a
Bengali newspaper, forcing
ABP to come out with a
tabloid named Ebela. The
tabloid is priced at Rs 2.
Sananda TV is the second
high-profile Bengali GEC to
shut down after Mahuaa
Bangla.
According to Deloitte, GECs
dominate the West Bengal
TV market with Bengali and
Hindi GECs commanding a
viewership share of almost
50 per cent. A typical GEC
requires as much as six
hours of fresh software
every day with films being
one of the key content
sources that fill the feed
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