As per the TRAI mandate, broadcasters have to offer a new tariff/pricing regime for the consumers and this has come into effect from December 29, 2018. The channels are expected to be implemented the same across the value chain latest by February 1, 2019. The power of choice will now be in the hands of the consumers who will have the liberty to choose the channels they prefer watching and pay only for what they want to watch.
Keeping in mind, ZEE network has designed new pricing for their channels. The network was the first to roll out the multiple customer-centric packs, designed at multiple levels focusing on age group and languages.
It has been noted by the team at Zee that content in the mother tongue is usually the primary destination for TV viewing across India. Catering to this need, the team has kept the regional language in the forefront for their new set of offerings where packs have been designed for their channels across 11 languages - Hindi, Urdu, Marathi, Bengali, Oriya, Bhojpuri, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Malayalam, and English.
After understanding the consumption pattern, Zee has decided to offer three types of packs catering to differentiated needs. Prime packs based on core regional language consumption, Family Packs that offer the top genres for every household and All-in-One Packs that offer all genres at a great value. The ‘Zee Family Pack’ is targeted for the Hindi Speaking Market (HSM) and has been priced at Rs. 45 per month for 24 channels, which includes Zee TV, &TV, Zee Cinema, &Pictures, Zee Bollywood, Zee News, Zee Anmol, Big Ganga, Zing, LF and many others, thereby delivering channels from multiple genres keeping the entertainment aspect in mind..
We are very happy and Zee has been a thought leader. We have been working with them and had announced the channel pricing and packs. At Zee, we believe its a truly transformative structural reform and that's because we give the power of choice in the hands of the consumers. Along with this, the new guidelines bring uniform pricing and transparency, that was not available before. Everybody from the audience and industry people can raise questions and clarify their queries. I believe this move by TRAI is absolutely fabulous.
This will be done at two levels - one at product/channel level, which is our strength and then there are the packs, which include channels the cater to all age groups in a family. This is an important aspect of our offering, where we are trying to deliver the needs of everyday entertainment for everyone, at an affordable price range. We are offering 24 top channels which matter to the family from every category be it GEC, Music, Movies etc., that add significant value in daily consumption.
One of the great objectives of this move is to come together as a community, especially with the DTH and cable operators. What will matter here is the understanding of consumption, which these operators can discuss with the broadcasters for the ecosystem to grow and benefit everyone. It aligns the objectives across the value chain, thereby offering the best on an individual level.
Our shows have been preferred by the audience and it shows in the TRP ratings every week. Our shows on top channels have helped us design a demand-led choice in the packs. We are sure the bouquet we have designed will be asked by the consumers keeping their favourites and need in mind, thereby differentiate it at an individual level. We will also be watching the consumption pattern thoroughly on a regular basis, in order to develop and design the offerings. We will highly welcome the feedback loop that drives in making it better for everyone.
Ratings are a reflection of what you are watching. What I believe that there was transparency on one side, where it was being watched. However, there was no clear understanding of the subscription side, and this guideline will help us (broadcasters) overcome this need. It will be wonderful to have the data and analytics from both the ends, that will help us understand the purchase and choice pattern.
Broadcasters always had to keep the programming as an important factor, to balance their advertising revenues. Every content creator has always had the eye on the ball about what is working and what's not. Having said this, I believe that with these guidelines in place, the marketing game of every channel will see a change, as we will have to ask the consumers to buy the packs in order to watch the channel and the shows they prefer. We all will have to focus on channel brand building and purchase choice, pack-value communication, and most importantly subscription marketing.
With a total of 59 channels (43 SD & 16 HD) in 11 languages, the channel has been reaching out to a total of 148 million households every day, thereby making a mark consistently. Some of ZEE’s most popular faces like Angoori Bhabhi (&TV), Radhika of Mazhya Navryachi Baayko (Zee Marathi), anchor Hemali Mohite (Zee 24 Taas) and Chef Ajay Chopra (LF) also came together to show their support and urge everyone to subscribe to the Zee bouquet of channels.
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