Internet In India At A Growth Path

All internet loves must thanks comScore Networks on releasing the survey result which claims that the India has emerged as the fastest growing country of Internet users, surpassing the growth rates in the US, China, Japan. However, India is not there in the top 10 countries in terms of average monthly hours online per unique visitor.

comScore Networks also reports that India ranked eighth in terms of number of internet users as of January 2007. The US has the largest internet population of 153 million followed by China ( 86.8 million), Japan (53.6 million), Germany (32 million) and the UK (30 million) in the top five. The growth in the internet penetration can also be attributed to the fact that India grew at 33 per cent, while the world average was 10 per cent. I believe that the Indian Internet market is still at nascent stage and we hardly have any Internet success story. Indian Internet space needs a few Indian internet brands. I believe that its not enough to have just rediff, Indiatimes, and naukri. In current business scenario the Indian Internet market one needs a path breaking indigenous idea, two a local idea with global standard execution, three experimentation with local content. In current market scenario I can only see that the market is mushroomed with too many me-too ventures. I believe that Indian market is yet not explored well and needs experimentation.

No wonder VC firms from Silicon Valley now focusing on India and several Indian companies as part of their portfolio. The global VC films like Sequoia India, Helion, Matrix Partners, Norwest Venture Partners, Canaan Partners, NEA IndoUS Venture Fund , and KPCB in last few years have funded various Indian internet ventures. The internet companies which got vc funding are Guruji, Travelguru, MingleBox, ApnaLoan, Shaadi, Komli, MakeMyTrip, seventymm, Yatra, Sulekha, bharatmatrimony, cleartrip, naukri to name a few. A close look on these internet venture tells yet another story. These internet ventures can be classified into lifestyle, travel, or existing, prominent portals. All these internet ventures with low internet population are managing the revenue is a commendable task. A close look on these entire ventures also indicates that they are playing in the field which is closely linked to corporate world. Naukri is a job board; Travelguru, MakeMyTrip, Yatra are travel portals with focus on corporate or office goers.

Emergence of Multiplex in India

In 1979, world’s first multiplex ‘Eaton Center’ in Toronto, Canada was opened for the general public. The Eaton Center has 18-screen movie theater complex. Eaton’s movie centers, which were a craze during the 1980s and 1990s, faded slowly and closed finally in March 2001.

In 1997 PVR established, first multiplex in India – PVR Anupam at Saket, New Delhi. The PVR Anupam changed the Indian movie exhibition landscape. Movie exhibition till mid nineties was dominated by Cinema halls – the traditionally single screen halls. Cinema halls witnessed a surge of customers mostly during the festive season and on weekends. The emergence of multiplexes changed the movie exhibition business in India. Today, all eyes in the entertainment industry have turned towards multiplexes, as they generate a larger share of revenue though they accommodate less number of seats per theater.

The emergence of new multiplexes has reduced the audience for traditional cinemas, thereby prompting some of them to transform themselves into multiplexes. The multiplex business is not only prompting traditional cinema theater owners to convert their property into multiplex but in recent times has also attracted many international players to venture into the business. No wonder the multiplex business is so lucrative that foreign entertainment giants like Time Warner, South Korean multiplex operator Megabox, and Australia’s Hoyts are in talks with real estate developers such as the DLF group, the Raheja Group and Sobha Developers to set up chains of multiplexes across the country. We should not forget that roughly a dozen Indian players have entered in the business in small or big way.

New players are trying to enter this sector and the existing players are busy expanding their horizons. In recent times the multiplex has gone beyond the metros to redefine entertainment in Tier 1 and Tier 2 cities like Lucknow, Indore, Nasik, Aurangabad, Kanpur, Amritsar. The good news for most of the movie exhibitors is that at present roughly 70 percent of the total box office collections in the country come from non metros.

These multiplex has multiple screen movie theater complex which also offers lifestyle shopping. It offers brand new experience of watching movies. Today multiplex are considered not just a part of the entertainment, it is an opportunity for family outing which include movies, shopping, eating out, gaming parlors, buying books, buying groceries, etc. Most of the multiplexes malls in India have common structure, which I believe is structure of the ideal multiplex. Ideal multiplex malls have a four to five floors with various leisure and recreation options for customers. The top floor has multiplex and rest of the floors offer facilities like shopping, eating out, gaming parlors, book shops, groceries, etc. The structure of the multiplex mall explores the consumer psychology, where customers who come with the intention of watching a movie are made to pass all the floors in the shopping mall. It increases the possibility of their making some impulsive purchases. I don’t know about other but I end up buying something every time I go to watch movies. Moreover, the multiplexes do not allow outside food and beverages into the movie theaters which offer them opportunities to sale of their own products at a premium.

The decade old Indian multiplex industry has definitely changed the movie exhibition industry in India. The multiplex industry, in India, is still in an early growth stage, and is way behind the size and scale reached in the developed countries.

The Raj Television Network Plans a Print Foray

The south Indian state Tamil Nadu has around 30 regional language newspapers, including heavyweights such as Dinakaran, Dinamalar and the Daily Thanthi. Dinakaran, owned by the Sun TV group, is the market leader, with a total daily circulation of around one million copies during January-June, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations. In such a cluttered market the Raj Television Network is planning a print foray – Sun TV groups are you listening.

The Raj Television Network was started in 1994 to provide wholesome entertainment for the entire family. The group has programmes targeted at young and old, male and female alike. The Network with unique set of programs has positioned itself as The People's Channel. The Raj Television Network, like other Indian media companies is looking forward to expand their portfolio and emerge as the complete media house. The Raj Television Network once has a print presence would help in terms of selling advertisements across television and newspapers.

Raj Television Network Ltd plans to enter the print media and is open to acquiring a Tamil newspaper. The company is evaluating options on its print entry as certain players operating in the regional space have approached it to sell their business. Moreover, the company plans to raise INR 50 to 100 crore from private equity firms to build a studio, office complex for its film production business.

Reliance Big Entertainment Acquires Majority Stake in Willow

The company in news is Willow.TV. It is the world’s leading portal for live Internet streaming of all Cricket events worldwide, and has been providing live streaming video of every major cricket series since 2003. It is a paid site with a subscriber base of over a million registered users, primarily in the US, Canada, Australia and Europe. It provides subscribers with an unparalleled viewing experience with enhancements such as live interactive scorecards and high bandwidth video streams as well as mobile and IM offerings

Willow.TV, last year, streamed all major cricket events live, including the iconic Indian Premier League, as well as all Australian, South African and English international matches. The Willow.TV gain maximum visibility in India when it telecasted the Indian Premier League.

Reliance Big Entertainment, which is on buying spree, has acquired a majority stake in the US-based cricket webcasting portal - Willow TV. According to report The Anil Ambani company will invest Rs 300 crore in the portal over the next two years. The amount also includes the acquisition price of the portal.

Reliance Big Entertainment has been aggressively strengthening its position in the entertainment and media space and has been building value across the value chain. The acquisition will strengthen the presence of Reliance Big Entertainment in new media.