Zee shows fail to star
By Pradeep Rane | 06 Apr 2002
The show featured Shah Rukh Khan, a popular Hindi actor, and in
our view was well produced. Given this we expected a better
ranking, says a disenchanted Zee official.
The reason for Zees poor ratings can perhaps be found in one senior media buyers comment at a recent meeting: Zee is not currently a popular hangout, and even good shows can go unnoticed. It will take a lot more than a few good shows to woo the viewers attracted to Star [the popular hangout].
The
second episode of the same show was aired last week, and was
punctuated with the first live telecast of an online lottery draw.
TRP ratings for the next few episodes will serve as a referendum
for the new show, as well as for Zees attempts to leverage the
expected popularity of online lottery.
In our view, the draw certainly lacks visual appeal, but the
argument goes that those who bet will have to watch. Zee
used its ad time during the show extensively to promote
programming changes and new shows on the network, says an
analyst. Overall, Star strengthened its No 1 position in the
latest week. And in the recent times, Sony has been making gains
at the expense of Zee, widening the chasm further.
It is often argued that the credibility of TRPs has taken a beating, and therefore the rankings do not matter much. But CEOs of top media-buying agencies suggest the viewership data continues to be the key underlying currency for media-buying decisions, and poor ratings directly translate into lower ad revenues.
The Zee management is trying to get back its lost viewers. And with not a single show in the top 50, things can only improve for Zee.
