PIX is all set to make the TV screens sweat this summer!

Sony Pix has been on an innovative spree and investing in creating and building various blocks. In a new initiative they are looking at beefing up their afternoon slots. Research indicates that they have been generating substantial eyeballs in the afternoon time slot. Pix has been investing aggressively in creating the Sunday block now to woo the college going youth with movies this summer. Adgully caught up with the man behind, who thought through this entire initiative, Amogh Dusad, Programming Head of Sony Pix.

 

Sony Pix is looking to engage with the youth this summer.  They have lined up a number of popular movies and blockbusters which the youth can watch and enjoy from the comfort of their homes. Pix says the best slot for this kind of viewing would be the afternoon slot. It’s only kids channel during the summer trying to woo the kids and mostly not much effort has been done by channels in the genre to reach out to the youth. Hence they plan to target the college going youth through the afternoon block. In an attempt to tap them during summer vacation they have launched an afternoon programming block with a mix of movies from various genres. The channel is also eyeing two movies back to back with limited ad breaks to ensure continuous content and viewer engagement for an extended duration. Presently the afternoon slot is ruled mostly by housewives and children so an attempt is being made to tap the youth too into this slot.

 

Two movies will be telecast back to back between 12 noon and 5.30 pm. Some of the movies  planned for telecast are, The Fast & The Furious, The Eye, Hitch, Just Go With It, Eat Pray Love, The Tourist and 1408, Rogue Assassin, Days Of Thunder and many more. These movies are basically targeted with the youth in mind.

 

Sony Pix already has a single break back to back movies slot. They are telecast on Friday night and Sunday afternoon.

The channel will not promote a strict time band movie genre combination. They do not have a dedicated time band for any single movie genre.

 

He also adds that this slot has an avid interest from advertisers. “It’s not about the loss in ads, it is more about the re-alignment of the adbreaks. We have been planning adbreaks for this segment separately so that a viewer gets about 30-40 minutes of continuous content to watch,” says Dusad.  20-25 % of commercial airtime will be reduced during the screenings for a better viewing experience.

 

Aggregated focus on a certain block i.e. the afternoon slot which is not found on other channels is targeted at the youth. “We spoke to a cross section of the advertisers and on the condition of anonymity they told us that this kind of initiative was not uncommon. It has been done by other channels in the past. However it depended on the titles they showcase and the marketing muscle being put to market that genre,” says Dusad .

 

Some markets also feel that is important to grow other genre rather than just prime time. Media experts are of the view that there is an opportunity to grow beyond the  prime time and in marketing other slots other than prime time. They are of the opinion that whether the movie will work or not depends mostly on titles. Genre and time band is less decisive when the availability of the viewer is confirmed to some extent.

 

Jury is out whether such an initiative or genre works or not. The way that movie channels are working these days as they are moving out of the traditional prime time slots and not limiting themselves to these slots. This is a great initiative if other genres are given the right push.

 

Sony Pix promises the viewers that the Summer of 2012 will not be like any other they may have experienced before. The raised fun quotient will bring incredible entertainment for its viewers.