Head of International Business – B4U, Ashok Shenoy, talks to M-Link about the media conglomerate’s journey to success by seamlessly aligning itself to new digital realities.
Tell us about B4U and the journey so far?
Our strong programming strategy focusing on Bollywood music, movies and entertainment, allows us to maintain a formidable position in Asian broadcasting, in addition to building sustainable business in an extremely saturated and competitive market. In 2012-13, B4U launched two channels in the MENA
region: B4U Plus and B4U Aflam. Targeting Arabic viewers with a dedicated feed dubbed and subtitled in Arabic, B4U Aflam’s success was clearly indicated even in the first few months of the launch with ratings hitting highs close to competitors. It is one of the fastest growing channel in terms of viewership/ratings. B4U Plus is a hybrid channel targeting South Asians living in the MENA region, with
current Bollywood films, music and entertainment.
What has been your most significant achievement?
Our most notable achievement is our presence on prestigious platforms across the globe within a short span of time. These include Sky, Virgin, Dish, DSTV, Multi-choice, OSN, DU, E-Vision to name a few, within a couple of years of launching. Furthermore, we have received global recognition and awards for our programming. Another significant achievement to mention here is the successful launching
a Bollywood Arabic channel in a crowded space of FTA MENA market. It required a lot of research. We successfully identified the market and, since the launch, have been ranked in the top three preferred channels amongst Arabs. We are the first Asian channel to migrate our playout system to the cloud port,
which is a new futuristic technology that allows us to save significant infrastructure costs and gives the
flexibility of tailoring content regionally.
What in your opinion is most challenging as far as B4U’s operations are concerned?
The most challenging was launching B4U Aflam and understanding the psyche of the Arab audience. We had to create a product taking into consideration the sensitivities and cultural habits of the Arab audience. There was a teething process to ensure practices were correct, for example understanding whether viewers preferred dubbing or subtitles. To overcome hurdles, we ran a number of focus groups to understand the Arab population and were able to identify our target viewer.
In the digital era, how do traditional or electronic media giants such as your organisation align itself with new realities?
It has been important for us to adapt to and evolve with the technological changes and new digital realties. Recognising a new form of viewership which is mobile, we have taken measures to ensure that our channel is available to watch on the go – via a live feed on various digital platforms and also by putting up catch-up content on YouTube. Similarly, we have developed a strong social media following that has enabled us to connect directly with our audience, this has been a more instant, engaging and measurable way of understanding how our channel is being received. To further align ourselves with the digital changes, we plan to launch an Over-the-top app with movie content, live streaming and on demand content.
What does the future hold for B4U?
As mentioned we will soon be launching our digital platforms to monetise and exploit our content. B4U will also be creating its own content through its various divisions in production and theatrical distribution.
