Shuchi Bansal In New Delhi

Stories by Shuchi Bansal In New Delhi

Addicted to the internet?

Addicted to the internet?

Rediff.com   25 May 2009

The 2009 survey, that covers the gadgets that people use on a daily basis, showed that dependence on the Net has grown. Two years ago, only 9 per cent of the respondents said they cannot survive without the internet. In 2009, the figure has jumped five-fold to 44 per cent. Email is the currency of communications and online search is crucial to the internet experience. There's a three-fold increase in people who said they can't do without gaming sites.

Business battles on the news-stands

Business battles on the news-stands

Rediff.com   15 May 2009

The facsimile edition of The Wall Street Journal and the Indian edition of Forbes, the magazine famous for its global billionaires' list, will be launched next week. A look at what to expect.

KBC crosses the floor to Sony

KBC crosses the floor to Sony

Rediff.com   5 Feb 2009

Channel also acquires rights to Slumdog Millionnaire.

It's advantage broadcasters in the television war

It's advantage broadcasters in the television war

Rediff.com   20 Jan 2009

The TDSAT scrapping the Trai's judgement on channel pricing is a major victory for broadcasters, but could also see consumer prices moving up.

IFC shareholder rebels against Raghav Bahl

IFC shareholder rebels against Raghav Bahl

Rediff.com   17 Jan 2009

The dispute involves a UK-based hedge fund, Altima Partners, and the company's principal promoter Raghav Bahl, founder and largest shareholder of Network18, the broadcasting group which runs TV channels such as CNBC-TV18, Colors and Awaaz.

Print media cos rationalise costs, job cuts afoot

Print media cos rationalise costs, job cuts afoot

Rediff.com   12 Dec 2008

The move has surprised the print media industry which is reeling under recession with most newspaper publishers having put their expansion plans on hold.

Bhaskar in advanced talks for INX stakes

Bhaskar in advanced talks for INX stakes

Rediff.com   4 Dec 2008

D B Corp, the owner of the Hindi daily Dainik Bhaskar, is in advanced discussions with broadcaster INX Media to acquire a stake in the company that operates the entertainment channels as well as a majority stake in its English language news channel NewsX. Both companies are promoted by Indrani and Peter Mukerjea, the former Star India CEO.

Sakaal's plan for national footprint loses steam

Sakaal's plan for national footprint loses steam

Rediff.com   2 Dec 2008

Sakaal Times is in the news for the wrong reasons. The paper has shut down its Delhi office leaving a little over 60 people jobless.

Wall Street Journal to launch fax edition in India

Wall Street Journal to launch fax edition in India

Rediff.com   15 Nov 2008

Rupert Murdoch's international financial daily The Wall Street Journal, published by Dow Jones & Company, is all set to launch its facsimile edition in India next month. The newspaper, to be launched in Mumbai, is likely to be priced at Rs 30 a copy.

News channels tighten belts

News channels tighten belts

Rediff.com   5 Nov 2008

The business model is going through a reality check; expansion plans on hold and manpower rationalisation is on the cards. Checking expenditure is critical now as advertising is already on a downswing, though CEOs insist that the real impact will be felt in the next quarter. On condition of anonymity, an advertising sales executive admits to a 15 to 20 per cent decline in news channel advertising.

'Media growth lies in the distribution-end'

'Media growth lies in the distribution-end'

Rediff.com   24 Oct 2008

An interview with BMR partners and media specialists Nitin Atroley and Vivek Gupta

Dainik Bhaskar IPO under threat

Dainik Bhaskar IPO under threat

Rediff.com   23 Sep 2008

The challenge has been thrown by Mahesh Prasad Agarwal, brother of the late Dwarka Prasad Agarwal, who claims he owns 30 per cent in Dwarka Prasad Agarwal & Brothers, the company that holds the Dainik Bhaskar title. His son, Sanjay, says, "If D B Corp does not fully own the Dainik Bhaskar title, how can it use the brand name to raise money?" However, D B Corp executives claimed there was no dispute over the title as it had been settled by the Supreme Court order of July 2003.

Television channels eye new income streams

Television channels eye new income streams

Rediff.com   27 Aug 2008

With advertising a little less robust than last year and television ad rates not showing any sign of climbing up, thanks to viewership fragmentation and increased competition, the Hindi general entertainment channels are tapping non-advertising revenue streams to shore up incomes. This includes content-repurposing, overseas subscription, and licensing and merchandising.

Let's get digital

Let's get digital

Rediff.com   26 Jul 2008

The proposals to get cable operators to offer digital signals aren't going to work unless the government mandates CAS-systems across the country.

What's in a name in radio biz? Plenty

What's in a name in radio biz? Plenty

Rediff.com   3 Jun 2008

The one with the curious name is the runaway leader, setting benchmarks in programming, standardisation and localisation. It doesn't hurt to be part of a formidable family.

Branded chains swamp mobile retail market

Branded chains swamp mobile retail market

Rediff.com   26 May 2008

Clearly, the mobile handset market is buzzing with new branded retail chains such as Reliance and Aditya Birla Group entering the fray and the existing chains expanding their foorprint. Take Pantaloon Retail's JV with Axiom of Dubai, for instance. The company is re-branding its standalone retail chain Mport to Axiom stores, which is among the largest telecom products chain in West Asia.

Star India mulls print media foray

Star India mulls print media foray

Rediff.com   28 Apr 2008

STAR India, a wholly owned subsidiary of STAR Hong Kong, is exploring the possibilities of getting into the print media business in India. Last week, top STAR executives including STAR Hong Kong CEO Paul Aiello, STAR India CEO Uday Shankar and COO Jagdish Kumar were in Bangalore for meetings with possible joint venture partners for the print foray. The company is said to be in talks with Vijay Mallya's UB Group.

Changing trends of TV viewership

Changing trends of TV viewership

Rediff.com   11 Apr 2008

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India floated a consultation paper on playing an active role in monitoring the Indian television viewership. TAM Media Research is the sole player in the monitoring market for the last 10 years. TAM's CEO L V Krishnan says govt should start regulating all types of rating outputs like daily newspaper polls done via SMS or even TV polls during elections and not just TV TRPs. TAM is often criticised for its poor sample size, TRP system, etc.

Newsprint price spiral spells bad news for media

Newsprint price spiral spells bad news for media

Rediff.com   10 Apr 2008

The bad news for newspaper publishers -- and there are over 40,000 newspapers in India -- has just grown worse. The price of newsprint, imported or indigenous, is set to touch $1,000 per tonne, and this after a 23 per cent increase over the previous four months that took prices to $760 a tonne in March. Factor in the April jump and newsprint prices, which typically account for 50 to 60 per cent of production costs, have risen over 60 per cent over the last six months.

Publicis, Solutions in digital marketing pact

Publicis, Solutions in digital marketing pact

Rediff.com   28 Mar 2008

International digital marketing company Digitas has partnered with Solutions to enter the digital marketing sector in India. Digitas is owned by global advertising major Publicis Groupe. The new entity will be called Solutions Digitas. Digital marketing was not just online marketing and India is an upcoming market for digital marketing. Digitas will also introduce Prodigious digital production that manages the technology end of digital marketing for clients such as GM & P&G.