MUMBAI: New York-based millennial-targeted media brand Vice Media is all set to mark its presence in the Indian entertainment industry with Vice India on 2 April 2018.
Hosi Simon, the CEO of Vice Media Asia Pacific, announced the launch date in Mumbai on the third day of FICCI Frames 2018.
Vice Media has been around for 24 years. In June 2016, Vice Media and The Times Group collaborated for an ‘expansive partnership.’ The joint venture by Vice Media is done to bring its youth-focused content to many more territories, mixing local and international news, culture and lifestyle programming to young viewers across online, television and mobile. The content on Vice India will be an equal half split between local content and content from abroad.
The launch of Vice Media’s TV service ‘Viceland’ with the name ‘Vice Now’ in India as a pay channel is also a part of the joint venture.
Vice India will open up their offices in Mumbai and Delhi. Recently, Chanpreet Arora was appointed as the chief executive officer (CEO) of Vice India. Earlier, Vice India had appointed Pragya Tiwari as the editor-in-chief and Samira Kanwar as the head of video. Since then, Tiwari has left Vice India citing personal reasons and Kanwar has been designated as content head of the firm.
For India, according to Simon, the goal is to be a deeply local, relevant company.
Simon said that Vice would adopt a studio approach and the focus will be on the story, no matter from where and whomsoever it comes
The company will have a production hub that will create different kinds of content including long form, short form and documentaries.
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