MUMBAI: With India being the country of honour at next month‘s television trade event Mipcom in Cannes, France, interest among the Indian television fraternity, whether it be content producers, distributors or channels, has risen substantially compared to last year.
The event, which takes place from 8-12 October, will have around 200 Indian delegates, twice the number that attended last year‘s market. There are eight exhibiting firms - Zee, Sony, Shemaroo, Sahara, Ficci (taken a pavillion), Venus, Star (part of the Fortune Star stand) and Suman Films.
Indiantelevision.com founder and CEO Anil Wanvari, who is also Reed Midem‘s representative in India, says that there is no better and more relevant platform than Mipcom and MipTV to show the world what Indian television has to offer.
"Currently, the global market is more aware of Indian cinema than it is about Indian television. Mipcom will increase awareness about Indian entertainment and television. People will find out what India has to offer and they will also get an idea of what they can expect from India in the future," says Wanvari.
"For Indian firms, the event offers opportunities to send their content abroad through licensing and syndication deals. There are also opportunities to find co-production partners," he says.
India Day
The first day of the market, 8 October, is India Day. Zee Group CMD Subhash Chandra, one of the doyens of Indian media, will deliver a keynote on the topic The Indian Market Explosion: What Does the Future Hold?.
UTV founder and CEO Ronnie Screwvala will deliver another keynote on Indian Media - A global Destination. Sony Entertainment Television India CEO Kunal Dasgupta will present a report containing details on the state of the Indian entertainment industry.
Meanwhile, global firms looking for opportunities to enter the Indian media landscape will find a session on Indian Content on the Move useful. It is being organised in partnership with The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci).
The session will gather players from the Indian and international media industries to discuss the various opportunities available to global businesses in the Indian film, TV, animation and gaming industries. The speakers are DQ Entertainment CMD and CEO Tapaas Chakravarti; Indiagames CEO Vishal Gondal, Bag Films and Media MD Anurradha Prasad, Ernst and Young partner business advisory services Ashok Rajgopal, Ocher Studio MD Soundarya Rajinikanth, and Hungama Mobile MD and CEO Neeraj Roy.
On 9 October, there will be a ‘Master Class‘ on The Format Business Inside Out. This will help Indian firms understand how they can export their content to different markets.
As part of Reed Midem‘s initiative in highlighting the business opportunities in this area, it is inviting Indian delegates to a specially dedicated Entertainment Master Class Session in which key players from within the industry will share their own experiences, exploring the tricks of the trade and the ropes of the business. They will further discuss how to pitch, sell and protect a format.
