TOI: Its a tie so far-IPV vs TV shows

SO FAR A TIE! 

The game is getting more and more entertaining on the tube as IPL 4 and soaps are locked in the TRP battle 



Navya Malini 


The pitch has been prepared.While the T20 format offers fully loaded entertainment,general entertainment channels (GECs) are doing their best to grab their share of viewership.After following the last three seasons of IPL,GECs have devised new strategies to garner the requisite number of eyeballs.As a result the viewer is pampered for choice this summer.
Wondering who managed to score brownie points in the rat race A close look at market statistics tells us that in IPL 3 the first match between Team Kolkata and Team Hyderabad got a TVR of 6.95 percent.In IPL 4 the first match between Team Kolkata and Team Chennai got TVR of 7.77,which shows that the IPL fever has gripped India.
This,however does not affect the GECs motto to get going.Anupam Vasudev,executive vice president,marketing and communications,of a leading GEC,says,The existence of any competition between cricket and GEC show doesnt hold true.As far as the viewership is concerned,past data clearly shows that even during IPL there was an increase in our channels viewership by 10 per cent. 
Producer Asit Modi feels,There is no doubt that television serials offer drama.But the drama that IPL offers outpaces any tearjerker.A huge chunk of our target audience gets hooked to cricket and loyalty s h i f t s f ro m shows to cricket. 
E ve n d u r i n g the World Cup 2011,m a ny n ew shows were launched.We launched three new shows for the weekend slot during WC.It seems unlikely that our viewers would enjoy our shows any less over the weekends even when countered by the IPL, says Anupam.
The match between Team Kolkata and Team Kochi,registered 5.01 percent TVR thereby leaving behind the daily Sasural Genda Phool which garnered a TVR of 3.72.
When Team Mumbai played Team Chennai,the cricket tempo managed to keep the viewer more entertained as it got a TVR of 6.70 percent TVR wherein IPL managed to pip shows like Yeh Rishta Kya Kehlata Hai(4.68),Pratigya (4.24) and Saathiya S a a t h N i b h a n a (4.21).
At the same time,the star power too has its own brand equity,cant be ruled out.As on the same day when Team Kolkata played Team Bangalore,the show received a rating of 3.32.This clearly shows that MS Dhoni and Sachin Tendulkar ride high on the popularity bandwagon.At the same time,repeat telecast of popular shows too seems to be enabling even the more loyal telly viewer to be a part of the IPL.And according to industry sources,there will be competition in the days to come but it does not deter the GECs.

Despite IPL 4,new prime time shows have been launched on GECs.Ahmedabad Times explores... 



Shruti Jambhekar 


In the battle for the remote,no one knows who will win especially when the visual offering is impressive.At a time when viewership loyalties are divided between the frenzy that is whipped up by IPL 4 or the interesting platter of new shows on general entertainment channels (GECs) the obvious question that comes to mind is has IPL lost some of its sheen Unlike the previous seasons where GECs trod carefully and either introduced twist in the storyline of their prime time shows to wean away audiences from IPL,or waited to launch their shows until IPL got over,this year,GECs witnessed launch of shows like N a v y a,SuryaThe Super Cop,Beendh Banunga Ghodi Chadhunga,Chhoti Si Zindagi barely weeks before IPL 4 and during IPL 4Dance Ke Superstars,Sasural Simar Ka,Aap Ki Kachehri.Is IPL 4 less of a threat for GECs Or is it cricket over-dose post World Cup Actor-producer JD Majethia,whose show Chhoti Si Zindagi launched four days prior to IPL 4,says,Now television audiences get back to the show they prefer watchingit is just on the days of some important league matches that they might drift towards an IPL match.Otherwise,post World Cup and the shuffle that has happened in the IPL teamsthe interest in IPL seemed to have waned. His Bhale Bhi Hum Burey Bhi Hum had to be wrapped up during IPL 2 (as its launch collided with IPL 2).
Some producers are of the opinion that GECs audience remain faithful to their shows,IPL or not.Rashmi Sharma,producer of Sasural Simar Ka,says,GECs audience and cricket audience are two different entities.Within few matches,TRPs are affected but overall,the GEC audience is loyal.If the content of a particular soap is good,the audience will continue watching the show.In our soap,we are confident that the story telling is so interesting that audience will love it. Producer Sidhharth Tewary of Navya chips in,Both IPL and GECs have their niche audience.If a daily soap or any TV show fails to make its mark,it is because of its own content based reasonsIPL telecast has got nothing to do with a shows success or failure. He adds on,I launched Agle Janam Mohe Bitiya Hi Kijo during IPL and it was a successful stint. 
Even channel professionals have the same say about their confidence on the content.Ashish Golwalkar,non-fiction content head for a leading GEC says,Overall,TRPs do get affected slightly due to cricket broadcast.But,if youre looking at a worked formula on TV that spells success,you dont have to worry much. 
In the game of numbers all that matters are eyeballs.So while the final verdict is not out yet,at least for now looks like our daily soaps are TRP-trippers in their own right.Did someone say IPL 4 
shruti.jambhekar@ 
timesgroup.com