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BANGALORE:
After acquiring a controlling stake in Malayalam TV network
Asianet late last year, former telecom czar Rajeev Chandrasekhar
is gearing up to launch his first channel in mid-June.
The
Kannada general entertainment channel will be titled Asianet
Suvarna and is set for launch between 10-15 June, industry
sources say.
The
channel will cater to not only the state of Karnataka but
also a concentrated pocket of audiences in the United States.
The
regional space has been attracting a large number of players. Last year, Zee started
their Zee Kannada channel while Star is planning to expand from its current Tamil
operations to other languages with Balaji Telefilms as a 49 per cent partner.
TV9
is also considering entering the Telugu and Kannada entertainment
space, as is the incumbent chief minister Kumaraswamy’s
wife with Kannada Kasturi. Suddenly from only three players
(DD, Sun through their Kannada bouquet and ETV), the Kannada
TV space is set to explode with a host of new launches.
After selling out telecom major BPL, Chandrasekhar acquired a 51 per cent in Asianet
through his Jupiter Entertainment Venture for around Rs 1-1.5 billion.
Asianet
is a bouquet of regional channels catering to the Malayalam
speaking audience. The company claims to enjoy over 46 per
cent of Kerala’s market share, with three channels in
Asianet, Asianet Plus and Asianet News. Asianet Global FM
in Dubai is equipped with a GECL license and will soon launch
a replication of regional FM radio in Kannur and Trichur.
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