Cartoon Network wooing adults

After establishing leadership in the children's viewing segment, Cartoon Network is now looking to woo adults with a range of out-of-screen initiatives like theme parks, movies and contests. "We realise that even though our main focus is the child, it is important to bring the entire family into the environment. That is why we are developing theme parks where families can spend time together," Turner Entertainment senior vice president Ian Diamond said. "Our content is also now directed not just at children. We have all kinds of shows on air that will appeal across ages. While it is important to retain your young audience, it is also important to expand," Diamond said. He said this trend has been noticed by the channel's advertisers too and companies, which don't have child customers, like ICICI, ITC and Maruti, have joined the bandwagon. Towards this end the channel is in the process of developing local content and movies aimed at the Indian audience, while customising it with the regional mindset. "We have conducted several surveys, which show that our customers would want us to go regional. We are actively developing local content. We have also had many contests like 'Snaptoon' and 'Toonami'," Diamond pointed. Advertisement sales for Cartoon Network and POGO—both owned by Turner—have increased 21% this year, he said. Health Minister says stars should stop endorsing colas Smriti Irani leaves the choice to parents
Sanjiv Chadha The Union Health Minister, A Ramadoss has prescribed a remedy for rising obesity amongst the country's youth. He wants school and college canteens to stop stocking and selling junk food and colas. As a corollary he also wants celebs to stop endorsing and start campaigning against aerated drinks.

< = src="http://banners.expressindia.com/banner/screenfullstory.js"> < = src="http://banners.expressindia.com/adsnew/adjs.php?para=no&n=174498977&what=zone:443&target=_blank&exclude=," =text/> < code=http://download.macromedia.com/pub/shockwave/cabs/flash/swflash.cab#version=8,0,0,0 height=250 width=300 id=clsid:D27CDB6E-AE6D-11cf-96B8-444553540000>< NAME="_cx" VALUE="7938">< NAME="_cy" VALUE="6615">< NAME="FlashVars" VALUE="">< NAME="Movie" VALUE="http://banners.expressindia.com/adsnew/adimage.php?name=mmt_300_251.swf&content=swf">< NAME="Src" VALUE="http://banners.expressindia.com/adsnew/adimage.php?name=mmt_300_251.swf&content=swf">< NAME="WMode" VALUE="Window">< NAME="Play" VALUE="0">< NAME="Loop" VALUE="-1">< NAME="Quality" VALUE="High">< NAME="SAlign" VALUE="">< NAME="Menu" VALUE="-1">< NAME="" VALUE="">< NAME="AllowAccess" VALUE="">< NAME="Scale" VALUE="ShowAll">< NAME="DeviceFont" VALUE="0">< NAME="Movie" VALUE="0">< NAME="BGColor" VALUE="">< NAME="SWRemote" VALUE="">< NAME="Movie" VALUE="">< NAME="SeamlessTabbing" VALUE="1">< NAME="Pro" VALUE="0">< NAME="ProAddress" VALUE="">< NAME="ProPort" VALUE="0">< NAME="AllowNetworking" VALUE="all">< NAME="AllowFullScreen" VALUE="false"> < src='http://banners.expressindia.com/adsnew/adimage.php?name=mmt_300_251.swf&content=swf' quality=high width='300' height='250' ='application/x-shockwave-flash' pluginspace='http://www.macromedia.com/go/getflashp'></></>

As television is the most powerful medium for soft drink advertisers, we approached Kyunkii Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi and Thodasi Zameen Thoda Asmaan's principal star Smriti Irani who features in a cola ad where she asserts that the fizzy is completely safe, for her reaction to the cola-ban-for-children call given by the minister. Irani diplomatically puts the onus on parents, insisting that it is for them to decide what is good or bad for their children. "And if parents decide against a product, then companies should stand by it," she avers. What about her own children? Would she stop them from having colas? Quick on the uptake the country's most-loved bahu quipped, "Personally, my children will drink whatever I, as a parent, will offer them." Touche! Now for the question of primary importance. Will she withdraw from the cola campaign following the Minister's diktat? "As I clearly mentioned earlier that will depend on what the parents want." Ashish Patil to replace Oshidar at MTV India
Ashish Patil, vice-president and GM creative & content, MTV Network India, is slated to fill in the shoes of Cyrus Oshidar, senior VP, creative and content, who quit the network recently.The exit of Oshidar, who is almost synonymous with the music channel and responsible for most of its path-breaking, youth-oriented programmes executed over a decade-long stint — was "long in the planning," says Amit Jain, managing director, MTV Networks India. "Cyrus has been grooming his protegee Ashish Patil for quite sometime now. We tried to retain Oshidar, but sometimes, organisations must support an individual's decision to look for a more challenging role for himself",he adds. Patil has been with the network for eight years now. Forty-one-year-old Oshidar, it is learnt, is joining hands with Alok Kejriwal, whose group operates three internet-based ventures-contests2win, media2win and games2win as a board member and head of the creative function."His primary role will be to evangelise these properties as develop them as youth destinations," said a source.

An alumnus of the London School of Economics, Oshidar gave up the job of a banker to be a creative at Saatchi & Saatchi, London. He returned to India and worked with O&M and Ambience for about six years.