Fastest fingers rake in millions

Infotainment

Fastest fingers rake in millions

SMS-ing for television shows boost viewer participation and revenue for channels

Somashukla Sinha Walunjkar

In an era when interactivity is the key, SMS-ing has emerged as a mode of creating a link between audiences and television channels. What started off as an experiment has turned out to be a potential moneyspinning vehicle for content providers, service providers et al. A quick look at the numbers is an eye-opener: KBC II received over 13 crore responses through SMSes, Sony's Indian Idol, got 5.5 crore SMSes and Fame Gurukul received 5 crore, Zee TV's Sa Re Ga Ma Challenge 2005 claims to have got 10 crore SMS-es. It's a well-known fact now that reality television spells big money: if it is assumed that Sony made just Re 1 for every SMS it received for Indian Idol, that would mean a gain of Rs 5.5 crore, if Star's share in the SMS for KBC II was Rs 1 per SMS, the channel, was richer by Rs 13 crore. No wonder then that channels prefer to ignore contestants openly buying SIM cards and distributing among well-wishers, cluster-voting and even power roting (when SMS-es can be sent every three seconds from the same number after being linked to a PC). In simple words: a sizeable chunk of money is at stake for channels for every SMS sent in. Globally SMS-es/interactivity contributes to 80% revenue of a channel, while in India, SMS-es contribute only to 20%-30% of the channels revenue.

"Channels need to be careful about introducing public voting. SMS-ing is an important means of creating real time link between the audience and the contestant. In an industry which garners Rs 12,000 crore a year we still haven't tapped the real worth of SMS-es as a revenue model. But this is a sure way of figuring out what the audience wants more than TVRs do. Judges can't guarantee the success of a show, interactivity is vital and that's where SMS-ing figures. There have been instances when people have objected to Debojit winning Sa Re Ga Ma Challenge or Qazi Touqueer winning Fame Gurukul — if regional voting helps them win, what can you do about it? Anyway losers always crib," chips in Ashish Kaul, VP, Zee TV.

While a regular SMS costs just 50 paise, contest SMS-es could set you back by Rs 3-Rs 6 per SMS depending on the arrangement between the channel hosting the show and the mobile operator. If a channel has tied up exclusively with a mobile operator for a particular show, it would get 50% of the revenue generated through SMSes sent by viewers. If the channel allows voting through several mobile operators, the operators keep most of the revenues.

Kaushal Modi, head, Licensing and Telephony, Sony, elaborates: "SMS-es have replaced competition postcards and gives the audience a sense of immediacy. There are 120 million mobile subscribers as opposed to 60 million satellite homes, so the power of SMS is more. SMS-es help build consumer loyalty for a show. But, we monitor cluster voting and power roting of SMSes. In our new show, Bigg Boss where 13 celebrities will be locked together in a house, it will be tough to influence outsiders, so there will be complete transparency of voting."

Satya Raghavan, VP (marketing & communications, Star India explains: "Today the viewer has many more easier ways to interact. Viewers express their views and participate in a show through these methods of interactivity. All the methods of interactivity are invaluable for the timely feedback. Whenever we use SMS as a means of interaction, there is also a revenue share which the mobile/telephony operator gives us."

Considering channels gain so much from interactivity,it's imperative to start closely monitoring cluster SMS-es from same numbers/regions to avoid controversies. If celebrities are exposed for rigging SMS votes as Manav Gohil-Shweta Kawatra were, there's a lot to lose besides self-respect, like audience support which is vital for interactive shows!