Television has always been a competitive sector but in the past six months the competition has reached an unprecedented level. For the first time in ages there is no clear leader in the general entertainment sector.
Zee enjoyed the first mover advantage in the 90s. But Star Plus wrested the leadership from Zee in mid-2000 and later Sony stepped in and sent Zee to the third spot. Star Plus ruled the roost in the GEC space for close to eight years. But a slew of new channels like Colors and NDTV Imagine launched over the last two years and changed the number game.
It all started in April this year when Colors toppled Star Plus from the numero uno position with 24 per cent share against 21.9 of the former. Some 10 weeks later, Zee bounced back as the number one player with 21.2 per cent share. Since then it's been a virtual weekly war between Star Plus, Colors and Zee for the number one crown. The yo-yo syndrome of one channel up one week and down the following has given rise to the current scenario.
While competition and fragmentation with as many as eight channels trying to outdo the other is an obvious explanation for the yo-yo syndrome, Channel bosses who are hard-pressed to deliver better result are putting a brave face. Says Star's senior creative head Anupama Mandloi, "When you have so many channels fighting for audience's attention impermanency had to set in." Echoing the sentiment, Colors' head of programming Ashvini Yardi adds, "This is clearly a case of lack of loyalty to any particular channel."
A cursory look at prime time viewership pattern reveals that the top three channels have at least three shows in their kitty which deliver 4-plus ratings. Balika Vadhu, Uttaran and Laado are rocking for Colors, Choti Bahu, Pavitra Rishta, Agle Janam and Aap Ki Antara are Zee's star performers while Bidaai, Yeh Rishta and Sab Ki Laadli Bebo are delivering numbers for Star Plus. What's more, all of them have successful weekend non-fiction shows as well. Lack of enough differentiation among the channels is also responsible for the lack of a distinct leader.
— A.L.C
Cricket
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Anupamaa
