Sony’s content arm StudioNEXT steps up production

StudioNEXT, the content creation arm of Sony Pictures Networks, said it is ramping up production for television and digital platforms to offer six web shows and an equal number of reality TV shows during the next 12 months. So far, Sony’s independent unit has produced content for Sony’s TV and digital platforms, but in the future the studio will offer shows to other platforms as well.

“The covid-19 pandemic delayed our plans by about six to nine months because we couldn’t shoot at all. We did, however, use the time to write and develop shows and you will definitely see more content coming out of our stable and more collaborations with companies and production houses, ”said Indranil Chakraborty, StudioNEXT director at Mint.

StudioNEXT is known to co-produce shows like Kaun Banega Crorepati and 1992 Scam – The Harshad Mehta Story, and has just released the Indian version of the reality TV series Shark aquarium. However, he has 2003 Scam: The Telgi Story, the second installment of the Swindle franchise, Ashwini Iyer Tiwari’s Farud, The whistler and two more web series in preparation.

Chakraborty said the company does not invest in programming itself but works on a commission basis and therefore seeks to grow through collaborations like the one with Applause Entertainment which co-produces the Swindle franchise. Applause is a company of the Aditya Birla group.

Shark Tank India, adapted from an American reality TV series, which shows entrepreneurs giving business presentations to a panel of five investors or sharks, who decide to invest in their businesses, has entered into various sponsorship deals with the technology company of points upGrad, e-commerce site Flipkart and automaker KIA Motors for Sony Entertainment Television. Streaming service SonyLIV has upGrad, Acko General Insurance, Black Dog Drinking Soda, Cashfree Payments, Flipkart, and Dell Technologies in different partnership roles.

Roopam Garg, CEO of media agency dentu X India, said the show, which is likely to strike a chord with young people, has managed to secure at least a few big sponsors and will certainly attract more as it goes. as the season progresses while opportunities for integration into the program can help increase income.

Next year, StudioNEXT’s plan is to watch web shows in Hindi, Tamil, and Malayalam, and over time, to venture into Bengali and Marathi as well. Media experts point out that broadcasters such as Sony or Viacom18, which also produces web shows through its new Tipping Point branch, are well on their way to seizing opportunities in the content creation industry.

“This is a step in the right direction. Networks need to develop large-scale production capabilities. It will help gain an audience against multiple cohorts,” Garg said, calling content king in almost all forms of communication. .

While KBC and Scam 1992 are testament to the company’s capabilities and skills, there must be a lot more of these successes and they should happen at a higher frequency, he said. “Ongoing consumer research will be needed to develop content that resonates with the aspirations of rapidly changing consumers. The content must take into account the multimedia screen through which it is consumed and who consumes it. In-house production will help increase the pace of content and keep costs under control, ”he added. OltNews