MUMBAI: Raj Television Network forayed into the Karnataka market with music channel Raj Musix last week.
Newly appointed CEO Arvind Kumar is not too worried about Raj Musix being the third Kannada music channel in the state. Content in Raj Musix is aimed at the upwardly mobile Kannada youth in the age group of 12 to 24. The content would be primarily regional with 90 per cent of Kannada film music and 10 per cent of classical or Kannada pop music in the mornings and the evenings," he says.
The company has invested nearly Rs 40 million in setting up the channel and Kumar says the channel is optimistic of breaking even in three years The channel that has a strong support structure in the form of its parent company, plans to target youth oriented advertisers to invest in it.
Raj Musix had a soft launch three weeks ago and has now lined up promotional activities from this week. "We would be following a narrowcast and focused approach and our activities would be in tandem with advertisers and youth audiences,... asserts Kumar.
Bangalore based MQ Networks, a 360 degree media company, is providing the entire content and management to the channel.
Raj Musix plans to have VJ hosted shows, talk shows with musicians, artistes as also music talent shows and some slots for back to back music. As we are targeting the youth, we would be conducting music based events across the state and will host intercollegiate music competitions for active participation from the youth,... states Kumar.
Kumar says he does not consider the other players in the market as Raj Musix's competition. SS Music is no longer a Kannada music channel, it has many Tamil shows and 95 per cent of programming on the other music channel, U2 are based on request based shows. So we would be a true Kannada music channel," he points out.
Kumar believes that it is an apt time to start a regional channel as the music industry, which was stagnant for some years, has matured over the last two years. There is a vast difference between music in the last two years as compared to the past three decades. Kannada music has evolved in the new millennium with hip, peppy elements getting incorporated in it, and it is becoming popular among the youth....