How Sony PIX earned its Hollywood mojo
It is the undisputed leader in the primetime slot in the English movie genre with 23.6% share in the first quarter. The channel worked hard to 'establish its Hollywood credentials'. And it ranked No. 1 in social media engagement
Sarmistha Neogy | Mumbai | July 17, 2014
Sony PIX, the English movie channel from Multi Screen Media (MSM), started this fiscal year with a bang. The channel followed a successful formula which has helped it to achieve the top position for six weeks out of 13 weeks of the first quarter, but also made it the undisputed leader in the primetime slot in 10 weeks out of 13 weeks in 1mn+ markets among the TG CS 15+ AB, making it the undisputed leader in the English movie genre.
Saurabh Yagnik, Executive VP & Business Head, Sony PIX and AXN, said, “When one and a half years ago we took stock of things at Sony PIX, we found that the viewers remember a particular movie being shown on television, but they fail to associate it with the channel. We realised that we were going wrong in certain areas and there was an immediate need to change the perception and instil in the minds of the people that when it comes to Hollywood movie viewing, it is Sony PIX that is always at the top.”
“It was not an easy job to make your way up when there is so much of competition. So, first we took note of the problems, we realised that appointment viewing is inherently less in a movie channel compared with a general entertainment channel. We also understood that there is no strong content association with any particular channel and every channel is speaking the same language. In a space which is ruled by eight to nine players, the same movie moves from one channel to the other. If one year Channel A gets the licensing right for a particular movie, the following year it goes to Channel B. To overcome all these problems, we decided to do three things: invest in content, build perception, and innovate to break clutter,” Yagnik said.
Content management
Yagnik explained that deciding the content of a channel requires a lot of study. “We have a library of 250-300 movies and there is a science which goes in deciding what to air, and when. From historical data we decide which movies will work and which won't. What is the optimum repeat ratio, and if a new movie is to be premiered what is the reason for it? Based on these filters and many other scientific parameters, we finalise the channel's content. In order to retain freshness to the content, we make sure there is an adequate resting time between the titles on our channel.”
The channel spent a huge amount on marketing in 'Mega Premieres' like Men in Black 3, The Amazing Spider-Man, The Hobbit, Skyfall and others. 'Premiere Pixathon' was also introduced, and four back-to-back premieres were shown, the first time ever in this category. 360 degree campaigns were launched and the result was phenomenal. Three out of the top five premieres of 2013 belonged to PIX.
PIX worked hard to 'establish the Hollywood credentials' and created a strong connect with the stars. This saw Hollywood actors coming forward and telling viewers to watch a particular movie exclusively on PIX. Next in line was the 'PIX Premiere Nights' where the channel ties up with studios for the theatrical release of the film. It includes engagement initiatives such as contests where viewers have to give correct answers to the quiz questions shown during the film. The winners get to enjoy the movie at an exclusive preview across 11 cities, one day before its big release in India.
Creating viewer connect
In spite of the good reviews and ratings, the channel realised that it was still missing out on an essential thing. There was a huge disconnect between viewership and the properties shown on PIX. There was an immediate need for people to associate good Hollywood movies with PIX. To solve this problem, the channel created unique properties like HandPIX, PIXdouble, PIXipedia and PIXathon. This helped the channel to get not only get good ratings, but also create differentiation in the category.
The channel will soon be launching its 'Money Can't Buy Premiums' where viewers stand a chance to own the T-shirt worn by Tom Hanks in the Oscar nominated drama 'Captain Phillips' which premieres on the channel on July 27. And also very soon up for grabs will be a blood-stained shirt and tie worn by Jamie Foxx in 'White House Down'. All these activities have successfully increased the engagement level with the viewers. The channel's latest offering is the High-Definition service which provides an enhanced viewing experience.
Social Media strategy
“We treat our Facebook page as content in itself and believe in creating continuous engagement and not occasional bursts of activities. Our Facebook page has more than 2 million fans and a lot of planning goes behind the activities on these social media activities. The social media content strategy is based on innovation and differentiation with each day being dedicated to something which the target audiences like. This has resulted in Sony PIX achieving a breakthrough and leading the category with the highest Facebook engagement rate at 11-13 per cent on an average for the last six months,” informed Yagnik.
Sony PIX's Facebook page has also relaunched 'Notty Pixy Breaking News'. Here, Notty Pixy, a female character especially created for Sony Pix's Facebook page, provides the audience with the latest happenings in Hollywood. She also brings in the 'First Day First Show' which gives the Facebook fans an opportunity to catch the first-day-first-show of the latest Hollywood theatricals.
And it worked…
The result has been phenomenal and it reflected in the ratings. Yagnik proudly said, “Yes, we have managed to change the attitude and create a space in the minds of the viewers. Even though it is a long process, we have kick-started on a very high note.”
According to TAM data, for the period April 14 to June 14, 2014, Star Movies led the market share chart with 19.8%, followed by Sony PIX with 19.3%, Movies Now with 14.8%, HBO with 14.4%, and Warner Brothers at 12.6%. In the primetime period, Sony PIX was the undisputed leader with a market share of 23.6%, followed by Star Movies at 17.90%.
The channel ranked No. 1 in social media engagement with 11.7%, followed by Movies Now (4.5%), Star Movies (3.7%) and HBO (1.1%).
The Time Spent per Viewer (TSV) on Sony PIX in the last three quarters has gradually risen. The TSV for the October to December 2013 quarter was 26 minutes; in January to March 2014 it was 28 minutes, and the final quarter (April to June 2014) saw the figure surge to 31 minutes.
On being asked what next, Yagnik said, “Our next big task would be to chalk out plans on how to increase the consumption of English movie content in India. Secondly, being a part of the English movie genre, we deal with affluent audiences, and very soon television will not be the only medium. We need to catch up with new services like 'Anywhere TV' and other new means of consumption which will be evolving in the future. And finally, strengthen our association with the studios.”
Till then, happy viewing if you are a Hollywood buff.