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Sony presents UEFA Euro 2016 extravaganza

'Football Extraaa' will be hosted by Joe Morisson along with a host of panellists including football legend Robbie Fowler and India football team captain Sunil Chhetri. With football being a game of only a single break, the channel's 80 per cent of the ad inventory has already been sold out

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Sony presents UEFA Euro 2016 extravaganza

Sony presents UEFA Euro 2016 extravaganza

'Football Extraaa' will be hosted by Joe Morisson along with a host of panellists including football legend Robbie Fowler and India football team captain Sunil Chhetri. With football being a game of only a single break, the channel's 80 per cent of the ad inventory has already been sold out

BestMediaInfo Bureau | Mumbai | June 13, 2016

UEFA-EURO-2016

Sony sports cluster (a part of Sony Pictures Network India) announces, 'Football Extraaa', a live wraparound show around live matches of one of the biggest international football tournaments, UEFA Euro 2016, on the Indian television.

The show starts an hour before the match and then again it is shown half an hour after the match. The telecast on the Sony sports cluster channels and Sony Liv would be simultaneous and without any time lag.

UEFA Euro 2016 coverage is shown live and exclusive on Sony Six and Sony ESPN channels as well as SonyLIV.com at prime time slots of 5:30 pm, 8:30 pm and 11:30 pm, started from June 10, 2016, at 11:30 pm.

Prasana Krishnan Prasana Krishnan

Throwing some light on the inception of the 'Football Extraaa' show, Prasana Krishnan, EVP and Business Head, Sports Cluster, Sony Pictures Network India,  said, “For big events, it is a trend that one does some amount of pre and post programming so that a broader experience can be given. There will be sports analysts and players on the show to discuss the nitty gritty of the matches and the strategy used by the players to give a wholesome experience. Wraparound programming is an intrinsic part of the telecast for all the big events.”

It is for the first time UEFA Euro 2016 is shown on the Sony channels across its television and digital network. Before this in 2012, it was Neo Sports who got the rights of the telecast and prior to that it was ESPN Star sports in India.

Krishnan said that it is no different for India to have an eye for programming of shows like these, he said, “India has definitely developed an eye for such kind of programming. Such shows do two things. Firstly, for the core fans, it gives the larger holistic experience beyond just the live game. Secondly, it is an interesting tool for viewers who are not actually hard-core fans; they get a better understanding of what is going on in a match. Suppose one is not an active football fan and lands up at the game and just to watch the live game without any background or anything; then the full experience may not be enjoyable. However, the whole experience becomes enhanced if a studio analysis is done before and after the match.  It is something the fans always look forward to worldwide and India is no different.”

'Football Extraaa' is a pre-game, halftime and post-game wraparound show that promises to enhance the viewing experience of the audience for the Euro games. It will be hosted by Joe Morrison along with some of the biggest names in the soccer world like Robbie Fowler, Sunil Chhetri and more.

Talking about the ad inventories, Krishnan said, “Inventory wise we have sold out 80% of our ad slots. As it is obvious that the football inventory is always in a limited amount and the game has just started and we have sold out to that extent. Due to the excitement around it is quite high.”

The advertisers on the game show are same both on the Sony Liv and the channels. The ad inventory is sold mostly to the premium brand such as Gionee, LIC, Hero MotoCorp, Carlsberg, TVS Apache, Dell and Amul.

On the viewership expectation, Krisshan said, “We are a new territory as far as ratings are concerned as it is the first major football event since the BARC ratings have come into existence and I am quite optimistic about it. There is an unprecedented level of doubt around the prime time game. Pretty much your entire evening prime time is going to be available for quality football. I don't have a benchmark from the previous additions as BARC has not existed then.”

Also, commenting on the target audience, Krishnan said, “A product like Euro has a very strong urban connect mostly urban youth and the traditional football market is always very passionate about this. The product is more urban in rest of India and then there are traditional football markets like Goa, Kerala, Bengal and North-East etc.”

Not revealing the exact amount for the cost of production, he said, “It is not very significant because by and large the equipment cost is sunken in. It is mostly the talent cost and it is very difficult to specify that. It is a non-issue and gets covered in the larger broadcasting and holds minimum value in reporting viewership perspective.”

Info@BestMediaInfo.com

Info@BestMediaInfo.com

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