GECs set to grow by 15-20% this festive season

The general entertainment channel (GEC) genre is expected to witness a 15-20% growth this festive season compared to the same period last year if a third Covid wave does not come as a disruptor, experts say.

In 2020, after the initial havoc created by the Covid pandemic, the festive period came as a breather for both advertisers and channels.

Just like last year, this year also the economies have opened up and Covid cases have dipped in the second half.

Pair this with the vaccination drives picking up pace and marquee shows available on TV channels, advertising on GECs is set to recover.

According to BARC India, ad volumes on GECs have seen a 74% increase in May 2021 compared to last year.

In the backdrop of these trends, top media planners are optimistic that the GEC space will recover in the festive period.

Uday Mohan

“As of now, Covid cases are low, and so there is a lot of positivity for the festive season. While the IPL and T20 World Cup do give advertisers an additional option this time, the high entry cost in these formats should benefit the GECs and their growth should be around 15-20% as compared to last year’s festive season, especially with multiple high-impact properties such as KBC, Big Picture, Bigg Boss, Dance+, Sa Re Ga Ma Pa lined up,” said Uday Mohan, President & Head, North & West India, Havas Media. 

Mimi Deb

According to Mimi Deb, SVP, Zenith, there is a positive sentiment overall and ad rates are expected to go up to 25% depending on the category.

Deb said that compared to last year’s festive period, there is a 30% recovery in the genre.

Shekhar Banerjee

Shekhar Banerjee, Chief Client Officer & Head, West, Wavemaker India said GECs are the base component for all TV advertisers who are operating at scale. Roughly 48% of TV adex comes from consumer packaged goods (CPG) and going with the trend, festive or no festive, CPG will continue to invest more, he said.

Advertisers, however, do have more choices this year with IPL and the T20 World Cup. Asked if these events could affect the ad response on the genre, Banerjee said, “Advertisers can deploy additional spends on cricket and still get more than the desired impact and balance the efficiency with the right mix of video inventory on digital.”

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