UTV launches digital media arm

Mumbai, May 26 (IANS) UTV Monday announced the launch of its digital media arm, which would include mobile, online and Internet Protocol Television (IPTV), under the brand name of UTV New Media.

The company has acquired a controlling stake of 76 percent amounting to Rs.150 million in IT Nation, India's leading online infomediary that focuses on technology markets, covering enterprises, technology resellers and general consumers.

The company plans to invest around Rs.1.2 billion over the next two years to create a combination of Internet space with a portfolio of 10 portals targeted at specific need groups.

The digital music space has been replenished with a library of 20,000 music titles of Bollywood and regional movies, including Punjabi, Tamil and Telugu.

This particular digital space was launched Monday with the music of "Jodhaa Akbar" to be followed by forthcoming Akshay Kumar starrer "Singh is King."

"Our intention is to create digital assets such as images, music, ring tones and videos for these catalogues," T.N. Prabhu, CEO of UTV New Media, told IANS.

He explained that the objective of UTV New Media is to create a digital entity covering the domains of business, finance and entertainment.

Plans are also afoot for arrangements with 65 mobile operators around the world to distribute the mobile content.

"Today's youth is looking beyond the two conventional screens-television and celluloid-at the personal computer and the mobile handset. The latter are the platforms where the new generation is spending most of its leisure time, necessitating a variety of interactive solutions, with customized content and pricing for consumers," Prabhu added.

According to him, the mobile subscriber base in India has witnessed explosive growth of over 90 percent in the last five years to reach nearly 234 million subscribers in 2007.

UTV New Media's Internet space consists a portfolio of 10 websites across business with UTVi, technology with Channeltimes.com, CXOtoday.com, enterpriser.in and techtree.com.

UTV believes the synergy will complement its existing web portfolio of entertainment comprising UTV Motion Pictures, Bindass, Bindass Movies, World Movies and UTV Movies.

In the online business space, UTV New Media launched utvi.com, the business website for UTV's English business news channel.

The focus of this site is interactivity through blogs, which are by invitation. Readers can interact with the editor through the blog.

"The site is beyond stock market news and focuses on other areas such as lifestyle since the sites like the channel targets the young executives of corporate world," Prabhu said.

UTV also created a new channel called 'the techtreee on UTVi' through its synergy with the IT Nation's consumer site 'techtree.' It is an English business channel, covering consumer gadget portfolio guide and featuring the latest gadgets, games, websites and downloads.

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Singh is Kinng