The development of CNN-IBN’s pre-launch period is somewhere as interesting as the unmatched success they have achieved since their launch on December 17 2005.
It was sometime in April 2006, before Pervez Musharraf arrived in India that Rajdeep Sardesai, the then Managing Editor of NDTV put his papers before Prannoy Roy, hinting that he sought a “new challenge”. Post his tenure with NDTV, he joined hands with the TV18 network to realize their aspirations of floating a “General News” channel in India. Having brought some of his former NDTV colleagues like Sameer Manchanda on board, the dream inched closer to reality.
The first seeds of CNN-IBN were sown when TV18 and the three professionals – Rajdeep Sardesai, Sameer Manchanda and Haresh Chawla entered into a joint venture agreement with TV18, with the ratio of stakes being 74:26. This joint venture proposal is identified as Global Broadcasting Network (GBN) and is a part of the TV18 group.
The Big Co-branding Deal
After identifying themselves as GBN, the group decided to name its upcoming English channel as IBN or India Broadcast News. Towards the fag end of October 2005, IBN stitched up a historic deal with the TIME Warner Group’s news network CNN (Cable News Network).
The deal enabled iBN to in for co-branding with the American news broadcaster on the lines of the CNBC-TV18 channel. The deal also stated that iBN will have access to CNN’s global content and presence. There were also royalty terms agreed upon mutually by both parties for the Indian venture to use the American News brand – CNN. It was also agreed upon that CNN will not have any equity stake or editorial control in the proposed English news channel, mainly to facilitate easy regulatory clearances.
This coming after the Government of India announcing stringent media norms to regulate TV content and ensure that foreign media companies do not hold beyond 26% stake in the news channels based and uplinking from India. It was also rumoured that CNN was flirting with other Indian broadcasters like NDTV by striking a local deal that could mark its entry in the growing news market in India.
Reacting to the co-branding deal, IBN’s Editor-in-Chief Rajdeep Sardesai in an interview to USP-Age in June 2006 said that “CNN is a huge news brand across the world and we both benefit from the association. And, for them to have decided to tie up with us was a tremendous boost for us. But it also gives CNN a chance to experience the Indian news ethos. They do not interfere. We do news our way but at the same time, we benefit from CNN by using their material as and when we want.”
However, Jay Khambatta, Regional Marketing Director of the TV18 Group in Mumbai clearly states that according to the terms of the deal, the question of an identity crisis does not arise as the Indian channel has been bestowed with full editorial autonomy.
It was sometime in April 2006, before Pervez Musharraf arrived in India that Rajdeep Sardesai, the then Managing Editor of NDTV put his papers before Prannoy Roy, hinting that he sought a “new challenge”. Post his tenure with NDTV, he joined hands with the TV18 network to realize their aspirations of floating a “General News” channel in India. Having brought some of his former NDTV colleagues like Sameer Manchanda on board, the dream inched closer to reality.
The first seeds of CNN-IBN were sown when TV18 and the three professionals – Rajdeep Sardesai, Sameer Manchanda and Haresh Chawla entered into a joint venture agreement with TV18, with the ratio of stakes being 74:26. This joint venture proposal is identified as Global Broadcasting Network (GBN) and is a part of the TV18 group.
The Big Co-branding Deal
After identifying themselves as GBN, the group decided to name its upcoming English channel as IBN or India Broadcast News. Towards the fag end of October 2005, IBN stitched up a historic deal with the TIME Warner Group’s news network CNN (Cable News Network).
The deal enabled iBN to in for co-branding with the American news broadcaster on the lines of the CNBC-TV18 channel. The deal also stated that iBN will have access to CNN’s global content and presence. There were also royalty terms agreed upon mutually by both parties for the Indian venture to use the American News brand – CNN. It was also agreed upon that CNN will not have any equity stake or editorial control in the proposed English news channel, mainly to facilitate easy regulatory clearances.
This coming after the Government of India announcing stringent media norms to regulate TV content and ensure that foreign media companies do not hold beyond 26% stake in the news channels based and uplinking from India. It was also rumoured that CNN was flirting with other Indian broadcasters like NDTV by striking a local deal that could mark its entry in the growing news market in India.
Reacting to the co-branding deal, IBN’s Editor-in-Chief Rajdeep Sardesai in an interview to USP-Age in June 2006 said that “CNN is a huge news brand across the world and we both benefit from the association. And, for them to have decided to tie up with us was a tremendous boost for us. But it also gives CNN a chance to experience the Indian news ethos. They do not interfere. We do news our way but at the same time, we benefit from CNN by using their material as and when we want.”
However, Jay Khambatta, Regional Marketing Director of the TV18 Group in Mumbai clearly states that according to the terms of the deal, the question of an identity crisis does not arise as the Indian channel has been bestowed with full editorial autonomy.