Sony pips Colors to take second spot in entertainment space

Amitabh Bachchan opened the fifth edition of Kaun Banega Crorepati on Sony Entertainment Television (SET) at prime time, 9 pm, this Independence Day. And the channel pipped Colors as the second-largest brand in the Hindi general entertainment (GEC) space.

According to data available with TAM, a television viewership rating agency, Sony scored 245 gross rating points (GRP) in the assessment for the week ended August 20, in the Hindi GEC segment, while Colors scored232 GRPs. Star Plus maintained the lead at 297, but Zee continued in the fourth slot with 194 GRPs.

GRPs are television rating points (TRP) over a period of time. TRP is a measure of the percentage of viewers watching a particular programme at a given point in time.

TAM data showed Sony’s viewership share in the Hindi GEC space had risen consistently since the last few months, while Zee, Star and Colors had lost ground. In the last four weeks, Sony’s share rose to 19 per cent from 16.1 per cent for the week ended August 20. Star Plus viewership share increased marginally to 23 per cent (from 22.8 per cent) last week, but that for Zee fell to 15 per cent (from 15.7 per cent) and for Colors to 18 per cent (from 19.5 per cent).

Sneha Rajani, senior executive vice-president and business head at Sony Entertainment Television said, “Since the past few months our GRPs have grown steadily, based on our own set of differentiators. We have showcased varied content, suitable for viewing by the entire family.”

For Sony, its top five properties, Kaun Banega Crorepati 5 (which opened with a TVR of 5.24), Bade Achhe Lagte Hain, which also leads the 10.30 pm slot, Crime Patrol, CID, Saas Bina Sasural and Adaalat made the difference.

In the week ended August 13, Sony overtook Zee to become the third-largest channel in the Hindi GEC space. Experts say the viewership ratings for KBC 5, which has an average TRP of 4.54, has been converting into higher ratings for the channel.