ZEEL adds '&pictures' to Hindi movie channel list

Following much hype and speculation, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (ZEEL) has finally announced its new Hindi movie channel. The channel called '&pictures' will be launched next month and will be a vehicle for Bollywood premiers on television.

The new channel will debut with films like Chennai Express (UTV Motion Pictures and Red Chillies), Ghanchakkar (UTV Motion Pictures), Besharam (Reliance Entertaiment) and Zanjeer (Reliance Entertainment). According to media reports, the network has shelled out Rs 40 crore for the upcoming Shah Rukh Khan-Deepika Padukone starrer Chennai Express and the deal also links the film’s satellite price to box office collection. Under this caveat, once the film crosses a threshold at the box office, the producers get a fixed amount for every Rs 10 crore collected at the box office.

Rival channels have been on a movie acquisition spree as well with Multi Screen Media buying the Yash Raj and Balaji Motion Pictures slate for the year apart from box office hits like Yeh Jawaani Hai Diwani and Aashiqui 2. Viacom18's general entertainment channel Colors has also been trying to rebuild its movie inventory with the acquisition of movies like Raanjhana, Boss and Chashme Baddoor.

ZEEL has gone all out to create a stir in the media industry about the new channel. It sent out fortune cookies to publications and media houses which contained a strip of paper with the words “& - coming soon”. Speculation was rife amongst the media fraternity as to what his new entity would be.

Cuurently, ZEEL has four Hindi movie channels – Zee Cinema, Zee Premier, Zee Classic and Zee Action. The new channel will not use the Zee branding and will form part of a different bouquet of channels form Zee. Star India also has two Hindi movie channels – Star Gold and Movies Ok while Multi Screen Media has SET Max and Disney UTV has UTV Movies.

According to media estimates, the Hindi movie channel ad market is nearly Rs 1150 to Rs 1200 crore and with the addition of a ninth player, the market may see further fragmentation and the emergence of niches within the umbrella genre.