ZEEL to enter Germany, launch FTA TV channel by mid-2016

Media conglomerate Zee Entertainment Enterprises (ZEEL) today said it will enter Germany and plans to launch a free-to-air (FTA) TV channel by the middle of this year.
The 24-hour FTA channel will have Bollywood films as well as popular Indian television series.
"The new channel's core target group will be females between the age of 19 and 59," ZEEL said in a statement.
The channel is planned to be made available on the most important satellite and cable platforms.
ZEEL has appointed Friederike Behrends to head its business operations in the German-speaking area.
"Our foray into Germany is a major step as part of our international expansion strategy. The objective is to establish a lasting presence and grow in the German television market.

"With our highest levels of entertainment and new content, we are confident of being able to offer our German viewers an attractive enrichment to the existing range of television offerings," said Amit Goenka, CEO-International Broadcast Business, ZEEL.

Neeraj Dhingra, CEO Europe at Asia TV (Zee TV) said, "The launch of the channel will signify ZEEL's entry into one of the world's most important television markets, in which the Bollywood genre is still barely represented as yet.
"With 210,000 hours of programming and over 3,500 film titles, our endeavour is to delight German audiences with Indian content."
"We also welcome Friederike to the ZEE family. She brings with her a rich experience and in-depth knowledge of Media, Broadcasting and TV content.

"Her extensive international and national industry expertise will help us not only to cement our presence in the German market, but take it to greater heights," Dhingra added.
Behrends said the company is currently engaged in intensive talks with German TV-platform operators with a view to expanding the reach as quickly as possible, on a broad scale via all transmission paths.
Until recently, Friederike Behrends was the Senior Strategy Advisor for the international streaming provider Magine, being responsible for its German market entry in 2014.
From 2008 to 2012, she was Managing Director of WDR media group digital GmbH and the full-service Internet agency webCOLONY in Cologne.