Prasar Bharati considers launching children's TV channel under Doordarshan

Content for DD Kids will come from broadcaster's library and partnerships with animation studios and production houses: sources

Prasar Bharati, the public broadcaster, is looking to launch a children’s TV entertainment channel under Doordarshan, sources told Business Standard.

The initiative is led by Mayank Agrawal, Prasar Bharati's new chief executive officer, and it comes at a time when content for children is seeing traction.

Prasar Bharati runs a YouTube channel for children but it is limited to the digital medium. Sources said the proposed TV channel will be called DD Kids to leverage the Doordarshan brand name. It may launch in about six months to a year and will be available on DD Freedish, the free-to-air, direct-to-home service owned and operated by Prasar Bharati.

Agrawal was not immediately available for comment when contacted. He held a closed-door meeting with fast-moving consumer goods companies and media buying agencies at the FICCI Frames Fast-track Summit on Tuesday in Mumbai to gauge advertisers' interest in the proposed channel.

Invitations for the meeting by Prasar Bharati were sent out to top media agencies including IPG Mediabrands, Dentsu, GroupM and Zenith, it is learnt.

Content for DD Kids will be likely sourced from Doordarshan's vast library of shows, sources said. The channel will also have new content for which the public broadcaster is looking at content partnerships and tie-ups with local animation studios and production houses.

The television advertising market for children’s entertainment in India is pegged at around Rs 1,300-1,500 crore, according to media industry experts. "There is potential for growth of the kids entertainment genre in India. Viewership interest from smaller towns and cities augurs well for advertisers, who are also aggressively tapping smaller markets for growth," said Sujata Dwivedi, chief investment officer, Amplifi, Dentsu International. 

The key players in children’s entertainment in India include networks Viacom18, Disney, Discovery and Sony. Media experts said that there is room for more players and DD Kids could change market dynamics by reaching viewers in towns, cities and rural areas.