Welcome to a whole new Kannada makeover of the popular reality show – Bigg Boss – and it’s going to be available Streaming Online for Free on iStream.com. That’s right, if you speak Kannada and you [...]]]>

Catch all the latest drama that’s happening at the Bigg Boss Kannada House on iStream.com

Welcome to a whole new Kannada makeover of the popular reality show – Bigg Boss – and it’s going to be available Streaming Online for Free on iStream.com. That’s right, if you speak Kannada and you have that itch to watch a good TV show, welcome to heaven. Recommended by Salman Khan himself, southern superstar Kiccha Sudeep will now host what is being touted as the best reality show in Karnataka ever! ETV Kannada, which is available on iStream, has bagged the format rights from Endemol India to produce the show. With real emotions, real fights, real relationships, real laughter and real tears, Bigg Boss Kannada is reality television at its best.

Let’s get a couple of things in order before we go any further. This is NOT the original Bigg Boss dubbed in Kannada. This is Bigg Boss Kannada - the new, trending, sensational show which everyone is talking about.

Format of the Show

The format of Bigg Boss Kannada is expected to be very similar to that of its predecessor. Twelve contestants will be locked up in the Bigg Boss purpose-built house in Lonavala, Maharashtra and will be isolated from the rest of the world for a period of three months. There are no communication devices inside the house, not even a pen and a paper. Every single activity of every single day is captured on camera, and is broadcast for the world to see. Apart from their routine interactions and the ensuing repercussions, the ‘housemates’ are pitched into decision-making moments by competitions and activities directed by a mysterious ‘voice’ called the ‘Bigg Boss‘. Each week, the housemates nominate two of their peers for eviction. The two chosen ‘housemates’ then face an audience vote and the unlucky one is eliminated. The last man/woman left in the house, who receives the highest number of public votes, at the end of the three-month period is crowned the winner.

Contestants

This version of Bigg Boss is bound to enthrall the Kannada speaking populace of Karnataka. Not only is it hosted by ‘Vishnuvardhana’ superstar Kiccha Sudeep, it also brings with it contestants with a charm of their own. An excellent amalgamation of controversy, sex appeal, on-screen romance, unmistakable drama, audience interaction and that secret ‘chemical X’ takes voyeuristic pleasure to a whole new level. If all this fails to garner your attention, take a look at the List of Contestants in Bigg Boss Kannada, who you will be watching soon Streaming Online on iStream.com.

1. First up we have, Sri Narendra Babu Sharma, the popular self-styled godman who was thrown out of his TV show for allegedly accepting massive donations. Having often courted controversy because of his comments on women, he is expected to cause quite a furore in the Bigg Boss House.

2. One of the biggest southern stars in this list of contestants, Vijay Raghavendra is the epitome of a gentleman. Soft-spoken and respected amongst fans and others in the industry, he is expected to be a key challenger for the winners’ podium.

3. Next up, we have Thilak, referred, often under hushed tones, as the ladies’ man of South Indian stardom.

4. Bringing to life ‘bad boy’ Tilak’s best, will be the sex siren of the South – Sanjjanaa – who acted in a steamy role alongside Tilak in ‘Ganda Hendathi’.

5. Renowned child prodigy, and the hunk of the house, Vinayak Joshi is a radio jockey looking to make a break into the film industry as a solo hero.

6. Nikita Thukral, who has endured her share of controversy in the Kannada film industry, has also been chosen as a contestant

7. ‘Cheluve neenu nakkare’ actress, Chandrika, known for her steamy photoshoots and amped up roles is another interesting name that has entered the house.

8. Nurse Jayalakshmi, the very same nurse whose kissing pictures with politician Renukacharya spurred a storm, has been invited to the house.

9. Quite the do-gooder, Kannada news anchor, Aparna, who came to the limelight with her role in Puttana Kangal’s Manasada Hoovu, is the surprise element in the show
10. We won’t be lacking laughter for sure, because popular actor and comedian Arun Sagar has agreed to be a part of this venture.
11. Video Jockey and a well-known face in tele-serials, the ladylike lass Anusree is also making waves after being chosen to join as a contestant in the Bigg Boss Kannada house.
12. Acting in the upcoming Tamil film Vazhakku Enn, Shwetha Pandit in another sexy belle likely to raise the temperature in the Bigg Boss Kannada house.

So what are you waiting for? The show has already begun, go to the Bigg Boss Kannada Streaming Online page on iStream.com and watch to your heart’s content.

India’s most-watched English business news channel, ET Now, has an online presence that puts it in a league of its own. You can now watch ET Now [...]]]>

Don’t miss your minute-by-minute financial updates with ET Now Live Streaming Online on iStream.com

India’s most-watched English business news channel, ET Now, has an online presence that puts it in a league of its own. You can now watch ET Now Live Streaming online on iStream.com. Bennett, Coleman and Co. Channel brings to the internet, the unmatched resources and expertise of The Economic Times, Indias no. 1 business daily. Going past the reach of newspapers and television, ET Now can be accessed from anywhere, at any time, even when you are on the go. Get the latest stock market updates and the inside scoop on where to put your money with the Top Business Media Brand in the country. With a strategic alliance with Reuters, ET Now has the highest quality of global perspective in news.

Special Programs on ET Now

What are the top stock gainers and the top losers in the Indian market? Get to know the movers and the shakers, the hottest stocks, the inside scoops and market cues  with these special programs on ET Now Live Streaming.

• Don’t miss the opportunity to find out All About Stocks and Brand Equity on ET Now’s corresponding shows.
• Buy Now Sell Now: The Stock Game is another highly watched show on the channel that is now available Live Streaming online on iStream.com.
• Whether it is the Hot Commodities that you want to track, or an inside scoop on the Market Sense, ET Now on iStream.com is the place to go.

If you’ve read The Economic Times epaper, or have questions about the Indian economy and its financial fluctuations, ET Now on iStream.com ought to be your final destination.

Breaking stories that matter, with cutting-edge analysis, insider perspectives & skilled advice, ET NOW’s roster of reporters, experts, economists and analysts bring alive the Economic Times on this Live Streaming Online portal – iStream.com.

In-house experts also give you a detailed idea of which stocks performed well and which didn’t, so you can plan ahead for the next market day after watching ET Now Live Streaming online on iStream.com.

Aaj Tak, which is one of the most-watched and highest-rated Hindi news channels in India, just got a whole lot better. True to its name, Aaj Tak, which mean ‘up to date’, is offering a service that helps you [...]]]>

Watch Hindi News Live Streaming Online for Free

Aaj Tak, which is one of the most-watched and highest-rated Hindi news channels in India, just got a whole lot better. True to its name, Aaj Tak, which mean ‘up to date’, is offering a service that helps you access the news as and when it happens. If you haven’t guessed it yet, here’s the big news — you can now watch Aaj Tak Live Streaming Online for free on a premier video hosting website called iStream.com. Catch all the latest developments in the world of Business, Politics, Sports and entertainment by the minute on iStream.com.

Aaj Tak Live TV going Mobile

Whether its popular shows like Seedhi Baat or the ever-updating news bulletins, Aaj Tak on iStream.com does not disappoint. Aaj Tak Live TV also provides Non-stop 100, which provides all the news you need to know in a nutshell. What more can you ask for? No longer do you have to wait to get home to be filled in on what’s happening around the world. No longer do you have to wait for tomorrow’s newspaper. No longer do you have to go looking for the closest television set. The future is here. Aaj Tak Live Streaming can now be accessed on your computers at work and on your mobile phones – to keep you in the loop while you’re on the go.

Programmes on Aaj Tak Live Streaming

• Shows like the ‘Non-Stop 100‘ or the ‘10 Minute 50 Khabarein‘ keep your time constraints in mind.
• Astrological shows like ‘Aapke Tare‘ help clarify your detailed astrological predictions.
• Aaj Tak also opens a unique window into the world of Hindi serials via Saas Bahu aur Betiyaan on iStream.com.

Watch all the behind-the-scenes action on the sets of your favourite TV Serials. Meet the actors as they share with you the camaraderie on the sets, rib each other, sing and dance for you.

All this and more on Aaj Tak News Live Streaming Online for free on iStream.com.

For all of you who want a quick minute-to-minute update of what is going on in Karnataka, TV9 Karnataka on iStream.com is the ultimate destination.The website allows you to access the TV9 Karnataka channel, and [...]]]>

Watch Latest News in Kannada Live Streaming Online on TV9 Karnataka

For all of you who want a quick minute-to-minute update of what is going on in Karnataka, TV9 Karnataka on iStream.com is the ultimate destination.The website allows you to access the TV9 Karnataka channel, and it streams the content Live online in sparkling quality. This keeps you in the loop while you are still on the go. Gone are the days when you have to run home or rush to your office to access a television set and watch the news. Now you can watch the TV9 Kannada channel and get your hourly dose of news updates right from your phone. This 24×7 Kannada news television channel, which is owned by the Sneha Television Network, has garnered numerous accolades over the past few years. Talk to the autodrivers, the shopkeepers, or businessmen in Karnataka and ask them how they know the inner workings of the system and they all point to TV9 Karnataka.

The TV9 TV network telecasts Kannada news along with a wide range of programmes, ranging from hourly news analysis and intense interviews, all Live on TV9 in Kannada. Rated #1 by TAM India, TV9 Karnataka on iStream.com, offers a unique brand of bold, fearless and unbiased journalism.

Programmes and Shows on TV9 Karnataka

TV9 Karnataka offers a wide array of news programming, including daily news bulletins and special shows. Here are a few of them that you might be interested in.

• Suprabhath
• Madhyana Varthe
• Indu Sanje
• TV9 Vishesha
• Filmy Funda
• Ladies Club

TV9 has been credited with ‘breaking’ the most important news stories over the past few years. The Mangalore Airport tragedy, the Carleton Towers fire are two instances where top national television channels such as Times Now had to use TV9 Karnataka footage, because the Kannada news channel was the first on the ground, faster even than their competitors like Suvarna TV. iStream.com now adds to this speed and accuracy in reporting, by offering Kannada Live Streaming online news for anybody with an internet connection. All in all, if you’re looking to watch news on Karnataka and news from Karnataka Live Streaming online, go to TV9 Karnataka on iStream.com.

Radhakrishnan has close to 18 years of experience across print, TV and news media. He turned entrepreneur in 2000, when he co-founded Indiasyndicate.com, a leading content management [...]]]> India Digital Review
Interview: Digital Conversation with iStream CEO Radhakrishnan Ramachandran
24 Jan 2013

Radhakrishnan has close to 18 years of experience across print, TV and news media. He turned entrepreneur in 2000, when he co-founded Indiasyndicate.com, a leading content management company in the digital space managing clients like MSN India. Radha heads the strategy and content acquisition at iStream . iStream is Radha’s second entrepreneurial venture after India Syndicate. Before starting India Syndicate, he worked as Chief of Bureau at CNBC TV18 and as a Business Correspondent with The Economic Times.

Five years back, iStream was a content distribution partner for platforms like YouTube, MSN India etc. What has motivated you to launch it as individual platform?

iStream.com was born out of a desire to build a ‘cool’ consumer media brand. That was in our minds as early as 2007 itself, when Hulu meant just ‘gourd’ in Chinese and Netflix was a DVD distribution company. But back then, online video was at a very nascent stage. Building an online destination seemed too early to work. So we opted to tie-up with third party platforms like YouTube and understand the space better. While we grew into one of YouTube’s largest partners in India by 2010, Hulu and Netflix had grown into multi-billion dollar brands and household names in the US. We could see that others were living our dream. That is when we decided to launch our own platform. Fortunately, in SAIF Partners, we found some one who was willing to bet on us and we launched iStream.com in November 2011.

YouTube shares the majority market share in video streaming market in India? How much space do you think iStream has in the lopsided market?

It’s unfair to compare our business with YouTube. If you must compare, our value proposition to the users and content owners is closer to Hulu or Netflix than it is to YouTube’s way of doing things.

Our content and user engagement numbers are in line with theirs (Hulu and Netflix). We are not a video ‘sharing’ site in the sense that we don’t get free content from anybody who has a digital camera and wants to upload things. There are no ‘here’s my cat playing with the ball of yarn’ videos on our site. We only acquire premium TV and Movie content directly from the producers (TV channels, movie studios, etc.). The nature of the content and our editorial team makes sure that the user experience is guaranteed to be of high quality.

If you look at all the key markets, be it the US, Russia or China, there exists a local player leading the online video space focusing on premium content. That is the gap iStream.com will fill.

What unique features do iStream offers to attract the users? Which is the most popular section on your website?

Unlike many of our competitors our DNA is that of a digital media company. We have a team of over 60 content and video editors who go through each video and package it in a way that is ideal for our users as well as our content owners. For example, each channel, each show on our site gets its own landing page, which is customized for its content. Better tagging of content and metadata has led to better discoverability of content on our site. That is the key when you are primarily a video on demand (VoD) player unlike many others who are just into live streaming. We have a library of over 250,000 videos, packaged and curated, in both long and short formats.

Content will be our primary differentiator going forward as well. While the market has been skewed towards Bollywood and Cricket, we have been giving a lot of emphasis to regional content, news and sports (other than cricket).

Currently, our primary categories are News, TV, Movies and Sports and all of them have been showing impressive numbers.

Can you share your current unique visitor number with us?

In December we crossed 5 million uniques and our page views were over 22 million. We are targeting a 30% to 40% growth month on month.

A large section of users are increasingly switching to the alternative screen – mobile and tablets. What traction of iStream’s traffic has shifted from web to mobile? Can you share numbers?

There is lot of focus internally on mobile, especially tablets and smartphones, and building advertising solutions around them. We launched our mobile version four months back. Today, mobile accounts for close to 35 % of our page views.

What is iStream’s adoption across app platforms? Can you tell us what is your app download figure for each platform (android, ios, Windows 8)?

We plan to give our users a seamless viewing experience across multiple devices. As part of this strategy we built the first and only video app from India on Windows 8 and we have already seen close to 45,000 downloads. Our iOS app is ready for launch now and our Android app will be out in February, 2013.

In December 2012, you have signed a licensing deal with IndiaCast, giving access to content of network’s 20 channels. Going forward, can we see more such alliances in 2013?

The IndiaCast deal was an important deal for us. Like I mentioned earlier, our content strategy will be the key to our growth. India is a fragmented market with over 500 to 600 TV channels. We expect to have over 200 partners in top 10 languages by the end of the year. We are also in advanced talks with many leading international studios. Sports is another category which will be focusing a lot on, with exclusive partnerships. UEFA Euro 2012 was a huge success for us, which we repeated with other premium sporting events like the US Open, Brazilian Football League and Badminton World Series. You will see more of this in 2013.

iStream receives a lot of visitors from Banglore, Mumbai and Delhi, do you plan to introduce more regional languages apart from the current Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu to go truly pan India?

We currently stream content in seven major languages (English, Hindi, Kannada, Malayalam, Punjabi, Tamil and Telugu). The recent tie-up with IndiaCast has given us access to content from many other languages like Marathi, Bhojpuri and Gujarati. By the end of this year, our content catalogue will be spread across all the top 10 regional languages in India.

How do you plan to take on competitors like Times Internet BoxTV, Zee’s Ditto TV and Yahoo!’s online videos and YouTube?

As far as YouTube’s business is concerned, we really believe that there is room for both business models to exist, just like it does in the US. Our focus will continue to be on more premium content with higher production value and not on user-generated content. And we have seen how Hulu and Netflix have been faring so well in US, even though You Tube is a very dominant player there. They have been able to attract much better ad rates.

I doubt whether there will be room for more than one or two premium video destinations in the country and we believe we are clearly positioned to occupy that slot.

Presently, iStream is on a revenue-sharing model? Are you considering a subscription based model too?

One of the biggest issues we need to tackle in India is rampant piracy. This is a major concern not just for premium video platforms like us, but also for content owners who incur high costs in producing content. Pirated/illegal or what is commonly called as user generated content or UGC impacts all the three key stake holders in the content eco system:

Users – who are forced to watch pirated low quality videos

Content owners – who incur huge losses

Brands – who don’t want to be associated with pirated content

We will continue with our efforts to make users, content owners and brands aware of this issue so that they stay away from pirated content and platforms which are promoting pirated content as much as possible.

Till we tackle this issue of piracy effectively, we don’t believe that the market will be ready for a subscription model. That could take at least another 12 to 18 months. Having said that, our subscription engine is ready and we have already tested our subscription model for all markets outside India.

By December 2013, iStream.com is targeting to reach five million unique users and over 20 million video views per month. Do you see that happening? What are you plans for this year?

We have already crossed 5 million unique users and over 22 million page views in December 2012. Our target is to reach 20 million uniques by March 2014.

In 2011, SAIF Partners invested $5 mn on iStream.com. Are you looking to raise more funds in 2013?

We will look at raising additional funds at the right time.

http://www.afaqs.com/news/story/36238_iStream.com-plays-the-video-game

iStream today signed a deal with IndiaCast, a joint venture between TV18 and Viacom18 , which gives the online player access to content from the network’s 20 channels for its streaming and video-on-demand services.

How big will online video get? The media business got an inkling [...]]]> Afaqs! December 14, 2012 Section: News Category: Digital

http://www.afaqs.com/news/story/36238_iStream.com-plays-the-video-game

iStream today signed a deal with IndiaCast, a joint venture between TV18 and Viacom18 , which gives the online player access to content from the network’s 20 channels for its streaming and video-on-demand services.

How big will online video get? The media business got an inkling of the ambition of online players with today’s deal between iStream and IndiaCast. The fact that TV companies are willing to share all their content with an online startup aggregator though they have websites of their own just proves that they are hedging their bets every which way.

iStream was launched in 2007 as a video content aggregation service tying up with existing digital platforms such as MSN India and DailyMotion, among others. In 2010 iStream teamed up with YouTube in as a content partner and claims to have become YouTube’s largest content partner in India, with over a billion video views within a year.

The Bengaluru-based company launched its own video platform, iStream.com, late last year to provide premium video content – that is, professionally produced content as opposed to that generated by users. Post a soft-launch, it began full-fledged operations in 2012 and started monetising its product only a few months back.

It is a serious player in that SAIF Capital – best known for its investment in MakeMyTrip and Just Dial – has placed a US $5 million bet on iStream.

Radhakrishnan Ramachandran, CEO and co-founder (together with Chellappa Dhanukodi), is excited by the IndiaCast deal because it gives his fledgling business access to Colors and MTV, TV18′s news channels – CNN IBN, CNBCTV18, CNBC Awaaz, IBN7 and IBN Lokmat, and History18 from A&E and the entire bouquet of regional channels from the ETV Group.

iStream.com will have dedicated landing pages for each of these channels and will showcase programmes such as Bigg Boss, India’s Got Talent, Ballika Vadhu, Uttaran, MTV Roadies, Splitsvilla and others.

Anuj Gandhi, group chief executive officer, IndiaCast explains in an official communication why his company went for the deal: “With the digital space becoming more mainstream and evolving every second, it is imperative for us to take our content from television to online and give access to our viewers across platforms.”

Among other premium content providers online like the recently launched BoxTV by Times Internet, Zee’s Ditto TV and even Yahoo!’s interests in online videos, iStream still finds a lot of latent opportunity in the country irrespective of the omnipresent YouTube.

What differentiates these players from YouTube is their offering of ‘premium’ content and lack of user-generated content that one largely finds on YouTube. Even when it comes to user-generated content, there is a difference in the way it is perceived in the West and in India. In the West, it stands for users uploading videos they have shot themselves; in India it consists of ripped-off, pirated content uploaded by viewers.

“India is not yet ready for subscription,” thinks Ramachandran. He says iStream depends on advertising, much like other online players, while providing content free-of-cost to viewers.

iStream has brands such as GE, Intel, Sony, Renault, HP and Bacardi, among others, advertising on its platform and the inventory is sold directly by its sales team (as opposed to ad networks); the primary inventory being video ads (pre- and mid-rolls).

While video-on-demand is the play, iStream is also betting big on live streaming, particularly of sporting events. It got the rights to stream events such as Euro 2012, the US Open and the recent India-Sri Lanka series and sees it as a way of building a following online.

And while most of the content deals are on a revenue sharing model, such as the current one with IndiaCast, iStream has to pay a flat license fee for premium sporting events.

Ramachandran is also gung-ho about mobile, stating that 20 per cent of iStream’s views come from the mobile devices. The company launched its mobile apps around three months back.

iStream receives a lot of visitors from Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi (85 per cent of the audience is from India). It is focusing on English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Malayalam content for now and in the next 3-4 months will also look at Kannada, Marathi, Bengali, Punjabi and Gujarati. The focus is currently on news, television content, movies and sports as categories for now.

Ramachandran claims that based on Google Analytics, iStream expects to close December with five million unique users and around 25 million page views. With funding in place, iStream expects to grow aggressively now. It promotes itself through various online marketing initiatives including social media and search optimisation and is also working out tie-ups with mobile manufacturers.