Is Big B the best ‘host’ of KBC?

“Some questions can change your life” is the new ad-bait which STAR Plus is throwing to promote its ‘hottest’ property KBC 3 starring Shah Rukh Khan.

Such appointment has naturally catalysed comparisons between earlier host, the Big B, and SRK-both iconic brands.

Question is: will SRK prove as or even more popular than Big Abby with TV audiences and hence advertisers?

Will KB3 match the viewership chartbusters of KBC 1 and II? Mudra’s media specialist, Optimum Media Solutions (OMS), probed these topics in a recent survey across the three big metros of Mumbai, Delhi and Kolkata, a substantial part of the Hindi viewership belt.

Hansa Research conducted the survey for OMS sampling 200 men and women in each city among SECs A, B and C and age bracket of 25 - 44 years.

Hold the Hot Seat. It seems that our hearts still collectively beat for the Big B first. ‘Lock kiya jaye’ on this one: Amitabh Bachchan is clear top choice as KBC host across generations, cities, gender and SECs.

SRK needn’t muse on Kal Ho Na Ho, though. A generous 71% of the polled audience are willing to give SRK a chance, and an encouraging 21% say they will definitely continue to watch KBC3.

What’s more, an overwhelming 92% of viewers polled say they are going to ‘try’ the first few episodes of KBC3.

Advertisers of upper-collar brands have some cheer. The roster of advertisers on KBC3 includes most of the brands that SRK is brand endorser for such as Airtel, ICICI, Pepsi, Compaq.

Those already onboard are Hyundai, UTI Mutual Funds, Videcon-the latter two are also endorsed by SRK. That decodes to a mix of class and mass advertisers for this programme-and one expects more upper-tier brands.

There’s no screen-room for complacency though. Although 20% of viewers polled are likely to remain loyal KBC viewers, there are still 50% of viewers who are ready to flirt with other programme options.

This is manifested in some initial scepticism about the change in host for a ‘host-centric’ program like KBC.

The combined ad-spend on KBC3 and World Cup 2007 will be Rs 350-400 crore. Cricket will obviously pose tough competition for the game show as polled viewer preferences suggest.

If the KBC3 episodes clash with any cricketing event, 30% of the show’s viewership base will bat for cricket, reveals the survey. This swing will be seen particularly among 25-30 year-old males and Kolkatans.

An issue of concern will be the time slots. According to the study, although the weekday 9:00p.m slot is the most preferred one, the next most preferred time slot is the weekend primetime slot-especially for the viewer segment over 40 years and among lower socio-economic classes.

Viewers in different cities have different expectations of the KBC3 show: Delhi-ites expect easier entry into the show, Kolkatans hope for more fun/humour, while Mumbaikars expect the least change.

There’s a help line for SRK: “Aaj bhi hai pakdi ummeed ki dori: Don’t lose hope is the moral of the story.” Via

Compaq inks Rs 2.25 cr deal with Star for KBC-3

Compaq has entered into an agreement with Star India to be a part of the popular KBC-3 quiz show. The company is believed to have paid around Rs 2 - 2.5 crore for the integrated promotion of its PC as the ‘computerji’ on the show, said sources close to the deal.

Last year, for KBC-2, Lenova managed to strike a last minute deal by paying around Rs 60-70 lakh, sources said.

"This deal has certainly taken a while and we finally have Compaq onboard for KBC3," confirmed Paritosh Joshi, president ad sales & distribution, Star India.

The situation was a tricky one for Star, last year’s show had Lenova as the integrated computer on the show and in the fresh season with Shah Rukh Khan playing host, who also is the brand ambassador for rival company Compaq, it was a tough call to make.

"Though the deal with Lenova was signed on the last minute at a highly discounted rate, KBC2 has helped Lenova build a brand name across households," Joshi said.

The new version of KBC is slated to hit the small screen on January 22 and will continue for 52 weeks before ending April 22.

Apart from the ten main sponsors the channel has ropped in for a whopping sum of around Rs 130 crore, Airtel, Hyundai and Cadbury, UTI Mutual Funds, Videocon, Godrej Sara Lee, Jyothi Labs, Pantaloon Retail (Big Bazaar) and UB group, Motorola, other sponsors on board with KBC3 are Bharat Matrimony, Bharti Airtel, Eureka Forbes and Union Bank. Source: Business Standard. January 14, 2006 Delhi Edition

Tamil KBC in Vijay TV

Wow, wow, a great news for Tamil speakers as Shahrukh will utter Tamil words like ‘Vanakkam; neengal parthukondu irupadhu Kaun Banega Crorepathi’ in the dubbed version of Crorepati which will be aired from Star’s southern channel, Vijay TV.

This week before Mani Ratnam’s Abhishek-Aishwarya starrer ‘Guru’ gets an all India release, it gets a unveil at South India in Tamil dubbed version (if I am not wrong). Seems like IIM-Ahmedabad alumnus Mani Ratnam has yielded a good benefit out of it. Guru has done in good business in down south in the first few days and taking a cue (from the Bachchan family…see I got a similarity) seems like KBC team will also pour in the product with regional flavors.

The search for Shahrukh Khan’s dubbing artist is over.

The show starts 23 January and will be telecast from Tuesday to Friday at 7pm, a time band that was popularized by the channel’s successful show Swamy Iyappan. Advertising clients lining up include Airtel, Hyundai, Motorola, KRBL, HDFC Standard Life, Univercell and Cadbury.