View Point: Industry veterans spill the beans on FICCI Frames

G Krishnan, CEO, Aaj Tak

FICCI Frames has become an annual calendar event for media professionals. It is very important for an event like this to ensure it is able to increase its scale every year and attract participation from the best professionals in the industry.

View Point:

Industry veterans and former FICCI Frames attendees spill the beans on Media and Entertainment’s most anticipated event.

FICCI Frames has become an annual calendar event for media professionals. It is very important for an event like this to ensure it is able to increase its scale every year and attract participation from the best professionals in the industry. I am a speaker this time and I look forward to discuss and debate various pertinent issues.

Raj Nayak, CEO, NDTV Media
I have been a speaker as well as a panellist at FICCI Frames. I think it is a great place to network. Infact, we’ve even had the experience of winning a great business deal there in the past. Any place where people from across the media and globe are brought together provides a great opportunity. You may not have an agenda before you go there, but something positive always comes through. In terms of the lectures, there have always been some which are good and some boring, depending on the speakers. But most people don’t come there for the gyaan, but for the benefit of networking. I have seen it happening for more than five years, and feel there is too much focus on film and little on television. It still has too much of Bollywood in it. I hope they strike a better balance in the future.

Neeraj Roy, MD and CEO, Hungama
With each passing year, the significance and orientation towards digital entertainment has been increasing. This year, the industry at large should benefit from the opportunity to mingle and share experiences with experts. From our perspective, there are two to three crucial policies that ought to be discussed this year. The key ones include the 3G licensing policy for mobile phones and the issue about obtaining speedier implementation of broadband, which can facilitate the growth of IPTV.

Rajesh Sawhney, President, Reliance Entertainment
‘Frames’ is one of the most important events for the business of entertainment in the country, but it has not yet received international status. If the industry works collectively, we can make it big internationally too. I think the important issues that need to be discussed at the forum this year include: A] the emergence of digital entertainment mediums like DTH and IPTV; B] the animation and gaming industry – an area where India can enjoy recognition globally and most importantly, C] the development of skilled people in the industry – this has been a great constraint in the entertainment industry, because many media houses have been facing a shortage of good people.

Piyush Pandey, Chairman and NCD, O&M
There are various forums where we get to learn about advertising, but this is a forum where we can learn about other people’s experiences as well. And in a world which is converging, it is important to hear everyone’s point of view.

I think people will share what is happening in the digital space because it is an on-going process. We will also get to know more about the world of entertainment, which is also going through a process where lots of different films are being attempted. That is the reason why entertainment is becoming more refreshing, and I think that is something to look forward to.

Monica Tata, VP, Ad Sales & Networks, India and South Asia, Turner International India
I am looking forward to another year of exciting topics, great speakers and enjoyable debates at the forthcoming FICCI Frames 2007. FICCI Frames is one of the definitive platforms that focuses on the Indian Entertainment Industry and provides a superb forum for networking and get up - to speed with developments across the entertainment and broadcast sectors, the new trends and highlights, and what can be expected in the year ahead.

Amit Jain, MD, MTV Networks India & EVP, MTV Networks Asia
FICCI-Frames is one of the most relevant forums for India’s booming entertainment industry and provides a meaningful platform for interaction between all the industry stake-holders, including the Government. In exciting times like these when the industry paradigms are changing faster than ever before, I am looking forward to interesting perspectives on the “CAS-cading” impact of these changes, on key constituents of this industry. I am sure that FICCI Frames this year will turn out to be a melting pot of ideas, innovations and issues.

Paritosh Joshi, Head, Sales & Revenue, STAR India
FICCI Frames has been a very important event for the industry for a long time now. This year is special, more so because FICCI has made significant changes in the event’s programme for a more robust TV Track. We have worked very closely with Amrita Sarkar in the last few months, and FICCI bought our argument that today, TV is a bigger business than films and that it deserves that place at a forum like Frames. We are looking forward to some crucial issues being addressed at the event.