Star India

From Bharatpedia, an open encyclopedia
Information red.svg
Scan the QR code to donate via UPI
Dear reader, We need your support to keep the flame of knowledge burning bright! Our hosting server bill is due on June 1st, and without your help, Bharatpedia faces the risk of shutdown. We've come a long way together in exploring and celebrating our rich heritage. Now, let's unite to ensure Bharatpedia continues to be a beacon of knowledge for generations to come. Every contribution, big or small, makes a difference. Together, let's preserve and share the essence of Bharat.

Thank you for being part of the Bharatpedia family!
Please scan the QR code on the right to donate.

0%

   

transparency: ₹0 raised out of ₹100,000 (0 supporter)



Star India Private Limited
IndustryMass Media
Founded1 August 1990; 33 years ago (1990-08-01)
Founder(s)Star TV
HeadquartersStar House, Urmi Estate, 95, Ganpatrao Kadam Marg, Lower Parel (West), ,
Area served
India, South Asia, Southeast Asia, MENA, United Kingdom, USA, Canada
Key people
K Madhavan (President, The Walt Disney Company India and Star India)
Sanjay Jain (Chief Financial Officer, Direct-to-Consumer & International - APAC, The Walt Disney Company)
ProductsTelevision Broadcasting
Films
OTT video streaming platform
RevenueIncrease84.25 billion (US$1.2 billion) (2018)
ParentThe Walt Disney Company India (The Walt Disney Company)
SubsidiariesAsianet Star Communications
Disney+ Hotstar
Fox Star Studios
Mashal Sports (74%)
Football Sports Development (40%)
Star TV
UTV Software Communications
Websitestartv.com

Star India is an Indian media conglomerate and wholly owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company India.[1] It is headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra. It has a network of 60 channels in eight languages, reaching out to 9 out of 10 cable and satellite TV homes in India.[2] The network reaches approximately 790 million viewers a month across India and more than 100 countries.[3] Star India generates more than 30,000 hours of content every year.[4]

History[edit]

Founding[edit]

Star TV (Satellite Television Asian Region) was founded in 1990 as a joint venture between Hutchison Whampoa and Li Ka-Shing. It was launched aHollywood English-language entertainment channel for Asian audiences.[5]

1990–2000[edit]

In 1990, Star TV included Star Plus (then an English-language entertainment channel), Prime Sports, Channel V, Star Movies.[5][6]

In 1992, Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation purchased 63.6% of STAR for $525 million, followed by the purchase of the remaining 36.4% on 1 January 1993. Star broadcasting operations were run from Rupert Murdoch's Fox Broadcasting premises.[7][8] Murdoch declared that:[9]

(telecommunications) have proved an unambiguous threat to totalitarian regimes everywhere ... satellite broadcasting makes it possible for information-hungry residents of many closed societies to bypass state-controlled television channels

Between 1994 and 1998, Star India was launched, later launched Star Movies, Channel V, and Star News with a limited Hindi offering.[10][11][12]

In 1998, STAR News was launched as a dedicated news channel with content from NDTV.[13]

2001–2010[edit]

In 2001, Star India acquired South India based Vijay TV.[14] In 2003, Star India's deal with NDTV ended and Star News was made into a 24-hour news channel. And it entered into a joint venture (JV) with Anand Bazar Patrika Group to comply with the regulations set for uplinking of news and current affairs channels by the Government of India. It subsequently exited from this joint venture in 2012. After the split the channel was renamed to ABP News and operated by Anandabazar Patrika Group.[15][16]

In 2004, Star One was launched as a Hindi content channel.[17] In 2008, Star Jalsha, a Bengali language entertainment channel and Star Pravah, a Marathi language entertainment channel were launched.[18][19]

In 2009, Star India acquired Trivandrum, India based media conglomerate Asianet Communications Limited which served Malayalam language content.[20] In August 2009, the Star Group restructured its Asian broadcast businesses into three units – Star India, Star, and Fox International Channels Asia.[21]

In the same year, Star Affiliate and CJ Group of South Korea launched CJ Alive (later known as ShopCJ), a 24-hour Indian television shopping channel which used STAR Utsav for hosting the television marketing programs in six-hour slots in its initial stage of launch. Star Affiliate exited the joint venture in May 2014.[22] This venture was called Star CJ.

21st Century Fox launched a film production and distribution business in India through Fox Star Studios India, an affiliate of Star India in the same year.[23]

2011–present[edit]

In 2012, Star India acquired the BCCI Rights for India cricket for the period 2012 through 2018. ESPN was renamed Star Sports 4, STAR Cricket was renamed Star Sports 3, Star Sports was renamed to Star Sports 1 and Star Sports 2 kept its name. STAR Cricket HD and ESPN HD were renamed to Star Sports HD1 and Star Sports HD2 respectively.[24][25][26][27][28]

In 2015, Star India launched its video-on-demand service, Hotstar (now Disney+ Hotstar) and forayed into online streaming.[29]

In 2015, Star India acquired broadcast businesses of Maa Television Pvt. Ltd to boost its presence in Telugu speaking markets where Star didn't have any presence before. By this acquisition, Star has a regional presence in the entire South Indian markets.[30]

In February 2017, Star India and global media conglomerate, TED, announced a new TV series, TED Talks India – Nayi Soch. Its programmes starred Bollywood actor Shahrukh Khan and featured newer TED talks made in Hindi language. The programme followed the signature TED format of prominent speakers voicing their opinions in an 18-minute or less monologue in front of a live audience.[31][32]

On 28 August 2017, Star India replaced its Hindi Entertainment channel Life OK with a free-to-air channel Star Bharat.[33]

On 5 September 2017, Star India won the global media rights to broadcast Indian Premier League (IPL) for 5 years beginning in 2018. The company bid INR 16,347.50 crore to secure the rights from the previous broadcaster, Sony Pictures Network.[34]

On 14 December 2017, The Walt Disney Company announced the acquisition of 21st Century Fox, which included Star India.[35]

On 13 December 2018, Disney announced Uday Shankar who serves as chairman of Star India would lead Disney's Asian operations and would become the new chairman of Disney India, which became a wholly owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, being re-organized under The Walt Disney Company (India) Private Limited.[36] On 27 August 2018, the channel Star Life was launched in Africa in English language offering the English dubbed Indian Hindi series from the Indian star channels.[37][38]

On 4 January 2019, Star TV shut down its television operations in USA for the promotion of its digital counterpart, Hotstar.[39]

On 20 March 2019, Star India became a subsidiary of Disney India as the deal was Open. Now, Disney India owns UTV and Star India TV channels.

On 30 December 2020, Disney announced that the Star branding would be replaced with Utsav from February 1 in the Netherlands,[40] with the Utsav Gold, Utsav Plus and Utsav Bharat branding launching in the UK on 22 January 2021, Star Vijay's international feed also changed a new logo based with Utsav Network in yellow colour and rebranded as Vijay TV around the world on that same day, Utsav Network would separated to Star Gold, Plus and Bharat, the Asian feed would launch in South Korea.[41]

Business results[edit]

In August 2012, Business Line of The Hindu group reported that Star CJ Alive is claiming average sale of products worth Rs. 9.5 million on week days and Rs.12 million on weekends.[42] Approximately 65% of the sales come from electronics segment while household segment stands second in the race. In December 2012, some sections of the media reported that Rupert Murdoch run News Corp may exit Star CJ by selling its entire stake to Providence Equity Partners.[43] This share transfer reportedly ran into trouble when the Department of Revenue discovered that funds from other jurisdictions were being channelised to exploit Indo Mauritius double taxation avoidance agreement.[44]

STAR India Entertainment provides 51 channels while STAR India Sports provides 17 channels.

Divisions[edit]

Owned channels[edit]

On air channels[edit]

Channel Launched Language Genre SD/HD Availability Notes
Asianet 1993 Malayalam General Entertainment SD+HD
Asianet Plus 2005 SD
Asianet Movies 2012 Movies HD Feed Launching Soon
Asianet Middle East 2010 General Entertainment
Asianet Music Music SD Launching Soon
BabyTV 2009 English Kids SD+HD
Bindass 2007 Hindi Entertainment SD
Fox Life 2008 English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu Lifestyle SD+HD
National Geographic 1998 Infotainment Also in 4K resolution
Nat Geo Wild 2009
Star Bharat 2017 Hindi General Entertainment
Star Gold 1999 Movies Also in 4K resolution
Star Gold 2 2020
Star Gold Romance Launching Soon
Star Gold Select 2017
Star Jalsha 2008 Bengali General Entertainment
Star Jalsha Movies 2012 Movies
Star Maa 2002 Telugu General Entertainment
Star Maa Movies 2011 Movies
Star Maa Gold 2012 SD
Star Maa Music 2008 Music
Star Movies 1991 English, Hindi, Tamil, Telugu Movies SD+HD
Star Movies Select HD 2015 HD
Star Pravah 2008 Marathi General Entertainment SD+HD
StarPlus 1991 Hindi
ESPN 2022 English Sports Launching soon in 2022
Star Sports 1 1996
Star Sports 2 2013
Star Sports 3 2018 Hindi, Malayalam, Bangla
Star Sports Select 1 2016 English
Star Sports Select 2 2016
Star Sports 1 Hindi 2017 Hindi
Star Sports Tamil 1 2017 Tamil SD Replaced from Star sports 4
Star Sports Telugu 1 2018 Telugu
Star Sports Kannada 1 2018 Kannada
Star Sports Bangla 1 2019 Bengali Formerly known as Veinte url Star Sports Marathi 1 2019 Marathi
Star Sports First 2017 Hindi
Star Suvarna 2007 Kannada General Entertainment SD+HD
Star Suvarna Plus 2013 Movies SD
Star Utsav 2004 Hindi General Entertainment
Star Utsav Movies 2016 Movies
Star Vijay 1994 Tamil General Entertainment SD+HD
Star Vijay Super 2016 Movies SD HD Feed Launching Soon
Star Vijay Music 2020 Music
Star World 1991 English General Entertainment SD+HD
Star World Premiere HD 2013 HD
Star Life 2018 SD+HD International Channels
Utsav Plus 2021 Hindi General Entertainment SD+HD
Utsav Bharat 2021 SD
Utsav Gold 2021 Movies SD+HD
UTV HD 2011 Hindi Movies HD
UTV Action 2015 Hindi Movies SD
UTV Movies 2013 Hindi Movies SD

Defunct channels[edit]

Channel Language Category SD/HD availability Notes
Star One Hindi General Entertainment SD replaced by Life OK
Life OK SD+HD replaced by Star Bharat
Movies OK Movies SD replaced by Star Gold 2
Star Movies Action English
FX General Entertainment SD+HD
Fox Crime Hindi, English Infotainment SD
Star CJ Alive Shopping
Star Sports 4 English, Tamil Sports SD+HD rebranded as Star Sports 1 Tamil
Star News Hindi News SD rebranded as ABP News
Star Majha Marathi rebranded as ABP Majha
Star Ananda Bengali rebranded as ABP Ananda
Channel V Hindi Music SD rebranded as Star Sports 3
Nat Geo People English Lifestyle SD+HD

Digital[edit]

In January 2015, Star India launched Hotstar, a mobile and online entertainment OTT platform owned by its affiliate, Novi Digital Entertainment. The platform features content in 9 Indian languages and broadcasts sporting events.[46]

In January 2019, Star India Shut Down It’s Linear TV Services In South America, USA, North America & Canada and shifted all services to Hotstar USA.[47]

In April 2020, the service merged with Disney+ in India forming Disney+ Hotstar. Hotstar operates independently and coexists with Disney+ in Canada, Singapore, UK and US.

National Sports Network in India[edit]

The STAR sports group planned to build a national sports network in India. The plan included broadcasting in Indian languages. ESPN was renamed Star Sports 4, Star Cricket was renamed Star Sports 3, Star Sports was renamed to Star Sports 1 and Star Sports 2 kept its name. Star Sports Telugu, Star Cricket HD and ESPN HD renamed to Star Sports HD1 and Star Sports HD2 respectively. Star Sports 3 would be predominantly a Hindi-only channel. STAR planned to start with cricket, field hockey and football (soccer) initially. Domestic cricket of India like Deodhar Trophy and Ranji Trophy are considered. Besides this, two non-professional leagues like the University Cricket and University Field Hockey were also planned to be launched by STAR. In football, Barclays Premier League is also considered for regional broadcasting by STAR.[48]

Reception[edit]

Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi, Kahaani Ghar Ghar Ki, Kasautii Zindagii Kay, Kaun Banega Crorepati aired on Star Plus during 2000s, made the channel the market leader in India becoming the flagship channel of Star India.[49][50]

Disney+ Hotstar, a subsidiary of Star India, censored the Last Week Tonight with John Oliver's A commentators episode on Narendra Modi where John Oliver discusses Prime Minister Modi and his Hindu Nationalism as a growing threat to democracy in India.[51][52][53]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. "Disney's $52.4 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox includes Star India too – MediaNama". www.medianama.com. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  2. Iyengar, Rishi (9 July 2018). "Disney's next 700 million viewers might be in India". CNNMoney. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
  3. "Disney Acquires Star India, Tata Sky Stake Via Fox Deal". Bloomberg Quint. Retrieved 8 March 2018.
  4. Bansal, Shuchi (27 June 2018). "What makes star a sought-after business in India". Mint. Retrieved 17 April 2019.
  5. 5.0 5.1 http://www.globalmediajournal.com/open-access/the-role-of-the-nationstate-evolution-of-star-tv-in-china-and-india.pdf
  6. "Entertainment Inc.: The story of Zee, one of India's first Hindi satelite [sic] channels". India Today. 11 August 2017. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  7. Palmer, Rhonda. (26 July 1993) Murdoch catches rising Star – Entertainment News, Business News, Media. Variety. Retrieved 20 May 2012.
  8. THE MEDIA BUSINESS; Star TV Extends Murdoch's Reach. New York Times (23 August 1993). Retrieved 20 May 2012.
  9. Monbiot, George (21 April 2008). "George Monbiot: The most potent weapon wielded by the empires of Murdoch and China". The Guardian. Retrieved 24 July 2017.
  10. "Channel V: A walk down memory lane". Indian Television Dot Com. 30 November 2017. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  11. Ghosh, Devarsi. "Channel V bids goodbye once and for all, leaving behind its madcap mascots". Scroll.in. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  12. "Fox's Star Chinese Movies Launches Asian Film Slate". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  13. "The race to become ABP News". Business Standard. 1 July 2013. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  14. "Vijay TV scripts a turnaround tale". Indian Television Dot Com. 30 April 2005. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  15. Kohli-Khandekar, Vanita (1 July 2013). "The race to become ABP News". Business Standard India. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  16. "The race to become ABP News". Business Standard India. 1 July 2013. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  17. "Life Bangalore : Another 'One' from Star TV". The Hindu. 29 October 2004. Retrieved 12 March 2018.[dead link]
  18. "After Star Jalsha, Star India all set to launch Star Pravah HD on May Day". Indian Television Dot Com. 29 April 2016. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  19. "Star Jalsha goes in brand refresh with new diamond star identity". www.bestmediaifo.com. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  20. "Star buys majority in Asianet; forms JV with Rajeev Chandrasekhar". Reuters India. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  21. VCC, Team. "Star buys majority in Asianet; forms JV with Rajeev Chandrasekhar". IN. Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  22. "STAR CJ Network launches "STAR CJ Alive"". Campaign India. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  23. "Fox Star aims to be among the top three studios in India". Live mint. 2 December 2012. Retrieved 14 October 2018.
  24. PTI (19 February 2018). "Star India wins audio-visual production rights for IPL, BCCI domestic season". livemint.com. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  25. "Rebranding was a part of ESPN's evolution in India: RC Venkateish". Indian Advertising Media & Marketing News – exchange4media. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  26. "STAR India rebrands; sheds 'ESPN' branding". www.afaqs.com. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  27. "Indian cricket media rights set to be e-auctioned on March 27". ESPNcricinfo. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  28. "Star Sports bags IPL media rights, in blockbuster deal, but at what cost?". The Indian Express. 5 September 2017. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  29. "With Hotstar, Star India aims to change the way content is consumed in India". Livemint. 11 February 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2018.
  30. "STAR India acquires MAA TV's broadcast business for Rs 2.5k cr". Business Standard India. 12 February 2015. Retrieved 3 November 2018.
  31. "Star Plus announces launch of Ted Talks India Nayi Soch on December 10". www.bestmediaifo.com. Retrieved 3 November 2018.
  32. "Star Plus launches #DontKillIdeas with TED Talks India Nayi Soch". exchange4media. Retrieved 3 November 2018.
  33. "Life OK to be rechristened Star Bharat on August 28". www.bestmediaifo.com. Retrieved 3 November 2018.
  34. "Rs 54.5 crore per match is not insane, look at it in right context: Star India CEO Uday Shankar". The Economic Times. 5 September 2017. Retrieved 3 November 2018.
  35. Faber, David (December 5, 2017). "Disney and Fox are closing in on deal, could be announced next week: Sources". CNBC. Archived from the original on December 5, 2017. Retrieved December 5, 2017.
  36. Clarke, Stewart (December 13, 2018). "Disney Sets Out International Leadership Team Post-Fox Deal". Variety. Retrieved December 14, 2018.
  37. "Zee World, Star Life to expand footprints in Africa amid growing popularity". The Financial Express.
  38. "Star TV to launch lifestyle HD channel in Africa, Star Life". Biz Asia.
  39. Star TV to shutdown television operations in USA – https://www.bizasialive.com/star-tv-ceases-television-operations-in-usa/
  40. "Disney Renaming Star Channels In The Netherlands | What's On Disney Plus". 30 December 2020.
  41. "Star channels rebrand". 15 January 2021.
  42. Krishnamurthy, Gokul (13 August 2011). "Star CJ looks to coming 'alive' this festival season". Retrieved 10 November 2016.
  43. &, Aminah Sheikh. "Companies". Retrieved 10 November 2016.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  44. "News Corp entity plans to exit Star CJ run into FIPB hurdle". Retrieved 10 November 2016.
  45. TV, India Sports (27 April 2015). "Star buys 74% stake in Pro Kabaddi". www.sportskeeda.com.
  46. Malvania, Urvi (21 March 2015). "10 million users in 40 days: Hotstar takes digital media world by storm". Business Standard India. Retrieved 21 March 2019.
  47. Baddhan, Raj (5 December 2018). "Star TV to shutdown television operations in USA". bizasia. Retrieved 5 December 2018.
  48. Choudhary, Vidhi. "Star plans to build national sports network in India". Retrieved 10 November 2016.
  49. "'Mother-in-law' canceled by Star India". The Hollywood Reporter.
  50. "Sony does a Star Plus". Business Standard.
  51. "Disney India Blocks John Oliver Show Critical of Narendra Modi". BloombergQuint. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  52. Staff Reporter (26 February 2020). "Hotstar blocks John Oliver's 'Last Week Tonight' episode criticising Narendra Modi". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 26 February 2020.
  53. "Disney India blocks John Oliver's show critical of Narendra Modi". The Indian Express. 26 February 2020. Retrieved 26 February 2020.

Further reading[edit]

External links[edit]

Template:CATV Africa, Asia, and Oceania