Telecom Lead India: In order to sharpen focus on its
merchandising business, Nickelodeon, a Kids TV channel has been in talks with
mobile handset makers to bring branded Nickelodeon phones in India within a
year.
Nickelodeon’s merchandising business accounts for 5 per
cent of its revenues in India, with ad sales and subscription having 80 percent
and 15 percent share, respectively. The channel already has branded products
such as school bags, stationary and optical wear for kids.
Along with mobile handsets, the channel plans to bring
out products such as toys, by-cycles, apparel, footwear, and party products.
The company is also in talks with different manufacturers
to bring out branded consumer durable products such as fans, music systems and
TVs through tie-ups.
For our Keymon show, we have recorded over 2.5 million
downloads (on mobile handsets). Clearly, mobile is a strong platform for
engaging with kids and this is why we are launching our branded handsets,” said
Nina Elavia Jaipuria, executive vice-president of Nickelodeon India.
Nickelodeon will tie-up with TI cycles for launching its
branded cycles, Metro for footwear products and Weisner for apparel. These
products will be launched in the next two months.
