IT@TT - Online

TMG Enter is India's first cable channel to focus exclusively on technology. Amrita Ghosh of IT@TT met Subhanjan Sarkar, Chairman, TMG. Excerpts...

IT@TT: The concept of a dedicated IT channel is not just interesting, but new in India. Could you tell us why was did TMG decide to focus on this market?

SS: OK, I'll quickly walk you through TMG's history. We focussed on IT about 5 years ago when we started Infotrek in 1995, on DD Metro. In December 1996 we launched a daily show on Asianet. This Malayalam channel had a morning programming band in English. It used to re-beam ABC programmes between 6 AM and 12 Noon. We bought a slot. Right from the beginning we've been buying time and airing our own programmes. The result is that we own all the IP. This has ensured TMG possessing about 1500 hours of archive.

IT@TT: What was your role?

SS: Right from the DD days I was involved in conceptualising and hosting the show.

IT@TT: I was wondering about how you got started in IT?

SS: I'm basically a media guy. It so happened that I knew most of the key players in the IT industry, 10 years back (1988-89). I knew Subroto Bagchi, Pradeep Kar, Narayan Murthi, Vinay Deshpande and many others. We published a magazine, where all these people used to write. By 1995 I was convinced that IT is it. I started reading and writing on IT and meeting more people. Before the start of IT Hour, I met Col FS Kohli (ex-Chairman of Tata Consultancy Services) and he said, "It's a great idea, but what are you going to show?"

IT@TT: I guess part of this perception also results from the general idea that 'IT's very happening and cool, but not entertaining or interesting enough to raise a cry about'.

SS: Exactly. You've hit the nail on the head. I had a clear idea about the progress of things. And believed that we missed the hardware bus in India. Software was one bus that India couldn't afford to miss. I'm not a software professional, but I believe that it's critical to do 2 things. If I have some capacity to help, then I must put it behind the software industry.

Motivation is the most important factor here. Secondly, it's essential to build a media platform on which we can build Indian brands. And I believe that for Indian IT industry to be successful, a worldwide Indian platform is essential. All said and done, CNN understands American sentiments better than it understands the Indian. So you need a representative from within the country to promote its image.

IT@TT: And you plan to become that global presence championing India's causes?

SS: Absolutely. That's our biggest motivation.

IT@TT: Are you venture capital funded?

SS: Entirely. You'll be surprised to know that all the institutions funding us are very Indian and steer clear from any phoren connections. That's something extraordinary, considering that it's an out-of-the-box thing and there's always the question of "How're you going to make money?" as you rightly asked. These kinds of questions are tough to answer and the only rational I can offer is that people really believe that there is a need for a venture like ours and they believe that it'll work.

We're funded by IFCI, Canbank, Gujarat Venture and ICICI Venture. We also have other Indian institutions looking to fund us. And we have mission partners who believe in our project. We're in tech-media play, not in tech-tech play. And after the post-April crash, our valuation has more than doubled.

IT@TT: What fueled this growth?

SS: I'd say that, fundamentally, we have a very strong proposition. I believe that we've performed very well in whatever we've undertaken to do. TMG's not only a television channel. It obviously does the 24-hour technology channel, TMG Enter. Then we publish a magazine called CIO in collaboration with IDG. Then we have this online portal IndianITonline. We're beginning to structure all our activities around this portal.

IT@TT: So you make it a business to make the future and not talk about it, is it?

SS: Absolutely. It's not worth talking about things; you need to go out and act.

IT@TT: What were your expectations from TMG when you started out and how would you rate your growth and your contribution to the future of technology media?

SS: I'll put it this way and deal with your question in bits. One is that, if there are 5 large global technology content companies, TMG is one of them. The way we perceive ourselves, globally we should be one of the top 5 players. If you measure India according to what I call the technology and maturity model, then you'll find India to be just ahead of Malaysia or China. We visualise TMG's emergence as a leader for technology content on behalf of the developing community. We don't want to lead the Americans, because we can't. We don't understand what they want. But we definitely understand what a Bangladeshi wants and needs.

IT@TT: So what would you perceive as the need of the hour as far as end-users/audiences of technology media content are considered?

SS: Once again consider the realities. Firstly, we've more technology coming our way than we can handle. Secondly, we've no single source of going and figuring out the problems that result from our investment in technology. Very few of us really use all the features of a technical gadget. The PC is probably the best example of use of power. I wonder why we buy P3s, P4s and G4s from Mac, if we're not going to utilise the entire capacity offered.

IT@TT: But, why do you think we have this resistance and reticence to imbibe technology and activate new features?

SS: To begin with, I don't think we're technology-minded people. And we don't have source. As you rightly said, the perception about technology's that either it's for geeks or it's boring. And I'm not even sure whether newbies think it's for them. Television is a very high investment game. But one of the reasons we went into television is that apart from building Indian brands globally and creating a media platform that's India-known, it's imperative to build a home market. Now how will you do that? Not by speaking in English.

We launched the channel in April and in May, we started a Hindi band, E-Sambad, which is an hour daily. A couple of weeks back, we launched a Kannada show on Udaya TV. And it's doing very well. We're talking to several regional channels to bring in language content.

IT@TT: How has the East responded to your efforts?

SS: We're in the process of some negotiations. And we'll be introducing Bangla programmes very soon. I promised that on my visit to Kolkata last year and we're working in that direction.

IT@TT: What was the response to TMG at the Cable Exhibition at the Indoor Stadium?

SS: The response has been extremely good. Cable operators from all over the eastern region (North East, Orissa, Bihar and West Bengal) have shown keen interest and have informed us that they continue to enjoy significant demand from their viewers.

IT@TT: But you're not exactly looking to expand your operations in the East currently?

SS: We are. Let's face it. Kolkata has to catch up. Not enough is happening. At the same time, I do sincerely believe that Kolkata has an unique potential. If you consider as to why Bangalore did so well, you'll find that the atmosphere was considerably enhanced by the ability of the industry and academia to work together consistently. I believe the same exists in Kolkata and, it's a big opportunity.

When we speak to Chandra Babu Naidu, he says, in the last 4 years, I built 70 new engineering colleges. They had 30. Now they have 104. I don't see why we can't do it in Kolkata. I believe the government is pretty well-focussed as they've realized that IT is 'the' way. The government has had its hands full and whatever has happened has not been due to Government's interest.

If Orissa and Madhya Pradesh are waking up, then West Bengal has to. Certain things need time to boil down and get focussed. This is one of them. You know, we enjoy one of the best TRPs in Kolkata. If people were not interested, that wouldn't have happened. We get a lot of fan mails from all over the place, but a major chunk comes out of the East. If the Government and the industry get their act together, then we can have some 20-30 more engineering colleges that'll help to build the atmosphere. I think Kolkata has that potential.

IT@TT: Which of your programmes enjoy the most viewer ship and popularity?

SS: I think the Hindi band is really popular. Breakthrough is another popular programme. It's about technology jobs. IT Hour of course is a very well-watched programme. So also is the Internet programme called ZindagiOnline. We get mails from 70-year olds whose kids stay in the States and they claim that all their knowledge of the Internet is picked up from ZindagiOnline.

IT@TT: I guess, it's mail like this that makes your day?

SS: Absolutely. These mails reiterate my belief that I'm doing what I'm doing, because I believe in it. I believe we're on the right track. Our objective is to give breaks to technology-savvy youngsters who can anchor shows.

After anchoring about 700 shows, one of the first things we did was to detach the channel from me. There were some channels who were dependent on just one or two faces. That's a dangerous thing to happen. We make it a point to prevent such a thing from happening and also preserve its essence as a channel.

IT@TT: What's the market scenario for IT channels? Are you the only one of your kind in this part of the world?

SS: Yes. There are only 2 IT channels in the world. One is us, the other is TechTV, which is owned by Paul Allen. So we're in good company.

IT@TT: TMG has chosen to operate in 3 mediums simultaneously. So which of your ventures-print, television and online is doing best?

SS: Our print publication is intended for a restricted audience. CIO is meant for Chief Information Officers who take investment decisions. And is the most authoritative product that any user investing money in the Indian IT industry can get his hands on. TMG is a technology-content company. Whatever resources we have, we'll port. In terms of hits, IndianITOnline is pretty stabilized. When we first launched TMG, there was intense pressure on me to separate IndianITOnline from the organization. There were many FIIs who offered 5 million dollars on the table to make it a separate venture. And we're very happy we refused. We've been able to maintain a synergy between all the 3 mediums.

Interviewed By Amrita Ghosh
[email protected]

Top

Other Articles