CNN & IBN end 10-year partnership in India
CNN and IBN have mutually agreed to end their ten-year association.
The two broadcasting giants confirmed today that the deal will conclude in January 2016. As a result of this news, TV18 Broadcast will drop ‘CNN’ as a pre-fix to its English news channel, CNN IBN. The two companies entered a brand agreement on 27th October 2005.
In a joint statement, the two companies said, “The conclusion of the arrangement will enable each company thereafter to chart its own growth trajectory independently in one of the most dynamic, complex and fast growing markets in the world.”
Commenting on the development, Network18 Group CEO AP Parigi told Business Standard, “The last decade has seen a lot of momentum in the Indian media industry and has been particularly exciting for us. During this time we witnessed two media houses coming together to redefine the way news is presented to a demanding audience; we at TV18 have benefited from this relationship with CNN.”
From two channels in 2005 to 17 news channels currently, TV18 Broadcasting consists of CNBC-TV18, CNBC Awaaz, CNBC Bajar, CNBC-TV18 Prime HD, CNN-IBN, IBN7, ETV channels and IBN-Lokmat, a Marathi regional news channel in partnership with the Lokmat Group. TV18’s brand licencing agreement with CNBC for its business news channels is up until March 2018.
