‘Bigg Boss 2020’ all set to cash in on festive season

“Bigg Boss has a very strong and loyal fan following across age groups and we know consumers are waiting for it," said Mahesh Shetty, head, network sales, Viacom18. He added that the Colors show scheduled to start airing 3 October onward at 10:30 pm on weekdays and 9 pm on the weekends has already signed on esports and mobile gaming platform Mobile Premier League (MPL) as the presenting sponsor while Dabur Dant Rakshak Ayurvedic Paste and an HUL brand will act as co-powered by sponsors.

Viacom is in talks with several brands for sponsoring other categories and Shetty said the company has received good traction from advertisers who are looking forward to the festive season that Bigg Boss always capitalizes on, managing to cover everything from Dussehra and Diwali to Christmas and new year’s during its run along with its inclination towards brand integrations within the show.

The core of the show remains the same with a bunch of people stuck inside a house, Shetty said but the network has added certain twists based on existing realities of the covid world into its narrative. Regular things such as shopping in malls, going to a restaurant, spa, gym or visiting a movie theatre have now become luxuries. The Bigg Boss house will accommodate these realities in the form of rewards to shop, order food or watch a film in a mini-theatre designed inside the house, that contestants can get by winning tasks.

“The twist of the lockdown will help create drama and besides these innovations also help us monetize the show better," said Shetty.

Brand experts say although Viacom’s revenues are likely to be less by 15-20% than last year thanks to the covid-19 slowdown, the company is not offering discounts on ad rates, commanding an estimated ₹3-5 lakh for 10-second slots.

"Viacom18 is introducing new elements in the show to engage deeply with viewers which is why they have scheduled the show during the festive season. A lot of our clients have shown interest in the show. The viewership is expected to be high owing to the immense curiosity that surrounds the celebrity participants," said Sujata Dwibedy, group trading director, Amplifi, Dentsu Aegis Network India.

Others said while there's advertiser interest, it might not necessarily translate into high revenues for the broadcaster as consumer demand remains muted.

"Viewership may remain the same or even be higher than last year but I think the advertising money the show will fetch might be low simply because the consumer demand is lukewarm and marketers will be cautious with their spends," said Sandeep Goyal, chairman, Mogae Media, a Mumbai-based marketing and communication agency.

“With media consumption habits changing in the lockdown period, we also shifted our focus to news channels which were grabbing consumer eyeballs. With new programming commencing on GEC, we are slowly moving back to this genre," said Minoo Phakey, Dabur India Ltd senior general manager. Dabur has taken up the sponsorship of Hindi, Telugu and Tamil versions of Bigg Boss with brands like Dabur Dant Rakshak Ayurvedic paste, Real Mango PET and Dabur Herb’l Clove Toothpaste respectively. “We are excited about our association with Bigg Boss, which will help us reach out to a large number of households to not only create awareness for the brand but also engage with a large audience through some innovative associations," Phakey added.

While Shetty declined to comment on the production budget for the show, calling it “expensive but money well invested…that helps revenue, brand and viewership grow," a Filmfare report suggests that Viacom is paying Rs. 450 crore to host Khan alone. Critics suggest eyeballs are also strained on Khan this time, and it remains to be seen whether he brings in high ratings given the controversies around nepotism that have engulfed him of late.

Mint had earlier reported that brands across categories are looking to increase their advertising spends during the upcoming festive season which shall see the Indian Premier League (IPL) coincide with marquee shows like Bigg Boss and Kaun Banega Crorepati on Sony Entertainment Television, with an aim to tap into increased viewership and engagement to motivate consumers to buy products and restart the consumption cycle. To be sure, apart from the economic slowdown, IPL is likely to be a big challenge for Bigg Boss both in terms of viewership and advertiser interest.

“Special and big shows always have a loyal audience base but this time with people really yearning for live sports and the IPL returning after a year-and-a-half, things will be a bit different," said K. Srinivas Rao, national director, buying, at GroupM-owned media agency MediaCom.

(Suneera Tandon contributed to this story)