Excl: BrizzTV seeks to do a Google AdSense on TV with new ad monetisation platform & freemium content

BrizzTV Media Lab Pvt Ltd, a digital media startup that brings web content onto the television screen without internet connectivity, is rolling out in December a new platform for TV viewers and broadcasters to monetise TV commercials and sponsorship advertisements even more effectively, a top company executive told Techcircle.in.

The new technology platform will enable TV viewers to watch premium channels on a reduced screen space for free/subsidised rates while broadcasters will be able to run ads and TV commercials on the remaining part of the screen. Viewer can opt out of ads by clicking the 'close' key and they can go back to full-screen viewing by paying the standard subscription.

The Bangalore-based startup, which raised an undisclosed amount from Ojas Venture Partners in February this year, claims that it has already tied up with four national broadcasters and two leading ad aggregators to launch this platform.

"This is going to be a revolution in the multi-billion-dollar broadcasting and TV advertisement industry," said Jitendra Jagadev, co-founder and COO of BrizzTV. "In the existing model, those who are not subscribed cannot watch a TV channel as only a blank screen appears when he/she chooses it. In our freemium model, viewers can watch premium channels and broadcasters can run ads, mutually benefiting each other," he added.

Moreover, the new platform will enable viewers to sample a channel's content before subscribing. At the same time, broadcasters stand a huge chance of getting free viewership converted to paid subscriptions, apart from benefiting from ad revenues.

The ads will be sourced and fed directly to the TV network from the web without an intermediary, and can be changed or replaced any time. "These ads can be controlled and monetised from the web itself. In a nutshell, we are bringing the Google Ad network onto a TV screen," added Jagadev.

"DTH providers are also going to gain as it lets them make money from sachet subscription model, unlike the existing monthly subscriptions. For instance, a DTH provider can charge Rs 2 from viewers to watch a movie for two hours or Rs 5 for a day, instead of getting Rs 30 a month," he explained.

Set up in May 2010 by Amarendra Sahu (CEO), Jitendra Jagadev (COO) and Krishnan Varadarajan (CTO), BrizzTV has recently bagged the NABARD Award 2012 for rural innovation for its iExam platform, which provides exam content on a TV screen in real time without the internet connectivity. As of now, it is only available on Airtel's DTH platform, but will soon be available on other platforms as well.

The company claims to have 25,000 paid subscribers for iExam and is now looking to raise around $2 million to scale up the platform to ensure access across more locations within the country.

(Edited by Sanghamitra Mandal)