DTH player BIG TV, announced a special Marathi showcase as a part of its aggressive bid to enhance market share in the Marathi-speaking pockets including the State of Maharashtra.

BIG TV says that its Marathi content strategy involves a three pronged approach namely acquire localized content by tapping Marathi theatre, create a special Marathi cinema showcase on its pay platform and launching specially designed Marathi Packages.

The company has also bagged rights of late Marathi playwright, Pu la Deshpande’s stage plays. It has also acquired rights of Marathi films such as Samantar, Paandhar, Housefull, Zapatlela, Aaplee Mansaa. The films will be priced at Rs 50 for a 24-hour view pass.

Reliance BIG TV has also launched a new Marathi package for its audience in Maharashtra. This package comprises four Marathi channels ETV Marathi, Zee Marathi, Star Pravah and Zee Talkies for a monthly subscription of Rs 5 only if selected as a first language. It has added a bouquet of Marathi channels like IBN Lokmat, Star Majha, DD Sahayadri and Mi Marathi to the base packs.

As part of its marketing initiative to promote its Marathi content, Reliance BIG TV has roped in Marathi actor Ajinkya Deo for its new TVC. The new TVC is on air across all TV channels.  The TVC with Ajinkya Deo has been conceptualized by Ramesh Deo Productions delivering the joy of owning a Reliance Big TV DTH service.

Commenting on its Marathi content strategy, Mr. Umesh Rao, Chief Marketing Officer, Reliance Big TV said, “The idea behind creating a special Marathi showcase is to give our audiences in Maharashtra a world class TV viewing experience at a value-based price proposition. Through these special Marathi offerings, our subscribers will gain benefit of a plethora of local programming while continuing to enjoy their favourite Marathi channels. On the business front, a specially designed Marathi showcase makes strategic sense enabling us to enhance our regional yields in Maharashtra across multiple revenue windows.”

The Company is investing nearly Rs 5 crore in its Marathi content showcase. The investment will be directed towards acquisition of niche Marathi content, marketing activities and consumer activation schemes. This is deemed as one of the largest investments made towards showcasing Marathi talent.

The Marathi content focus is key to Reliance BIG TV’s overall marketing strategy considering that Maharashtra comprises of nearly 20% of its overall customer base. The growth acceleration of subscriber additions in Maharashtra over the last two quarters has been over 25%. Moreover, the company’s ARPUs from Maharashtra are significantly higher at Rs 273/month in comparison to its national ARPU levels of Rs 235 to Rs 250 per month, says the company.

The localization move is in line with Reliance’s strategy to drive its regional penetration deeper in Tier II and Tier III geographies. The company is looking at generating over 40% of its overall subscriber base from these Tier 2 and Tier 3 geographies.