ZEEL announces the launch of ZEE5, India’s largest digital entertainment platform

New Delhi: Amit Goenka, CEO, ZEE International and Z5 Global on Wednesday announced the launch of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd’s brand new digital entertainment platform ZEE5.

Beginning from February 14, 2018, ZEE5 will be the one-stop digital destination for ZEE Entertainment, a global Media and Entertainment powerhouse. ZEE5 addresses the entertainment demands of a 'New India' that is increasingly digital savvy and globally connected, yet fundamentally rooted in its culture, as per an official release.

With ‘Language’ as the core proposition embodied across the entire content and user experience, ZEE5 truly caters to an India without boundaries, it adds.

“With the launch of ZEE5 we see ourselves catapulting into the next phase of growth,” said Amit Goenka.

“Digital will play a critical role in fueling this growth and we wanted to ensure that we had a strong offering and presence in the space. As a global content company, our biggest strength is how well we understand our consumers and translate this into content they love. To us, ZEE5 is the platform on which this content will be readily available to the world. Every aspect of ZEE5 is based on our deep understanding of our consumers and their local ecosystem. ZEE5, while phenomenally easy to use, banks on superbly sophisticated technology to create this ease. It is both local and global at the same time and we know it is going to change the way you watch content,” he added.

On the other hand, Punit Goenka, MD and CEO, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd, said, “The launch of ZEE5 further strengthens us as a Media & Entertainment powerhouse. A blend of unrivalled content offering and robust technology is the foundation of this all-new digital offering from our end. We have invested immense amount of time and energy in creating and acquiring rich and engaging content for ZEE5, which I’m sure will be cherished by our viewers across the nation and worldwide”

About ZEE5

ZEE5 offers viewers a completely integrated entertainment offering with both On-Demand and Live TV.  It comes packed with 1,00,000 hours of On Demand content, including exclusive Originals, Indian and International Movies and TV Shows, Music, and Health and Lifestyle videos across languages. It also has an extensive Live TV offering with 90+ popular Live TV channels. 

Viewers can watch content across genres in any of 12 languages - English, Hindi, Bengali, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi, Oriya, Bhojpuri, Gujarati and Punjabi. In a first for any OTT platform in India, and driven by the changing profile of the Indian digital consumer, viewers can also choose their preferred display language from among 11 languages, including English, Hindi, Bengali, Malayalam, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, Marathi, Bhojpuri, Gujarati and Punjabi.

Features of ZEE5:

- First digital entertainment platform in India to offer Voice Search, thereby instantly bringing entertainment into the hands of millions of Indians who are not so digitally savvy. Viewers can search for content by simply speaking the name of a show or movie.

- ZEE5 is also available as a Progressive Web App (PWA) to address the patchy connectivity and low phone storage scenarios.

- Viewers get a superior app experience without having to download the app.

- The Content Download option enables a viewer to download content from the app while on Wi-Fi and save it to watch later without incurring data costs.

- In addition, the option to save this content on the SD/memory card enables viewers to manage their phone memory easily.

- A Multi-CDN strategy, based on real-time performance-based selection, will ensure a high quality, superbly optimized video viewing experience for ZEE5 viewers across all devices.

- Additional key features include Chromecast/airplay support, Add to Watchlist, Add to Favourites, Set Show reminders, ability to browse other content with player minimisation, TV Guide and uninterrupted streaming on low bandwidth.

- The ZEE5 App can be downloaded from Google Play Store and iOS App Store. Also available at www.zee5.com, as a Progressive Web App (PWA), and on Android TVs, and Amazon Fire TV Stick. ZEE5 also supports Chromecast.

Pricing:

Freemium pricing model with both free and paid premium content to cater to a mix of audiences. Viewers who subscribe to the ZEE5 subscription pack will get access to the entire library of content at a special launch offer price of INR 99 per month instead of the actual monthly pack price of INR 150.

Outlining the India strategy, Archana Anand, Digital Head, ZEE5 India said, “We see ZEE5 as filling a definite need-gap in the Indian market for strong language content and navigation experience across Indian languages. Our platform will be as relevant to the urban elite as it is to the new digital audiences experiencing Internet for the first time. India’s digital story is going to be fuelled by new language consumers and that’s exactly who ZEE5 is for. Our Brand Anthem celebrates this spirited new India, globally savvy, yet happiest in the language of their comfort. We believe this market to be hugely underserved and hence, see this approach as key to driving our India win.”

ZEE5’s brand anthem:

 ZEE5’s brand anthem and brand identity were also unveiled on Wednesday. The catchy multilingual brand anthem is directed by Dangal director Nitesh Tiwari. Composed by Amit Trivedi and written by Amitabh Bhattacharya, the anthem is a Celebration of Languages and brings to life the freedom of consuming content in the language of your comfort. Keeping in mind the distinct audiences, two versions of the anthem have been created - one for the North market and one for the South, each catering to the specific market nuances for authenticity and connect. 

About the name ZEE5:

The name ZEE5 comes from the number of continents that ZEE is available in. ‘5’ essentially signifies the five continents ZEE has its presence in and is a tribute to its extraordinary journey over the last 25 years.

With a presence in over 173 countries and a reach of more than 1.3 billion people around the globe, ZEEL is among the largest global content companies across genres, languages, and platforms. With its new brand ideology and purpose - “Extraordinary Together”, ZEEL aspires to provide a unified brand experience and to delight consumers across the world by creating extraordinary entertainment and experiences that inspire to transcend the ordinary and become extraordinary.

ZEEL is present across broadcasting, movies, music, digital, live entertainment and theatre businesses, both within India and overseas. ZEEL has more than 250,000 hours of television content and houses the world’s largest Hindi film library with rights to more than 4,200 movie titles across various languages.

ZEEL has also produced several movies for theatrical release and is the fastest growing music label in India.