India

DreamWorks Raises $825M; India's Ambani Takes 50% Stake

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 15, 2009 - 11:26am.
Los Angeles - Indian billionaire Anil Dhirubhai Ambani has paid $325 million for a 50% stake in DreamWorks, director Steven Spielberg's film studio. DreamWorks has raised a total of $825 million, including $150 million from Disney, and debt from a number of banks.

Indian VOD Provider Tinselvision Shuts Down

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 10, 2008 - 10:57am.

Washington - Tinselvision, a Web video-on-demand service that offered Indian TV and Bollywood films to South Asian communities living abroad, has shut down, PaidContent reported.

Live Earth India Concert Cancelled in Wake of Attacks

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 1, 2008 - 2:03pm.

Los Angeles - Former Vice President Al Gore and Live Earth founder Kevin Wall said on Monday that Live Earth India, concert originally slated for Dec. 7 in Mumbai, has been cancelled in light of the recent tragic attacks there. The concert was set to feature local stars like Aishwarya Rai alongside Bon Jovi, Roger Waters and others. "We will continue to work for solutions to the climate crisis for the good of the people of India and around the world. But for now, our thoughts and our prayers are with the victims of this terrible attack, with the bereaved, with the people of Mumbai and with everyone in India," Live Earth India said in a statement.

tags: Music | India | Al Gore | Live Earth |

BitGravity Gets $11.5 Million, Launches CDN for India's Tata

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 8, 2008 - 7:15am.
Burlingame, Calif. - BitGravity, a provider of content delivery network services for interactive broadcasting, announced on Monday that it has received an $11.5 million investment from Tata Communications, an India-based telecommunications firm.

Apple iPhone 3G Launches in India, Poland

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on August 22, 2008 - 9:31am.

New Delhi and Warsaw - Apple (NASD: AAPL) on Friday launched its iPhone 3G in India and Poland, but while crowds lined up at midnight sales at several locations in India, Apple's Polish iPhone carrier partner, Orange, said it paid actors to create "fake queues" at 20 of its stores in the country, Reuters reported. The iPhone 3G retails for a whopping $700 in India, compared with $199 in the U.S., but Indian carrier partner Airtel told Reuters it counted more than 200,000 pre-bookings before prices were announced.

IDG Ventures Invests in Indian Online Ad Network Ozone Media

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 7, 2008 - 7:18am.

Mumbai, India - Ozone Media, an online advertising network in India, announced that it has received an undisclosed sum of first round funding from IDG Ventures India.

MySpace Launches New Site in India

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 17, 2008 - 11:57am.

Mumbai, India - News Corp.'s (NYSE: NWS) MySpace on Thursday officially launched its latest localized site in India, promoting the new service with a rock concert featuring local artists, and a developer platform workshop. The company also said it signed a deal with Star TV, India's largest television network, to create an original network television program, "Campus Star," that will be featured on Channel V. The new show, currently airing on television in India, is a nationwide college talent competition featuring celebrity judges and the voting MySpace audience.

Soros, Omidyar, Google.org Launch Investment Firm in India

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 20, 2008 - 10:01am.

New York - The Soros Economic Development Fund (SEDF), Omidyar Network, and Google.org (NASD: GOOG) on Tuesday announced a new $17 million investment company for small and medium-size businesses in India, "to create job opportunities and spur greater economic participation for a larger segment of the population."

Soros Pays $100M for 3% of India's Reliance Entertainment

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 8, 2008 - 8:32am.

Los Angeles - Billionaire investor George Soros has paid $100 million for a 3% stake in Reliance Entertainment, a multi-platform entertainment provider in India, which was valued at $3.3 billion for the deal.

Indian Mobile Ad Firm mGinger Raises $2 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 29, 2007 - 8:01am.

Bangalore, India - mGinger, a provider of mobile advertising services, has raised $2 million in its first round of venture capital financing, led by Draper Fisher Jurvetson, ContentSutra reports.

Paramount Taps Hungama Mobile for Promotions in India

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 28, 2007 - 1:21pm.

Singapore - Viacom's (NYSE: VIA) Paramount Digital Entertainment unit has partnered with Hungama Mobile to develop and distribute mobile content for Paramount titles in India, Variety reports. The mobile content will be released to promote Paramount's theatrical releases in the country. "This deal is really all about synergy and having Hungama Mobile do for us what they do for Bollywood releases," Paramount Digital Entertainment VP, Interactive and Mobile Entertainment, Asia Pacific, Pradeep Mittur, told Variety. "At this stage, this relationship is more about promotion of our movies, than trying to develop a new revenue stream."

Indian VOD Provider TinselVision Raises Over $3 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on November 20, 2007 - 7:29am.

Washington - TinselVision, a broadband video-on-demand service that delivers Indian TV and Bollywood films overseas, announced that it has raised more than $3 million in its second round of venture capital financing, led by Innovative Entertainment Limited.

Tinsel Cinema Gets $3 Million for Bollywood VOD Service

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 25, 2007 - 9:59am.

Washington - Tinsel Cinema, a company developing an Internet video-on-demand service targeting South Asian communities in the U.S., U.K. and Canada, announced on Monday that it has raised $3 million in its first round of funding, led by Innovative Entertainment Limited.

Learning Marketing From The Drum Solo

Authored by Rohit Bhargava on June 18, 2007 - 10:57am.
Last night I saw a drum solo as part of the A.R. Rahman concert here in DC.  For those who don't know, A.R. Rahman is as close as any modern day man can get to being a god in India.  He is the music composer (and sometimes voice) behind many of the most popular Bollywood films.  The concert presented an evening of his music from many films and was hugely popular here in DC - with people lining up outside and dancing in the aisles throughout the show. 

India-based Multiplayer Game Publisher Kreeda Raises Funds

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 13, 2007 - 10:23am.

*A correction has been made to this story.

Mumbai, India
- Kreeda Games, an India-based publisher of massively multiplayer online games, has raised "less than $10 million" in new financing, from IDG Ventures and SoftBank China & India Holdings, India Times reported.

Viacom, TV18 Group Team on Multi-Platform Venture in India

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on May 22, 2007 - 3:24pm.

New York - Media conglomerate Viacom announced on Tuesday that it has created a joint venture with India-based TV18Group, which will distribute TV, film and digital media content across numerous brands in India.

Indian Online Social Network Minglebox Raises $7 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on May 3, 2007 - 10:16am.

Bangalore, India - Minglebox, a social networking site in India, has raised $7 million in funding from Sequoia Capital India, contentSutra reported.

AOL Launches New Portal in India

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 27, 2007 - 10:58am.

Dulles, Va. - Reflecting the increased importance of the Indian market, AOL said that it has launched a new Internet portal in India, offering local news and information, as well as free services such as email and instant messaging, to the Indian market.

tags: AOL | India | Publishing |

India-based Online Games Firm Games2Win Raises $5 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 2, 2007 - 10:41am.

Mumbai, India - Online game developer Games2Win has raised about $5 million in its first round of venture capital financing, led by Clearstone Venture Partners and SVB Financial Group, PEHub.com reported.

Brightcove to Distribute Day-and-Date Bollywood Film for Rajshri

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 4, 2006 - 3:18pm.
Boston - Brightcove, a provider of Internet TV delivery technology, announced on Monday that Indian entertainment producer Rajshri will use its service for the online premiere of the Bollywood movie "Vivah" day and date with its theatrical release. The film will be available for download with a 72-hour rental license at Rajshri.com and Brightcove.com