Cellcast launches India’s first user generated content platform

MUMBAI: Following the productions of Bid2Win and Bollywood Dhamaal, Cellcast Interactive India have now launched Sumo.TV, which is India’s first end-to-end user-generated content (UGC) solution for broadcasters.

“Sumo.TV invites individuals to share their personal or creative videos that could be featured on prime time television. Sumo.TV has already been launched in the UK and China markets, and has proved a hit with television audiences in those countries. In fact, in the UK market we have started a 24-hour channel with the content contributed by solely by viewers. This exceeds what even YouTube or MySpace can provide for their communities,” said Cellcast Plc UK vice president Mahesh Ramachandra.

Content can be contributed through the newly-launched website, at www.sumo.in, where individuals can view, share and manage their own content.

Cellcast Interactive India CEO Pankaj Thakar said, “UGC reflects a fundamental change in audience behavior, especially in the 18-34 age group in India where most of them are spending time online or on mobile creating and sharing their own content. Sumo.TV offers them an outlet to share their content with millions through the power of television.”

“Importantly, the content contributors can earn revenue whenever their videos are watched or shown on television,” he added. Every time a user’s content is downloaded by another user, shown on television, or streamed on mobile services, he will receive a percentage of received revenues. Effectively, Sumo.TV users are being invited to set up their own mini-channels.

In the UK, the Sumo.TV website (www.sumo.tv) alone has an average of 80000 unique visitors per day.

Thakar said, “India is experiencing a truly dynamic phase in media technology convergence and we, at Cellcast, are delighted to launch the revolutionary product Sumo.TV in the market that will help us derive the benefits over a long period.”

“Cellcast India plans to air the video content on local television and are currently in talks with a number of television channels about the same,” he added.

All the best videos submitted to the website or via mobile phone are selected by trained staff and broadcast on Sumo.TV channels and programmes. Broadcasters who license Sumo.TV have immediate access to all the components of next-generation UGC programming including…

• Original user-generated content
  
• UGC-oriented interactive TV formats
  
• 3D video jukebox
  
• Content management system and production tools
  
• Video-sharing and community website
  
• Mobile services

These tools and services allow a broadcaster to create anything from an hour-long weekly television show to an entire UGC-driven 24/7 television channel.