How many too much?

Recently, I became a part of a television report and it was broadcast during their afternoon bulletin. In the evening, one of my friends told me that he watched my clip on TV. I intentionally asked him: “Which TV?”

He replied: “I don’t know; don’t remember; in one of the TV channels. How can I remember the name of the channel when there’s a jungle out there?”

I wasn’t surprised by his statement, which I’ve heard several times from many other people. So, here’s the question: “Are the audience failing to remember the names of the TV channels they’re watching?” The answer, however, should be given by the experts.

I can only highlight a few factors that are commonly discussed by the people around me.

If the audience, such as my friend, is taken into consideration, there’s certainly a concern for the TV channels, and its work and existence. If we run a survey, the true picture of the TV channels is likely to be unearthed as to how they exist at the top of people’s minds.

The number of TV channels now stands at, perhaps, more than 23. As a homogenous audience, do we need that many channels to watch?

The Bangladeshi audience is having quite a lot of trouble to remember the names of TV channels for a particular reason. Are any of the channels offering anything to remember?

Both in terms of news and program, most broadcast almost similar content. One cannot say that a news channel is offering its content in such a way that the people would remember it.

Yes, some are known for their political inclination and some are known for their talk-shows, but still one cannot say that a program on a TV channel is quite unique, and the audience remembers it and looks forward to watch it.

Some are, of course, trying understand the audience’s mind and how to make a difference. For example, a program channel is usually known for its morning musical sessions.

Then again, the music programs don’t have much of a variety; after a while, watching the same faces becomes monotonous.

Some channels have news analysis shows on which the journalists come and talk about the news. Is there anything new in those programs?

The journalists would always, unsurprisingly, be able to talk about news and events. So why don’t the channels invite people from other professions to analyse the news? That would be more interesting to watch.

People say that there are very few good watchable programs on Bangladeshi channels. One of the exceptions have done very well with a show on agriculture, but then again this particular program is a legacy of what the anchor used to do on the state-owned channel, BTV.

There’s very little research done for creating interesting programs. A news TV channel wanted to produce good programs, but instead has become famous for a foreign historical drama serial.

I’ve watched a channel in India named “Care World TV” specialised on healthcare. It provides 24/7 news and programs on health.

They have quite a number of talk-shows, which are also on health issues. I thought it was a fantastic idea for focusing on people’s health and beauty.

Why don’t we do something like that? We could focus on sports, we could make a children’s TV channel, we could create a channel only for education, and we could have an entertainment channel.

Why do we have to remain confined to news and talk shows? There’s of course one channel that has been making a difference in the field of music, kudos to them.

Finally, we need to have a business model in terms of initiating a TV station. I have my doubts on whether our entrepreneurs have any business model in mind, as to hop onto the television business.

Business-wise, it’s a small market and the only source of revenue is TV commercials and, sometimes, SMS service. The amount of TVC budget of the business houses would not increase with the increase of the number of TV channels.

And that budget would also come down due to the digital revolution.

We need to consider the market before we launch a product. The time has come to think about  quality over quantity.