As Viacom18 is gearing up for the entry in to Tamil GEC market in mid January tentatively. While the day 14th January happens to be the likely launch date as it falls on auspicious festive occasion of Pongal in Tamil Nadu, the network has already set its foot strongly in distribution through its proxy channel NXT TV.
The latest update from Information and broadcasting ministry shows that Viacom18 has changed the names during the month of October 2017. The permission for both NXT and ZAP was acquired in the name of Viacom18 on 6th April 2016. With this it is apparent that Viacom 18 plans to launch its Tamil GEC in both SD and HD format simultaneously.
Apparently, NXT is widely being distributed in all leading MSO in Chennai (except SCV) and across TN that includes the state owned Arasu Cable TV Network. The Channel is also available in all leading DTH Platforms under Tamil Entertainment Channel category. However, ZAP is not being distributed anywhere as the same falls under HD format that targets the premium audience.
Presently NXT is airing most of the dubbed content that was aired on Colors Hindi GEC and they are studying the viewing preferences of the audience to formulate a strategy for Tamil audience.
Viacom18 prepares for Tamil GEC launch; renames NXT and ZAP as Colors Tamil and Colors Tamil HD
