Sony Pictures Network Rebrands Sports Portfolio Into 11 Channels

Sony Pictures Networks has rebranded its sports brand as it added two more channels to its portfolio - Sony Ten 2 HD and Sony Ten 3 HD, taking the total number of its sports channels to 11. The network has appointed Sachin Tendulkar as its brand ambassador for sports.

The channels under the network include SONY SIX, SONY SIX HD, SONY TEN 1, SONY TEN 1 HD, SONY TEN 2, SONY TEN 2 HD, SONY TEN 3, SONY TEN 3 HD, SONY ESPN, SONY ESPN HD, SONY TEN GOLF HD. The 11 channels include five SD and six HD channels.

Explaining the content that the sports channels will provide, Rajesh Kaul, President, Sports and Distribution, SPN,  said, “At Sony Pictures Networks, we are committed to providing unparalleled sports viewing experience with the best leagues, best athletes and the best of sports entertainment. We are in a unique position with over 11,000 hours of live content this year that has given us the opportunity to create channel destinations for different sports. Each of our 11 channels will project a distinct content lineup from our expansive portfolio of domestic and national sporting properties.”

He further added the BARC numbers to project the success of Sony’s sports cluster by saying, “If you take a look at the first quarter of 2017, we have gained 55% viewership than other sports networks which comprise the remaining 45% and we tend to reach 60% by the final quarter of the year 2017.”

SPN aims to be at the forefront of curating and engaging the viewers in a multi-sport viewing culture in India and the subcontinent. In order to encourage all kinds of domestic and international sports for Indian viewers, they are following the credo of ‘Go-Beyond’ with a unified theme of #sportsinspireslife.

Talking about the strategy to curate sports content diversified in 11 different channels, N.P. Singh, CEO, Sony Pictures Networks, India said, “Our corporate philosophy of ‘Go-Beyond’ encourages us to be brave, curious, insightful and visionary in everything we do. It takes leaders to ‘Go-Beyond’ at every step of the game because leaders just don’t prepare for the future, they create it. It is the leader mindset that has taken us from a single sports channel in 2012 to 11 dedicated sports channels in a span of five years. The future of sports is multi-sport. Therefore we want to engage viewers in a multi-sports milieu. As SPN’s brand ambassador for sports, Sachin Tendulkar echoes our sentiment and intent to grow the viewership of different sports.”

Commenting on being chosen as the brand ambassador, Sachin Tendulkar said, “Sony Pictures Network’s rallying credo of ‘Go-Beyond’ reflects my beliefs and resonates deeply. Among the many things that sports have taught me, is the abilities to push the boundaries and the bar by stretching myself beyond my limits. It is a privilege to associate with Sony Pictures Networks to curate a culture of multi-sport viewing in the Indian subcontinent. As SPN’s brand ambassador for sports, I am going to personally call out for this change.”