The television industry in India, like every other industry, is experiencing heady times. The mushrooming of new channels has intensified the competition for viewership. In such a situation, television broadcasting companies are adopting the strategies of glocalization and regional-based customization to improve, both, viewership and return on investment. This article discusses the strategies adopted by television channels in India.

Just imagine for a moment that you possess a special cloak like Harry Potter's, which allows you to travel invisible to human eyes. If you were to visit various homes across India in the evening, wearing this cloak, you would probably find lots of people glued to their television sets, their favorite show. The tableaux would vary from one set watched by all the members of the family to different sets watched separately by various members of the same family. This would depend upon the socioeconomic stratum the family belonged to. However, the fact remains that they would all be watching television. Another interesting fact that you will observe is that different people across India will be watching different channels that, in most cases, will be telecast in the viewers' mother tongue.

What they watch and what their viewing preferences are, rule the lives of all the television industry personnel from the studio bosses onwards down to the junior most executives. Television broadcasters are faced with accelerating fragmentation due to various factors. Ironically, one of the most important of these factors is the very same economic boom that the industry benefits from. Rising incomes are driving standards of living up with the result that the percentage of people who own color TV sets has gone up from about 50% to approximately 69%. In many cases, these TV sets are the latest models possessing the latest technology and product features. Increasingly, sophisticated remotes allow the viewers to surf faster and increase their viewing choices. Thus, swiftly evolving technology is also a factor. Further, technology is also transforming the quality of content and the extent of audience participation as seen in shows like "TVS Saregama" and "Indian Idol".

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