Revamped: ARY Digital Network – Aik Naya Ehsaas!

| June 2, 2009 | 33 Comments

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ARY Digital was one of the initial Pakistani channels launched on satellite and the group has added more channels, based on the market demand, to their portfolio as the time passed by. I had been in the media industry myself since the past couple of years and I had been thinking about the idea of revamping the ARY Network’s image because I believe that there was something about the seperate identities of their different channels that was holding them back. Maybe it was because of the lack of on-screen synergy between the different channel identities.

During my time as a consumer, I also heard weird stories of why ARYOneWorld and ARY Digital are so different from each other. Some people told me that it was because of differences between two brothers and I even heard that ARYOneWorld is a copy cat who wants to encash on the name of ARY. Sometimes its very funny to hear the stories from the consumers end, but  you end up believing in them as well especially if you don’t have a source of proper information. And although these opinions do sound funny, but they help in shaping up a brand’s identity. The Geo network has been intelligent in doing so from the initial stages.

Coming back to the topic of my post today, ARY Network has revamped and rebranded the image of their channels. Till now to my knowledge, the new look has been unveiled on 31st March May, 7 p.m. (PST) and the image makeover saw the channels of the ARY Group have the same identity and on-air look. This step has been taken for a consistent look of the ARY channels to give a similar look and feel in order to create synergies and make a stronger brand image, that has been diluted previously with different logos and separate identities of the ARY Channels.

The channels that have been revamped, include:

  1. ARY Digital
  2. ARY News
  3. ARY QTV
  4. ARY Zauq
  5. ARY Musik

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This revamping of the channels is also seeing the re-branding of ARYOneWorld to ARY News. It is yet to be seen that how this change effects the overall response in terms of the viewership and brand recall for the ARY network, but it does seem that the results will be positive.

Do let me know what you guys think? Is this change going to help ARY to re-build on its strong name? If I missed out on something, it would be great if someone could help me correct that.

We the members of the PakMEDIABlog congratulate the ARY Network for this new look and wish them good luck!

Tags: aik, ARY, ARY Digital, ARY Musik, ARY News, ARY QTV, ARY Zauq, ARYOneWorld, brand, brand image, branding, channels, consumers, copy cat, digital, ehsaas, geo network, Group, image, initial stages, logos, look, Marketing, naya, network, new, new logo, new look, pakistan, rebranding, revamp, seperate identities, something, synergies, The Musik, Till, time, viewership

Category: Brands, Industry News, Media

About the Author (Author Profile)

Founder of PakMediaBlog, Sociality360, The One Rupee Project, and Head of Digital Strategy & Innovation at DHQ (Digital Headquarters). Twitter ID: saroshwaizZz , Personal Blog: www.saroshwaiz.com

  • Tyrone Tellis

    Hi,

    ‘Till now to my knowledge, the new look has been unveiled on 31st March, 7 p.m. (PST) and the image makeover saw the channels of the ARY Group have the same identity and on-air look.’

    I think you mean 31st May? Honest mistake on your part. No issue.

    However I do not like the new look ARY – the logo reminds one of a triangle not of a brand. A question is whether the umbrella branding was needed or not? I think it wasn’t QTV was going well on its own steam with a good identity.

    Renaming Aryoneworld news means it can not stand out from the plethora of news channels -KTN news, Duniya news, Geo news, Waqt news,Sindh Tv News.

    Bad move I think, the Ary News colours are garish and do not seem mature or corporate as should be for a news channel.

    Tyrone

  • http://www.saroshwaiz.com Sarosh Waiz

    Thanks for the correction again Tyrone :) .. Good to have you as our regular reader :)

    I didn’t really wanted to comment on “how” the new look is, but how I took it was that, would the Umbrella that they are trying to create can help them in better recall. What we have seen as consumers that ARY’s name had been fading away and except for the strong brand name that ARY Digital created as an entertainment channels initially, the other channels of the same network were not that strong in terms of equity.

    And yes ARYOneWorld had almost lost its grounds because of so many news channels coming in and especially after Dunya, Samaa and NewsOne picking up. I am not sure if changing the logo and the name of a channel could help in getting it noticed.

    This is an attempt to revive the ARY brand name. A good move or not in terms of achieving the results is yet to be seen.

  • Shayan Ahmed

    i personally find ARY news to be the most boring news channel around….they need to do something about that too, changing the logo won’t help much

  • http://omar.t3-interactive.com Omar Khan

    The new identity is worst than the wold one. The old one was boring and mundane, the new one is no better. What is with the square logo’s??

    In recent times ARY has lost credibility and channels like Sama, Express and others have taken over.

  • http://www.saroshwaiz.com Sarosh Waiz

    exactly… changing only the logo won’t help! It should be revamped completely…

  • http://www.saroshwaiz.com Sarosh Waiz

    The identity seems to be a logo change only. Lets see how things move on for them Omar.

    What I could see out of the square logos is that they wanted to accomodate all their channels with the ARY name. That is why even “THE MUSIK” is changed to “ARY MUSIK” … will this help in rebuilding its name again even if the logos are not good? Well I guess, the answer to this depends on whether its ONLY a logo change or complete revamping as I mentioned earlier.

  • http://zainad.blogspot.com Zaira Rahman

    In a way it’s good that they have created synergy amongst the channels. It’s always better to know which channels fall under which network.

    The new logo is not that impressive though especially The Musik’s new logo looks terrible.

    But then it’s not the logos alone that decide how good or bad a channel is, rather it’s the content which decides that. A change in logo would not result in declining ratings for most of their channels unless and until the programming loses its quality.

    Otherwise channels like KTN would never have been highly popular inspite of their simple and not so flashy logo.

  • yawar abbas

    I think the new strategy is good but its visual application is pathetic. The whole graphic team desperately needs some education in info-graphics,typography, hyper-text, kinetic typography, color concepts even basic design. They also don’t know( I guess)the concept of visual testing before launch. its simply “visual pollution”.

  • Tyrone Tellis

    Hi,

    Why create Synergy? I mean if I want to watch a music vdo will it matter if the channel is called ARY the Musik or just the Musik or just M? No.

    QTV has a viewer base right? So ARY QTV adds another level like an onion no real benefit.

    Think as a viewer do we care if a channel belongs to which network? I don’t think so.

    You are free to disagree but umbrella branding mid stream doesn’t add value to a viewers life and viewing

    Tyrone

  • http://zainad.blogspot.com Zaira Rahman

    At least it adds on to the knowledge of the common viewer.

    A lot of clients too are not aware of the details such as which channel falls under which network. This synergy educates them as well.

    But yes an argument for the sake of an argument can of course go on.

  • Fareed

    OK, first I agree with the fact that the logos are not visually attractive and far behined the contemporary ones… Plus i think this could have been done by anyone who was told that “ARY” has to be put in every logo.

    Then the content of ARYoneworld has never been appealing enough to catch attenttion and the later launchs have taken over very easily.

    I see a great potential in the group but yes the direction seems to be missing.

    i appreciate the uniformity but if could have been done better graphically, as well as they should focus more on the inside now, so far its only been outside!!

    Cheers!!

  • http://www.saroshwaiz.com Sarosh Waiz

    channel logo and ratings are not directly proportional… its purely based on the content and how well the content is targeted to the audience which makes a channel popular.

  • http://www.saroshwaiz.com Sarosh Waiz

    Visual pollution is a new term for me but I sure do like it Yawar :) .. I agree and respect your opinion

  • http://www.saroshwaiz.com Sarosh Waiz

    Umbrella branding might not help to add value to a viewers life but how I see it at this point in time, is that there are two audiences that the TV channels or the media typically deals with. One is straightforwardly the audience who would be interested to watch their channel, where as, secondly the other audience is which gives them business in terms of revenue, i.e. the media agencies or the brands/companies. At times as buyers or planners we do think of going on a network which directly or indirectly can help. Although we do know of the network a channel belongs to being on the media side, but might add value in terms of psychological view.

    But a viewer doesn’t care too much which network a channel belongs to, but in the case of Geo Network I have personally seen the recall rates of Geo Entertainment by the clients who used to insist to go it as well even after spending a hefty amount on Geo News. Strong brand name can definitely play a part in terms of channel productivity in my opinion, which anyone can disagree with.

  • Yawar Abbas

    Consumer/viewer recall does exist and counts. Waiz has rightly pointed out GEO Network’s example. Another good example is of BBC Network. But the key in GEO recall is the word “GEO” itself. Its from urdr language with multi-meanings. And they are using it successfully within their different taglines also. But in the case of ARY, firsly most people don’t know what it stands for.(common with initials) and secondly it sounds ARY (if one read it in combination). I said the same when I forst saw the new identity…… ARYYYYYYY:)

  • Navaid Abrar

    It aint about whether the logo’s attractive or not, its all about brand image. I personally think its a good step, which they should’ve taken along time back, but then never the less they took the initiative. Keeping in mind the future of C&S channels, being encrypted, I think this will help them in keeping the network under one umbrella. My prayers with ARY Network :)

  • Navaid Abrar

    Its not about logo lukin gud or not, its about the image. I personally think this step should’ve been taken a long time back, never the less atleast the initiative has been taken. Further more keeping in mind the future of C&S channels being encrypted, I think this will help them in identifying ARY network channels i.e. under one umbrella. My prayers with ARY network :)

  • Navaid Abrar

    God… i tot the 1st one was not submitted… hehe 2 replies… sorry Sarosh….:)

  • moazzam

    i was watchin ARY the other day and well it was time for the news the newscasters said welcome to the news here are the headlines……. and then a sequence started with new logo news mobiles racing across the country it kept goin on and on beaming their newscasts to a satellite and then the world became square n this was followed by another sequence i mean wtf where are my news headlines…….. ARY has one problem they are to self obsessed they feel we have made a new logo we have spent millions on relaunch and what not lets rub it in our viewers faces…….. news is about credibility and being quick and on time God i just switched channels !!!

  • Navaid Abrar

    Well moazzam if you wanna watch news you should have switched over to Geo…. Wonder y not? seems lyk u were ATTRACTED…and thats wat ARY wantd to do … No heart feelings bro… :)

  • http://zainad.blogspot.com Zaira Rahman

    But for a better comparison one should watch the budget programming on various channels and then analyze which channel did better.

    Geo seems to be over rated when actually there are other news channels that are reliable, not dramatic and report rather than convince and persuade.

    The viewers should never be blind enough to believe whatever they see and use their minds because these news channels play a major role in making the viewer focus in the direction they want to rather than spreading the truth.

  • Navaid Abrar

    Zaira, They do spread the truth …i agree Geo is Geo…. everyone knows what they do and how they do it… still ull find ppl switching to Geo for Breaking or any news… even though they’re the ones spreading garbage and terrorizing ppl of Pakistan

  • yasir

    @ zaira:
    how cud news be without views? right from which scene to cover, which words to use, whose opinion to take on an event…these all are influenced by the views of the person covering the event. So let’s not get into news without views. Otherwise it would be just plain footage with no voiceover.
    how do you determine what is over rated? Prove it? ratings? research? Now what fact do you have which shows Geo is over rated? When musharaf gave his resignation speech more people saw it on Geo news ( more than the next 3 news channels put together). It was the same content on every channel but more tuned into geo news to hear it.
    Do you know which channel had the highest viewership for budget speech and analysis?

  • http://zainad.blogspot.com Zaira Rahman

    I will tend to disagree a bit when it comes to news without views.

    In discussion based shows it is probably okay to see news, views and opinions. But when it comes to coverage of any events then it is supposed to be reporting with ofcourse voice over. Reporting with views is also known as yellow journalism. And because something does take place doesn’t mean that it’s right.

    “Yellow journalism is a type of journalism that downplays legitimate news in favor of eye-catching headlines that sell more newspapers. It may feature exaggerations of news events, scandal-mongering, sensationalism, or unprofessional practices by news media organizations or journalists.”

    There is no denying that Geo had the highest ratings when Musharraf resigned.

    No I do not know which channel had the highest ratings for budget transmission because I am no longer a media planner. Perhaps some planner would be able to highlight the ratings as they have access to that data. Or anyone who wants to share knowledge can do so.

    My reason to tell Navaid to watch budget transmission was to analyze stuff as a common viewer not a planner.

    Also I would like to mention again that this forum was created so that people may express their opinions openly. Sadly not many professionals turned up. So I am sure many people may agree or disagree with each other time and again…but we all need to move forward and whoever is interested should start contributing and not just criticize whatever is being said.

  • moazzamkamran

    @ navaid ummm Sir as i mentioned in my opinion that Ary vans n all beaming the news…….
    I was talking about ARY NEWSS !! i mean why would i talk about news and not talk about the channel im sorry if i confused you but my point is clear u dont need all this rubbish and graphics.. just cause someone spent time and money on somethyn it dosnt mean that it will be a definite hit and if you ask me ARY has stopped showing that stupid graphic now :P soo umm n no HARD feelings bro
    PAKISTAN ZINDABAAD……… CHAMPIONS WOHOO ….. just thought id add that in :D

  • yasir

    @ zaira
    Yellow journalism is not news with views.
    “Yellow journalism is a type of journalism that downplays legitimate news in favor of eye-catching headlines that sell more newspapers”

    My point is that right from which scene to cover, which words to use, whose opinion to take on an event…these all are influenced by the views of the person covering the event.
    Look at T20 win reporting by each and every news paper / channel in Pakistan. The headlines carry views. Which newspaper just said
    ” Pakistan wins T20 WorldCup ” This would have been an ideal plain simple news.

  • Tyrone Tellis

    Which newspaper just said
    ” Pakistan wins T20 WorldCup ” This would have been an ideal plain simple news

    If newspapers and channels just reported the news they would have to be well robots not humans. Even BBC, CNN add their own flavour to their reports otherwise why would anyone watch. Of course they are more careful about sources etc.

    Switch on US channels like Fox and NBC and you’ll see the same yellow journalism as we have here. The Mumbai tragedy exposed the Indian channels obssession with sensationalism and hype.

    Tyrone

  • moazzamkamran

    Umm i kind of agree with you I mean Fox is known to use Yellow journalism the most cause they are pro republican. At the end of the day people crave that certain sensationalism its what keeps them from switching over the channel and glued to their sets…. look up Bill O Reily on youtube you wont be disappointed :) !!

  • Tyrone Tellis

    A person I disagree with had a good comment about media on Samaa’s Ankahi show- Zaid Hamid- as one of the panel. A young man stood up and said ‘media aj azaad hai” He cut him short and said” Kon kehta hai ke media azaad hai? Media awara hai!” Of course he got lots of applause.

    Yup I have Fox on my TV so I know all about O Reilly and Huckabee and Glen Beck etc and oh yeah the guy with the hate meter Hannity.

    Jon Stewart made a good laughing stock of Fox go on youtube and search Jon Stewarts inauguration special.

    Good laughs.

    Tyrone

  • moazzam

    Zaid Hamids angle is simple….. few facts and keep telling Pakistanis that we are the best people in the world the choosen ones etc etc.. the crowd plays into his hands ive seen it a million times its nothing more then feel good crap.. We are behind because we have nothing to show people work hard all their lives come up with systems inventions they apply themselves Pakistan is great we just need to get off our asses and instead of people telling us what to do THINK for ourselves that is where greatness lies…..
    hahaha i went soo off topic on that one :D sorry….. nyways i will def check out John Stewart i catch his show almost everyday he really shows how Racist Fox is they came up with the term reverse racism at election time to somehow show of Obama as Racist towards whites !!!

  • SYED AFTAB HIADER

    i like ary network ary qtv in the best channel

  • http://deleted SYED AFTAB HIADER

    but i want ary zauq shift paksat to intelsat10{68.5}degree

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