MUMBAI: With youth mind space at a premium in the country, B4U Music is gearing up for a share of the pie.The exercise to attract the `real youth` of the country to B4U Music, begun over seven months ago, is beginning to bear fruit, claims the channel. In the week ended 1 September 2007, B4U claims to have beaten the rest of the music channel pack, save leader MTV in the ratings stakes. B4U Music had a GRP of 9.82 (Hindi speaking markets, 15-34), racing against others in the genre like Zee Music, Music India, ETC and Channel V. The leader, MTV, led with a GRP share of 22.9.

The jump, says the channel`s head of sales, India, Vidyadhar Khatavkar, is due to a gradual change in programming line up over the months, an added focus on ground events that target youth, and corrections in the distribution system. Till last year, the channel had been struggling to find a foothold among the reigning music channels in the country.The channel has now reinforced its `categorically Bollywood` image by focusing on hit film numbers in recent months, but has changed its programming strategy. "Programming that makes fun of people doesn`t work, even if the opinion makers of the country would like us to believe so," says Khatavkar. Research done by the channel before the gradual overhaul of the channel pointed towards what Khatavkar terms the `Munnabhai` effect. "There was a girl in the film, who decided who she would marry by observing her fiance in a cafe," he says. "While attitude is being bandied about as desirable, it certainly isn`t what one would like to be stuck with for life." That, he sums up, is the attitude of Indian youth today. Consequently, B4U Music is not focusing on the youth that frequent pubs, but those that are getting into their careers, " who know what they are doing, but are still humble, family loving, and know how to respect girls."The strategy, says Khatavkar pointing to the TAM figures, is working. "Our VJs are people next door you can relate to, and our programming is participatory. We have launched ground events that will eventually get viewers on the channel too, and plan to bring in more interactivity through the different media we own."The channel`s identity building exercise has relied on Bollywood, Bollywood music and cricket, which it has identified as the three pillars of entertainment in india, and has tightened programming, redone packaging, started doing contemporary programming, as well as brought in new VJs. The channel has preferred to introduce the changes silently, trying to build habits with its viewers. "Today, we compete with GECs, FM stations, and portable music players. The challenge is now to offer them the same interactivity and gratification they get through the mobile and the Net," he says.