Zee Entertainment to launch youth channel ''Zee Next''

Mumbai: Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd is planning to launch a channel targeted at the young audience as it expands.

ZeeNext, a general entertainment channel, will focus on a younger audience "without alienating the higher age group", Zee said in a statement.

Zee Next will be the second general entertainment channel after Zee TV. According to the company source, the channel will contain stuffs with romance, fun, gossip, thrill, action, music and all lure younger audience.

It is expected to be like STAR One, which was started by the Star network irrespective of the success of the main GEC Star Plus for the same purpose.

NDTV, Sahara, Sony and INX Media are also expected to lunch their general entertainment channels targeting specific audience despite having particular channels based on cinema, music, sports, news and business.

While the small screen has long been dominated by entertainment channels targeted at women, with a mix of soaps, Hindi films and reality and game shows, broadcasters are going beyond cartoons and movies dubbed in regional languages to hook young adults.