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CNN to go regional

After BBC, now it is CNN’s turn to be region specific. From July 1, this year, CNN will launch a new channel which will air five hours of region specific programmes. From 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. these programmes will be watched by viewers in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh among other South Asian countries.

Rene Golden, Senior Vice Presi-dent, CNN International, while talking about the channel said "The decision to start this channel is in keeping with our ongoing regionalisation strategy." The channel has already started talks with production houses in India for sourcing programmes locally.

"For our channel, we have plan to commission local producers. We have already started talks with many of them," Rene Golden said.

But only established names in this field will be asked to produce programmes for the channel. The new schedule on CNN will comprise regional news every hour and CNN’s world news every half-an-hour. In addition to this, programmes related to current affair, business news and technology news will be aired. Rene Golden also informed that the popular Riz Khan will be one of the main presenters on the channel. She also said that though the focus for the time being will be on this South Asian channel, CNN may look at collaborating with an Indian channel if it gets the right partner.

A.P.