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Zee to pump Rs. 100 crore in Interactive Learning Systems

In a move to further synergise, Zee Network chairman Subhash Chandra announced the launch of a new company, Zee Interactive Learning Systems Ltd., which will “integrate television, multimedia internet and print” for providing “unique learning solutions to various segments of the society”.

The company plans to go public within two to three years. The initial investment will be Rs. 100 crore for the next three years and the company expects to touch a turnover of Rs. 500 crore in five years. The project will be partly financed by internal accruals, partly by a loan from the parent company, Zee Telefilms, and financial institutions, if necessary. “We will have a Rs. 100-crore profit annually once we touch that turnover,” said Chandra.

The wholly-owned subsidiary of Zee Telefilms will launch a dedicated learning channel by June 2000. “We are investing Rs. 15 crore on the channel. We have also created studio facilities in Mumbai,” said Zee Interactive Learning Systems chief executive officer and president Uma Ganesh.

The learning solutions through internet which are available through zedgateway.com to the youth will now be expanded to cover corporate and school segments. For interactive TV, the company has tied up with ISRO’s DECU for university programmes. “We will not only cater to the retail individual but are also planning to develop core competencies in banking, insurance and information technology segments to offer complete learning and communication solutions including e-commerce backbone and tailormade to customer requirements. We want to be seen as the foremost learning solutions boutique with capabilities in integrating technologies, packaging the right content and providing delivery mechanism.”

The multimedia division has already created a title Khana Khazana based on the property on the parent company’s channel, Zee TV. For video, the company will focus on areas of management, insurance, banking, retail marketing and culture. The print division will become functional by April next year.

Zee Interactive will create courses, software, methodologies, tools and services besides providing the process to e-commerce solutions. The services will enable companies to launch their products, conduct market research and do updates, said Ganesh.