A company that plans to allow subscribers to stream Indian films onto their computers in real time is gearing up for a 50-million-pound listing on the London Stock Exchange in 2006.
Opus Media is holding a beauty parade for advisers and it has already raised 1.5 million pounds for Bollywood.tv, its Indian film subsidiary, and is in the process of raising a further 5 million pounds, says the Sunday Telegraph.
Opus said it has unique video streaming technology which meant that it is not necessary to download movies before watching them. Bollywood.tv has the internet rights to more than 730 Indian films. The company plans to offer the service around the world and expects its main audience to be the 'Indian Diaspora'.
It also hopes that stars such as Aishwarya Rai, who played the lead role in Bride and Prejudice, are helping to broaden Bollywood's appeal. If the service is successful, Bollywood.tv may be spun off and listed separately from Opus.
According to the company website, 'Bollywood.tv is leading the way in the delivery of high quality video and audio to broadband users around the world, not just for Bollywood. It is amongst the first to deliver full length, on-demand and very high quality feature films over the Internet, and a world first for Bhangra Music videos, Bollywood films and the 'making of' programmes for great films such as Bhagban, Devdas and Masti.'
Opus Media's CEO is Nigel Regan, an entrepreneur with nine years technology and media experience, while its director of content, Mohan Thariyan, was the co- founder of TV Asia -- the first Asian Satellite Channel in the UK.
