Kaun Banega Crorepati, or KBC as most people call it, has been a popular reality TV game show on Indian television. Sony Entertainment Television is launching a new season of the show with Amitabh Bachchan as the host of the show. The show’s launch event was held at Mumbai, where they also revealed two new mobile apps and a website for the show. If you’ve played the unofficial flash based KBC game ever before, you’ll see that the new mobile app is just like that but it is very different in terms of design and the features it offers. This KBC official mobile application provides users with an option to answer questions using the similar interface like the one seen on television. Users can also use lifelines during the game and get answers to the questions which they find difficult. The app also has a leaderboard within itself which also allows users to share their scores online on Facebook or Twitter.
The KBC official mobile app has another feature called the “Insta Hotseat” which is a template photo frame of the KBC set, featuring the replica of the “Hot Seat” and Mr. Amitabh Bachchan. Viewers can insert their picture in the frame and share on Facebook and Twitter or the Prize meter & Heat map which are the graphical representations of the prize money won by the contestant and which part of the country the user belongs to respectively. There also exists a message wall through which users can share wishes and messages with Bachchan, a photo gallery which comprises of images of Bachchan, the contestants and celebrities who come on the show. Then there is the “Globe” option in the game that gives you a choice of selecting a continent from the map and answer region specific questions. Another option in the KBC app is “Social” using which you can see feeds and posts from the KBC official twitter page.
Users have a choice to purchase more sets of questions from the app store. By default, the KBC app will be available for Rs.55 and if you want to add more questions, you will need to pay about Rs.55 more for a set of 200~250 questions.
Another official app for mobile devices is the KBC Play Along app which lets users play the KBC game by answering questions live. It means that viewers of the show can use this Play Along app and answer the exact same questions which are asked to the contestants sitting on the hot seat at the game show live.
In order to add more digital depth to the show, the show runners have also come up with a website kbcsony.com. The website comes with an interface that supposedly adapts to multiple screens and displays. Viewers can experience the features and play interactive quizzes, contests and games on the site. Some features of the site include: Highlights which include Full episodes, where users can catch up with previous KBC episode and Amitabh Bachchan’s Special, where users can watch the actor’s rendition of his poetry. Users can watch moments of contestants on winning large sums of money, glimpses of memorable moments and interactions with celebrities featured on the television show. The website allows viewers to play games like “Globe Quiz”, a globe-like interface where users can scroll around the earth’s axis, click on any part of the world and answer a trivia question. Another feature allows the user to choose from the KBC characteristic four answers pop-up and it reverts with the correct answer. Then, there is the “KBC Web Game”, where users can test their speed and accuracy by playing the game online and stand the chance to win prizes.
Speaking on the launch, Nitesh Kripalani, Executive Vice-President – New Media, Business Development and Digital/Syndication at Sony Entertainment Network commented “Kaun Banega Crorepati is undoubtedly one of the most admired and loved game show on television today. The popularity quotient is huge and the fan base is getting bigger every year. Our digital platform is especially designed to give our users much more than what they can get from their television sets – a whole new immersive on-demand second screen experience right at their fingertips. The idea is to bring the KBC experience up close and personal, across multiple platforms, be it mobile, tablet or online”
The show starts on 6th September, 2013 and you can download the apps for the show soon after that, and also visit the official site for the time being.