MxMIndia

Author: mxmadmin

  • TAM data Top 10 programmes on HGEC – Wk 4 ’12

    Source: TAM Peoplemeter System
    TG: CS 4+ yrs
    Market: Hindi Speaking Market
    Period: Wk 4 (Jan 22 to Jan 28) 2012

     

     

    About TAM Media Research

     

    TAM is a joint venture between Nielsen Company & Kantar Media Research. Besides measuring TV Viewership, TAM also monitors Advertising Expenditure of Television, Print & Radio through its division AdEx India. Since 2004, it extended its presence in the PR Measurement & Analysis space for Corporate/Marketing Clients by setting up a separate division Eikona PR Measurement.

     

    In 2007, the joint venture introduced RAM (Radio Audio Measurement) service to track Radio Listenership for the Indian Radio Broadcast Industry. In year 2009, TAM launched a division, called TAM Sports that specializes in monitoring Sports Sponsorship ROI.

     

    TAM Media Research’s objective is to fuel media insights that will drive the growth of the Indian Media Industry.

  • TAM Data (GRPs, Channel shares of HGECs)- Wk 4 ’12

    Source: TAM Peoplemeter System
    TG: CS 4+ yrs
    Market: HSM
    Period: Wk 3: Jan 15 to Jan 21, 2012
    Period: Wk 4: Jan 22 to Jan 28, 2012

     

     

    About TAM Media Research

     

    TAM is a joint venture between Nielsen Company & Kantar Media Research. Besides measuring TV Viewership, TAM also monitors Advertising Expenditure of Television, Print & Radio through its division AdEx India. Since 2004, it extended its presence in the PR Measurement & Analysis space for Corporate/Marketing Clients by setting up a separate division Eikona PR Measurement.

     

    In 2007, the joint venture introduced RAM (Radio Audio Measurement) service to track Radio Listenership for the Indian Radio Broadcast Industry. In year 2009, TAM launched a division, called TAM Sports that specializes in monitoring Sports Sponsorship ROI.

     

    TAM Media Research’s objective is to fuel media insights that will drive the growth of the Indian Media Industry.

  • With brands benefiting much from the buzz created digitally, social media is now part of almost every seller's toolkit

    How (and why) marketers love social media

     

    By Rishi Vora

     

    There is sooooo much happening in Social Media. Every brand – no matter how big or small, every media and entertainment company, especially film and television content (where YouTube has become such a rage!), even a local mall or a retail outlet owner in a small district is looking to be on Social Media, where he feels he should be before his neighbourhood rival is, and win more customers.

     

    Although this might sound as if Social Media is a disparate measure for brands, the fact is that the market is responding to the rise of a new medium which is a just about a three-year-old phenomenon; one which promises to change the game as far as marketing is concerned.

     

    There are many cases of brands benefiting from the social space, be the whacky Old Spice videos that did the trick in 2010 – yes, they were a set of videos, but became most popular on Social Media or Kolaveri Di, which became an online sensation. Or whether it is the case of Megan Fox meeting Rose Boy back in 2009, thanks to Kodak that took the initiative of taking it to the masses, through Social Media of course, offering the winner a handsome $5,000. There are many more stories where brands have recognised the opportunity and made the most of it. Celebrities have now become a key asset to the marketing strategies for many online brands.

     

    Traditional Media:

    Even the radio channels and newspapers danced to the tune of Social Media, a rare case of digital beating traditional media hands down. But the TV Channels and content companies are the ones taking the most advantage of the new medium.

     

    Akash Chawla, Marketing Head – National Channels, Zee is of the opinion that the percentage spends on digital has seen an increase and social media is one direction where most channels are putting their focus on. “We’re not the only ones to have entered the social space. It’s important to be there. But, the fact is that being on social media is also a fad. It is stylish and fashionable. The medium is highly measurable, and you get real time responses from consumers.”

     

    Even participants of Zee TV’s flagship reality show Dance India Dance Season 3 claim that watching videos on YouTube has encouraged participation in the show.

     

    Star Network too has been fairly active in the space, promoting all of its entertainment channels on platforms like Facebook and Twitter. And so as Viacom 18, MSM Group.

     

    Social Commerce:

    Yet another aspect of the social media – social commerce- as a trend started last year, and as experts believe that 2012 is going to be a year when Social Commerce will take off in a big way. Three of the most upcoming and prominent social commerce platforms are: Facebook (f-commerce), Twitter (t-commerce) and GuruLike.

     

    F-commerce or f-comm refers to the buying and selling of goods or services through Facebook, either directly or through the Facebook Open Graph. Experts forecast that F-commerce transactions on Facebook will overcome Amazon’s annual sales ($34 Billion) over the next five years.

     

    The emergence of social media has resulted into a sea change as far as the marketer’s psyche is concerned; who a couple of years back was unsure how the medium fare for the brands. He has now realised the true potential and as a result has started to appoint specialists for the job. This has resulted in the rise of specialist social media agencies- people who evangelised the medium three to four years back and who’re now well-equipped to handle marketing problems, using the power of social media.

     

    Social Wavelength and Windchimes are the two most popular pure play social media agencies, while there are other digital agencies that offer 360 degree digital solutions (where social becomes one part of the offering). And then there are PR agencies that have now expanded into offering social media services to existing clients. Hanmer & MSL Group, Ketchum Sampark, AdFactors and many others. Though these agencies pitch for social media businesses separately, they have the added advantage of an existing PR clientele.

     

    Sanjay Mehta
    Sandhya Sadananda

    Social media and creativity:

    Though different agencies follow different processes, there is a misconception which plays in the minds of many that Social Media does not need creativity; there is not much of strategy involved, as against other forms of advertising.

     

    Sanjay Mehta, Jt. CEO, Social Wavelength clarified: “Executing a good social media strategy is a mix of two disparate skill sets: One is creativity, like that of an ad agency, to differentiate the social media activity of the brand, and second: processes, of the kind that one usually associates with KPOs, as social media is not a campaign, but virtually a day-to-day, minute-to-minute business process.”

     

    Sandhya Sadananda, who prior to launching Windchimes, was a PR professional, explains how Social Media is not an extension of PR. “Unlike the US and the UK, PR in India is still a media-led activity. When you are in Social Media, you need to rethink the way you look at communication. Social Media cannot be seen as an extension of PR. Unlike PR, here you have the direct control in terms of the content you want to put up. At the end of the day, it is about adding value to the brand. And that could be in terms of content, the creativity, the number of fans and so on.”

     

    The nuts and bolts:

    So how do Social Media campaigns run? How different the approach needs to be? What are the systems and procedures that need to be followed? How does a social media agency scale the operations?

     

    Mr Mehta explains: “The starting point is to create a ‘character’ for the brand on social media. All communication, tonality and so on has to be in sync with the brand positioning and the brand’s character. For a TV channel, a social media campaign will typically have one set of conversations centred around the brand, and the other additional set of conversations to go closer to the interests of the target group.”

     

    From the standpoint of the marketer, however, the question which most often arises is: ‘Does social media help clients improve bottom lines’. This is also one reason why spends on social media are way too less in comparison to other media. Yes, these are early days, but pure play social media agencies have to grow and that is seen as a big challenge.

     

    Ms Sadananda affirms: “One needs to look at social media, not from a bottom line perspective, but from the point of view of qualitative engagement. The ROI in this business is so much number driven (number of fans, interactions) that people started to equate that with the bottom line. If you’re expecting increase in sales after a social media campaign – that’s not going to happen. One needs to have a different sort of mindset when it comes to social media.”

     

    She adds: “It’s very easy for marketers to make this just another medium. Agencies need to step in and help them understand the true nature of the medium.”

     

    Challenges:

    On the challenge for agencies to scale up their businesses, Mehta reckons that one needs to visualise the scale, in terms of the opportunity. And then investigate into various ways of creating an organisation, bringing in leadership levels and correcting/ tweaking the model as business grows to ensure smooth sailing.

     

    But, broadly, it is content that will decide the fate of specialist agencies. And, that in experts’ mind, is a bigger challenge. Adaptation will be the key as platforms evolve, users evolve. It is an age of e-commerce, and Social Commerce is not far behind.

     

  • The auction will witness 147 players going under the hammer. The size of every DLF IPL team squad will be 33 instead of 30 players in the previous season. Team owners are each to be given a purse of $2 million to buy these players.

    It’s auction time at IPL season 5

    By A Correspondent

     

    On February 4, 2012, Sony Max will show the DLF IPL Player Auction, which is taking place in Bangalore where franchise owners will select additional players who may be crucial for the success of the respective teams.

     

    The auction will commence at 10.45 am on February 4 with Max’s anchor Archana Vijaya and Arun Lal bringing all the behind the scene excitement and then moves onto intense live coverage of the auction that’ll take place at ITC Royal Gardenia Hotel in Bangalore. The anchors will engage the audiences before, after and during the auction to take them through the bidding procedure as well to analyse the day’s activity.

     

    The auction will witness 147 players going under the hammer. The size of every DLF IPL team squad will be 33 instead of 30 players in the previous season. Team owners are to each be given a purse of $2 million to buy these players. The auction will give a deeper insight and glimpse of the strategy each team is scheduled to follow.

     

    Commenting on the DLF IPL Player Auction, Neeraj Vyas, EVP and Business Head, MAX, said “DLF IPL Player Auction 2012 will set the stage for what promises to be an absorbing fifth season of the DLF IPL which will set the nation roaring. Alternating between the studio and the auction venue, Max will bring an up close and personal perspective of the event which will keep the audience enthralled.”

     

  • A lot of information today is lost in business jargon which business papers must stay away from.

    The Anchor: 6 things for the publisher of a business publication to remember

    By Vivek Khanna

     

    #1 One of the most important things that the publisher of a business paper – or, for that matter, any publication – has to keep in mind is the content. Accuracy and genuineness of information is critical to the success of any newspaper.

     

    #2 It is extremely important that the content and business sides of a paper are always separate, especially in a business publication. There has to be a wall between the content and business side so that no one can influence the other.

     

    #3 Checking for errors is extremely important. Business news can make or break an economy, hence it is critical to keep many level of checks before any news goes into print. In our organization, we have several levels of checks to ascertain that the news which goes to print is genuine and credible.

     

    #4 Journalists and Editors for a business publication have to be handpicked as they are meant to have a very special skill set and knowledge of the business world.

     

    #5 Business news needs to have more clarity. A lot of information today is lost in business jargon which business papers must stay away from.

     

    #6 In a market where there is a plethora of publications, it is of importance that a business publisher finds the differentiating factor for his product. A differentiated product with credible content is the only way to success.

     

    Mr Vivek Khanna is the Publisher and Business Head of Mint, HT Media Limited.

     

  • Since MxMIndia launched on Sept 9, much may have changed. But not our resolve to adhere to our Code of Ethics.

    Pradyuman Maheshwari: 100 Days of not compromising on ethics

     

     

    By Pradyuman Maheshwari

     

    So how’s MxMIndia different from the others, I am often asked. There are various, and because a publication necessarily mirrors the personality of its editor, I think the basic difference that MxM has that the only thing you can expect from it is the unexpected. It’s got spontaneity, energy and integrity.

     

    In fact, to those of you who are in the know, it’s the last of these attributes (well, the loss of it) that possibly led to the birth of MxMIndia.

     

    The other important differentiator of MxMIndia is that the editorial team is not dependent on just one person. We have a number of people who have got a great amount of experience in relevant media.

     

    Our copy team is not into the nitty-gritty of media agencies and marketing… and hence you get copy that’s English. Yes, there may be booboos, but hey, the hygiene levels are high. At least we strive to keep them that way.

     

    We don’t intrude into your inboxes with breaking news. With always-on smartphones et al, innumerable mails a day is an emeffing pain. There have been several news breaks that we have had in our first 100 days… but we’ve only tweeted them or added them in our Facebook statuses.

     

    And the last differentiator is that for us our allegiance is to you, dear reader. It’s indeed challenging when the reader is also the one we are writing about and who is advertising on the site. It of course helps in having a Code of Ethics and having all my colleagues as signatories on that.

     

    As we complete our 100 days, we rededicate ourselves to the Code, which we reproduce here….

     

    Thank you for keeping the faith,

     

    Best wishes,

     

    Pradyuman Maheshwari

     

    Coordinates: pradyumanm[at]mxmindia.com, BBM @ 23050B5D

    Whatsapp/Gtalk pradyumanm[at]gmail.com

    Twitter @pmahesh, Tel 98338 76278

     

    The MxMIndia Code of Ethics

     

    This code of ethics is not meant to be a treatise in ethics. We believe all MxMers are mature professionals, of sound character and have values we agree with.

     

    However, since a Code of Ethics is not really followed in organizations that some of our employees may have worked with in the past, we have a formulated an easy-to-follow set of Dos and Don’ts that each and every employee has agreed to follow. Also, there’s a general belief that many media companies (business-to-business and mainstream) follow unethical practices. It’s hence critical to put the record straight on why MxMIndia isn’t like the ‘many’ others.

     

    1. While the objective of MxMIndia is to be a profitable enterprise, our revenues will not come from compromising editorial standards. Excellence is what we are setting out to achieve, Ethically and with Integrity.

     

    2. We will not be influenced in any way by advertisers – past, present or future, and will write or comment on an individual, service or organisation regardless of whether or not it advertises with MxMIndia.

     

    3. We will not sell our editorial content. Content includes text, photographs or any visuals.

     

    4. Accuracy in presenting facts is of utmost importance and facts must be correctly presented.

     

    5. We will not present any bias in our news sections. If, however, MxM India does undertake a campaign, it will clearly state its editorial policy

     

    6. If there’s any advertisement that could be confused with editorial content in appearance, it will be clearly tagged as an Advertisement and be displayed in a style that is different from normal editorial content.

     

    7. Our reports and features will always attribute sources to people. In case, the source does not want to be named for fear of loss of employment or due to some sensitivity, every attempt must be made to look for an alternate source who could be named. If that fails, every attempt should be made to make the reader rest assured that our source is authentic and this may be done by describing who the source is.

     

    8. We have a no tolerance policy towards plagiarism. Employees may be given a warning if found plagiarizing, but in most cases, the services of any employee found plagiarizing – regardless of his/her seniority or utility to the organization – would be terminated within 24 hours of the Editor-in-Chief conducting his/her investigation on the act of plagiarism.

     

    9. If any attempt is made to influence us by way of a threat to withdraw advertisements, we reserve the right to expose such individuals and/or their organisations.

     

    10. We will not publish photographs off the internet. If a picture is be taken from the internet, it will be done only after written permission of the source. Else, we will own the rights for the picture which may be procured by buying rights for appropriate usage. Ditto for text. If we do carry syndicated content, the source needs to clearly be stated at the end of the article.

     

    11. Our journalists will take the permission of the interviewee to record his/her comments, especially when the meeting is not face-to-face.

     

    12. Unless approved by the Editor, we do not part with the transcript of any interview. A journalist may however play back a few quotes attributed to an individual.

     

    13. We will allow individuals or organisations adequate time to revert with their response to a question. In most case the adequate time would mean four to six hours. If it’s a non-critical story, then we would recommend holding the story for at most a day.

     

    14. We will not accept any gifts that attempt to influence us. These should be returned immediately. Gifts in the form of chocolates, mithai, flowers or basic promotional material that is of reasonable value (of up to Rs 500-750) is fine. Mementos or promotional material of nominal value may be accepted. No gifts must be solicited. If there’s a doubt, please consult the Editor-in-Chief/CEO. If an organisation is found to influence an MxM India journalist, under extreme cases, MxM India may even blacklist the organisation and/or its products and services.

     

    15. We will not solicit any outstation trips. If however there is an invitation for a junket, we will accept it only if the Editor believes there is a news value in the event. In such a case, MxM India will mention that the journalist concerned has visited an outstation venue at the invitation of the company which must be named. For local travel, all our employees are defrayed expenses towards local travel, and hence we discourage taxi pick-ups or drops, as is the norm in some sections of the media.

     

    16. We will not solicit any invitations for a meal or a drink. We discourage MxM India employees to drink beyond their limits at events, dinners, press conferences etc where they represent the Company. We will also not solicit free books, software, movie tickets etc.

     

    17. MxM India employees are discouraged from moonlighting. If, however, employees do receive requests to write an occasion article for a non-competing publication, the employee could do it after seeking permission via email.

     

    18. Unlike some media houses, we are happy to see our employees – regardless of their seniority levels – to be interviewed and featured in other media. However, prior permission is desired for every appearance on television. Employees must ensure that their work at MxMIndia doesn’t suffer due to their appearances on TV, radio etc. While tweeting, participation in social networks like Facebook and LinkedIn are encouraged, every attempt must be taken to ensure that the values and interests of the organization are not compromised.

     

    19. We will ensure that our ethical standards are followed in all that we do – events, conferences and awards. We will ensure our integrity is not compromised.

     

    20. We discourage the use of pirated products and services for official use. We advise our employees to only use legally procured software. Employees using their personal computer equipment for work are encouraged to switch to legal software.

     

    21. MxMIndia has a no tolerance policy on sexual harassment.

     

    22. Our employees are not allowed to deal in stocks related to the media and entertainment sector. If they hold shares before joining the organisation, they must disclose their holdings in writing to their immediate boss. They could, however, invest in mutual funds related to the M&E sector.

     

    23. While this Code is only applicable towards conduct as an employee, we advise all MxMers to ensure that they are ambassadors of MxMIndia and all that it stands for even outside of work hours.

     

    24. Over the last few years, there have been question marks raised about the ethical standards adopted by journalists and media organisations. While a lot of it may be untrue, we believe that journalists and others working in various media organisations are also responsible for this perception. At MxMIndia, our attempt will be to reverse this.

     

    25. This Code is applicable for all employees of MxMIndia. Associates, retainers, columnists, regular contributors are also required to adhere to the above Code.

     

    We encourage all our constituents and advertisers to read the above document and cooperate with us and enable us to abide by it. If you wish to report a dishonest act, write directly to pradyumanm [at] mxmindia.com.

     

  • There is something so touchingly innocent (kind word for daft/gormless) about some authority that bleeps out offensive words, but is totally oblivious to the risque, shall we say indelicate, nature of the entire script of some of the American serials we're watching, observes Gouri Dange.

    Gouri Dange: The monkey manning the bleep machine

    By Gouri Dange

     

    I wonder who is in charge of bleeping out words on Z Cafe and a few other channels. Didn’t have it before. Now it’s on. There is something so touchingly innocent (kind word for daft/gormless) about some authority that bleeps out offensive words, but is totally oblivious to the risque, shall we say indelicate, nature of the entire script of some of the American serials we’re watching. Which leaves you feeling like a 10 year-old-kid who incredulously and amusedly watches as his parents carefully spell out ‘s-w-i-n-e’ and ‘y-o-u-r-b-l-o-o-o-d-y m-o-t-h-e-r’ in the middle of a nasty fight with each other.

     

    I mean you can bleep out words all you want from Two and a Half Men or $#*! My Dad Says, and have a sentence going something like this: “Oh dableepmn, I thought she was nice and slubleeputy, but she didn’t want to fbleepk around, so what the hebleeepell, I’ll just have to use my iflatbleeepable dobleeepll.” But it is still clear that much of the humour is generated by constant and casual reference, to acts like sebleeeepx and masturbleeeeption, body parts like brbleeeepsts, bubleeeptts, penbleeepses, asbleeeepoles, and suchlike. Interestingly, one word that passes muster (probably because the bleepers don’t know what it means) is ‘kiester’, which means backbleeeepside. Kiester is used left right and centre, quite unmolested by the bleep. However, when anyone uses ‘ass’, it is cleaned up with the refined replacement ‘behind’.

     

    It’s intriguing how the subtitles are cleaned up too. Sometimes there is the use of the good old asterisk ***** and sometimes words are delicately replaced. So for some reason when the character is saying ‘pervert’, the subtitle primly uses ‘deviant’. Ba*ls becomes ‘guts’. Sl*t and bi**h becomes ‘witch’ (yes, I’m not making this up as I go along; I sat and noted them down). Homo is fully bleeped out, and in the subtitles it is replaced with the more politically correct ‘queer’.

     

    On Comedy Central, there is a smudge and the Cc logo pasted over ‘offensive’ images like someone smoking. Again, the story itself that day (That Seventies Show) may be all about two women desperately enjoying their smoke, and even my dogs understood that, but noooo, we’re not grown up enough to actually see them lighting up their ciggies. Ah comeon, really? I mean really? What crableepp.

     

    But let me not protest too loudly, in case someone decides that this is ALL inappropriate content for our innocent and pious country with its faiu-thousand year tradition peopled only ever by selfless heroes, brave women, and wide-eyed children and utterly functional families. I can’t even say that last phrase with a straight face, but hey, it’s a great delusion-illusion that we feed ourselves when we talk sweepingly about how ‘The West’ is soooo bad. (But of course we do our damndest to see that our children go to college there and then earn nothing but daallerrs for the rest of their lives.) But I digress.

     

    A serial like Nurse Jackie goes unbleeped, because the monkey with the bleep machine hears no gaali-galoch. And yet…and yet…take a look at the content; it would make all toes – pious as well as non-pious – curl. The woman works in a hospital, is addicted to drugs – uppers or downers or something. She buys her stash from some guy in a restaurant (who routinely meets her, they hug, he slips them into her pocket for everyone except for some reason any cop to be able to see); she hides them in her shoes, she hides them in the light fixture in the lift, she hides them in the cookie jar at home. Firstly, this serial needs to be bleeped for stupidity – why is she buying stuff from someone when she has a whole hospital full of it? Or am I missing something – is it cocaine in capsule form? We are never actually shown this Psychedelic Florence Nightingale taking the stuff or ever looking at least briefly a little happy. Secondly, for reasons never made clear to us, she is unfaithful to her husband who slaves away at home with the kids. Why this grim, sad-eyed chick has this back-story is not clear, however many episodes you watch. Whenever I catch her, she’s just loitering in hospital corridors or getting into some storeroom for a moment to herself and her demons, you’re supposed to understand.

     

    So while someone is really busy with the bleeper, really absurd as well as soul-destroying messages march right through. What dumbleepery.

     

    Naming no Names is the mid-week column where novelist, columnist and counsellor Gouri Dange presents her tongue-in-cheek view of our world.

     

  • Since we launched on Sept 9, much may have changed. But not our resolve to adhere to our Code of Ethics. First person accounts by Team MxM members

    100 Days of MxMIndia…

     

    Pradyuman Maheshwari: 100 days of being different. And how!
    http://www.mxmindia.com/2012/
    02/100-days-of-mxmindia/

     

     

     

    Anil Thakraney: The hundred that beat Sachin

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11230

     

     

    Ranjona Banerji: After 100 days, I have fun dissecting what I see on TV

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11241

     

     

    Jaisurya Das: A stupendous start

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11237

     

     

    Alok Kapuria: Thank you, dear advertiser

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11336

     

     

    Tuhina Anand: It was no mean task to have engaged the industry even before our launch

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11254

     

     

    Vidya Heble: A hundred bashes at the keyboard

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11256

     

     

    Johnson Napier: Century @ MxM – Chalta hi jaaye…

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11239

     

     

    Shruti Pushkarna: Of high-definition cameras and exclusive video chats

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11249

     

     

    Rishi Vora: You are given the license to ask tough questions when necessary

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11244

     

     

    Archita Wagle: A force to reckon with

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11232

     

     

    Robin Thomas: Still so much to learn about this fascinating medium called Radio

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11248

     

     

    Akash Raha: From Coming Soon to making it big

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11229

     

     

    Shubhangi Mehta: Where ‘highs’ & ‘lows’ are treated like a comma, never a full stop

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11252

     

     

    Insiyah Rangwala: MxMIndia is here to stay and only to grow

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11234

     

     

    Rafiq Barak: What keeps me going is the challenge of the creativity

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11242

     

     

    Kishor Kate: The atmostphere of a start-up is fun

    http://www.mxmindia.com/?p=11335

     

  • Jaisurya Das and Shailesh Amonkar are set to return to the Sakal group as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Marketing Officer respectively

    Jaisurya Das and Shailesh Amonkar to return to Sakal group as COO & CMO

    By A Correspondent

     

    The winds of change are blowing across the media. MxMIndia learns that senior industrypersons Jaisurya Das and Shailesh Amonkar are returning to the Sakal group from next week. The news was confirmed by a spokesperson of the group.

     

    While Mr Das, who has earlier been a consultant to the Pune-based Sakal group, will be Chief Operating Officer, Mr Amonkar will be Chief Marketing Officer and head the sales and marketing functions. Mr Amonkar was with Sakal from 2003-06 and held the portfolio of Director-Sales. He moved on to be an entrepreneur and set up Kemistry Media in Pune.

     

    Mr Das, who has had a successful run with The Times of India group having launched the edition in Pune, also turned entrepreneur and set up Xanadu Consulting, a media and human resources advisory firm (Disclosure: Mr Jaisurya Das is also Contributing Editor, MxMIndia and writes the very popular ‘Dear MxM’ column).

     

  • Last month, it was also announced that CEO Mr Maheshwer Peri had turned into a mentor passing on the baton to Mr Indranil Roy

    Vinod Mehta turns mentor @ Outlook group, Krishna Prasad to head newsmag as Ed

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Outlook group’s editor-in-chief Vinod Mehta is moving on from his executive role to that of a mentor. This was confirmed to MxMIndia by a spokesperson of the group who added that Mr Krishna Prasad will be Editor of the flagship Outlook magazine.

     

    When asked specifically if Mr Prasad will also be overseeing editorial affairs for other group publications as suggested by a PTI reported relayed by many publications, MxMIndia was told that he will be Editor, Outlook.

     

    Mr Mehta, who has worked with the Outlook group since 17 years, has been editor of The Pioneer, The Independent, The Indian Post, The Sunday Observer and Debonair. He was unavailable for comment when reached on Wednesday evening.

     

    Last month, it was also announced that CEO Mr Maheshwer Peri had turned into a mentor passing on the baton to Mr Indranil Roy.

     

  • Viewership numbers by TAM Media Research for the first two weeks of January show Sun News had been relegated to the No 3 slot

    Kalanithi Maran’s Sun News battles to retain lost crown

    By Sangeetha Kandavel

     

    After 11 years of leadership among Tamil TV news channels, Kalanithi Maran’s Sun News is suddenly on shaky territory. Viewership numbers by TAM Media Research for the first two weeks of January show Sun News had been relegated to the No 3 slot.

     

    In the third week, it was tied for the second spot, and it was only last week when it was a decisive No 2. It was in late October last year that newbie Puthiya Thalaimurai beat Sun News, the first time ever the latter has shed the top slot even for a week. Since then, it has been a see-saw battle for leadership.

     

    Now, while Puthiya Thalaimurai is No 1, what could have shocked Sun News for most of January is even the No 2 slot was taken away from it by Jaya Plus, which belongs to long-time rival Jaya TV. Never until now has any of the Jaya TV channels come even close to Sun TV’s channels in viewership.

     

    One of the reasons for the change of fortunes for Sun News is the initiative of the state government to start its own cable service, called Arasu, to counter the on-ground cable distribution strength that Mr Maran has with the Sumangali cable distributions service.

     

    Arasu claims membership of almost all cable operators in all areas of Tamil Nadu where it launched.

     

    The Sun slew of channels isn’t yet part of Arasu.

     

    But while the eponymous general entertainment channel Sun TV is being shown on the sly by cable operators, as it enjoys a two-thirds share, the rest of its channels might not enjoy similar visibility in Arasu’s areas. Jaya Plus might also enjoy more visibility than the pre-Arasu days.

     

    “With Arasu cable coming in there has been a tremendous distribution correction in the last two months,” said a Chennai-based media industry official, on the condition of anonymity. GV Vijayakumar, associate vice-president, Lintas Media Group-Chennai, pointed out programming as one of the other reasons.

     

     

    “In the last few months, Puthiya Thalaimurai has shown good numbers because of their news format and variety. Sun News is still following its traditional roots.” Sun’s fortunes in other genres such as general entertainment and music, where it is still the leader, depends on the fate of its negotiations with Arasu.

     

    A media planner said the spike in interest in Jaya Plus could also be a result of the viewer interest surging after Jayalalithaa expelled her close confidante Sasikala. Jaya TV, of which Jaya Plus is a part, is seen as a mouthpiece of the AIADMK party. Sun TV and Jaya TV officials couldn’t be reached for comments. As far as media buying interest goes, the battle is still only between Puthiya Thalaimurai and Sun TV, said a media planner.

     

    Punitha Arumugam, Group CEO, Madison Media Group, however, pointed to the relative insignificance of news channels in Tamil Nadu. “People who want to watch news watch it on Sun TV or Jaya TV (general entertainment channels). These channels telecast news thrice a day. News as a genre is not significant and not successful. The fluctuations for channels losing grip could be the cable war that happening in the State,” she said.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2012, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

     

  • It's all in 'The Mindshare Indian Media Forecast 2012' presented by UTV Bindass, published by MxM India

    Exclusive: Mindshare forecasts 12% media spends growth in 2012; it was 13% in 2011

    By Johnson Napier

     

    For all the doleful talk of the economy heading south and brands slamming their ad-spend doors on media, sceptics are in for disappointment as the industry managed a commendable growth story for Calendar Year (CY) 2011, clocking a growth rate of 13 percent. Further, with net revenues totalling Rs 33,388 crore, the media confirmed its status as being ‘unstoppable’ and guaranteeing advertisers a good bang for their buck. The results were the finding of a study put together by GroupM, led specifically by the team at Mindshare. Titled ‘This Year, Next Year: Indian Media Forecast’, the study highlights the positive growth story that was witnessed by the industry, especially in the first half of CY 2011.

     

    Continuing with its strong projections and putting aside fears of a financial downturn, the study hints at 2012 to deliver growth numbers in the range of 12 percent and net revenue to the tune of Rs 37,397 crore. This will be driven largely by the advertisers’ willingness to deploy budgets around the media of television, print, radio and digital, the study notes.

     

    Throwing light on the report and its findings, Ravi Rao, Leader, South Asia, Mindshare commented, “The economic outlook is something that one can never get the handle right, with most studies not agreeing on one number. But this is what makes it exciting to look and estimate the Adex growth in India. GroupM does yeoman’s service of providing some startling numbers based on science than the gut, even though India tends to buck the trend away from global predictions.”

     

    The detailed forecast and sector-wise spend analysis are part of ‘The Mindshare Indian Media Forecast 2012’ report published by MxMIndia and presented by UTV Bindass (Details on how you can get your copy at the end of this report)

     

    On the growth pattern to be expected by the industry in 2012, Mr Rao affirmed that since October of 2011, the moment the Eurozone market failure triggered a downslide the thoughts are very much soft where advertising budgets are concerned. “But if you look at the growth driver – every media is expected to grow in double digits with the exception of print and out of home. Every broadcaster and publisher is trying ways and means to cut down input costs while trying to extract the maximum. The first four months of this year will show the trend for the year, but the challenges are aplenty for media,” he asserts.

     

    On the performance of several domains in 2011, Jai Lala, Principal Partner – Exchange, Mindshare said that in terms of Adex, one of the media that stole the thunder last year was television. “In the first half of the Calendar Year (CY) 2011, the medium of television grew as high as 26 percent, which then slowed down to a rate of 16 percent in the second half. So while the average growth for 2011 for television hovers around 20 per cent, 2012 is anticipated to put up numbers in the range of 16 percent. But unlike last year, we expect the first half of CY 2012 to show a slow growth while the second half will manage to show a sudden spurt in growth numbers.”

     

    According to Mr Lala, the properties that will be churning out the numbers for television in 2012 includes cricket – led largely by IPL, reality shows, regionalisation and digitisation. They will be backed by increasing advertiser interest particularly from the sectors of auto, FMCG, finance, IT & ITES, retail, etc.

     

    As for the performance of the other big contributor to Adex – Print, the study envisages a growth of 8-9 percent for 2012. “This is due to the fact that there is going to be a certain amount of demand through elections and the possible bounce-back of certain sectors like auto, real estate, etc who will continue to look at print as a viable advertising option,” states Amin Lakhani, Principal Partner – Exchange, Mindshare. Another factor that will drive the fortunes for Print will be speciality magazines. “Being subscription-based and catering to niche audiences, these magazines will continue to attract the attention of the advertisers as well,” states Mr Lakhani.

     

    Continuing with its solid growth story in 2012 as well, digital is pegged to achieve a growth rate of 30 percent. Apart from servicing the many needs of the online and mobile worlds, marketers are expected to increase their focus on people during the ongoing year. Affirms Mr Ashok Lalla, Leader – Digital, South Asia, Mindshare, “In 2012, the most important media channel that smart marketers will increasingly focus on will not be specific Social websites, TV channels, print publications or radio stations, but it will be People. All the rest of the media mix will be oriented around activating a brand’s audience (People) to be the key driver and proponent of a brand’s communications.”

     

    As for radio, the biggest event that will change the fortunes of the radio industry in 2012 will be Phase 3. According to the study, Phase 3 will help radio owners to drive some incremental revenues. The only stumbling block, the study notes, would be measurement that will have to pan itself to include other cities and towns as well. A growth rate of 11 percent is what is expected out of the medium for 2012, the study notes.

     

    With Out-of-Home, the study notes that the formation of the IOA would lead to standardisation of rates and other operational modalities that will help push for more research into the medium. This effort by the industry would be recognised by clients who will go all out and invest in the medium, it states. “Marketers want to use outdoor as they provide good imagery and high visibility. It has even allowed for newer and better innovations to help advance the sector. Also, outdoor panels, screens, LEDs are now shaping up a new revenue stream which is now getting separately classified as retail. So the medium has come into its own and will continue to grow at a healthy rate in 2012 as well,” notes Mr Lakhani.

     

    Contributing silently but significantly, Cinema will continue to put up good numbers in 2012. The growth projections for this medium would be in the range of 14-15 percent for 2012, the study notes. Sector wise, a large range of advertisers would continue to pursue the medium as an effective advertising option.

     

    ‘The Mindshare Indian Media Forecast 2012’ report is presented by UTV Bindass and being distributed to select marketing and media professionals across the country starting today. If you want to make sure you get a copy, please write to us at editor@mxmindia.com writing MIMF2012 in the subject line. And, yes, while we are sure you’ll find it priceless, it’s not a priced report.