MxMIndia

Category: MEDIA

  • The Indian entertainment pack includes the premium flagship channels from the Star Network – Star Plus, Star Gold and Vijay TV

    Star channels launch on IPTV Swiss Operator – Sunrise

    By A Correspondent

     

    Sunrise TV, the largest telecommunications company in Switzerland has announced the launch of the Indian entertainment pack including the premium flagship channels from the Star Network – Star Plus, Star Gold and Vijay TV.

     

    With this launch on July 19, Sunrise TV subscribers can now watch Tamil & Hindi entertainment & Bollywood channel with English subtitles that provide an innovative mix of drama, events, lifestyle shows, celebrity chat shows, religious & cookery shows, music & dance reality series and Bollywood blockbusters.

     

    Yeshpal Sharma, Vice President Star UK & Europe said: “We are pleased with our partnership with Sunrise TV for the launch of Star channels in Switzerland. This reflects our commitment to bring the best of Asian television entertainment to our viewers in Europe and we look forward to a continued relationship with Sunrise.”

     

  • The application is currently available for Android and Iphone users and is an excellent way to add digital content to printed media

    Pulp Strategy launches Augmented Reality app

    By A Correspondent

     

    Augmented reality (AR) is the new buzzword and augmented reality games have become a favourite with brands and consumers alike. Now introducing a new dimension to experiential marketing campaign, Pulp Strategy has launched a layar-based mobile application. The application is currently available for Android and Iphone users. This app is an excellent way to add digital content to printed media.

     

    Explainign about the app, Ambika Sharma, Managing Director & CEO, Pulp Strategy, said: “With the increased penetration of smart devices in the youth segment, the application allows the static creative advertisements and collateral’s traditionally used in on-ground activations to be infused with interactive digital experiences in real time. This means that a static poster or a standee – a method of delivering static information – can now be an information tool and an engagement prompter.”

     

    The possibilities of the application are amazing – consumers can be prompted for check-ins on Social media at the press of a button; drive ‘Likes’ or ‘follows’; go to the brand site or order a product or stream the brand video straight to the users hand-held device. The next time marketers plan for that poster creative in campus, or big branded wall in a mall activation, or even brand merchandise for a campaign, the app promises to bring alive each piece of static creative digitally for the consumers.

     

    “Marketers find value in such innovations, as not only is it useful and social media relevant but also breaks clutter, and adds pizzazz to existing branding elements increasing consumer engagement,” said Sharma.

     

    This thought is not new. RFID bands for check-ins have been used in activations before. However, they have been device restrictive and cost per user piles on if one scales up. It needs physical equipment presence to drive any engagement or check-ins.

     

    “But the Mobile app is device agnostic. All it needs is a smart phone and once planned it can be scaled up to unlimited consumers. It is not necessary to have a promoter or brand representative to drive the experience. Essentially, the added delight in experience for the consumer comes at a negligible cost as part of the ground campaign. It integrates, Facebook, Twitter, Google+ Linked In for social media,” said Ms Sharma.

     

  • Dainik Bhaskar Haryana celebrated its 12th Anniversary by making the news more reader-centric – reflecting the preferences of the new age readers

    Dainik Bhaskar Haryana gives ‘Pehle Se Bhi Zada’

    By A Correspondent

     

    Dainik Bhaskar Haryana celebrated its 12th Anniversary by making the news more reader-centric – reflecting the preferences of the new age readers.  The refreshing changes are encapsulated by ‘Pehle Se Bhi Zada’ which makes for enhanced reader delight.

     

    Based entirely on the pattern of news consumption by its base of 12.68 lakh readers in Haryana, Dainik Bhaskar has realigned its 12 page main issue to provide insightful focus on government and political issues. It has also added a weekly page talking about latest developments in agriculture practices along with opinion and interviews of experts for the agrarian state. The paper has gone even more hyper local in its approach providing depth of information and opportunities within the state with local news finding prominence in the special supplements on Hissar, Rohtak, Ambala and Sonipat.

     

    Along with the focussed localisation, investigative journalism finds its place with an aim to help empower the readers with information that is relevant. Speaking about ‘Pehle Se Bhi Jyada’, Ashu Pharkey, COO (CPH) Dainik Bhaskar Group said: “Over the last decade, the confidence of our readers is high as we remain relevant,  innovative and have continuously evolved with the changing reader ecosystem.”

     

    Commenting on the ‘refreshing’ strategy, Sanjeev Kotnala, VP Dainik Bhaskar Group said: “At Dainik Bhaskar Group, we always look at some way to contribute toward socio-economic development of our markets. There is a constant formalised research and informal feedback mechanism that allow us to track the changing needs of our readers and hence evolving with them.”

     

  • Star Plus is reportedly planning a round-up show to be aired on August 15

    Satyamev Jayate isn’t over yet, special show planned for Independence Day

    By A Correspondent

     

    Star Plus’ gritty up-close look at India’s malaises through the eyes of Aamir Khan in its Sunday mid-morning show Satyamev Jayate isn’t quite over yet. The last of the 13 episodes may have been aired on July 29, but the channel is reportedly planning a special episode to be telecast on August 15 to coincide with the Independence Day.

     

    MxMIndia learns that the extra episode is in the nature of a round-up examining the impact of Satyamev Jayate, how its themes have been received and how the various guests have fared since the airing of their stories.

     

    Some of the impact has already come across in ABP News’ ‘Asar’ programme which followed on the Friday after each episode, and the 14th episode is thus likely to be a “super-Asar”, a source told MxMIndia. However, this episode may not be shown on other language channels, it is learnt, but only on Star Plus in Hindi.

     

    A source in the network revealed that the Satyamev Jayate set has been dismantled, so the 14th episode will probably have a different look-and-feel from the show itself.

     

    The impact of Satyamev Jayate was also a shot in the arm financially for the NGOs that each episode supported, and this is also due to be talked about. The Reliance Foundation has matched all the proceeds that have come in for the charities, a fair bit of it even came in after each week’s ‘Asar’ was aired on ABP News.

     

  • Marketers talk about the large number of fans they have acquired on FB, so what do these number of fans mean to them and how are the marketers leveraging these fans?

    The Crucial Social Media Question: Have fans? Now what?

    By Tuhina Anand

     

    Every marketer worth his salt wants his brand to have a presence on social media. However, the truth is that the marketers are still trying to figure how to navigate this medium.

     

    Having heard that it’s a ‘cost effective medium, can be tracked and is ‘the’ medium’ where the customers hang out, the marketer obviously wants to be there too. But the social media still has a long way to go before it is seen as the ‘vehicle of choice’ and not just as an afterthought.

     

    Yes, one agrees that marketers are warming up to the medium but they are still testing waters barring a handful who have taken the medium wholeheartedly.

     

    Once a marketer decides to go on social media, the next move is to create a presence on Facebook and maybe on Twitter. We have often heard the marketers talking about the large number of fans they have acquired on FB, so what do these number of fans mean to them and how are the marketers leveraging these fans to engage effectively with consumers?

     

    Chhaya Balachandran Aiyer, Founder and Managing Director, BC Webwise agrees that there is peer pressure to acquire more fans and clients often bow to that demand: “The number of fans and likes is a visible number, hence one can’t write it off completely even though many of the numbers could be dormant fans. These numbers are an opportunity to engage those fans in a meaningful way to create brand loyalty and brand recall.”

     

    She added: “Two years back, the common demand of a client was to be on Facebook, but we have seen a shift now where they have realized that it’s not the ultimate answer but social media too needs a 360 degree approach.” So it’s clear that there are different kinds of marketers and the early adopters are clearly asking the right kind of questions.

     

    Some of the brands that have effectively used the communities on FB are Fastrack, Café Coffee Day, Sunsilk while more are getting on the engagement bandwagon. Explaining the significance of the numbers, Rajiv Dingra, CEO, WATConsult, said: “While all readers of an ad do not become buyers of the product, similarly with FB, the marketers become a publisher of its page to reach out to the consumers. The aim is not always conversion to transaction for all people on its FB page, but with a large fan base the number of potential buyers definitely increases.”

     

    Mr Dingra is clear that there is no replacement for good content. He added that the numbers might reflect various objectives of a brand at different points, but if the content is good, the engagement with brands will become only much more involved and meaningful.

     

    Vineet Gupta

    Vineet Gupta of 22feet has been relentlessly engaging with brands to enable them to use their social media tools effectively. He explained: “We have brought out exclusive sale for Fastrack fans on FB and the brand has been doing a lot of stuff exclusive to the community. Scale has its own benefit and one can’t deny that. With people becoming familiar with social media, there are lots of activities happening which take people beyond the likes and the fans.”

     

    The agency has recently done activation for Lee titled ‘Shadows of City’, where people were encouraged to present their photographs of the city and the shadows they create which would then be put up in the stores.

     

    CCD is another brand that has been using FB to listen to its customers and also engage them via the medium. Ramakrishnan K, President- Marketing at CCD elaborated: “At CCD, we not only have numbers, but also a high level of engagement. Our fan base is 2.6 million and our monthly engagement level is 60 per cent, i.e. 60 per cent of our fans interact in some form with our page every month.”

     

    He added: “At CCD, we use social media base for regular tailor-made communication on happenings in CCD. We have a direct consumer feedback on cafes across the country which gives us instant information that keeps us on our toes. Most importantly, we use the fan base for co-creating many of our offerings – be it new menu, suggestions for improvement, live tasting of new introductions, choice of music among others. We engage fans to co-create their brand. As a result, we drive a very high level of consumer engagement, which in turn helps us drive sales.”

     

    One concern is that many fans on FB might be dormant, so then do the numbers really mean anything? Sanjay Mehta, Joint CEO at Social Wavelength explained: “I think that the key is to deliver message to interested people. If people receive the message but not respond, that is not a concern, but if they do not get the message in the first place, then it’s a bigger challenge. I think one should not be dismissive of the dormant numbers, but focus more on getting the right kind of messages that will get them to engage.”

     

  • This will be for the e-auction of spectrum in 1800 MHz and 800 MHz bands

    Times Internet to conduct e-auction for spectrum

    By A Correspondent

     

    The digital technology company Times Internet Limited (TIL) has been selected as the auctioneer to operate spectrum auction process by Department of Telecommunications (DoT). This will be for the e-auction of spectrum in 1800 MHz and 800 MHz bands.

     

    NCDEX Spot Exchange and Karnataka State Electronics Development Corporation were the two other firms in the race. These two firms could not qualify the technical bids.

     

    The e-auction will entail inviting applications, resolving queries of potential bidders, finalising eligible bidders, public information sessions and mock auction.

     

    Satyan Gajwani, CEO – TIL said: “Online auction is the most transparent method of holding large auctions. As a technology leader, we are excited to facilitate this process.”

     

  • The deal provides Ethnic Channels Group the rights to distribute the service on Cable and Satellite platforms

    Zee Cinema partners with Ethnic Channels Group in Canada

    By A Correspondent

     

    Zee America shas entered into a long-term distribution agreement with Ethnic Channels Group for Zee Cinema in Canada. The deal provides Ethnic Channels Group the rights to distribute the service on Cable and Satellite platforms.

     

    Suresh Bala, CEO, Zee Americas said: “This is exciting for us, in that for the first time we are able to focus our marketing and unlock the strength of the Zee Cinema brand in Canada. Ethnic Channels Group is an expert at marketing to ethnic audiences and we expect to grow our distribution and our subscription base significantly. Currently Zee Cinema is only available as a linear service, but we expect to work out the details of mobile distribution in the not so distant future.”

     

    Zee Cinema is Zee’s Bollywood entertainment channel. Its library features over 5,000 hours of movies.

     

    “We are delighted to partner with the Zee TV Group for the launch of Zee Cinema in Canada. Bollywood is a global, phenomenon and Zee Cinema is its biggest custodian,” said Slava Levin, Co-Founder and CEO of Ethnic Channels Group.

     

    Hari Srinivas, President Ethnic Channels Group added: “Ethnic Channels Group believes in the brand equity of its content partners, and it will be our primary objective to increase this for ZEE Cinema in Canada.”

     

  • The students representing over 100 B-Schools beyond the Top25, were tested by MeritTrac on standardised tests in verbal ability, quantitative ability and reasoning on behalf of recruiting companies

    Study reveals only 21% MBAs employable!

    By A Correspondent

     

    A nationwide study of marks secured by 2,264 MBAs who sat for tests by recruiting companies found only that only 21 per cent could make the grade. The previous study of 2007 by MeritTrac placed employability index at 25 per cent.

     

    The students representing over 100 B-Schools beyond the Top25, were tested by MeritTrac on standardised tests in verbal ability, quantitative ability and reasoning on behalf of recruiting companies.

     

    Examination of ‘AICTE Approval Process Hand Book: 2012-13’ reveals that the number of MBA seats in India has grown almost four fold – from 94,704 in 2006-07 to 3,52,571 in 2011-12.

     

    To benchmark the current state of employability of management graduates, MBA Universe.com and MeritTrac teamed up to conduct the research and release top line findings ahead of the MBA Universe.com organized Indian Management Conclave 2012, on August 9-10 in New Delhi.

     

    For purposes of this study, pre-recruitment test scores of 2,264 candidates were analysed by MeritTrac to assess how they fared on the three tests in terms of the average percentage scores and pass-through rates.

     

    The pass-through rates were calculated based on the pre-decided cut-off for each test. These cut-offs are at par with the average cut-off scores decided by companies in their recruitment exercises.

     

    The threshold cut-off scores used in Verbal ability, Quantitative ability and Reasoning were 45 per cent, 35 per cent and 40 per cent respectively. Overall average percentage score obtained by MBAs in Verbal ability, Quantitative ability and Reasoning was 52.58 per cent, 41.17 per cent and 37.51 per cent respectively.

     

    While performance on verbal ability seems to be satisfactory, reasoning is an area where there is scope for improvement. Considering that the elements of the reasoning test (deductive logic, data sufficiency, spatial reasoning, and analytical reasoning) are crucial to making sound management decisions, this is a result which warrants closer attention.

     

    The total pass-through rate, which is an index of employability, at 21 per cent leaves scope for improvement considering that organisations hire from this talent pool for strategic roles and this is the managerial pool that companies bank on.

     

    “The results of 2012 employability report covering 2,264 B-schools students from 29 cities are quite startling. This report clearly brings out the employability gaps across various competencies and highlights the need for scientific examinations and tests to align the candidate skills to employability metrics,” saidS Murlidhar, CEO and Director, MeritTrac Services.

     

    The MeritTrac- MBA Universe Employability Index study of MBAs will now be conducted once every two years.

     

    “Questions are asked about the talent coming out of MBA colleges, and whether they create a workforce responsive to the needs of the economy like understanding of business and on-the-feet thinking. So, decision-making skills are being valued more than ever,” said Amit Agnihotri, chairman of MBAUniverse.com.

     

     

  • Dish+ is positioned at a consumer-friendly and competitive price of Rs1,690 (against all other SD boxes at Rs 1590) with a free 4 GB pen drive as promotional offer

    Dish TV launches India’s first SD Recorder with unlimited capacity

    Salil Kapoor

    By A Correspondent

     

    Dish TV has launched “Dish+”,India’s first standard definition box with unlimited recording facility. Dish+ is positioned at a consumer-friendly and competitive price of Rs1,690 (against all other SD boxes at Rs 1590) with a free 4 GB pen drive as promotional offer. Post VCR, there is no recording device available with consumers and there is a huge vacuum to fulfil the consumer need. Dish+ fulfils the ‘need gap’ of recording facility for the consumers.

     

    Speaking on the launch, RC Venkateish, Chief Executive Officer, Dish TV India, said: “Being pioneers and market leaders, we have constantly reinvented and redefined the market with thought leadership to be ahead of the pack. Dish+ is being launched in 42 cities of Phase I and Phase II of digitization and will clearly demonstrate Dish+ as a better alternative for all viewers who will shift from analog to digital.”

     

    Salil Kapoor, Chief Operating Officer, Dish TV India, emphasized: “Dish+ is a comeback of recorders in the living room and is a clear differentiator vis-à-vis other alternatives including digital cable. Its highly competitive launch price will position it as a preferred option amongst all DTH buyers”.

     

    The unique feature of Dish + is its compatibility with any USB device enabling consumers to simply plug and play an existing USB stick/ HDD, and build an entire genre based library of their favorite program. Dish+ offers unmatched advantage of recording on SD. Dish+ is user-friendly with features like “plug-n-play” through an external USB device. This enables all benefits of a traditional DVR like recording and playing back programs, Pausing or Rewinding live TV, different play-back positions, event based recording (EBR), time based recording (TBR) and so on.

     

  • Mr Dayani will be directly reporting to Kanika Mathur, President, Digitas India

    Digitas India appoints Nirmal Dayani as its COO

    Nirmal Dayani

    By A Correspondent

     

    Digitas, the digital marketing agency, has appointed Nirmal Dayani as its Chief Operating Officer inIndia. Mr Dayani will be directly reporting to Kanika Mathur, President, DigitasIndia.

     

    Mr Dayani has vast experience in the field of advertising and marketing with a significant exposure to digital media. Having spent over 21 years in this field, he has worked at Mc Cann Erickson, JWT and ESPN Star Sports.

     

    He has worked with leading brands such as Pepsi, Horlicks and Harpic and in his last stint as Head of Marketing at ESPN STAR Sports, he contributed to the successful launch of new channels – STAR Cricket, ESPN HD and STAR Cricket HD and led the company’s diversification into new properties such as espnstar.com and espnmobile. His experience with Digital started with the launch of the famous “Super Selector” cricket game and several other properties for espnstar.com.

     

    Speaking on his appointment, Mr Dayani said: “This is an amazing opportunity and I am incredibly excited to be a part of the Digitas India team. In this new digital era, we have a great opportunity to integrate our offerings and adding value to our customers/clients portfolios. I am looking forward to working closely with our clients and together developing their digital roadmaps and taking them to the next level in their growth curve.”

     

    Kanika Mathur, President, DigitasIndiasaid: “We are looking forward to Nirmal leading DigitasIndia. We believe that with his experience and skills, he will play a key role in nurturing client relationships and driving growth.”

     

  • Mahindra Sri Lanka Premier League to kick off on August 11, 2012

    Mahindra bags title sponsorship rights of Sri Lanka Premier League

    By A Correspondent

     

    Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd (M&M Ltd) has partnered with the Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL) as their title sponsors. The prestigious League kicks off from August 11 and will be played over three weeks at two venues -Colombo and Kandy. The inaugural edition of this League will feature seven provincial teams in a round-robin league format, with the winners having the distinction of playing in the Champions League Twenty20 (CLT20) as one of the teams in the qualifiers.

     

    Upali Dharmadasa, President of Sri Lanka Cricket said: “Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) is proud and honoured to have on board, one of India’s leading business houses as the Title Sponsor of the Sri Lanka Premier League which shall now be referred to as the Mahindra Sri Lanka Premier League (or the “Mahindra SLPL”).

     

    “Since the Mahindra brand is also a household name in Sri Lanka, we believe it is the perfect platform to take the message of the Sri Lanka Premier League, which is “Gama Rata Lokeya, Eka Karana” or “Province, Country, World, Becomes One” to the world,” he added.

     

    SP Shukla, President- Group Strategy and Chief Brand Officer, Mahindra Group said: “Sri Lanka is a strategic market for the Mahindra Group which is already an established name in the country and what better medium than cricket to connect and engage with audiences as it is the most followed sport in the sub continent with a fan base of approximately 1.5 billion fans across India, Sri Lanka, Pakistan and Bangladesh alone.”

     

    “We are thrilled to be associated with the Sri Lanka Premier League. With the leading lights of world cricket in the fray, we are positive that this League will be a huge success,” said Ruzbeh Irani, Chief Executive – International Operations (Automobile and Farm Sectors), Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd. “Mahindra has been actively associated with various sporting events and partnering SLPL endorses Mahindra’s commitment to promote a sporting and active lifestyle,” he added.

     

    The Group’s association with the Sri Lanka Premier League underscores its continued commitment to promote sports not only at the grassroots level but also across a global platform.

     

    There will be 24 games in the Mahindra Sri Lanka Premier League and each team will be allowed a maximum of 18 players. Teams will be allowed to field a maximum of four foreign players per game with the remaining being local players. The Man of the Match in all 24 matches will receive the title of “Mahindra Man of the Match” while the ‘Man of the Tournament’ will win himself an XUV5OO.

     

  • Infomedia18's publishing business, recently demerged and consolidated within Network18 under 'Network18 Publishing'

    Network18 Publishing elevates Mukhtar Qureshi to COO

    By A Correspondent

     

    In a move to further bolster growth plans, Network18 Publishing has elevated Mukhtar Qureshi, EVP, Sales to COO, Business Directories Division. Infomedia18’s publishing business, recently demerged and consolidated within Network18 under ‘Network18 Publishing’, encompasses three divisions of Infomedia18’s publishing business – Business to Consumer (B2C) magazines, Business to Business (B2B) magazines and Business Directories Division (BDD).

     

    Commenting on the development, Sandeep Khosla, CEO, Network18 Publishing said: “The Business Directories Division, especially its yellow pages stable, is core to our growth plans for Network18 Publishing. As we scale up and expand our suite of products and services across touch points, Mukhtar’s proven track record and unparalleled experience in this space will be critical for us. I look forward to working closely with him as we further strengthen our leadership in the business directories space.”

     

    Talking about his appointment, Mukhtar Qureshi said: “At the Business Directories Division, we’ll continue to be focused on fulfilling the growing aspirations of the Indian SME. Our widespread presence under the Yellow Pages umbrella and deep customer relationships provides us with an enormous opportunity to diversify our offerings and innovate through integrated media solutions. It’s been an exciting journey so far and I hope to build further on it going forward.”

     

    Starting his career with Tata Press, Mr Qureshi brings with him over 21 years of experience in sales and operations. He holds a degree in commerce and law from theGovernmentLawCollege(Mumbai).