MxMIndia

Category: MEDIA

  • The Financial Express has established a new award that promises to set the benchmark for the IT industry, discovering and celebrating its finest talents and efforts

    Express group to hold inaugural Express IT Awards on Nov 30

    By A  Correspondennt

     

    The much awaited Express IT Awards is scheduled to happen tomorrow, November 30, in Bengaluru. An initiative of The Financial Express, the Express IT Awards will celebrate the best innovations in IT across various industry segments. According to a communiqué, it will recognize not only the innovator, but also the implementer and their roles, in successfully bringing a path-breaking idea to fruition.

     

    The jury comprises stalwarts like Nandan Nilekani, Chairman, Unique Identification Authority of India; Rajan Anandan, VP and MD, Google India, T V Mohandas Pai, Chairman of Manipal Global Education, Professor S Sadagopan, Director, IIIT, Bangalore and Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, CMD of Biocon.

     

    Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will be Chief Guest and the awards ceremony is expected to see CEOs, CSO, CIOs, technology heads, innovators and policy makers amongst others in attendance.

     

  • Hindustan Times organizes an awards event without any frills and long speeches with the focus on changemakers and changemaking

    ‘HT for Mumbai Awards 2013’ awards changemakers

    By A Correspondent

     

    We should’ve carried this report Hindustan Times on Monday, the first edition after the awards happened on Friday, November 22, so our apologies to our readers. It’s one of those events which gladdened our hearts and worth the wait. It was a no-nonsense event. The chief guest, Chief Minister Prithviraj Chavan, entered the venue premises much ahead of the scheduled time of start. An emcee kicked off the proceeds, the Mumbai editor Soumya Bhattacharya spoke a bit, the speech short and sober, as the occasion demanded.

     

    There was just one av promo of the paper and then the six awards were given away. Very short speeches again by the winners and by the CM Prithviraj Chavan. Mr Chavan left soon after the awards and when a panel discussion on the topic ‘Giving back to Mumbai’ started.

     

    According to a communiqué, HT for Mumbai Awards recognized and rewarded people and organizations who share a passion for change by giving back to the city of Mumbai, and making it a better place to live in (www.htformumbaiawards.com). The inaugural edition of the awards saw an eminent jury: Dr Aroon Tikekar (distinguished historian and former editor), Chandra Iyengar, an IAS officer, Rahul Bose (actor, director, sportsman) apart from , HT’s Special Projects editor Smruti Koppikar and Mr Bhattacharya.

     

    The winners in the Individual Category were Kishore Bhatt, Pankaj Joshi and Sunjoy Monga, whereas the winners in the Organization category were Majlis, LEARN and Akhsara. There was a Popular Choice Award category too where the winners were selected by voting via SMS and a digital microsite. The Lifetime achievement award was awarded to the noted historian and author, the Late Sharada Dwivedi.

     

    Our view: excellent event. We think the ‘HT for Mumbai’ awards evening should be conducted on a bigger scale next year. It should be promoted on television like various other ‘awards’ are so that it motivates more citizens and organizations to turn changemakers. There could be an award for corporates doing great work in an effort to encourage them to take up work for the community. And while it’s a healthy sign that the event happened without seniors from Delhi (Nitin Chaudhry, Business Head – West and team were of course present), it would be seen as a huge commitment to Mumbai and the Mumbai edition if the big bosses from Delhi were also in attendance.

     

  • Arnab Goswami, Daya in Taarak Mehta…, Gauhar Khan in Bigg Boss and Comedy Nights with Kapil are loud, and very popular, notes Shailesh Kapoor

    Are we a Noise-loving TV Nation?

     

    By Shailesh Kapoor

     

    You would normally not associate positive emotions with the word ‘noise’. It’s generally assumed and accepted that noise is bad. In context of television too, the media has propagated this notion for a while now. But there is very little real evidence to accept this belief. In fact, there is telling evidence to the contrary.

     

    For many of us, the first association with noise on Indian television would be Arnab Goswami. His rival channels even start their bulletins (the 10pm news on NDTV, for example) with the line ‘where you get news, not noise’. Yet, the high viewership of Arnab’s show speaks for itself. In the noise and the cacophony lies a sense of power the viewer feels. When you see the privileged political class being put in the docks and spoken to like they are criminals (words like hypocrite and hooligan are routinely used by Arnab to describe his guests), you feel empowered by proxy. And that would be impossible without the noise.

     

    Gauhar Khan is by far the most popular contestant on Bigg Boss 7 (Source: Ormax Characters India Loves). But she’s not someone who will die wondering. She’s out there, raising her voice, which gets rather shrill at times, at the slightest excuse. But like Arnab, her ‘noise’ comes from her conviction. And conviction is an unequivocal sign of strength.

     

    One of the top-rated shows on television for the last five years is what you would classically label ‘a loud comedy’. Yet, Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah, with all its executional hyperbole, continues to enthrall audiences, especially in Western India. I haven’t seen anyone who even remotely resembles the serial’s female lead Daya in mannerisms and talking style. A relatively moderate husband (Jethalal) provides a good contrast and the couple has been the most popular ‘jodi’ Indian television for a while now.

     

    There are many other examples across genres where one can sense that the mellow and the soothing is finding it hard to seek attention, while the noisy and the high-pitch manages to get viewership and media talk. One of the biggest successes of this year, Comedy Nights With Kapil, is a fairly loud show itself, even though it incredibly manages to keep its aesthetics consistently in place despite the noise. And the consistent performance of slapstick comedies and dubbed South action films on Hindi movie channels further propels the noise-works theory.

     

    Sometime earlier this year, I made the mental shift to accept that on Indian television, ‘noise’ and ‘loud’ are not undesirable, negative terms. Here, the viewer equivalent of what the US audiences will call ‘noise’ is ‘over’ (as in, “bahut over dikhaya hai”). ‘Over’ stands for over-acting or screenplay exaggeration. But ‘noise’, when not ‘over’, is perfectly desirable.

     

    In several discussions within the industry on this topic in recent years, the most interesting reason on why this should be the case goes as follows. There are more than 100 channels on an average consumer’s TV today. Even though she may watch only 8-10 of them regularly, the idea of multiple channels is still intimidating to the Indian audiences. So, the ‘surfing experience’ is still a stressful one, whereby the viewer is trying to come to terms with the plethora of choice available to her, often not knowing where to stop. With the number of channels on a perpetual increase, this intimidation is not going away anytime soon.

     

    In this context, in a ‘surfing’ scenario, a channel gets only about 5-10 seconds window to ‘attract’ the undecided viewer. This is where ‘noise’ comes in. It’s like a sales pitch or the good old Aussie art of ‘spruiking’, whereby you sell through showmanship of speech.

     

    There may be other reasons too, but ‘noise’ is in for sure. Let the drum rolls begin!

     

    Shailesh Kapoor is founder and CEO of media insights firm Ormax Media. He spent nine years in the television industry before turning entrepreneur. The views expressed here are his own. He can be reached at his Twitter handle @shaileshkapoor

     

  • Much has been spoken and written about the Tehelka founder's misdeeds. We reproduce here one of India's foremost editorial cartoonist Hemant Morparia's take in Mumbai Mirror

    Tooning Tarun Tejpal’s Toxic Tale + Jaldi 5 with Hemant Morparia

     

    There’s been a lot spoken and written about the young journalist being subjected to sexual assault (rape as per the law). Many mails have been leaked, some officially released. Many statements have been made. And there’s been the resignation later from managing editor Shoma Chaudhury earlier today (Nov 28).

     

    We present here five cartoons by Hemant Morparia, one of India’s best known editorial cartoonists, who draws a daily pocket cartoon for Mumbai Mirror and group publications. These, according to us, tell give us a view that’s sharper and thought-provoking than a lot that we’ve heard and read so far.

     

    There’s also a Jaldi 5 Q&A with him alongside  the toons.

     

     

    Jaldi 5 with Hemant Morparia: The seedy is not necessarily as Sleazy as the Mainstream can be
     

    Hemant Morparia is one of India’s best known editorial cartoonists. Other than a daily pocket for Mumbai Mirror, he toons for various Indian and international publications. When he not drawing, he’s into photography, travelling, archery and assorted reading. He’s also a radiologist and sonologist at Mumbai’s Breach Candy Hospital.

     

    01. They’re funny, but given the nature of the event, you can’t really laugh on viewing the five toons you have drawn thus far on the Tarun Tejpal episode. The one on the ladies bar is perhaps the most telling comment on the state of safety.

    That is my favourite of the lot. Sort of speaks my view that the seedy is not necessarily as sleazy as the mainstream can be. It’s hypocrisy that makes one think so.

     

    02. What happened to the young journalist is reprehensible. But what made things worse was that the assailant was allegedly her boss, someone who has been revered in journalistic and activist circles. From the point of view of an observer of news events, do you think this possibly rates as one of the worst acts of the powerful in our country in recent times?

    That jobs and promotions could be linked to ‘giving in’ is equivalent to trafficking by the perpetrator. One is making an employee a whore, by force – so it’s a grave crime. I have no problems with consensual encounters without professional inducement or threat.

     

    03. Would you now see people doubting all the rich, powerful and famous. As in when you meet Editor X and Y, will you now be asking yourself whether he (or even she) could be in indulging in such acts?

    This is as old as time. Nothing shocking here. All humans are potentially capable of depravity anyway imho.

     

    04. Many well-known cartoonists and commentators have been muted in their response on this episode.  Possibly because they know him? Didn’t you feel the same? No more invites to Thinkfests? If you had been drawing for Tehelka, would you have done the same?

    The test for any commentator is how he sticks to his point of view honestly, without fear or favour. Personal equations colouring views will be the beginning of the end for him.

     

    4a. You attended the first Thinkfest. Regret having attended that? If invited, and if organized by the same set of people, will you attend it?

    There’s no reason to regret. I won’t attend in future. Probably won’t exist in future, anyway.

     

    05. On a lighter note, Do you really think there could be a day in India when we’ll have separate elevators for men and women?

    Ha ha! Someone commented on Twitter that such already exist in Saudi Arabia. Well, it would be safer for both sexes you know. The decent male, due to the pervading issues connected to some bad apples of his gender, is a beleaguered creature today. In this charged atmosphere, false accusations could rise too.

     

     

    Reproduced here with permission from Hemant Morparia. All cartoons published in Mumbai Mirror on dates mentioned along with the cartoons. 

     

  • The findings of the survey were revealed as part of the workshop 'Men are from Venus, Women are from Mars' hosted by Population First on Saturday, November 30

    Only 50% of companies have a committee to address sexual harassment: Social Access study

    By  A Correspondent

     

    > 88% of employees feel that senior management genuinely support equality between men and women employees

    > Yet 60% of women feel their commitment to the organization would be questioned if they opted for a flexible work arrangement.

    > Only 50% of companies have a committee to address sexual harassment

     

    These are a few of the findings from a survey on ‘gender equality in the workplace’ conducted by Social Access Communications among 130 mid-to-senior-level professionals from the advertising and media fraternity in Mumbai during October, 2013.

     

    The findings of the survey were revealed on the day of the workshop ‘Men are from Venus, Women are from Mars’ hosted by Population First, on November 29 in Mumbai. The workshop is supported by UNFPA and designed and managed by Social Access Communications.

     

    The survey stated that while 88% of employees feel that senior management genuinely supports equality between men and women employees, more men than women respondents believe so.

     

    “By and large the advertising industry treats men and women fairly, and that is a heartening piece of news. However, there is significant scope for improvement as far as sensitivity towards sexual innuendo is concerned,” said Lynn de Souza, the founder of Social Access Communications, the knowledge partners for the workshop.

     

    23% of men and women feel organizations make assumptions about people’s capabilities based on gender, age, pregnancy and family commitments.

     

    As far as flexibility of work is concerned 60% of women feel their commitment would be questioned if they opted for flexible work hours, while only 35% of men feel they can actively consider a flexible work option. 55% of people feel they have not been encouraged to apply for other positions in the organization.

     

    “This stresses the fact that both men and women should benefit from greater flexibility in the work hours,” pointed out Ms de Souza.

     

    The most disturbing statistic that came out of this survey was that only 50% of companies in the advertising and media world have a committee to address sexual harassment, even though it is now required by law. Nine per cent of employees, both men and women, have faced inappropriate sexual contact at the workplace. Further still, 17% of people have observed someone else in the organization being sexually harassed. Interestingly, men have responded that they are ‘uncertain’ about what construes sexual harassment.

     

  • Low-cost watermarking technology won BARC's TV audience measuring contract for Mediametrie, the joint industry body in France

    Mediametrie… who, why, how?

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    If the question in our headline is what a lot of broadcast industry stakeholders have been asking this weekend, there’s reason. The US- and UK-exposed Indian media fraternity do not know much about Mediametrie, the French joint industry body for TV measurement that’s been chosen as the primary technology vendor by the Broadcast Audience Research Council (BARC).

     

    The BARC Board met on Saturday, November 30 and is reported to have given an in-principle clearance for awarding the measurement contract to the French measurement body. However, that’s as per the information leaked. Officially, the BARC communiqué issued doesn’t name any vendor.

     

    On Saturday, the BARC Board met to decide on the technology and the path ahead. “There was unanimity in deciding on a leap in technology to be used in television measurement. The Board approved the management and the technical and commercial committees to go ahead and finalize with a couple of international companies for this. The team will be completing the pilots and will start deployments soon. The Board also decided on the funding mechanism and is encouraged by the response received from banks for funding the project,” the release noted.

     

    As per reports earlier this year that were later denied by a BARC official, there were five vendors shortlisted for the key function of installation of set-top boxes and generate measurement viewership numbers. These included Kantar and Nielsen. Sources say Nielsen was in the final shortlist of three and was close to being selected, but the solution it offered was far more expensive than that of Mediametrie. TAM, a joint venture of Nielsen and WPP-owned Kantar, was not involved with the bid process at this stage.

     

    The vendor selected will not be involved with the analyzing of data, and that contract will be awarded separately by BARC. TAM is a likely contender for this, subject to the cross-ownership not being a stumbling block in its participation in the bidding process.

     

    So what is it that got Mediametrie to win the race? And who and what is Mediametrie?

    The reasons, in brief:

    First, the technology.

    Second, the low cost.

    Third: Mediametrie is not married to any set-top box provider

    And fourth, Mediametrie is structured like BARC and is not a solely-for-profit body

     

    The technology Mediametrie is likely to deploy is called ‘watermarking’ which entails inserting into programmes a ‘mark’ that is inaudible to the human ear. This ‘mark’ contains the identification of the channel which airs the content and the regular broadcast time markers. The audimeters installed in panellists’ homes can then recognise this information. According to sources, BARC officials have discussed the viability of inserting these markers with private channels as well as with Doordarshan. The technology allows for measurement of TV content on mobile phones as well as sedentary computers.

     

    The watermarking technology is being licensed from a Netherlands-headquartered vendor Civolution.

     

    The cost is indeed low for the technology and the set-top boxes and that’s the reason why BARC is bullish about achieving a 50,000 panel base in a year-and-a-half (See: http://www.mxmindia.com/2013/10/barc-eyes-50k-panel-in-1-5-years/) .

     

    A key irritant in the increase of the panel base of TAM was the cost of set-top boxes deployed. While TAM was willing to buy more, the costs were high and the taxes made them even more pricey. With the Mediametrie deal, the measurement technology is the key and not the set-top boxes. In fact, the boxes will need to be procured by BARC separately through one or more vendors. As per a source, Nielsen almost won contract due to this clause, as it was a tried-and-tested offering. However, buoyed by the confidence reposed by various stakeholders, the BARC technical committee is understood to have taken the decision to get into a separate contract with one or two hardware providers who can bring in the mandatory 20,000 set-top boxes required within six months of the government guidelines for TV measurement coming into force. Cisco was also rumoured to be in the running for this contract, but sources say that it may not among the chosen ones.

     

    As per info on its website (hence not verified by this correspondent), Médiamétrie was founded in 1985 in response to the changing demands in the French audiovisual sector. The government encouraged the creation of an independent company to ensure that audiences of the principal audiovisual media could be measured scientifically. This independence for Mediametrie is guaranteed by the presence of all professional parties, in all its decision-making processes and in its stakeholding, including the media, advertisers and agencies without any of them having a majority holding to take a decision alone. The ownership and structure of Mediametrie is hence quite like BARC and it isn’t a solely-for-profit set-up.

     

    Médiamétrie is now developing its range of services and extending its scope by working on new media, telephony, new multimedia practices, crossmedia, etc. It offers original products designed for specific users and launches offers on the international market that have become essential due to changes in consumers’ listening and viewing habits. Mediametrie has also created Eurodata TV Worldwide for analyzing and distributing info on over 5500 channels across over 100 countries.

     

    Civolution was  formed in October 2008 as a spin-off of Royal Philips Electronics.  In August 2008, Philips Content Identification, a business unit of Philips Electronics, assumed full ownership of its joint venture Teletrax. The combined entity was spun out of Philips in October giving birth to Civolution. In July 2009, Civolution took over the Software and Technology Solution from Thomson (Thomson STS), formerly NextAmp. Mediatmetrie’s technology is aided by that of Thomson (and hence Civolution).

     

    So, a source close to the developments, told MxMIndia that while Mediametrie is the primary tech vendor, Civolution and the set-top box vendor(s) will also play a key role in the implementation.

     

    When will the new BARC measurement come into force?

    BARC as we know is a Joint Industry Body (JIB) set up in 2012 with the specific purpose of designing, commissioning, supervising and owning India’s Television Audience Measurement System. IT is a joint venture bringing together the three key stakeholders – broadcasters, advertisers and advertising and media agencies. Their respective apex bodies, the Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF), the Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA) and the Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI), represent the three sectors.

     

    Although the public position for BARC may be that the new measurement regime will be up and about by the end of Q2 of 2014 (that’s by June 30, 2014), MxMIndia estimates as per discussions with various stakeholders in the industry, given the criticality of the data, subscribers will switch off the tap only after they are a hundred thousand percent convinced about the data.

     

    “Remember Q3 and Q4 are the all-important adspend seasons and we can’t afford to risk any mess-up due to the non-availability of data that has a buy-in of all parties. So even though we want the new BARC system to be a success, we need to be realistic,” said one industryperson. A broadcast sales head was more pragmatic. “Although it appears that the market will improve and we will be done with the elections, over the last few years there have been too many extraneous factors impacting broadcast sales. We can’t have one more variable in the system,” he said, indicating that the transition to the new measurement regime from TAM could well be done in a phased manner. So the new BARC data will start coming in from August 2014, as per scheduled, but subscribers may dispense with the current system only later.

     

    In the meantime, BARC needs to also contend with the government and a zealous Minister of Information and Broadcasting who is keen on effecting the new measurement regime in his tenure. “Minister Tewari’s intent is well-placed,” said a key BARC stakeholder, adding: “In reality, the system just can’t be executed in the UPA-2 tenure. Also, we do not a half-baked system to get operational.”

     

    The minister (and the ministry) is keenly keeping tabs on the progress being made on this front and it is learnt that key BARC officials are likely to meet them in Delhi this week.

     

  • Five bands selected as the best in rock, sufi, folk and pop were selected at a gig in Mumbai

    MTV concludes multi-city music talent hunt

    By A Correspondent

     

    Music channel MTV India concluded its nationwide contest - MTV Rayban Never Hide Sounds – with a gig last weekend in Mumbai. The hunt across Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru and Kolkata for the give best bands across genres like rock, sufi, folk and pop gave winners a chance to be mentored by renowned musicians like Raghu Dixit, Benny Dayal, Uday Benegal,Harshdeep Kaur and Shilpa Rao.

     

    The shortlisted bands – Parvaaz, Rang, Frisky Pints, Life and Nasya jammed with one maestro from their specific genre and then went on to collaborate on some of the most iconic tracks by the mentors.

     

    Aditya Swamy

    Speaking about this, Aditya Swamy, EVP and Business Head, MTV India said, “Every young musician needs a mentor to go to the next level and this initiative does just that… Bringing together talent from two different generations has been an incredible experience and I look forward to this becoming a calendar event on the Indian music scene. It’s been an absolute pleasure working hand in hand with Ray Ban in building new talent and giving them a platform to take their music to the people.”

     

    Shirley Gong, Ray-Ban Business Manager, Emerging Markets said, “Ray-Ban Never Hide Sounds is an initiative to put forth upcoming talent.  This year we were set out to search the most unique and talented voices across various genres of Music.  I am delighted to see that this approach has brought a brand new dimension to the latest edition and we have successfully completed this musical journey.”

     

  • Cheil Worldwide has announced the appointment of Atishi Pradhan as Chief Strategy Officer.

    Cheil appoints Atishi Pradhan as CSO

    By A Correspondent

     

    Cheil Worldwide SW Asia has announced the appointment of brand strategist Atishi Pradhan as Chief Strategy Officer. Ms Pradhan will lead the Integrated Strategy function at Cheil – encompassing traditional,digital, retail and experiential divisions. She will also spearhead the agency’s proprietary category/ consumer knowledge initiatives and guide both current and potential clients on brand marketing strategies. In addition, she will play an active role in enhancing data analytics, research, insights and new capabilities for Cheil in the region. She joins from Mogae Media where she held a similar position since February 2012.

     

    Hari Krishnan

    Confirming the appointment, Hari Krishnan, Chief Operating Officer, Cheil Worldwide SW Asia, said: “We are delighted to have Atishi on board to lead our integrated strategy function. As Cheil exponentially continues to grow business and capability, the need is to establish thought leadership. Atishi brings the much-needed mindset and experience for us to focus and succeed in this area. Her ability to create engaging, strategically-led ideas will be invaluable to Cheil.”

     

    Commenting on her joining, Ms Pradhan said: “I am really excited about working at Cheil. I believe there are many exciting opportunities ahead as it is an era where technology and new media are transforming everything around them. I am looking to bringing about transformations that drive brand solutions and create brand opportunities.”

     

  • After a Facebook post by publisher and activist Maheshwer Peri and some outrage on the social network platform, man-of-many-parts Suhel Seth announces he will return the Rai University doctorate that he was awarded last week

    Facebook posts get Suhel Seth to give up Rai doctorate

    By A Correspondent

     

    He is one of India’s best known faces on television panel discussions. Suhel Seth, ad man-turned-communications consultant and managing director of Counselage, was awarded an honorary doctorate by the Rai University last week.

     

    But  a Facebook post by Maheshwer Peri, Careers360 CEO-promoter and may we call him an ethical education activist, got him to give it up as there was outrage over Mr Seth’s accepting the recognition from a university which, as Mr Peri put it, “is most likely to abuse it to reach out to ignorant students”. “How I wish our celebrities acted a bit responsibly and did their homework,” Mr Peri’s post on Facebook added.

     

    There was much outrage after this initial post on Facebook with many people casting aspersions on Mr Sethi’s credibility. Almost an hour after the initial post by Mr Peri, Mr Seth reacted with:  “I had no clue…will return this immediately” and later added: “In fact even at the damn convocation I said this was a fraudulent event…I was told that this was a legit university and so on… but I agree… it is a fraud and I will have nothing to do with it…”

     

    After Mr Seth’s pronouncement, there was an expression of delight at the decision. “Bravo Suhel Seth,” exclaimed one post.

     

  • Yahoo's Big Idea Chair Awards India 2013 has marketing boss Nitin Mathur on the jury panel. We think it's a cause of concern given doubts being raised on a possible conflict for the coveted awards

    Not a good idea. Yahoo’s Nitin Mathur on Big Idea Chair Awards India 2013 jury

    By A Correspondent

     

    Yahoo! India announced the jury for the 2013 edition of the much-awaited Yahoo Big Idea Chair Awards, and we aren’t too happy about the composition. While it is the web company’s prerogative on who should constitute the jury, we don’t think it’s a wise decision to have its own marketing head being part of the judging process. As per the names sent to MxMIndia, we found a mention of Nitin Mathur, Senior Director Marketing – India and South East Asia at Yahoo occupying pride of place, albeit at the end of the list.

     

    While we do not question the credibility of Mr Mathur, who is a seasoned marketing professional having worked with Yahoo since 2007 and earlier with Sapient, Times Internet, Indiainfo.com and Sahara India, the presence of the organiser which is also a media vehicle brings in questions of a possible bias creeping in. Potential winners of the Big Idea Chair award may also be advertisers of the Yahoo platform and therein lies the conflict.

     

    The Big Idea Chair is a coveted initiative from Yahoo that recognizes the power of creativity, innovation and imagination within the online advertising community, notes a communiqué. The awards, which were brought to India in 2005, would earlier be part of the Advertising Club’s Effies Awards. From 2010, they have been held independently.

     

    Other than Mr Mathur, the entries will be judged by a panel including well-known names from the world of advertising and marketing:

    > Aman Malhotra, Head Digital Marketing – Mobile Business, Samsung India Electronics Ltd

    > Archna Vyas, RM – Media and Corporate Communications, SEA, Reckitt Benckiser

    > Anita Varma, Director, Digital Driftwood Pvt. Ltd

    > Atit Mehta, Media Services Manager, Hindustan Unilever Limited

    > Karl Gomes, Chief Fanatic, Fanatics

    > Kartik Iyer, Co-founder & CEO, Happy Creative Services

    > Manu Jain, Co-founder and Managing Director, Jabong.com

    > Nikhil Rungta, Chief Business Officer, Yebhi.com

    > Praveen Gupta, Head – Digital Business, Tata Docomo

    > Ranajit Ghosh, Head of Media,PR , Digital operation and Brand Essenza Di Wills, ITC Personal Care

     

    The winners of the Yahoo Big Idea Chair Awards India will be announced sometime this month. For more information on Big Idea Chair, check www.bigideachair.in

     

     

  • Blackberry's Fall-Winter collection has unveiled a campaign across premium sites in malls, airports and other upmarket locations of Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Bengaluru

    Blackberry’s Fall/Winter collection goes aggressive on OOH

    By A Correspondent

     

    Blackberry’s Fall-Winter collection has unveiled a campaign across premium sites in malls, airports and other upmarket locations of Mumbai, Delhi, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Bengaluru.

     

    The campaign highlights the quality of clothing that Blackberry’s is known for and a mix of media including billboards, unipoles, mall facades and airport media has been used in the campaign.

     

    Talking about the campaign, Ajay Pradhan, National Marketing Manager for Blackberry’s, shared his feedback on the OOH campaign. “We wanted this to be a high impact campaign, one with not just maximum visibility but also one that would be long-term. A high-end clothing and fashion brand needs to capture the consumer’s attention constantly adding to its aspirational value. What better way to do this than splash hoardings in vibrant shopping locations in the metros?”

     

    One of the unique features of the campaign which will last until end-December 2013 is the use of the portrait unipoles at the Hyderabad International Airport.

     

  • M K Anand, Managing Director, Media Networks at Disney UTV has resigned. His last day at work is December 31. A restructuring of the entertainment major’s broadcast business is on and a replacement will be announced in a couple of days

    MK Anand quits Disney UTV, replacement to be announced soon

    M K Anand

    By A Corrrespondent

     

    M K Anand, Managing Director, Media Networks at Disney UTV is moving on.

     

    He has put in his papers, and his last date at Disney UTV is December 31, 2013. Although the entertainment-to-broadcast-to-gaming conglomerate has not confirmed the departure officially, a senior executive confirmed the development indicating that a new structure for the broadcast business is being worked out and then the name of the team leader will be announced.

     

    Mr Anand has worked with The Times of India group for 19 years, first with print for 14 years and later with the television business as VP for Zoom from 2004-09. The leapfrog to CEO of UTV Software saw him lead the broadcast business through the transition to Disney UTV.

     

    M K Anand’s destination is not known and he wasn’t reachable for comment.