MxMIndia

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  • The SMG and DCF is a platform for development of women, youth and all sections of society, says Delivering Change Foundation founder and chairman Abhijit Pawar

    Sakal says ‘Good Morning’ to change with power-packed forum

    By A Correspondent

     

    What’s a regional newspaper group doing conducting a two-day seminar called ‘Delivering Change Forum’ at Mumbai’s Nehru Centre? A lot of hot air, you think. Especially since it’s got Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis in attendance along with the top deck of his administration.

     

    Get ready for the tripe, you tell yourself. And then you see some pictures posted on Facebook by a few A&M land honchos, and you tell yourself that they must’ve been in attendance thanks to the missives from the affable CEO.

     

    So you give Day 1 a miss. The tweets are promising, but then that’s what one expects from the official handle of any event. Hence the first half of Day 2 is also missed, although the session themes are inviting.

     

    You finally do the trek to the venue, with the hope of meeting some old friends and consuming the yum batatavada and samosa at the canteen. Plus some diet cola to free yourself of some guilt. And scan the exhibits at the art gallery or the books published by the Centre which you always look up but never buy.

     

    Enter the large, well-airconed hall of Nehru Centre. The head of one of the country’s biggest design shops does a “hey”. Along with her two others from Pune. And she berates you for having missed the first day and a half. But then she’s a friend and well-wisher of the big boss. You discount some of the praise.

     

    You are then accosted by the marathon banker. You really missed it, he said. We move on. You really liked it, huh, we quizzed him. “Of course”. And he said how he had thought of just dropping by for the inauguration on Day 1 and since then has been riveted. “Couldn’t get up from the seat”. And you meet another adlander-cum-athlete who echoes the same. And yet another.

     

    You finally sit in for the first post-lunch session. Mobile in hand, checked into Whatsappto fighting away possible boredom. Cut to three hours later. Fourteen calls missed. Some more from bank and telco DSAs. Several messages unread. Although one did make a few exits, met the big boss, the namesake, and a few other friends, the sessions were indeed engaging, albeit on softer issues like design.

     

    So here’s a report based on the communique received from the Sakal Media Group on the event:

    “Sakal Media Group organised India’s first “Delivering Change Forum” (DCF) on January 24 and 25 in Mumbai.Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis inaugurated the conference co-organised by Sakal Media Group and DCF (the advisory arm of Sakal Media Group), in cooperation with the Maharashtra government and many institutions from across the globe. “This is the right time to implement new concepts leading to transformation in a country which has the largest youth population in the world. We have to strive hard so that these new emerging concepts reach policy makers and then are implemented,” Fadnavis said.

     

    DCF Founder and Chairman Abhijit Pawar elaborated on the concept of the conference. He said: “Connecting boardroom to grassroots is crucial for bringing about a desired change in society and Delivering Change Forum (DCF) aims at connecting the dots and converging efforts for this transformation”.He further added that ‘Maharashtra which has a large pool of youth and it needs to be channelised to bring about the desired transformation’.  Pawar urged participants to join hands in this work. “The SMG and DCF is a platform for development of women, youth and all sections of society,” he said.

     

    Added Pradeep Dwivedi, CEO, Sakal Media Group: “In today’s context, media has to transcend from being a passive informer and act as vital catalyst for larger change and progress in society. Hence, this conference was designed with enriching content and brought a world class line up of speakers discussing the key trends, innovations and concept proven models, all of which with one objective in mind: To help deliver positive change in society and lead more effectively in the current environment.”

     

    Commented Krishna Menon, CMO, Sakal Media Group: ‘Sakal is fulfilling its social commitment through initiatives such as Tanishka and YIN. As the social change is underway, developments in financial, educational and social sectors should reach all sections of society’.

     

    The event culminated in a dinner over discussions with Ratan Tata, Amitabh Bachchan, Fadnavis (and senior government officials), senior advertising professionals like Sam Balsara, amongst others.”

     

    Notes to oneself: Good Morning! (Sakal is morning in English). Send reminder request to Mr CEO for videos of the two-day proceedings. Pawar-err-Power-packed forum indeed.

     

  • The station's line-up of content includes original content produced in-house, content acquired from BIG FM in India

    Zee Middle East launches 106.2 BIG FM in the UAE

    By A Correspondent

     

    Zee Middle East announced the launch of its first radio station 106.2 Big FM in the UAE. This adds to the business portfolio of ATL for this region and makes it the only broadcaster in the South Asian space to have both television and FM stations. The station’s line-up of content includes original content produced in-house, content acquired from Big FM in India and cricket rights of key series for ball-by-ball commentary.

     

    Amit Goenka

    Speaking on the launch, Amit Goenka, CEO – International Broadcast Business, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL), said “We are proud of the addition of 106.2 Big FM into the ZEE and ATL family. We are sure that like all our Zee brands, 106.2 Big FM will also entertain listeners in the UAE. The product has been developed with a lot of attention to detail and I am sure it will be of immense interest to the advertising community.”

     

    With Big FM in Zee’s bag, the entertainment conglomerate scores as the strongest player in UAE’s South Asian entertainment field, notes a communique.

     

    On this occasion, Mukund Cairae, CEO – ZEE Network (MENA and APAC), said, “The launch of Big FM is another prized feather in our cap. A gem in our entertainment business portfolio that further cements our numerouno position among South Asians in the Middle East. With the combined strength of television and radio under our wings, we aim to soar higher and show better commitment to the region. Also with this synergy, we now provide vast audio-visual platforms to our advertising clients, hence creating new business opportunities.”

     

  • Time for Ad Club, AAAI and industry captains to arrive at a solution

    MxMIndia Comment: Sad. If Publicis Worldwide stays away from the Abby

     

    MxMIndia Comment

    By Pradyuman Maheshwari

     

    While every agency has the right to participate or stay away from the Abby, the Publicis Worldwide decision to not send entries for Abby 2017 is shocking. And sad.

    According to a report in The Economic Times on Tuesday, the new Publicis Communications CEO Saurabh Varma attributed the reason to a desire to focus more on the big large international shows.“Both Bobby and I are aligned on that decision,” Varma told ET. The reference being to Bobby Pawar, Managing Director and Chief Creative Officer, Publicis Worldwide.

    The decision is on expected lines given Varma’s stated belief that Leo Burnett will not participate in the Abby. In fact since Varma took charge in November 2013. Leo Burnett hasn’t participated in the Abby since the 2014 edition.

    While it’s clear that Varma and Leo Burnett and Publicis Communications (the holding company of PublicisGroupe creative and PR agencies of which he was appointed CEO in December 2016) do not have problems with the Advertising Club, since Leo Burnett has been participating in the Effies conducted by the Ad Club, the decision to stay away from the Abby is worrying.

    Let’s steer clear of the possible embarrassment it has caused to Nakul Chopra, longstanding CEO Publicis Worldwide who is also President of the Advertising Agencies Association of India, the apex body of advertising agencies in the country. That’s something Messrs Varma, Chopra and Pawar need to discuss internally.

    Our bigger worry is that yet another key player in the Indian advertising is going to stay away from participating in the Abby awards. The Mullen Lowe Lintas Group, Ogilvy and Leo Burnett have already been sitting out. There are also some small agencies like Creativeland Asia who have had issues with the Abby. McCann Worldgroup chose to return last year, albeit with a token participation. This year, hopefully, it will return with more entries.

    As mentioned earlier, it’s not that the biggies have any problems with the Ad Club. They participate in the Effie with much enthusiasm.

    But the boycott of the Abby doesn’t speak too well for the industry and the Abby award. Agency bosses say that the non-participation isn’t a dampner for their creative teams.

    It must be added here that the decision to stay away from award holds true for Kyoorius Advertising Awards too for Lowe and Leo. Ogilvy does participate and win big at Kyoorius.

    It’s critical the Advertising Club and Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) and industry honchos get together and find a solution to the problem.

    Over the years, the processes of the Abby Awards have been streamlined and cleansed.

    We have heard murmurs that entry fees to these awards are a stretch on agency budgets. Perhaps. There are suggestions that it should be more of clients and not just agencies who should be on the jury. There are also some who say one of the reason why some don’t participate is because they haven’t done enough good work.

    It’s important that the industry works jointly to save an awards event that is its own.

     

  • The recent movie promotion faux pas should act as a wakeup call to reach out to the PR industry or PRCAI, writes Siddhartha Mukherjee

    Siddhartha Mukherjee: Bollywood should use ‘kaabil’ PR machinery

    By Siddhartha Mukherjee

     

    The recent faux pas at Vadodara Railway Station pertaining to a King Khan movie promotion stunt suggested, yet again that Bollywood should move out of the clutches of unprofessional, archaic, spin doctor PR Firms. It is time they start involving established and ‘kaabil’PR Consultancies and Event Management firms.  With Bollywood movie financing getting gradually corporatised, it is time that its marketing and related support systems also follow compliances andstructures.

     

    From a per brand investment point of view, the marketing spends of each Bollywood movie property is same, if not more, as what we see within FMCG or other high spending categories. So, why can’t the custodians of Bollywood move out of the dark habits of spin doctor agencies and partner with established consultancies and event managers who handle far more complicated subjects within the corporate world?

     

    By doing so, Bollywood will get a healthy exposure to the fact that the stakes involved in Earned or Free Media (public relations)is far, far higher than that involved with the Paid side.Also, if managed well, ROIs will be in multiples.

     

    While the corporate sector has come a long way in understanding the specialised need of domain experts and executioners, unfortunately, our Bollywood industry still continues to follow archaic, unprofessional spin doctor techniques to ideate and execute brand building through PR. Sad that the SOPs followed by the Bollywood PR industry is still negatively impacting the overall imagery of the public relations profession in India.

     

    Here are some simple thoughts Bollywood can consider:

    • Realisethat Brand Building is a specialisedmix of Art & Science –Bollywood movie brands, like any other corporate brand, will need the same seriousness, intellect and planning skills. Very high domain understanding is needed to understand the impact of the brand across the stakeholders. Psychology, Sociology, Economics and Marketing Study will only help in proactively identifying gaps and opportunities. Tacky news spins and stunts to get Page 3 or Supplement media attention is only pushing Bollywood PR back to the yellow days of yester years. 
    • Movies too needs Stakeholder Management–In today’s age, movie viewers is not the only core target audience that needs to be studied and managed. Government, Social Experts, Academia, Distributors, Government offices, Media and many other such corridors need parallel and equal attention. 
    • Execution of Launch & Sustenance Plan needs Meticulous Planning– Ideation of plan is one critical start. However, execution of that is equally touchy and carries huge potential to attract crisis. Depending on unprofessional and myopic spin doctor agencies ensures the crisis to be high! 
    • Bollywood can consider talking to PRCAI or Individual PR Consultancies for guidance – In almost every Bollywood movie showcase, in the casting section, you will notice that the production banner has hired some of the top, most expensive paid media agencies to work on the movie’spaid media launch initiatives. However, when it comes to the PR or Event Management agency partner, you will, in all probability, need to Google its whereabouts. To avoid this permanently, the movie producers or the guild/s should, at least for once, try to get an orientation from the PR Industry. PRCAI, even better option. It will be a win-win for both.

     

    For the organised Indian PR industry, Bollywood is a huge opportunity. The organised Indian advertising  industry has already captured the pie of the Bollywood’s overall marketing spends.

     

    The recent movie promotion faux pas should act as a wakeup call to reach out to Bollywood and not only look at it as a business opportunity but also to save Bollywood from future crises.

     

  • The award was presented at the IAMAI's India Digital Awards held in Delhi on Thursday

    Interactive Avenues is IAMAI Best Digital Agency for 4th time

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) has named IPG Mediabrands’ full-service digital agency, Interactive Avenues (IA) as the Best Digital Agency of the Year for the fourth time in a row. The 7th edition of IAMAI’s India Digital Awards was part of the 11th India Digital Summit held in New Delhi.

     

    At the 2017, India Digital Awards, Interactive Avenues won 4 Gold (including the Best Digital Agency of the Year), one Silver and two Bronze trophies. The agency picked the Gold awards for Reckitt Benckiser’s Display Campaign, Johnson & Johnson’s Search Marketing Campaign and American Express Email Marketing Campaign. It picked the Silver award for Coca-Cola India’s Social Media Marketing Campaign. The agency grabbed the two Bronze awards for Samsonite Most Innovative Use of Content and Jockey’s Search Campaigns.

     

    “Last year when we picked up this trophy for the third time, it seemed liked a momentous occasion in our journey as an agency. But winning this award for the fourth time is really gratifying and reinforces our belief in the kind of work we are doing and the value we are adding to our client’s business”, said, Amardeep Singh, CEO, Interactive Avenues, adding: “IPG Mediabrands’ commitment in bringing in the most cutting edge tools and techniques to India has made Interactive Avenues the most future ready digital agency in the country We have India’s largest end-to-end social management infrastructure & teams, the most advanced data analytics and programmatic platforms and listening centres and several proprietary research tools.”

     

     

  • Spends on Digital Media to reach 24% of adspend pie in three years, notes Dentsu Aegis Network Digital Report

    Digital ad ind to grow 37% by 2020:DAN

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    Had its media partner have its way, this report wouldn’t have appeared on MxMIndia today. Hmmm. Why restrain media organisations or associations from calling other publications which you perceive as competition? Shouldn’t the focus be on partnering the industry and spreading the message for the larger good? One can understand events that are your own (like the various awards and conclaves), but bullying media companies into not inviting select media is not on.

     

    However, our commitment is to our readers, and we are hence bringing you this report which was shared with us eventually.

    Here goes parts of the communique. The big story image is culled from the report, a soft copy that is with us. The primary message: The share of spends on digital media in India, which currently stand at 12%, is expected to reach a whopping 24% of the total advertising pie by the end of 2020,says the inaugural edition of the Digital Advertising Report 2017 from the Dentsu Aegis Network India stable.

     

    Digital media has been the forerunner of growth for the advertising industry in India.Every year, an increasing proportion of marketing budget is spent on digital media due to the increasing affinity of the consumer towards digital experience.

     

    Said Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO, Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia: “The digital ecosystem in India today stands for innovation and growth. Yet, there is no consistent and rigorous research data to back up and push this growth forward. Not to forget, the several researches that are provided to us today through a variety of industry reports do not talk about the advertising categories within digital. Consequently, Dentsu Aegis Network, which today stands at the forefront of digital evolution, decided to come up with an extensive and comprehensive digital study that can further help understand the needs, the gaps and the challenges that this industry faces when it comes to digital. We recognise that there is a need for an industry level research report which not only covers the market size but also gives a direction towards which this industry is moving.  It will be an annual report and I strongly believe that it will eventually become the most credible source of information when it comes to digital in India.”

     

    The digital advertising industry currently stands at Rs 6, 825 crore and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 37% to reach Rs 23,795 crore by 2020. Increase in consumer adoption of mobile phones as an important medium of communication along within creased Internet usage will act as the key catalysts in taking this growth forward, spurred by falling data prices.

     

    According to the executive summary, the “Indian advertising industry currently stands at Rs 56,398 crore and is expected to grow at a rate of 14% to reach Rs 64,488crore by 2017”. The exec summary further adds: “TV and print contribute to the largest share while digital advertising contributes to 12% of the overall advertising share in India. Among industry verticals, the e-commerce sector contributes the highest proportion (25%) of its overall marketing budget towards digital media. The share of spends on digital media is expected to reach 24% by 2020 from the current 12%. The reason behind this growth will be a shift from traditional mediums to digital mediums due to greater effectivity and benefits of hyper-targeting. The digital advertising industry currently stands at Rs 6,825 cr and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 37% to reach Rs 23,795 due to an increase in consumer adoption of mobile phones as an important medium of communication along with increased internet usage.”

     

  • The new BoosterJet Engine delivers exceptional power and torque with lower emissions

    Maruti’s new engine roars in new ad

    By A Correspondent

     

    Hakuhodo Percept has released a new campaign for Maruti Suzuki’s latest technological marvel – The BoosterJet Engine, that will power the Baleno RS, through NEXA, its modern retail channel.

     

    According toSabujSengupta, NCD, Hakuhodo Percept, the objective of the campaign was to “build excitement around the BoosterJet Engine”. “In the typical NEXA fashion, we’ve brought alive the raw power of the engine in the TVC through a visual design, executed in a very stylish and adrenaline-pumping way,” he said.

     

    Commenting on the campaign, Vinay Pant, AVP Marketing, Maruti Suzuki, said: “The BoosterJet Engine in the new Baleno RS is for those who look for extra speed in their everyday drive. The car is the first in a line of high-performance vehicles to be launched through NEXA. The campaign will no doubt generate a lot of interest amongst speed enthusiasts.”

     

  • The two will collaborate to create audience segmentation and targeting that should boost Hotstar as an advertising medium

    Hotstar buys minority stake in Zapr. Will it kill independence of analytics firm?

    By A Correspondent

     

    Leading OTT platform from the Star India stable Hotstar and Zapr Media Labs, a Bengaluru-based media tech company, have announced a strategic partnership to drive the next wave of mobile audience analytics in India. This includes a minority stake that Star India will pick up in Zapr, a digital analytics firm set up by three IIM passouts in 2012. IIM Ahmedabad, not a newbie outpost. The two companies will work together to create a deep understanding of mobile audiences that can be leveraged by brands to create personalised communication and offers, notes a communique. However, we feel that it’s a kind of a self-goal as by selling stake to a broadcast/digital major, it loses its independence. For instance, will you really trust the data that is put out by a player which is trying to attract revenues?

     

    Ajit Mohan

    Now let’s hear what the Ajit Mohan, CEO, Hotstar said in a commmunique: “In the transition from the broadcast world to the digital world, advertisers got a data bonanza but in the process had to give up the ability to engage consumers who are actually paying attention to what they are saying. Hotstar has the opportunity to build the world’s first platform on digital where consumers are engaged and immersed while at the same time delivering deep audience understanding that allows brands to talk to individuals rather than segments. We believe that we have a shot at creating the world’s premier truly personalized advertising service, which benefits both brands and consumers.”

     

    Added Sandipan Mondal, Co-founder and CEO, Zapr Media Labs:“We are excited to partner with Hotstar and Star on our journey to build a world-class media-tech company out of India. Over the past few years, Zapr has grown into one of the world’s largest media consumption repositories and audience cross-targeting platforms and this partnership further reinforces the incredible response we have received from our partners across brands, agencies and broadcasters. We look forward to accelerating the pace of our research and development, growing our product portfolio and building a deeper and long lasting relationship with the larger media and advertising industry.”

     

  • While Iyer will be Chairman & CCO, Raj Gupta has been appointed CEO

    MullenLoweLintas Group elevates Arun Iyer & Raj Gupta

    By A Correspondent

     

    The MullenLoweLintas Group has announced a new leadership structure for its flagship agency Lowe Lintas. Arun Iyer, Chief Creative Officer, Lowe Lintas will operate as Chairman & Chief Creative Officer of the agency. Partnering him will be Lintas veteran Raj Gupta, currently President and Mumbai office Head, Lowe Lintas who will operate as CEO of the agency. Both these appointments, a communique noted, were to be effective from April 1, 2017.

     

    Commenting on the elevations, Joseph George (Joe), Group Chairman & CEO, MullenLoweLintas Group said: “Given Lowe Lintas’ consistent brilliant performance over the past four-five years, I feel the time is just right to leverage on this momentum and shift gears. But to do so, we need a dedicated and fully empowered leadership. I have worked long and closely with both – individually and as a team; and I can without a shred of doubt say that Arun and Raj are best placed in experience, expertise and energy to fulfil Lowe Lintas’ business, effectiveness and creative ambitions going forward.”

     

    MullenLoweLintas Group (MLLG) in India is group of 8 agencies. These include two creative agencies – Lowe Lintas and Mullen Lintas and another six agencies offering PR, Digital, Activation, Design, Consulting and Video Content respectively.

     

    Arun Iyer

    It may be recalled that when Mullen Lintas was launched in mid-2015, Amer Jaleel and ViratTandon were handpicked from within the company to lead Mullen Lintas as Chairman & CCO and CEO respectively. Said George: “Arun Iyer and Raj Gupta at Lowe Lintas and Amer Jaleel and Virat Tandon at Mullen Lintas. All four top-draw talent and all four homegrown leaders. I could not be any happier and proud about this institution called Lintas.”

     

    Said Iyer on the elevation: “Over the last few years, we have really worked hard to build our reputation as India’s most effective agency on the back of breakthrough creative solutions. Nothing gives us more joy than our brands succeeding in the market. It is with this intent that we are getting ready for the future and the plan is to ensure we have the most contemporary hyper-bundled offering in the industry. This is a huge responsibility, but we are both excited and clear on what we need to be doing going forward.”

     

    Raj Gupta

    Commenting on his appointment, Gupta said: “This new role is both a privilege and a huge opportunity. Privilege for obvious reasons, but opportunity, because Lowe Lintas is probably at its best in almost a decade, thereby allowing us to re-purpose ourselves for the future with our confidence and self-belief at its peak. Great brands have a purpose that never stops unfolding and with our determination to make Lowe Lintas truly hyper-bundled, we will now have so many more ways to tell our brand stories.”

     

  • Meanwhile, Times Now scraps Magicbricks Now, unveils Mirror Now

    NewsWar2017 Round#1: ‘David’ Arnab Goswami takes on ‘Goliath’ Times Now, Newshour-ishtyle!

     

    By A Correspondent

    It was mixed set of emotions for the folks at the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry. Ballroom 1 and 2 at the venue of the 18th edition of FICCI-Frames was packed to the aisles. There was some place to stand, but just about. As almost everyone gravitated towards this hall, the other venues weren’t as packed at sessions being held simultaneously or immediately after this one.

    Around four months after having exited primetime news on television in the country, ArnabGoswami is still a star. And as much of a crowdpuller as a Bollywood or sports biggie.

    And on Wednesday noon, Goswami thundered. Like he’s known for. Theatrics that the nation loves him for. Except this time around, he appeared to have a lot more people rooting for him. For, Goswami has turned entrepreneur.

    In a country which loves to champion the underdog, see a chaiwallah turn into Prime Minister, a modest investor outpace some of the biggest, the media and entertainment fraternity in attendance were happy to see Goswami evangelising his craft.

    Interestingly, it was also the day, when Goswami’s former employer, fired its first salvo in its #AttackArnab offensive. The hashtagging is our doing, in Newshour-ishtyle. So Magicbricks Now which seemed to be going nowhere in revenues and ratings, has been dumped and rechristened Metro Now. For a while, the real estate channel has been been airing metro-centric news, and talking heads-led nightly debates.

    So let’s get back to what Goswami said, around a month before unveiling his all-new news channel-led platform: Republic. By hiring former armyman Major Gaurav Arya, he has clearly indicated that he will continue his ‘My heart bleeds for India’ offensive every evening.

    Speaking at the FICCI-Frames 2017, Arnab thundered: “Those who will understand the hidden script – because I don’t mince my words- will understand what I am saying today: This is a David Vs Goliath fight,” he said. And then paused and smiled at the audience before continuing.

    “And I stand here before you proudly to say Goliath has tried to crush me and already failed. Because you can’t crush a thought. David thought on his feet, Goliath did not. David had the speed and David out-thought Goliath. I want to tell Goliath today: Come, out-think me, if you can,” he added.

    “I have with me a bunch of Davids. Davids have emerged on their own. And they want to shackle the Davids. Because a bunch of Davids free is a threat to the Goliath. Our bunch of Davids will make old monopolies fall once again, as they have in the past,” he declared.

    “Republic will ensure that new ones will come and these new ones – these new guys will be the ones that show the world from right here in India that Content is King, not Money. Money will fail and people will watch the screens that they believe in and not the screens that sell to them,” he pledged and promised that “putting the focus back on each one of you is my only determination.”

    And then he asked: “Which side would you be on? With David or with Goliath?”

    It may be argued that the editor-anchor-and-now-entrepreneur could well be talking about Goliaths like the AroonPuriemanaged-owned India Today and MukeshAmbani/Reliance Industry-run CNN-IBN, but it’s evident that his angst is against Times Network. The Times of India group-owned television network is of course known to be fierce in the battlefield especially when it thinks a newbie could be an aggressor. It did that when the Ambanis launched a business paper to take on The Economic Times in 1990. In 2005, when Hindustan Times and DNA were getting set to enter its bastion Mumbai, it launched Mumbai Mirror and got very aggressive in its offers to advertisers. And now as stiff competition comes in from the man who built it, Times Network under the leadership of an old Times group warhorse MK Anand, has unveiled a manifold offensive.

    First, ensure that the attrition is under check. Some elevations have happened. Some more have been motivated to stay back.

    Second, get the content plan in order. Anand is reportedly active on the editorial front too, and is marked on key newsroom decisions and stories, a move that upset some

    Third, launching a ‘flanking product’. Hence Mirror Now

    Fourth, Times Now to also go into HD (which is to be announced soon)

    And fifth: fight Republic on the street… Revenues, Ratings, Regulators, MIB, ASCI… wherever necessary.

    When Goswami popped the ‘David v/s Goliath’ question, there was applause. Taaliyaan! He also took on the Delhi-centric channels saying that the national media is “content in Lutyens Delhi that you stop fighting for the people of the country”.

    Citing the example of the Kansas City killing of 32-year-old Srinivas Kuchibotla, he said: “The satiated Lutyens media was content in labelling it as quote unquote ‘hate crime’. And I ask you today: isn’t there a dent needed in the Indian media to shake it up…to fight for families like that of Kuchibotla. How can you be so satiated in Lutyens Delhi?”

    After taking on his seniors (and the mighty) in the capital, he moved on to talks about his style of journalism. “The focus is on India and the focus is on English but English done the Indian way. When I started off as a journalist…they said i should take pauses at the right places…..I won’t speak in the polished way..I will speak English the Indian way…I want to speak in the language that the 25-year-old in the Indian newsroom relates to”, he said. Regular watchers of his shows recall how he would often break into an ‘Arre Baba’ while speaking to guests. Defending his brand of journalism, which is in every possible way is being pursued by the existing dispensation at Times Now, he said: “..They’ll tell you facts are sacred and opinion is free. I say facts are available and opinion is sacred. Opinion in the media is especially sacred because it is a differentiator between a journalism that is confrontational and a journalism that is happy to be docile and subdued. Opinion in the media is especially sacred because it is a differentiator between a journalism that choses to takes the right side of the truth and one that prefers to be falsely neutral in order to perpetuate the status-quo… opinionated media that has the potential to be activist. It is opinionated media that has the potential to be a change agent to being merely a supplier of information. I refuse to be simply a supplier of information,” Arnab said, throwing the gauntlet again down- this time at the old traditional definition of journalism.

    We haven’t heard the last from Arnab Goswami’s Republic and Times Network’s MK Anand. Both are known to fight hard, and both are known to be happy losers. But who is?

     

  • McCann India bagged a Grande for its entry Dead Hours by Nescafe in the Promo Lotus category

    McCann wins big at Adfest, bags sole Grande for Nescafe

    By A Correspondent

     

    McCann Worldgroup India dominates Adfest 2017 with a Grande Lotus, two golds, one silver and four bronze at the Adfest 2017 Awards held in Pattaya Thailand. McCann is the only agency from India to win a Grande in 2017.

     

    Adfest announced the winners for all the categories and McCann India bagged a Grande for its entry Dead Hours by Nescafe in the Promo Lotus category, the same campaign won a Gold in Radio and Silver in Direct Lotus category. The campaign for Dettol titled Germbursters won a Gold in the Media category.

     

    The Dancing Letters campaign done for Maharashtra Dyslexia Association won a Bronze in Design Lotus category and Pet Adoption campaign titled Cat, Dog & Rabbit for World for All won two bronze in Outdoor and Press Lotus. The campaign titled Paresh for Ixigo won a bronze in the radio category.

     

    Commenting on the win, Prasoon Joshi CEO and Chief Creative Officer McCann India said: “We at McCann have a worldwide culture of great creative work and we are really proud of the work we have done on Dettol and Nescafe. This was only possible because of great team work and the trust our client partners have in us.”

     

  • The acquisition marks the network’s expansion in South Asia and entry into the Sri Lankan market with the largest independent agency

    Dentsu Aegis Network ​enters Sri Lanka, to acquire Grant

    By A Correspondent

     

    Neela Marikkar and Ashish Bhasin

    Dentsu Aegis Network today announce​d​ it has signed a definitive agreement to acquire Grant Group, the largest independent creative agency and ​regarded as pioneer of advertising in Sri Lanka. The acquisition of the 59-year-old integrated agency is Dentsu Aegis Network’s first foray into the island nation and one of the largest agency groups to enter the market in nearly two decades.

     

    ​Said ​Nick Waters, CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network APAC: ​“With social and economic stability in the country, Sri Lanka is set to reap the peace dividend. Significant foreign investment is already flowing into the country, and with strong historical ties to Japan, there is a natural opportunity for Dentsu Aegis Network clients to grow. Grant represents a unique opportunity as a top quality advertising and communications group to get into a strong position in a fast-growing market.”

     

    Post-acquisition, Grant Advertising will be known as Dentsu Grant while Grant Media will join Dentsu Aegis’ global media network brand, Carat. Other global agency brands within the network will integrate with their strong local agency counterparts to grow the business further adding value to their clients and their staff. ​Said ​Ashish Bhasin, Chairman and CEO of Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia​: “​The acquisition of Grant Group is a key step in the Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia strategy and will launch our business in a market with significant potential. Through the Grant Group, we have a unique opportunity to enter the market with a bang and will be amongst the largest integrated groups in the country.”
    Steering the Sri Lankan leadership team is Neela Marikkar, Chairperson and Managing Director of the Dentsu Aegis Network Grant Group. She will report to Bhasin​.​

     

    ​Added Marikkar: “Given our long heritage in this market continuously staying ahead of the game, Dentsu Aegis Network’s cultural fit and best-in-class operating model are the right facets of a multinational partner to take our group and most importantly our clients and staff into a very dynamic future. More importantly given the growth in the market and the push towards digital, we need a strongly aligned and committed multinational partner with digital at its heart as brands grapple with the challenges of a changing media landscape. We are very excited to be able to tap on the network’s resources and work with the 38,000 great people at Dentsu Aegis Network. We are beginning a new chapter in the wonderful story of the Grant Group.” The deal is expected to close this week.