MxMIndia

Tag: Hungama Digital Media Entertainment

  • Minister Aaditya Thackeray was chief guest

    IAA presents Olive Crown Awards

    By Our Staff

     

    The India Chapter of the International Advertising Association (IAA) hosted the 11th edition of the Olive Crown Awards 2021, last Friday in Mumbai. The

     

    Selecting the awards was a a jury comprising Bobby Pawar, Chairman & Chief Creative Officer, Havas India; Josy Paul, Chairman & Chief Creative Officer, BBDO India; Tista Sen, Regional Creative Director, Wunderman Thompson South Asia; Carlton D’silva, Co-founder, House of Awe and Kaushik Roy, Advisor, Reliance Industries Ltd.

     

    The awards were presented across 20 different categories, including the coveted title ‘Green Crusader of the Year’ award, which was presented to Aaditya Thackeray, Minister of Environment, Tourism and Protocol, Maharashtra government and the chief guest at the event for his efforts to save the Aarey Forest in Mumbai.

     

    Said Megha Tata, President, International Advertising Association (IAA) – India Chapter and Managing Director – South Asia, Discovery Communications India: “In the last 11 years of Olive Crown we have seen campaigns and brands go from doing ‘something green’ to being vested in sustainability and we are glad that this is a platform to showcase work that can inspire.  One of the things 2020 taught us is that the Nature loved our lockdown! But we need to find this balance and co-exist every single day! And some of the campaigns we have seen this year, have presented this balance beautifully”.

     

    Added Neeraj Roy, Chairperson IAA Olive Crown Awards and Founder & CEO, Hungama Digital Media Entertainment:  “Over the next two decades, your entire customer base and your teams  – the talent you are hoping to attract will largely be millennials and Gen Z and we know that they rate a brand’s ethics and sustainability higher than ever before so it will be impossible and impractical to ignore these trends. Brands, media, advertisers, agencies and marketers, essentially the core of the IAA community, have always played a key role in communication for centuries and it is encouraging to note that brands here in India too are taking note and actions toward sustainability and a greener planet in their product offerings.”

     

    Heartbeat Creative Lab, Taiwan bagge four Gold & two Silver followed by Ogilvy with six Silvers at the Olive Crown Awards 2021. The ‘Green Campaign of the Year’- Gold was presented to Bhamla Foundation for their ‘Dhak Dhak Dharti’ campaign while IIFL Home Finance Ltd took away the ‘Green Brand of the Year’-Gold.

     

  • Association to offer a new avenue for young collegians to showcase their talent

    Artist Aloud partners with ATKT.in to promote original content

    By A Correspondent

     

    Artist Aloud, a platform by Hungama that supports and promotes independent music, announced its partnership with ATKT.in–adigital platform that seeks to promote original content created by college students. Through this strategic partnership, Artist Aloud will encourage young talent and enable them to reach a larger audience, further strengthening its position as the leading platform for independent content.

     

    Talking about the new partnership with ATKT.in, Soumini Sridhara Paul, Vice President, Artist Aloud, Hungama Digital Media Entertainment said: “As the leading platform for independent talent, we intend to offer artistes across categories an opportunity to reach a larger audience. The association will allow us to accumulate independent and original content at a collegian level and provide the content creators with opportunities and recognition they deserve. At the same time, we will also be able to offer our audience a wide variety of original content that they are unlikely to discover on any other platform.”

     

    Added Saurabh Kanwar, Co-founder, ATKT.in: “ATKT is kicked to bring our legion of campus creators even more opportunities to grow and thrive through Hungama’s platforms. Artist Aloud’s plans to reach out to colleges through ATKT is a validation of the quality and extent of the campus community we have built, and its growing importance in building rich, entertaining original content. With the college festival season getting underway, we are gearing up to a whole new crop of budding artists to showcase to the world, and this partnership will definitely provide another great outlet for these singers, dancers, writers, poets and artists.”

     

     

  • The event was organised by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI)

    ‘Pixels 2017’ discusses role of video for the future

    By A Correspondent

     

    Pixels 2017, a day-long conference on digital entertainment, brought to the fore the importance of video and how it will change the way people will consume entertainment in the years to come. Delivering the inaugural address, Neeraj Roy, MD & CEO, Hungama Digital Media Entertainment, said that in the next four-five years, there would be at least five million active users of video driven services.

     

    Stressing on the importance of this industry, Roy said: “The entire aspect of digital media, video, and the connotation of content is going to be a tremendously significant component as the amalgam of digital India falls in place. The kind of audiences, the kind of communities and the way the industry is progressing, it is going to be the next real estate, leading into mobile payments, leading into e-commerce and the overall growth of the sector.” He further said that “traditional story tellers are more relevant now than ever, and imagination is a key for entertainment.” The event was organised by the Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI).

     

    Speaking at a panel discussion on ‘Digital Entertainment through a crystal ball’, Kuek Yu-Chuang, Managing Director, APAC, Netflix stated that digital entertainment delivered through internet will have a global taste coming together. He also added that there should be appropriate content for appropriate audiences and advocated parental control, piracy control. According to Chaung, a relationship of trust needs to be maintained between the businessmen and the consumers. In this regard, he cited an example saying that he would not want the consumers of Netflix to be hesitant to provide their credit card details for subscription.

     

    Meanwhile, Vishal Maheshwari, Country Head – India, Vuclip India, said there should be more innovation on advertising product and the use of right metrics of measurement. Panellists agreed to the point that reinvention is highly required and businesses should analyse and understand what consumers want to pay for.

     

    According to Ajit Mohan of Hotstar, there will be more screens of consumption rather than just mobile and televisions. He said that the range of content will be wider and more segmented and the consumption would be so high that it will break the traditional stereotypes. Technology will be more consequential.

     

    Panellists were also of the opinion that there are unique digital opportunities in India in terms of online video. Content delivery will be smarter in the future, however, the target should be to move from subscription base to paid models. That is the only way forward for the industry.

     

    On the contentious issue of piracy, the panellists said that digital content is vulnerable and there can be laws to control piracy. It cannot be stopped, which is a given. The US and UK have laws, while India doesn’t. By the next year, digital content will go way higher than any linear media and therefore, it is important to bring about control of piracy sites in India.

     

    Anand Tiwari, Actor & Founder, Still and Still Media Collective in a conversation with Nikhil Taneja, Head-Development of Y-Films, Yash Raj Films, said that content creation is easy going but the delivery and execution is the most difficult part.

     

  • 25+ CEOs from India’s leading media houses, agencies and marketers set to visit Israel as part of the delegation

    IAA India Chapter announces its tech tour of Israel

    By A Correspondent

     

    The India chapter of the International Advertising Association (IAA) is set to host the IAA CEOs Tour to Israel, with an aim to engage with leading Israeli startups in the field of Technology and Media. The Indian delegation will be led by Neeraj Roy, President of IAA’s India Chapter and Founder & MD, Hungama Digital Media Entertainment and will be co-chaired by Abhishek Karnani, Managing Committee Member – IAA and Director, The Free Press Journal.

     

    The Indian CEOs will interact with top CEOs and CXOs from over 50 Israeli startups and learn and experience the disruption they are causing in the market they operate in. The delegation will also be a part of an India-Israel MediaTECH Summit whilst in Tel Aviv

     

    Neeraj Roy

    Speaking about the tour, Neeraj Roy, President of IAA India Chapter and Founder & CEO, Hungama Digital Media Entertainment said, “As an entrepreneur it gives me immense pleasure to see startups grow, succeed and drive some of the biggest innovations in the world. IAA is keen to lead the agenda to create a stronger bond between Indian and Israeli business leaders. The idea exchanges are sure to lead to the creation of opportunities that will help us grow collectively.”

     

  • The funding is focused on growing its premium movie and TV, OTT service, Hungama Play; including addition of 1500 hours of TV content and original programming

    Hungama raises $25mn in funding round led by Xiaomi

    By A Correspondent

     

    Digital media entertainment company Hungama, has raised an investment of US$25mn, led by leading smartphone company Xiaomi, along with existing investors Intel Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners and ace financial investor and Indian billionaire, Rakesh Jhunjhunwala.

     

    With this round of funding, Hungama will expand the content library and further invest in world class technology on its mobile app platforms Hungama Music for music and Hungama Play for premium video including movies, television and original series. Hungama will soon add over 1500 hours of television content along with original content to its current Hungama Play offering of over 8000 movies in English and 12 Indian languages

     

    Speaking about the funding round, Neeraj Roy, Founder & CEO – Hungama Digital Media Entertainment said: “India is adding 8 MN new consumers to the Internet each month with 90% of digital consumption being driven by mobile. Young Indians love their music and movies and the mobile will be the most used screen for this generation. Content will drive the next phase of Digital India and we are delighted to partner with Xiaomi as we prepare to bring premium and original digital entertainment to a 100 million Indians before the end of this year.”

     

    Hugo Barra, Vice President, Xiaomi said: “We think of smartphones as a platform for us to deliver Internet services, and this includes content. We are investing in Hungama not only to start integrating content into our smartphones, but also to grow together with them and deepen our understanding of the content sector in India. We have carefully selected Hungama because of what they are doing in terms of aggregating large amounts of content and delivering an amazing user experience.”

     

    Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, Chairman, Hungama Digital Media Entertainment said: “I have been invested into Hungama for several years and participated in this new capital raise as I believe they have built an unique leadership position with the most compelling music and movie OTT service for South Asians globally that is ripe for growth as India will embrace broadband and 4G. We welcome Xiaomi as one of our partners.”

     

    Vishal Gupta, Managing Director, Bessemer Venture Partners, said “We are excited about the leadership position that Hungama has built as being the one stop OTT platform across music, videos and movies. We are delighted to have Xiaomi as our partners and will accelerate our growth and leadership.”

     

    Citi acted as exclusive financial advisor to Hungama on this transaction.

     

  • Hungama's musical CSR activity aims to hit the right notes

    Hungama partners with Kyoorius Designyatra 2015 for charitable cause

    By A Correspondent

     

    Hungama partners with Kyoorius Designyatra 2015 to raise awareness for a social cause while adding a musical note to the 10th anniversary of KDY. Hungama and Kyoorius Designyatra 2015 will create one of the biggest live-request playlists to raise the funds via a Twitter activity. By tweeting #HungamaKDY2015 and the name of the song, it will be played at the event. While the activity will contribute INR 100 per song streamed at the event it will also allow participants to actively contribute in the process to raise donations.

     

    With an interesting theme like ‘What pumps your heart’ Kyoorius Designyatra’s 10th anniversary edition aims to engage participants and guests alike during the event with a live music request Twitter activity in association with Hungama. The activity will be a means to raise funds for ‘Laadli’, a campaign that highlights the falling sex ratio of the country and their endeavors to correct the issue by making available relevant data, audits of documents received from Sonography clinics among other activities; of which the end goal is to stabilize the sex ratio difference.

     

    Neeraj Roy

    Speaking on the occasion, Neeraj Roy, MD & CEO of Hungama Digital Media Entertainment said, “It gives us immense pleasure to partner with Kyoorius Deisgnyatra 2015 to help raise charity and awareness for the social cause campaign ‘Laadli’. The campaign that aims to control female feticide has helped shed much light on the topic. With this association we are proud to leverage our platforms for this noble cause.”

     

    Rajesh Kejriwal

    Rajesh Kejriwal, Founder CEO of Kyoorius said, “We are happy to have Hungama partnering with us at Kyoorius Designyatra 2015. Music is an essential part of the conference experience, it’s one of the things that gets delegates really ‘pumped’, so I’m sure Hungama’s Digital Jukebox will be a huge hit. And it’s for a great cause, which makes it all the more impactful.”

     

  • #50MillionKaHungama is the result of aggressive catalog additions and feature roll-outs by the digital brand

    Hungama.com crosses 50mn+ monthly active users

    By A Correspondent

     

    Hungama.com has achieved a new milestone in the Indian digital entertainment space by becoming the first company to cross 50 million monthly active users across its entertainment service. This milestone places Hungama among the top 5 music and video streaming services globally, including platforms like Pandora and Spotify.

     

    Over 250 million consumers accessed Hungama’s services over the last year, during which the platform registered 200% growth in monthly active users.

     

    Over the past 12 months, Hungama has introduced several first features as well as several key catalog additions to create an unmatched consumer experience. The fast pace of growth in mobile data adoption among consumers across the board has provided a platform for Hungama to tap into the market with its mobile-apps, leading to massive penetration in both metros, urban, semi urban and even rural India.

     

    Anticipating the market opportunity in semi urban and rural India, Hungama rolled out multi-lingual support in its Android app in October 2014. It was the first music led mobile app globally to be available in more than 5 languages when it was launched with support for Hindi, Tamil, Telugu and Punjabi, along with English.

     

    In July 2014, Hungama also introduced its PRO service for Android and iOS devices. The service featured integrated video and audio downloading for the first time in a single app, along with a caching feature for music that allowed users to save their music and video which can be played without internet connection anywhere, anytime in turn saving data cost.

     

    Neeraj Roy

    Speaking on Hungama’s achievement, Neeraj Roy, MD & CEO of Hungama Digital Media Entertainment said, “We are glad to be the music & video service of choice for over 50 million South- Asians across the world. The milestone is the result of initiatives that we at Hungama began undertaking about 15 months ago. Over the next year, we plan to continue to build on this momentum to grow into newer markets and explore more avenues to distribute digital music and video. Hungama is on track to reach 100 million MAUs by March 2016.”

     

    Hungama’s patent pending gamification layer has become immensely popular with its consumers who are now rewarded for multiple actions and on a daily basis and redeem their points for a range of products and services. Whether you are listening to music or watching a video, its never been so much fun and rewarding as on Hungama.

     

  • The app will be launched across Android, iOS & Windows

    Hungama Digital unveils app for celebrity chef Sanjeev Kapoor

    By A Correspondent

     

    Chef Sanjeev Kapoor announced the launch of an app containing his recipes along with delectable delights. The app named ‘Sanjeev Kapoor’s Recipes’, features cuisines from India and the world. It is a complete cookery manual that goes everywhere and helps one in the kitchen. It includes exciting features like ‘Shopping List’, ‘In Your Fridge’, ‘My Khana’, ‘Recipe Box’ and many more.

     

    The app offers a wide range of features developed by Hungama Digital Media Entertainment. With the ‘Sanjeev Kapoor’s Recipes’ app, users can access detailed recipes with pictures, special notes by Sanjeev Kapoor himself and some innovative new features. Users can also learn more about Sanjeev Kapoor in the ‘About Chef’ section of the app; they can locate the nearest Sanjeev Kapoor restaurant with the ‘Restaurant Locator’ feature. The ‘How to Use’ and ‘FAQs’ sections contain a plethora of information and tips regarding the exciting features of the app.

     

    Adding to the list of existing features, Hungama Digital Media Entertainment has included some industry-first special features called ‘In Your Fridge’ and ‘My Khana’. When you have only a few cooking ingredients to choose from, the ‘In Your Fridge’ feature allows users to select a category, add a list of ingredients they possess and look for recipes only as per the ingredients and category selected. The ingredient-based search is an innovation like no other. ‘My Khana’ allows users to submit recipes to the app and follow each other once they sign up. The app carries a gamification feature; users receive points on the recipes submitted. Users can view the top scores on the ‘Leaderboard’.

     

    Sanjeev Kapoor
    Neeraj Roy

    Commenting on the launch of the app, Sanjeev Kapoor said, “If you ask me what’s happening in my world today, I would say it’s my new mobile app – Sanjeev Kapoor’s Recipes. With this app cooking becomes easy and fun. The app has everything from recipes for every day dining or festive dining or just cooking up a meal with whatever’s available in your fridge! Cherry on the cake, you can win points and thus exciting gifts by logging in. Now you and I come even more closer, with our common love, cooking!”

     

    Commenting on the features of the app, Neeraj Roy, MD and CEO of Hungama Digital Media Entertainment said, “We are delighted to partner with Indian culinary guru Sanjeev Kapoor to launch the ‘Sanjeev Kapoor’s Recipes’ app, which will assist users access scores of recipes with detailed descriptions and pictures. With the app we hope that we can make routine cooking a more fun and enjoyable experience for our consumers. The app will be available across Android, iOS and Windows platforms.”

     

  • The webinar series has had both Indian and global industry stalwarts share their insights from the digital domain

    Neeraj Roy is guest at IAA webinar on March 5

    By a correspondent

     

    Neeraj Roy

    Neeraj Roy, Managing Director and CEO of Hungama Digital Media Entertainment Pvt. Ltd. will be the guest at the International Advertising Association (IAA) India Chapter’s next webinar series. The webinar is scheduled to take place on March 5, 2014 at 3 pm. (*Disclosure: MxMIndia is media partner of the IAA India Chapter webinar series)

     

     

    Srinivasan Swamy

    Srinivasan K. Swamy, President, IAA India Chapter & Vice President, Development Asia/Pacific region of IAA said, “This webinar series has had both Indian and global industry stalwarts share their insights from the digital domain. This will add more dimension to India’s online endeavours.”

     

    Abhishek Karnani, Director, Free Press Journal and Manish Advani, Head – Marketing and Public Relations, Mahindra Special Services Group, are co-chairing the IAA Webinar series.

     

    Abhishek Karnani

    “We have had some great speakers in IAA Webinar Series and Neeraj Roy our upcoming speaker, is the King of Digital. I am confident that the participants could learn how to become digital experts from this session”, said Advani.

     

    The hangout will be broadcast live on the YouTube channel - www.youtube.com/iaaindiachapter  on 5th March, 3pm IST.

     

  • Get set for action with Jai and Veeru in free-to-play 'Sholay: Bullets of Justice' game

    As Sholay releases in 3D, Jai-Veeru come alive on games

    By A Correspondent

     

    Hungama Digital Media Entertainment and Gameshastra Solutions have brought alive the famed Jai and Veeru duo of the megahit Sholay in a free-to-play game created as the 3D version of the film is being released.

     

    ‘Sholay: Bullets of Justice’ will be a single player finite level-based side scroller game. The game will have a ‘wild west’ feel and would also portray the locales of Ramgarh as in the movie, with each character having its own stylized animations.

     

    Said Neeraj Roy, MD and CEO,Hungama Digital Media: “The concept of gaming has caught on across the world and is gaining rapid pace especially in the mobile and connected devices environment. The Sholay: Bullets of Justice Game is engaging and addictive for the average gaming enthusiast.”

     

    “Sholay 3D is looking and sounding awesome! We have taken three years to painstakingly restore this film to an impressive quality level for all to enjoy for decades to come! I am thrilled with the game as it has 12 levels and is a complex game both on mobiles and on all other platforms,” said Sascha Sippy, Chairman of Sholay Media & Entertainment Pvt. Ltd.

     

    Take out the dacoits attacking Jai and Veeru in a moving goods train. Teach the dacoits lessons that are harassing the villagers for money. Assist in spreading around happiness and keeping the auspicious festival of Holi sacred. Unshackle Basanti (Hema Malini) from the jaws of the Gabbar Singh and balm the sadness of disconsolate Radha (Jaya Bhaduri) by bringing the maniac to justice.

     

     

  • Neeraj Roy was elected Vice President. Jaideep Gandhi and Monica Tata were re-elected as Treasurer and Secretary respectively for the year 2013-14

    Srinivasan Swamy re-elected President of IAA India Chapter

    By A Correspondent

     

    Srinivasan Swamy

    Srinivasan Swamy, Chairman & Managing Director of R K Swamy BBDO was re-elected President of India Chapter of International Advertising Association at the Annual General Meeting held in Mumbai on Wednesday, September 25.

     

    Neeraj Roy, MD and CEO of Hungama Digital Media Entertainment, was elected Vice President. Jaideep Gandhi, Chairman, Jaya Advertising and Monica Tata, MD, HBO India were re-elected as Treasurer and Secretary respectively for the year 2013-14.

     

    Neeraj Roy

    “IAA India was on an over-drive in 2012-13 under the leadership of Srinivasan Swamy” said Pradeep Guha, VP & Area Director, Asia Pacific of IAA.

     

    Noted a communiqu̩: in the eleven months since the previous AGM, there were six major events РIAA Leadership Awards, IAA Seminar on Gender Sensitization, IAA Olive Crown Awards, IAA Knowledge seminar on Real Estate in a Digitized World, IAA-Kyoorius DigiYatra and the one scheduled on 30th September, IAA Platinum Jubilee РGlobal Marketing Summit. In addition, there were five IAA Debates and five IAA Mentorship Webinars Р16 industry defining events in 11 months.

     

    “I am happy I was at the helm at IAA when many new initiatives were planned and unfolded. I had a great team who executed much of these programmes with élan. As we move forward, our aim at IAA India is to be seen by IAA Global as the most vibrant of all IAA chapters worldwide. I am sure that recognition is not far,” said Srinivasan Swamy. Mr Swamy was co-opted onto the global IAA Board in May this year as Vice President- Development, Asia Pacific, as an acknowledgement of the initiatives that were undertaken in the first six months at the helm in India.

     

    The other members of the new Managing Committee are: Pradeep Guha, Pheroza Bilimoria, Kaushik Roy, Sam Balsara, Raj Nayak, Ramesh Narayan, M G Parameswaran, M V Shreyams Kumar, Kunal Lalani, Avinash Pandey, Arunabh Dassharma, Neville Taraporewalla, Partho Das Gupta, Rajesh Kejriwal and Abhishek Karnani, Manish Advani, Janak Sarda, Vishakha Singh, C V L Srinivas and Atit Mehta.

     

  • Hungama Digital Media Entertainment and ITC's Vivel Face Wash have unveiled a new TVC called 'MOBISur – Sitaron Ki Talaash with Shankar Mahadevan' to look for India's first digital talent hunt

    Vivel launches ‘digital talent hunt’ with Hungama

    By A Correspondent

     

    Hungama Digital Media Entertainment along with ITC’s personal care brand, Vivel Face Wash, has unveiled a new television commercial called ‘MOBISur – Sitaron Ki Talaash with Shankar Mahadevan’ to look for India’s first digital talent hunt, which will give millions of Indians an opportunity to become a singing star.

     

    This talent hunt enables participation from anywhere in the country; all that a participant requires is a mobile phone or an internet connection. This property empowers the participants to break the queue and forego travelling to the nearest city for an audition. The winners of the contest will get an opportunity to record an album with Shankar Mahadevan which will be released by T Series and Hungama. The winners will also receive Rs 5 lakh rupees.

     

    Developed by Meridian Communications, the TVC features well-known Indian musician Shankar Mahadevan encouraging aspiring singers, who don’t get enough time out of their busy schedules, to showcase their talent through this platform. The TVC also features the ‘Ghar baithe baithe famous singer bano’ concept that highlights the various ways to participate in the contest so that the aspirants can live their musical dreams.

     

    The contest has already received a phenomenal response since its launch with over 4,50,000 call-ins on IVR and more than  6,00,000 entries on the website in just 40 days.

     

    The TVC is currently on air across various music and other GEC channels. The latest TVC can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FonHDegCo9A.

     

    Credits:

    Meridian Communications Pvt Ltd

    Creative: Anurag Khandelwal, Satish deSa

    Account Management: Mohit Ahuja, Abhishek Nand

    Production House:

    Jack in the Box

    Director: Myles

    Producer: Ashlesha Bangia