MxMIndia

Tag: Vikas Gulati

  • India is only country where platforms outside of Android and iOS support a relatively strong monetization model, reports Opera-MMA study

    India Shining in in mobile ad $$s & traffic

     

    By A Correspondent

     

    Asia Pacific (APAC) and Oceania are showing a clear and rapid transition to smartphones, according to a Q3 State of Mobile Advertising study from Opera Mediaworks and the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA), released recently. In India, 75 per cent mobile users have smartphones. Even in markets where the transition from feature phones to smartphones has been slower (Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines), about half of the mobile user base has moved to smartphones.

     

    A study of mobile users on Opera’s global mobile-ad platform in six select APAC countries found that Android is the leading OS for smartphones, with 67.1 75 per cent of impressions being served to those mobile devices. India is the only country where platforms outside of Android and iOS support a relatively strong monetization model, with platforms other than Android and iOS having a share of revenue that is nearly twice their share of impressions.

     

    “The ability to serve high-impact – and therefore high-value – rich-media and video ads on smartphones is what is truly powering the monetization potential of the region,” observes Vikas Gulati, Managing Director for Asia, Opera Mediaworks. “These ad types are effective at attracting, engaging and ultimately converting mobile consumers. India leads in over all traffic and the top three categories for ad impressions are Mobile stores and career portals, social networking sites and apps, and sports.”

     

    Below are the key findings from the study of the APAC “P6” – India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam – plus Australia.

     

    Key highlights from the APAC SMA Q3 report:

     

    Mobile-device market share and ad types:

    >> While Android market share in the P6 is similar to the global average (65.4 75 per cent), its share of revenue is higher – 54.9 75 per cent vs. 44.4 75 per cent globally. This is likely the result of Android being the go-to OS for smartphones and thus the chosen platform for high-value brand campaigns.

    >> India leads the region in overall revenue and traffic, accounting for more than half (53 75 per cent) of impressions. It falls lower, however, in terms of monetization potential, due to the relatively high (25 75 per cent) share of feature phones. Still, compared to other feature-phone-dominated markets, its share of revenue is equitable to that of impressions, indicating a relatively strong monetization model on “other” platforms.

    >> Mobile video ad formats command higher eCPMs than rich-media display and even native ads in nearly all of the countries in the study.

     

    Top publisher and mobile-app categories:

    Mapping content trends by country, Opera Mediaworks and the MMA found that while each country demonstrates a unique profile in terms of audience interests, there were some patterns:

     

    >> Mobile stores and carrier portals are the most popular category in most of the countries, the result of feature-phone owners needing to access content and apps through these channels. In fact, 88.5 75 per cent of unique users to mobile stores and carrier portals are visiting from feature phones.

    >> Social Networking is the most or second-most popular category for five of the seven countries. It is noticeably missing from the top three in Australia, which is instead dominated by Entertainment, Sports and News & Information.

    >> In three countries (India, the Philippines and Vietnam), nearly 8 in 10 impressions are served to the top three categories, indicating highly condensed interest areas. Malaysia and Thailand, on the other hand, show traffic going to a wider set of categories.

     

     

    “Asia Pacific is a truly diverse region, and the growth and maturity of mobile marketing has seen the region’s power markets grow from four to six,” says Rohit Dadwal, Managing Director, Mobile Marketing Association APAC. “Collaborating with Opera Mediaworks on this report allows us to make all this data available for marketers, advertisers and publishers and ensure that the industry can adapt and evolve to ensure the region continues to create industry-winning mobile campaigns.”

     

  • Vserv.mobi claims a 3x growth in Indian and South East Asian markets given growth of the mobile as a marketing medium

    Vserv claims 3x growth with Unilever in bag

    By A Correspondent

     

    Vserv.mobi has announced that its client portfolio of advertisers and brands has witnessed a 3x growth in the Indian and South East Asian markets over the last one year.  With, mobile becoming a dominant factor in the media consumption habits of consumers across India and South East Asia, advertisers are aggressively using Vserv.mobi mobile ad exchange to implement mobile ad campaigns to reach their users effectively, adds a communique.

     

    Said Vikas Gulati, VP, Southeast Asia, Vserv.mobi: “We are thrilled and proud to establish this unique marketing partnership with Unilever. The strategic nature of the relationship clearly signals the mainstream stature mobile marketing has achieved. Mobile platforms are favoured by brands to achieve higher levels of engagement with customers across product categories, geographies and demographics. Backed with smart advertising via use of rich media, Unilever brands will garner greater impact and drive engagement from their consumers.”

     

    Talking about previous Unilever campaigns handled by Vserv.mobi, Mr Gulati added, “These campaigns suggest that greater brand awareness, recall and engagement can be achieved by combining consumer insights and constant innovation. As a market leader we will continue to raise the bar and make our contribution to growing the size of the mobile ecosystem.”

     

  • Host of the world famous Doha Debates, Tim Sebastian will be seen anchoring a debate series on Indian television channel BloombergUTV and he hopes to bring quality programming to Indian TV screens, just as he had done with Hardtalk in the past

    I’m not chasing ratings here: Tim Sebastian

    By Shruti Pushkarna

     

    Tim Sebastian

    Award-winning British television journalist known for his ‘hard talk’, Tim Sebastian will soon by seen on Indian television screens. Business news channel, BloombergUTV has joined hands with Sobo Films to produce a debate series called ‘The Outsider’, which will go on air in August. The show will be hosted by Mr Sebastian, the  founder and host of the world-famous ‘The Doha Debates’ and the first host of BBC’s flagship international interview programme, Hardtalk.

     

    Mr Sebastian is hopeful of bringing quality television to Indian TV screens, just as he has done in the past with the Doha Debates and Hardtalk in other parts of the world. He said that a similar rigorous routine will be followed in the making of this show in terms of research as he followed on Hardtalk. Mr Sebastian said: “These are very well-researched programmes. I’m known to do my homework. A very similar research team to the one I had on Hardtalk, providing me with a lot of details, will be working on this show.”

     

    [youtube width=”400″ height=”225″]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vm5FHz1WD6k[/youtube]

    When asked about the choice of India for a debate show at this point of time, Mr Sebastian said: “I’ll be putting India on a global stage. I’ve always visited countries when they are in crisis. Countries don’t incite interest when they are doing well. This is a perfect time to come to India. Why now because the view in the outside world is that India is at a crossing point. Maybe it’s no longer shining in the way it was five or ten years ago. Maybe the national mood has sunk a little bit in India . People are obsessed with their problems; they feel a promise has not yet been fulfilled. My aim is to have a fair debate, a debate that should shed light on a particular issue of concern to India. My job is to make sure these debates contain both the heat of your passion and the light to illuminate extraordinary things to a curious world. India matters more than ever. There’s no escaping that.”

     

    A 13-part series, The Outsider will feature debates on some of the major social, political and economic issues faced by India, including subjects like education,Kashmir, relationship between business and corruption, dynastic politics and more.

     

    Each debate will have speakers arguing for and against the motion. Speakers will include politicians, business people and activists. The debate will be conducted in the presence of a live audience of around 200 people. The audience will vote for or against the motion at the beginning and at the end of the discussion and the votes will be compared at the end of the show. The motion will then be thrown open in the viral world for people from across the globe to post their vote to determine the majority sentiment for the motion.

     

    Sriram Kilambi

    Announcing the launch of The Outsider in New Delhi on July 12, Sriram Kilambi, President, BloombergUTV said: “To understand the business in India, you have to understand the business of India. Business is larger than just the stock market and we want to broad base what our channel can be. We want to be about business and we want to stay in business, but we believe a couple of shows like this help us broad base, so that our shows on policy and on judiciary can actually get people to see them.”

     

    Mr Kilambi said that BloombergUTV was excited about Tim Sebastian hosting the series. “The Outsider is the first ever television show about India to be showcased on a global platform and we are proud to be the channel to carry it. We expect the entire nation, and Indians living across the globe, to sit up, watch and participate in the series, which will send a strong signal to the bureaucracy and corporate India about issues that need to be tackled to ensure that the country stays on-course with its growth map,” he added.

     

    A lot of Indian television programming, as we know, is governed by how well the show scores on TRPs. When asked whether he will be tailoring the content of his show to generate enough ratings, Mr Sebastian said: “No, I am not chasing ratings here. I am chasing interesting television, whether it’s mass market or niche television, it doesn’t really matter to me. I am chasing what I think is good quality television, discussing issues that matter to people. I’ve worked for 30 years in public broadcasting system, and we never chased ratings. We did it because we thought it was useful TV to do. I am applying the same standards this time.”

     

    The Outsider will be broadcast by Bloomberg UTV in India and by Bloomberg TV across Europe, Asia Pacific, Africa and Middle East, thereby reaching out to over 300 million viewers globally, making it the first and only show about India to be produced in India and telecast across the globe.

     

    Mr Vikas Gulati, Director, Sobo Films (SBF), speaking about the series, said: “With a combination of Tim Sebastian, one of the leaders in his field, great topics, a young audience and international viewers, we are looking forward to the start of this series. We are proud to be able to give the youth of this country an opportunity to share their views with a global audience. This programme will allow an international audience to hear what the future leaders of this country have to say.”

     

    Tim Sebastian, previously a BBC foreign correspondent, based in Warsaw,Moscow and Washington has over 30 years of reporting from more than 25 countries. He is globally recognized as a sharp, incisive and unbiased cross-examiner and enjoys a track record for fearless and forensic questioning of some of the most powerful people on the planet.

     

  • Appoints Vikas Gulati as Vice President – Business Development for the region

    Vserv.mobi Strengthens South East Asia Focus

    By A Correspondent

     

    Vserv.mobi, a leading global mobile advertising network with a strong focus on emerging markets, on Tuesday announced the appointment of Vikas Gulati as Vice President – Business Development forSouth East Asia. Based inSingapore, Vikas will spearhead the company’s growth in this region.

     

    Vikas Gulati, a media and marketing industry veteran, has had a long and successful career track record of over 14 years. Earlier, Mr Gulati was Vice President – Marketing and Business Development, Asia at Sprice.com, a leading online travel network (now a part of Travelport). He was instrumental in raising Sprice’s revenues and company profile in Asia Pacific through business development, partnerships and marketing programs. He has also held various leadership roles at ZenithOptimedia and CaratIndiaamongst other companies.

     

    Commenting on the new development, Mr. Dippak Khurana, Co-Founder and CEO of Vserv.mobi, said: “Expanding our operations in the burgeoning mobile market ofSouth East Asia is a key phase of our growth strategy. Vikas’ solid experience and customer relationships in this region will help us leverage newer opportunities and strengthen our goal of being the #1 mobile ad network in emerging markets.”

     

    Speaking on his appointment, Vikas Gulati, Vice President – Business Development, Vserv.mobi said: “Over the last two years, Vserv.mobi has grown to be an admirable company in the segment, and I am excited to join them at this opportune time. Given the growth momentum the company is witnessing, I look forward to being part of the success story. With our differentiating proposition in the marketplace, we are attractively poised to capitalise on this growing demand of the mobile medium amongst developers, publishers and advertisers inSouth East Asia.”

     

    Vserv.mobi is a leading global mobile ad network with strong presence in emerging markets. Vserv’s pioneering technology AppWrapperTM powers ad-monetisation for 10000+ Apps. Vserv is the only Ad Network with App media across feature phones, smart phones and tablets, thus providing advertisers reach and engagement.