Brands

What makes IPL click with brands?

Published

12 years ago

April 10, 2014

MUMBAI: Indians love for cricket is inevitable. And nothing can come between the fans and the most-awaited entertainment tournament in the country: The Indian Premier League (IPL). But that’s not all, like honey to bee; brands too get attracted to it.

Year after year, controversies galore, nothing has deterred brands from putting their money on IPL.

Over the years, while the experts have debating that the overdose of cricket will make people lose interest in the game, but the fact is that even controversies – Lalit Modi fisasco, slapgate or even match-fixing – hasn’t affected the tournament when it comes to sponsorships. The Rs 2000 crore plus property has many lining up to sign deals.

With the expected ad revenue from this year’s IPL to be Rs 900 crore, the official broadcaster of the tournament, Sony Max and Six, have already brought on board, Perfetti Van Melle, Havells and Amazon as on-air associate sponsors while Vodafone and Pepsi will be the co-presenting sponsors.

So why do brands jump into the IPL bandwagon. The reason is simple: it is the biggest visibility platform in the country for brands.

Many in the industry feel that IPL helped its first title sponsor DLF become a household name.

“DLF was known in the north among the upper class, but today the name is known at every corner of the country,” says GroupM ESP Sports and Live national director Vinit Karnik.

The sports and entertainment arm of GroupM, in its SportzPower-GroupM ESP India sports sponsorship report 2014 reveals that Indian sports TV broadcasting was, is, and will continue to be dominated by cricket for the foreseeable future, contributing to 80 to 85 per cent of the total television sports media revenues.

In 2008, when tire major Bridgestone considered IPL as a medium for brand communication, it was put off by the price tags for premium rights. For example, real estate company DLF, at that time, was paying Rs 400 million per year for the title sponsorship of IPL. So, Bridgestone made a modest entry into cricket as a co-sponsor of IPL franchise Mumbai Indians.

The cricket tournament is a perfect platform to not only increase visibility but it also enhances the brands’ customer engagement. For instance, Karbonn Mobiles which, till a few years back, was fighting to make space in the market which was ruled by Nokia, entered the tournament through ‘Karbonn Kamal Catch’ and IPL Nights.

The deal helped the mobile company engage with its customers through the programme wherein spectators were selected and had to catch a ball. If they caught the ball, during a match, they would receive a ball signed by a player.

Similarly, Citi Bank’s ‘Citi Moment of Success’ helped the brand come out of the dark period it was witnessing because of the slowdown. “Citi’s initiative helped it rise above negative PR, especially what it was going through in the US. It used the platform well by associating itself with the ‘successful’,” points out Karnik.

Agreeing and adding on the subject, Madison Media COO Dinesh Rathore says, “IPL is one property which everyone knows will deliver for those 45 days consistently and hence, it increases the recall value of brands too. Why else would we see so many new launches (campaigns and products) during this time-frame?”

How can one forget the Zoozoos? Telecom giant, Vodafone, every year launches a new campaign during IPL. Vodafone India was one of the first few brands to get associated with the IPL and continues the relationship even in the seventh year. Zoozoos were launched in the second season and since then have helped Vodafone to establish a strong connect with the customers and enhance brand recall. One can even say that Zoozoos and IPL are inseparable today.

“Our experience so far has been that if you do things that are truly innovative and cutting edge during the IPL then the impact multiplies and bang for the buck is unmatchable. For example, apart from the ZooZoo campaign, our customer connect initiative ‘Vodafone SuperFan Contest’ has also received positive response from our customers,” says Vodafone India Brand Communications and Insights senior vice president Ronita Mitra.

She adds, “This year Vodafone customers can help a cricket crazy friend to get a dream come true opportunity to be selected as ‘Vodafone SuperFan’ and win all the privileges that go with it. While the friend gets all the privileges available for ‘Vodafone SuperFan’, Vodafone customers, as the nominee also gets hospitality ticket to watch the match live.”

Highlighting that new brand launches have gained tremendously, particularly in the segment of auto, brand consultant Harish Bijoor highlights that the format is dear to not only men, but women and children alike. “IPL is today a family sighting and outing. Therefore, anything that attracts family eyeballs is a marketing opportunity not to miss for brands.”

Not only this, but established brands too have jumped on the bandwagon. Pepsi, for instance, has been associated with cricket per se for years now. The cola giant taking the IPL title rights has been a huge brand lift for the IPL. That time, the move surprised many market watchers because they thought that a brand that needed to build a national brand recall as well as presence, would bid for the IPL rights.

PepsiCo India EVP Homi Battiwala has been quoted in the SportzPower-GroupM ESP report saying, “We are delighted that we have succeeded in rebranding the tournament as Pepsi-IPL, thus cementing a five-year partnership between two brands which enjoy an iconic status not only in India but globally. With our continuing sponsorship of the ICC World Cup, we are now the biggest supporters of the game of cricket.”

The cola giant also feels that the timing of the tournament is ideal given that packaged beverages is an impulse category and nearly 50 per cent of consumption happens in these months.

However, the controversies related to the tournament have left a dent in its sheen. Last year’s match-fixing fiasco hit it bad. And with elections coinciding with the tournament, many feel that it can impact the tournament’s TVTs and brand value.

“This year due to the various reasons the on-ground sponsorships may witness more desperation and many marketers may not invest for the long run. The revenue for the franchise is also hit due to the shifting of large part of tournament to UAE as 35-40 per cent of revenue comes from tickets for these franchises,” points out IPG Mediabrands branch head Mukti Kumaran.

She adds, “Also, brands are more conscious as the money will get fragmented between IPL and elections.”

Similarly, Red Fuse Communications India CEO Shubha George says, “IPL is now a standard media property that will broadly fluctuate as it has in the past. The fact that it will be partly played outside India will affect viewership to an extent. Over the years, advertisers have a good pulse of what to expect from IPL and so it is no longer the imponderable it used to be.”

Others argue and believe that even though overall brand value might get impacted but the property will continue to attract not only brands but fans and players too. “There are always two sides of a coin. If we take the case of Rajasthan Royals, one set of people can say that RR’s management failed and hence we don’t want to get associated with it while others might feel that why penalize the whole team for the wrong of a few,” says Karnik philosophically.

The biggest sporting property is all set to start soon and the brands aren’t shying away from queuing to hit a six with IPL, yet again.

Related Topics:Amazon DLF Group M GroupM ESP Sports Havells IPL season7 Pepsi Perfetti Van Melle Vinit Karnik Vodafone

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Netflix India names Rekha Rane director of films and series marketing

Streaming giant bets on a seasoned marketer who helped build Amazon and Netflix into household names

Published

3 days ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: Netflix has put a proven brand builder at the helm of its films and series marketing in India, naming Rekha Rane as director in a move that signals sharper focus on audience growth and cultural cut-through in one of its most hotly contested markets.

Rane steps into the role after seven years at Netflix, where she has quietly shaped how the platform sells stories to India. Her latest promotion, effective February 2026, crowns a run that spans brand, slate and product marketing across originals, licensed content and new verticals such as games.

A strategic marketing and communications professional with roughly 15 years’ experience, Rane has spent much of her career building technology-led consumer businesses and new categories, notably e-commerce and subscription video on demand. She was part of the early push that introduced Amazon.in, Prime Video and Netflix to Indian homes, then helped turn them into everyday brands.

At Netflix, she most recently served as head of brand and slate marketing for India from March 2024 to February 2026, leading teams across media and marketing for global and local content portfolios. Before that, as manager for original films and series marketing, she led IP creation and go-to-market strategy for titles including Guns and Gulaabs, Kaala Paani, The Railway Men* and The Great Indian Kapil Show, spanning both binge and weekly-release formats.

Her earlier Netflix roles covered product discovery and promotion in India and integrated campaign strategy to drive conversations around the content slate, product awareness and brand-equity metrics.

Before Netflix, Rane logged more than three years at Amazon in brand marketing roles in Bengaluru. There she handled national and regional campaigns for Amazon.in, worked on customer assistance programmes in growth geographies and contributed to the go-to-market strategy for the launch of Prime Video India.

Her career began well away from streaming. At Reliance Brands in Mumbai, she worked on retail marketing for Diesel and Superdry. A stint at Leo Burnett saw her work on primary research for P&G Tide, mapping Indian shoppers’ paths to purchase. Earlier still, at Orange in the United Kingdom, she rose from sales assistant to store manager, running a team and owning monthly P&L for a retail outlet.

The arc is telling. As global streamers fight for attention in a crowded Indian market, executives who understand both mass retail behaviour and digital habit-building are prized. Rane’s career sits at that intersection.

For Netflix, the bet is simple: in a market spoilt for choice, sharp marketing can still tilt the screen. And with Rane now leading the charge, the streamer is signalling it wants not just viewers, but fandom.

Brands

Orient Beverages pops the fizz with steady Q3 gains and rising profits

Kolkata-based beverage maker reports stronger revenues and profits for December quarter.

Published

3 days ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

MUMBAI: A fizzy quarter with a steady aftertaste that’s how Orient Beverages Limited, the company that manufactures and distributes packaged drinking water under the brand name Bisleri closed the December 2025 period, as the Kolkata-based drinks maker reported improved revenues and a healthy rise in profits, signalling operational stability in a competitive beverage market.

For the quarter ended December 31, 2025, Orient Beverages posted standalone revenue from operations of Rs 39.98 crore, up from Rs 36.42 crore in the previous quarter and Rs 33.53 crore in the same quarter last year. Total income for the quarter stood at Rs 42.24 crore, reflecting consistent demand and stable pricing across its beverage portfolio.

Profit before tax for the quarter came in at Rs 3.47 crore, a sharp improvement from Rs 1.31 crore in the September quarter and Rs 0.39 crore a year ago. After accounting for tax expenses of Rs 0.79 crore, the company reported a net profit of Rs 2.68 crore, nearly three times the Rs 0.99 crore recorded in the preceding quarter.

On a nine-month basis, the momentum remained intact. Revenue from operations for the period ended December 31, 2025 rose to Rs 117.66 crore, compared with Rs 106.95 crore in the corresponding period last year. Net profit for the nine months climbed to Rs 5.51 crore, more than double the Rs 2.18 crore reported in the same period of the previous financial year.

The consolidated numbers told a similar story. For the December quarter, consolidated revenue from operations stood at Rs 45.06 crore, while profit after tax came in at Rs 2.06 crore. For the nine-month period, consolidated revenue touched Rs 133.57 crore, with net profit of Rs 4.49 crore, underscoring the group’s improving profitability trajectory.

Operating expenses remained largely controlled, with cost of materials, employee benefits and other expenses broadly aligned with revenue growth. The company continued to operate within a single reportable segment beverages simplifying its cost structure and reporting framework.

The unaudited financial results were reviewed by the Audit Committee and approved by the Board of Directors at its meeting held on 7 February 2026. Statutory auditors carried out a limited review and reported no material misstatements in the results.

In a market where margins are often squeezed by input costs and competition, Orient Beverages’ latest numbers suggest the company has found a reliable rhythm not explosive, but steady enough to keep the fizz alive.

Brands

BCCL profit jumps 53 per cent in FY25 as tax bill shrinks

Revenue rises 4.3 per cent to Rs 10,209.33 crore while deferred tax gain lifts bottom line sharply

Published

3 days ago

February 9, 2026

indiantelevision.com Team

NEW DELHI: Bennett, Coleman and Company (BCCL) has posted a sparkling set of financial results for the year ended 31 March 2025, proving that there is still plenty of ink and gold left in the ledger.

Revenue from operations climbed a steady 4.3 per cent, reaching Rs 10,209.33 crore compared to Rs 9,786.44 crore the previous year. When you sprinkle in other income, which rose 8.9 per cent to Rs 949.36 crore, the total income for the media behemoth hit a healthy Rs 11,158.69 crore.

While the income grew at a modest pace, the bottom line tells a far more dramatic story. The real headline is the 53 per cent surge in annual profit. How did they pull off such a feat? While Profit Before Tax (PBT) saw a gentle nudge upward of 2.7 per cent to Rs 1,610.00 crore, it was a vanishing act by the taxman that really did the trick.

Total tax expenses plummeted by 32.4 per cent, dropping from Rs 468.76 crore down to Rs 316.97 crore. This was largely thanks to a swing in deferred tax, moving from an expense of Rs 156.02 crore in FY24 to a benefit of Rs 39.44 crore this year.

Total income rose from Rs 10,658.55 crore in FY24 to Rs 11,158.69 crore in FY25, marking a 4.7 per cent increase. Total expenses grew at a slower pace, up 3.0 per cent from Rs 9,306.06 crore to Rs 9,581.45 crore. Profit before tax inched up 2.7 per cent, moving from Rs 1,567.02 crore to Rs 1,610.00 crore. However, the standout figure was net profit, which jumped sharply by 53.0 per cent, climbing from Rs 1,042.03 crore in FY24 to Rs 1,594.73 crore in FY25.

Despite the rising costs of doing business across the globe, BCCL kept a tight grip on the purse strings. Total expenses rose by just 3.0 per cent to Rs 9,581.45 crore. By keeping costs lower than the rate of income growth, the company ensured that the final figure, a net profit of Rs 1,594.73 crore, was nothing short of a front-page sensation.

In a world of shifting digital tides, it seems the BCCL ship is not just steady, but sailing into significantly wealthier waters.