ITV

Category: MAM

  • Dish TV, Star India ads pulled up by Asci

    Dish TV, Star India ads pulled up by Asci

    MUMBAI: Advertising Standards Council of India’s (Asci) Consumer Complaints Council (CCC) upheld complaints made against 27 advertisements during the quarter April – June 2011.

    During the same quarter, the CCC also rejected complaints against 15 advertisements as they did not violate the Asci Code.

    The CCC did not uphold complaints against 17 advertisements of various advertisers that include MakeMyTrip, Mankind Pharma, P&G WellaKolestint, Dabur India, McNroe Consumer Products, Royal Hygiene, Tata Chemicals, HUL’s Axe Googly Deo, Times of India, amongst others as these advertisements did not contravene Asci’s codes or guidelines.

    The complaints were upheld against advertisers from FMCG, education, healthcare, DTH and media sectors.

    Dish TV‘s claim to offer “30 True HD channels” was rejected by the CCC citing that the use of the word ‘True‘ to denote “upscaled standard definition” channels as HD was misleading.

    Their claim of providing maximum number of HD channels was also challenged, stating that Dish TV can provide only a limited number of HD channels and the other “claimed” HD channels were SD channels upscaled to HD at the DTH end. This claim would lead to consumers expecting an HD experience being misled.

    Similarly, complaints against certain claims made by Star India on the AsliHD campaign were upheld by the CCC stating that the claims of AsliHD were framed to exploit consumers‘ lack of knowledge of HD technology.

    In the educational sector, a complaint against IMS Learning Resources’ advertisement claiming “8 out of 10 toppers in CBS” and other similar claims was upheld since the claims could not be substantiated with evidence duly validated by an independent agency.

    Similarly, complaint against Roots Education‘s advertisement claiming No 1 CAT coaching in Delhi and other claims was upheld due to lack of evidence to back the claim.

    The complaint against Career Launcher advertisement claiming 303 Calls in DU (BBS/ BFIA) without mentioning whether they were final admission calls or just interview calls was also upheld by the CCC.

    The complaint against Sri Balaji Society’s advertisement claiming 829 students being placed from the 2009-11 batch without mentioning the total number of students was upheld on the ground that the claim contravened Section 4C of Asci’s guidelines for advertising of educational institutions and programmes as the advertisement shows images of colleges which do not seem real.

    ITM Institute of Fashion, Design & Technology in their advertisement state that their study programmess are approved by PIFT and MS University, but fail to provide details like full name and location. This contravenes the Asci Guidelines for advertising of educational institutions and programmes, hence the complaint was upheld.

    Similarly, ITM Institute of Hotel Management stated that their degree programme was affiliated to Mumbai University but failed to provide a specific institution or college and its location. Also, their claim of being voted Top Hotel Management College of the country by ‘Competition and Success Review‘ was not substantiated. Thus, the complaints against this advertisement were upheld by the CCC.

    Advertisement claims by FMCG majors HUL, P&G, Reckitt Benckiser, Paras Pharma amongst others came under the CCC’s scanner.

    FMCG major Hindustan Unilever was faced with a complaint regarding their advertisement on a leaflet of ‘Pureit Water Purifier’ which contains numerous disparaging and false statements about the competitor product – Tata Swach. The distribution of anti-Tata Swach danglers on Tata Swach packages by the advertiser was seen as undermining the Tata brand but also an unfair and unethical trade practice. Following the CCC’s intervention and upholding the complaints, HUL withdrew the leaflet from the market.

    Another HUL advertisement that came under the scanner was the Axe Effect campaign. This complaint was upheld on the grounds that the visual used was overtly sexual and vulgar and portrayed women in an indecent manner. The complaint against Paras Pharmaceutical’s sexually explicit advertisement of Set Wet Deodorant was upheld on the grounds that it was portraying women as sexual tools.

    Some complaints on certain claims made by P&G’s Pantene Pro-V Hair Fall Control were upheld by the CCC on the grounds that the depiction of a stylised golden circular drop misleads consumers into believing that 150 crore and not 15 crore women found Pantene to be effective.

    Moreover, P&G’s claim that 80 per cent of Indian women say that the new Pantene is better than anything else they have tried before, based on a study of just 360 women, was misleading. Following the CCC’s decision, P&G removed the stylised golden circular drop in the advertisement.

    Similarly, complaints received against Reckitt Benckiser’s advertisement for Dettol Skincare Soap was upheld on the ground that it was misleading consumers by wrongly linking the skin condition to germs, where in reality there is no correlation between the two.

    The complaint against Sundrop Heart’s advertisement was upheld on the ground that its statement “jeenekadaarnahi, khaaneka oil badaliye” can lead consumers to believe they can neglect the importance of healthy lifestyle by merely changing the cooking oil they use.

    Complaints against an advertisement of International Tractors Ltd for their brand Sonalika Tractors were upheld as they used the creative property ‘Mileage ka Master’ of Mahindra Tractors, thus taking unfair advantage of the goodwill attached to the Mahindra products.

    The complaints against GCMMF’s advertisement claiming that Amul butter tops the food triangle, was upheld in the absence of an appropriate disclaimer, ‘to be used in moderation’, which could mislead consumers to believe that Amul Butter is the best food to have, thus leading to over-consumption of butter.

    A few healthcare advertisements also came under the CCC’s scanner because of the claims made by the advertisers.
    A complaint was received against The Institute of Indian Therapies for their advertisement of ‘AyuCare Lavana Tailam’, which claims that the external application of oil helps reduce the size of one’s stomach and lose all fat. The CCC considered the report of the clinical trial submitted by the advertiser and concluded that the advertisement was misleading.

    In another case, AMA Herbal Labs advertisement mentions that competitors use PPD (Paraphenyenediamine) which can be harmful to the hair. The CCC concluded that the specific mention of PPD as a harmful chemical was misleading and unfairly denigrates other products.

    Business World magazine claimed to be the No. 1 business magazine in India which was most read and most sold. However, the IRS for the 3rd Quarter of 2010 showed the magazine in third place. Since the claim was not supported by any independent research, the complaint against the advertisement was upheld.

    The complaint against JyothyLabs’s Exo Dish Shine Bar advertisement claiming that it can kill disease-causing germs in just 20 seconds was upheld as the technical data submitted did not support the claim that it “starts” killing germs in 20 seconds. The advertiser made appropriate modifications to the advertisement post the CCC’s decision.
    The complaints against the Amul Body Warmer advertisement were upheld as the CCC concluded that the depiction of Draupadi in a frivolous manner could hurt religious sentiments of a large section of society, thus causing grave and widespread offence.

    The complaints against claims made by Shree Maruti Herbal’s D-Diabetes Smart Powder advertisement were upheld as these were not substantiated with clinical trials and technical data.

    Complaints against Micromax Mobile advertisement showing a student experimenting in a chemical laboratory which ends in a blast were upheld as it sends the wrong message to students and that it may encourage many students to emulate an act that could cause injury or harm.

  • JWT appoints Max Hegerman as digital head

    JWT appoints Max Hegerman as digital head

    MUMBAI:  JWT India, a WPP company, has appointed Max Hegerman as SVP and digital head JWT India Group.

    Earlier, Hegerman headed Tribal DDB India for over two years. Based out of Delhi, he will be responsible for managing and growing the agency‘s digital offering to clients across all markets. 

    Hegerman has over two decades of experience in communication, and has spent the last 11 years integrating digital capabilities into traditional advertising agencies.

    He has worked at agencies like Hal Riney & Partners (San Francisco), Wieden+Kennedy (Portland), Goodby, Silverstein & Partners (San Francisco), GSD&M (Austin), Euro RSCG (Irvine, California), Energy BBDO (Chicago), StrawberryFrog (New York) and TBWAMedia Arts Lab (Beijing).

    Max has worked across categories on many blue chip clients like LIC, Times Group, Nike, MTV, Idea Cellular, Volkswagen, Citibank, Wrigley, Apple, Volvo, BMW, Land Rover, Pizza Hut, SBC Communications, Scion (Toyota), Playboy, Oakley and Hyundai and Kia.

    JWT CEO Colvyn Harris said, “The world is digital now. India‘s internet user base is expanding at a phenomenal pace. We need to lead and dominate this space as well: for our future growth, and for our clients as they are increasingly looking at JWT for newer solutions for their brands. For us to develop skills and capabilities in this extremely important area, we are strengthening our team bandwidth across India. With Max now we‘ll have the firepower to signal our serious intent in Digital.”

    Hegerman adds, “I am very excited about the opportunity to work so closely with the JWT team in place.  I plan to leverage my digital background (and passion) and hands-on experience in India to enhance JWT’s capabilities and credibility in the online space, across offices and offerings – and an amazing list of clients.”

  • Paramount Cosmetics appoints IBD as creative and communications partner

    Paramount Cosmetics appoints IBD as creative and communications partner

    MUMBAI: Paramount Cosmetics (India) Ltd. has roped in IBD India as its creative and communications partner.

    On its part, IBD India will ideate and execute a 360 degree campaign for the company’s flagship brand Shilpa that is a household name in the Bindi, Kajal and Kumkum segments since the last 30 years.

    The agency will also offer the branding and creative services for Instinct – the male skin and personal care brand of Paramount Cosmetics.

    For Shilpa, it all started with the restructuring of the entire brand portfolio through suggestion of right Brand Architecture that took into consideration the competition, market potential, brand elasticity and finally the response of end-users. For Instinct, on the other hand, it was more of an integrated brand communication strategy rolled out by IBD India with emphasis on repositioning of the existing brand to create excitement around it.

    Said Paramount Cosmetics (India) Ltd. managing director Hiitesh Topiiwaalaa, “We are extremely happy to have associated with IBD India. The challenge for IBD was to come up with solutions on how to revitalize a 30 year old brand like Shilpa and the agency’s strategic approach surely would give a new direction to the brand. IBD has rolled out a clutter breaking creative and strategic approach on Instinct based on deep consumer insights which is a winner all the way. Our long standing relationship with the Percept group and its overall commitment towards the brand development process also helped us making this decision”.

    Commenting on, COO- , said “We believe a lot can be done on brand “Shilpa” to make it contemporary & youthful yet maintaining its core Indian traditional values. We intend to take brand “Instinct” to the next level by repositioning it and creating a strong identity in an extremely cluttered segment. The challenge is to make the brand be a part of its TG’s personality,” commented IBD India COO Jyotsna Chauhan on winning Paramount Cosmetics’ business.

    Paramount Cosmetics (India) Ltd. was incorporated in 1986 and is in manufacturing and marketing of cosmetics products. In the last few decades the company has acquired a strong position in the cosmetics industry in respective categories.

    Presently the firm offers two Brands, Shilpa and Instinct. Already present in ‘Beauty’ category Paramount has plans to shortly launch products under ‘Hair, Skin and Personal Care’ categories.

     

  • Sony largest selling brand on eBay India

    Sony largest selling brand on eBay India

    BANGALORE: Sony is the largest brand on eBay India because of its multi-product portfolio, says the eBay India Census-2011.

    According to the fourth edition of the yearly report, the Japanese brand was followed by Nokia, Samsung, Apple and Rebook respectively.

    The report also said that Indians are global brand savvy, with Micromax being the only Indian brand figuring amongst the top ten brands traded on eBay India, added the report, which is based on analysis of eBay.in activity recorded between July 2010 and June 2011.

    The report also claims that India‘s top eCommerce hub is Delhi followed by Mumbai, Bangalore, Jaipur and Chennai.
    India had over 3,311 eCommerce Hubs from all 28 States and 7 Union Territories. The top five states with the most transactions were Maharashtra, Delhi, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh.

    The study also highlights that consumers and entrepreneurs from rural India are increasingly plugged into eCommerce with over 1,267 rural hubs transacting online, with one out of every 10 purchases coming from rural India.

    Metros contribute 51 per cent of all eCommerce transactions, while tier 2 and 3 cities that the eBay.in report has termed as Bharat contribute about 40 per cent of transactions. Rural India accounts for 9 per cent of transactions.

    According to the research, women shoppers are increasingly addicted to shopping online. They are buying cosmetics, jewellery, watches, fashion and fitness equipment online. Over 45 per cent of all purchases are in the lifestyle category.

    Electronic gadgets continue to rule the online shopper‘s wallet and contribute to 50 per cent of all purchases.
    Indian retail exports is accelerating rapidly. The top five countries Indians export to include the United States, United Kingdom, Australia, Canada and Germany.

  • Hindi GECs prepare for big action in October

    Hindi GECs prepare for big action in October

    MUMBAI: The pecking order of the Hindi general entertainment channel (GEC) genre, which has remained unscathed since the launch of KBC (Kaun Banega Crorepati) on Sony Entertainment Television (Set), is expected to shake up once again after two weeks.

    As per TAM data for the week ended 24 September (HSM, C&S, 4+ years), Star Plus continues to lead (289 GRPs) with Set in hot pursuit (270 GRPs). At the same time, the gap between Set and number three player Colors (211 GRPs) has widened to 59 GRPs.

    However, the order might change soon as the GECs are either going to launch new shows or are tweaking their programming – some are even doing both.

    Colors, for instance, is launching its big-ticket reality show Bigg Boss 5, starting 2 October. The show will this time have two hosts – Salman khan and Sanjay Dutt – to pull audiences. The channel at the same time is axing its non-performing show Mukti Bandhan while Laagi Tujhse Lagan and Na Aana Is Des Laado, two primetime shows, are being pushed to afternoon slots.

    Meanwhile, Star Plus’ dance reality show Just Dance is coming to an end on 1 October and will be replaced by the second season of MasterChef India sans Akshay Kumar.

    Set is also beefing up its primetime. So far the channel is having a dream run with KBC, which is giving it an average weekly TVR of 5.4. It will launch a romantic drama show, Kuch To Log Kahenge, an adaptation of Pakistani television drama Dhoop Kinare, starting 3 October. Notably, Set’s dependence on non-fiction has dramatically come down and more dailies are getting good eyeballs for the channel. These include Bade Acche Lagte Hain, Crime Petrol and Saas Bina Sasural. With Kuchh Toh…, the channel is expecting a similar response.

    Zee TV is aunching a new reality show, Star Ya Rockstar, after the completion of Saregamapa L’il Champs. Zee TV will also be launching a couple of fiction shows in October.

    Even Sab, which is hoping to cross 200 GRPs by end of the fiscal, is axing its non-performing show Ammaji ki Gali and replacing it with the male-protagonist show – Don’t Worry Chachu.

    At present, Zee TV has settled at number four and closed the week with 176 GRPs, ahead of Sab (123 GRPs). Imagine TV registered 78 GRPs followed by Star one and Sahara One with 39 and 33 GRPs respectively.

  • Mindshare appoints Sushanto Biswas as partner – client leadership

    Mindshare appoints Sushanto Biswas as partner – client leadership

     
    MUMBAI: GroupM’s flagship media agency, Mindshare has announced appointment of Sushanto Biswas as partner – client leadership.

    Based out of Delhi, Biswas will be heading the Ford team at Mindshare India. He joins Mindshare from MPG and has 13 years of experience in the media industry working with agencies such as Universal McCann.

    During this time, Biswas has worked across a gamut of clients including HP, British Airways, Maruti, LVMH, Videocon, MTS and Reckitt Benkiser. He has also worked on the client side at LG and with Universal McCann on Gillette, Goodyear, Panasonic, MasterCard, GM and Microsoft.

    Biswas said, “It is very exciting and at the same time very challenging to be part of the fastest growing agency in India. Auto as a category has always been a passion and I have had experience of the category having worked on General Motors and Maruti previously. Ford has ambitious plans for the country over the next 3-4 years and I see this as a great challenge to craft media solutions in a hyper competitive market place.”

    Mindshare South Asia leader R Gowthaman added, “Sushanto‘s wealth of client and business experience makes him a vital asset to the Mindshare team. His in-depth understanding of behavior and trends in the media industry will add incredible value to our clients.”

  • Kamal Oberoi resigns as M&C Saatchi’s India chairman & MD

    Kamal Oberoi resigns as M&C Saatchi’s India chairman & MD

    MUMBAI: M&C Saatchi India, the Indian arm of the UK-based independent advertising agency said that its India chairman and MD, Kamal Oberoi, has called it a day to pursue other professional and academic interests.


    Speaking to Indiantelevision.com Oberoi said, “The agency has been firmly established now. We have a very good management in place. M&C Saatchi India is doing well and I thought its time to move to the next level and this the right time.”


    Denying revealing his next destination Oberoi stated, “It can be academics and I might leave advertising as well. Nothing has been decided as yet.”


    Oberoi founded M&C Saatchi’s India operations in October 2005. Before that he was the president of J Walter Thompson (JWT) for 21 years.


    Oberoi added, “It has been great challenging and rewarding experience. I am grateful for support from all colleagues and for clients for reposing their faith in us. The company is poised for next stage of growth.”


    M&C Saatchi Asia CEO Chris Jaques said, “Thanks to Kamal, M&C Saatchi is privileged to have a blue-chip client list and a first-class management team – one that is ready to take the company into the next phase of its exciting development. I would like to thank Kamal for his determination, his professionalism – and for his friendship. I wish him well in this new phase of his life, and I thank him for his extraordinary contribution to M&C Saatchi.”

  • Aggarwal and Sen join the bandwagon, form their own agency

    MUMBAI: Former Dentsu India president Rajesh Aggarwal and VP Gullu Sen have floated their own agency – From Here On Communications – demonstrating another instance of a group of veterans taking the sovereignty route.


    Aggarwal and Sen have got backing from three former Dentsu executives – Dentsu Marcom NCD Nitin Suri; Dentsu Communications creative head Shivanand Mohanty; and Dentsu Marcom SVP Partho Maitra.


    Though the official announcement was made today, the agency has come into existence a few weeks ago, Aggarwal informed Indiantelevision.com.


    He also said that currently the agency has only one office i.e. in Delhi; however, From Here On Communications is also working for Mumbai-based clients and a new office would be established here soon.


    “We are currently working for some clients. Their names should be announced in another week‘s time or so. Our focus is to use traditional medium but reach out across mediums. We are not interested in creating a digital arm; like most people do. Such arms can never work in tandem. We will see that in our communications every medium works in tandem with each other,” he said.


    In the past six to eight months, several new independent agencies have come into force and most of them have been founded by former advertising talents.


    While Taproot was founded by Agnello Dias (ex-JWT), Minakshi Achan (ex-Rediffusion-Y&R) and Mahesh Chauhan (ex-Rediffusion-Y&R) left their agency to start Salt Brand Solutions.


    Priti Nair (ex-BBH) partnered with Nagessh Pannaswami (ex-BBDO Mumbai) to launch Curry-Nation. Acid Brand Communications was brought into force by Niranjan Kaushik (ex-McCann Erickson). Cut the Crap was started by Jagdish Acharya (ex-Mudra).


    Clients have supported such startup ventures by the creative professionals.


    Pepsi and Airtel (both JWT clients) added Taproot to their roster, while Kaya Skin Clinic (Rediff clients) appointed Salt as their creative partner. Acharya took along Livon, Recova and Cycle‘s Lia incense sticks (all Mudra clients).


    It would be interesting to see if From Here On Communications also announces a few former Dentsu clients in its roster.

  • History appoints MPG as its agency on record

    History appoints MPG as its agency on record

    MUMBAI: The A + E Networks and TV 18 JV has taken MPG onboard for media duties for the soon-to-be-launched History channel in India. History will focus on factual entertainment. The agency will work on the media strategy for the launch of History channel and sustenance thereof in India.

    MPG was appointed for the account, following pitches made by four agencies.

    A+E Networks TV18 JV president Ajay Chacko said, “The subject history has always been associated with the past in India, but with the all new HISTORY channel, we hope to hange people‘s perception of history. The channel today is contemporary, it‘s also about action & adventure. It is about people making history every day. We found the MPG approach to be thorough and insightful. Their strategic thinking, drive and passion give us the confidence to believe that MPG India will truly help us make HISTORY in India and we are looking forward to making this genre as popular in India as it is around the world.”

    A+E Networks TV18 JV GM marketing Sangeetha Aiyer, said, “We have extensive and ambitious plans for the launch of History in India. Being familiar with the agency‘s work, we completely trust MPG to deliver as per our expectations.”

    MPG South Asia CEO Anita Nayyar said, “History‘s launch in India is a landmark development in itself and we are pleased to have won the marketing teams confidence. The team at MPG that worked on the pitch is personally passionate about History‘s content and this passion is what helped us clinch the business.”

    MPG executive director of for West India Kunal Jamuar said, “History channel has a loyal following in most countries it is present in and we feel fortunate to have been tasked to build a buzz around a channel of such distinction. We have put together some interesting plans, which will be rolled out in the next few months. Our aim is to skyrocket the channel into the minds of Indian audiences.”

    History will position itself as having content which is gripping and racy.

  • Bajaj shifts focus to steam irons

    Bajaj shifts focus to steam irons

    MUMBAI: Bajaj Electricals’ is launching a new spot on 28 September that aims at shifting the focus from dry irons to steam irons.

    Bajaj Electricals’ creative partner, Touchstone Advertising has conceived the 360 degree campaign for the steam irons category.

    The spot is produced by One Films and directed by Abraham Cherian. It attempts to connect with talking to a younger audience, while highlighting the features of Bajaj Steam Irons in an entertaining way. The choreography done is by Terrence Lewis and the spot has trained dancers.

    Bajaj Electricals Limited executive director R. Ramakrishnan said, “The communication brings forth the product USPs in a very entertaining manner. Globally 90 per cent of the markets for Irons are steam irons while 10 per cent are dry irons. In India, so far it is the opposite. This ad will explain the benefits of steam ironing and enable Bajaj steam irons to dominate a fast expanding segment.”

    Touchstone Advertising creative director Adi Upadhyay adds, “All our research shows ironing to be the most boring household chore and to add to that, there’s no direct reward. No one says, wow, what a well ironed shirt. And we were talking to a younger generation. So we decided to do a song and dance routine to show how easy, effortless and fun even ironing can be with a Bajaj steam iron. This was a totally collaborative effort, where agency and client worked together to create this spot.”