Category: MAM

MUMBAI: Turkish Airlines and Manchester United Football Club came to an agreement on a sponsorship deal.

The official ceremony of this sponsorship contract between Turkish Airlines, the Europe’s fourth-biggest carrier by passengers and Manchester United, one the football giants of the world, will be carried out during the coming days at the Old Trafford Stadium in Manchester United.
 
According to the three and a half year sponsorship contract, all the ad materials and logos of Turkish Airlines will be displayed on the internal screens of the Old Trafford Stadium in Manchester and all other locations of the team.

Turkish Airlines will also make commercial films with the players of Manchester United Club and carry out the promotion of this sponsorship deal in all the arenas of advertising and mass media outlets.

With title of “the official sponsor of Manchester United,” Turkish Airlines will transport the players of the club to the tournaments and training camps as the team’s official carrier.
 
Turkish Airlines chairman Hamdi Topcu said that the sponsorship deal was very important and this cooperation would provide a big support for Turkish Airlines which is presently advancing towards becoming a global brand. Saying that he was very happy about becoming the official carrier for one of the greatest football clubs in England, the chairman also added the deal would bring mutual benefits to both sides.
 
 
Manchester United CEO David Gill said, “We are delighted to have secured a long term partnership with Turkish Airlines. This deal is yet another indication of the global appeal of Manchester United and we are pleased to welcome them to the club”.
 

MUMBAI: Triton Communications has bagged the creative mandate for Veola- a hair care brand, launched by Bajaj Herbals for the Indian market.

Says Bajaj Herbals MD Sanjay Bajaj, “We were impressed by the presentation made by the Triton team. They showed an excellent understanding about the brand and the hair oil category in general. With Triton coming on board we aspire to create brand value in the Indian market.” 
 
Adds Triton Communications executive director Pankaj Arora, “We are delighted to partner with Veola. Since we have a good track record in building entrepreneurial brands in India, we hope to leverage on our expertise and help build Veola into a strong product in the hair care category.” 
 
Through Veola, Bajaj Herbals aims to launch its hair care products in India, as its entry into home ground. 
 
The media platforms that the company plans to exploit for communications will be TV, followed by outdoor and print campaigns.
 

MUMBAI: Cadbury India has launched Cadbury Dairy Milk Silk, a new variant under its Dairy Milk (CDM) brand.

Priced at Rs 49 for 69 grams and Rs 99 for 160 grams bar, the CDM Silk offering will be available in milk chocolate, roast almond and fruit & nut variants. 
 
Cadbury India marketing executive director Sanjay Purohit says, “Our newest offering, CDM Silk has been specially formulated to cater to the Indian consumers craving for smoother, creamier and finer chocolate available internationally. The initial consumer feedback during the test marketing has been very encouraging and many perceive CDM Silk to be superior to other international chocolate brands available in the country.” 
 
CDM Silk will be promoted extensively through a 360 degree campaign created by Ogilvy & Mather. The marketing communication will encompass TV, print, outdoor and internet. 
 
The chocolate market in India is estimated at Rs 20 billion .Cadbury India has a market share of over 70 per cent in the chocolate segment.

MUMBAI: Out-of-home specialist network Navia Asia has elevated Gourav Tandon to chief operating officer for the Indian subcontinent.

 Gourav Tandon has over 12 years of experience in the out of home (OOH) media business. He has worked in all aspects of OOH which includes printing, signages, acquisition and sale of media, besides planning and buying. He has also been a creator of innovative solutions that have enhanced the visibility of brands.
 
Tandon began his career with GMS Technologies, and then worked with agencies such as MOMS, Aaren Initiative, Ogilvy. Prior to joining Navia, he was with Clear Channel where he was handling the Assets and AOR divisions for North. He has worked on national brands like LG, Emaar MGF, Voltas, Michelin Tyres, Yamaha, Sony Ericsson, and Panasonic.

MUMBAI: A few months ahead of the 2010 Fifa World Cup, the governing body of German soccer has signed Sony as a sponsor.
 
Sony will be a premium partner of the German Football Federation (DFB) until the end of 2012, a period that also takes in Euro 2012, to be jointly hosted by Poland and Ukraine.
 
Sony Germany will have the right to exclusive promotional activities at the German national team‘s home games during the period, and will have the players at its disposal for adverts, as well as footage of the team‘s matches.

DFB general secretary Wolfgang Niersbach says, “We are delighted to have secured with Sony Germany a new premium partner, whose high quality products and innovative strength are exceptional. In an exciting World Cup year football fans in Germany are now even closer to their stars.”
 
Germany‘s national team manager Oliver Bierhoff says, “We are very pleased to have gained a partner who has such a wide range of products.”

MUMBAI: AR Polymers, part of the MKU Group and involved in defence and outdoor combat gear, has awarded its entire communications responsibility to Noshe Oceanic.
 
The agency will be handling the company’s creative as well as media duties.
 
“We will rolls out a complete 360 degree initiative which will include print, above the line (ATL) and below the line (BTL) activities, out-of-home (OOH) and electronic medium,” says Noshe Oceanic VP Anupama Mehrotra.
 

MUMBAI: In the wake of a multi-agency pitch, Mindshare Chennai has been awarded with the media duties of Muthoot Pappachan Group.

The size of the account is pegged at Rs 100 million.
 
Says Muthoot Pappachan Group director Thomas George Muthoot, “There were two other agencies who participated in the pitch along with Mindshare, but we were comfortable with Mindshare‘s deliverables and hence zeroed in on them.”
 
Meanwhile, Contract Chennai handles the creative duties of the Muthoot Pappachan Group. The group is spending approximately Rs10 million in creatives.
 
“The company has doned a new corporate identity starting today, which includes a change in the logo. Out of the Rs 100 million, we are spending Rs 20 million on the rebranding exercise. Additionally, we are also planning to market ‘Swarnavarsham‘, for which we will be spending Rs 80 million,” says Muthoot.
 
 

MUMBAI: MRF Tyres has roped in motor racing driver Narain Karthikeyan as its ‘Racing Brand Ambassador‘.

According to media reports, under the deal Karthikeyan will receive Rs 80 million for four years. 
 
Karthikeyan says, “It is an honour for me to represent MRF Tyres and join their efforts to take motor racing to the next level in India”.

MUMBAI: John Players, the fashion brand from ITC targeted at the male Indian youth, has roped in Ranbir Kapoor as its new brand ambassador.
 
The move aims to add a punch of freshness, dynamism and energy to the trendy apparel brand for men, while highlighting its commitment in making strong statements in the fashion and lifestyle space.
 
ITC Lifestyle Retailing Business divisional chief executive Atul Chand said, “Ranbir is the perfect fit for John Players as he personifies the youthfulness, vibrancy and panache that the brand stands for. There are strong synergies between John Players and Ranbir‘s inherent sense of style and effortlessly cool persona. We are positive that John Players‘ association with Ranbir will hit the right chord with the youth and strengthen the brand‘s core attributes.”
 
Said Ranbir, “John Players has established itself in the youth segment and it is a pleasure to be associated with such a strong brand. I relate with the cool, youthful and expressive personality of the brand. I believe it‘s important to be comfortable in what one wears and make a statement without trying too hard which is also what John Players believes in.”

NEW DELHI: Even as senior Indian army and air force officers fumed over the bloomer, the Prime Minister’s office issued an apology for the inclusion of the photograph of a former Pakistani air force chief in an advertisement against female infanticide in India.

Women’s and Child Development Minister Krishna Tirath, whose Ministry issued the advertisement photograph placed in newspapers by the Directorate of Advertising and Visual Publicity, said the persons found guilty of this lapse would be punished.
 
The statement from the PMO tersely said: “The Prime Minister‘s office has noted with regret the inclusion of a foreign national‘s photograph in a government of India advertisement. While an internal enquiry has been instituted, the PMO apologises to the public for this lapse.”

It is learnt that the designing of the controversial advertisement was outsourced to a creative agency attached to a leading media house, but was cleared by the Ministry.
 
A source said most advertisements of this kind are approved at the level of joint secretary or higher, thus implying the Ministry herself may have approved it.

The full-page advertisement published in a national daily on the occasion of National Girl Child Day carried a photograph of former Pakistan Air Chief Marshal Tanvir Ahmed (2006-2009) along with photos of Kapil Dev, Virender Sehwag and Amjad Ali Khan. The full-page ad also has the pictures of the United Progressive Alliance chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, and the Minister Krishna Tirath.
 
DAVP sources said the advertisement had been received on a Saturday (holiday) for immediate dissemination, and so it had been passed on without any verification.