Category: Media and Advertising

Lowe Lintas India named world’s top creative agency by WARC

MUMBAI: WARC 100, an annual ranking of the world’s best marketing companies and campaigns, based on their performance in effectiveness and strategy competitions, has declared Lowe Lintas India as the number one creative agency in the world.

The study focuses on marketing that makes a difference, driving business performance or changing consumer behaviour.

The rankings are compiled based on the winners of 87 effectiveness and strategy awards from around the world. Unilever was named as the number one advertiser of the year, with two of its campaigns (both created by Lowe Lintas) making it to the top five.

Lowe Lintas India accumulated 212.9 points while AMV BBDO UK took the second spot at 191 points and Colenso BBDO NZ that collected 147.6 points finished third. Recent successes of Lowe Lintas on global platforms include Ad Age International Agency of the Year, the American Jay Chiat Awards and and WARC Asia.

Speaking on the development Lowe Lintas + Partners CEO Joseph George said that the recognition was both extremely satisfying and spurring. “We have had a terrific run on creative effectiveness this year across the globe; and all the accolades have further reinforced our belief in the type of work we want to do and believe in,” George added.

Lowe & Partners, Worldwide saw significant representation in the WARC 100 listing. Notable ones being – Lowe & Partners ranked fourth amongst the top agency networks in the world; and two other agencies from the Lowe network, Lowe SSP3 and Lowe Roche featured in top 25 agencies list. Furthermore, five of the campaigns created by the network featured in the WARC 100 Best Marketing Campaigns.

February 25, 2015
Video ad views show growth in last quarter of 2014 as against 2013

NEW DELHI: Video ad views grew 30 per cent as against 2013, according to FreeWheel’s Q4 2014 Video Monetisation Report that revealed yet another quarter of strong growth and evolution in the digital TV market.

Contrary to the negative predictions the industry has heard about the television marketplace, the report reveals that the TV ecosystem continues to expand.

Viewers have not abandoned their favourite content but rather found new ways to access it. Not only did Q4 2014 cap off a full year of 30 per cent and 27 per cent growth in ad and video views respectively, publishers also succeeded in drawing audiences to their most premium content.

Several new trends emerged this past year as viewers and publishers continued to modify how they watch and monetise their shows, sports, clips and more.

Live viewing grew 297 per cent year-over-year, driven by strong growth in Sports streaming and News simulcasts.

First-run broadcast shows attracted far more viewers this quarter than the year prior, as seen by a 67 per cent increase in digital video ad views.

OTT streaming devices, overwhelmingly used for long-form and live viewing, overtook tablets, accounting for eight per cent of all video ad views.

Viewers are accessing current season content throughout the television season. Sixty-four per cent of viewing occurred over a week after that content’s original air date.

Authenticated viewing grew 591 per cent year-over-year, as 56 per cent of all video ad views on long-form and live content now come from behind authentication walls.

February 25, 2015
MEC Africa launched; Monica Kambo to head

MUMBAI: Media agency MEC has officially opened its doors to a new Sub-Saharan network, headquartered in Nairobi, Kenya.

Following WPP’s move to a controlling stake in ScanGroup last year, MEC Africa has launched with a team of over 20 people and will cover 22 markets in East and West Africa, supplementing MEC’s existing offering in South Africa and North Africa.

Monica Kambo has been named as managing director of the new office, and will work closely with MEC’s international team, Global Solutions, in London.

MEC Africa will work with existing ScanGroup clients and with MEC international clients in the region.

MEC global COO and EMEA chairman Alastair Aird said, “Launching MEC in new markets is always exciting, so I’m personally delighted to be welcoming 22 new markets into the MEC EMEA family. Africa is a complex but fascinating region, with many great opportunities, so it’s a truly exciting time to be partnering with our clients here. With the support of our collaborative and experienced network, and with Monica at the helm, I’m confident we’ll be able to integrate the same rigour and strategic leadership to our work for our clients as we do elsewhere in the world, and that for us is key to delivering growth to them.”

February 25, 2015
FoxyMoron bags the digital duties of &TV

MUMBAI: FoxyMoron has bagged the digital marketing duties of the yet-to-be-launched Hindi general entertainment channel (GEC) – &TV.

To be launched from the Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd (Zeel) stable, the mandate comprises managing the channel’s presence on social media platforms including Facebook, Twitter, Google+, Instagram and YouTube. The account was won following a multi-agency pitch.

FoxyMoron co-founder Suveer Bajaj said that this win established its foothold in the television entertainment industry and also brings along the creative opportunity to build an entirely new brand. “As a digital partner, it will be our aim to make the channel scale from the very beginning. With soaring engagement for brands in the entertainment industry, we have great aspirations for this new channel,” he said.

FoxyMoron will work towards creating and executing content revolving around the central belief of the channel – Jashn Jeene Ka (celebrating the spirit of living). It will also create programme-specific content for their flagship shows in order to utilize the ever growing populace of the digital space.

February 24, 2015
Chatter around India-SA match 30% lower than India/Pak match: MEC report

MUMBAI: Team India so far has been on a winning spree at the ongoing ICC Cricket World Cup 2015. The winning moments on field have also been translated on social media where fans have expressed their excitement on various platforms.

On 22 February when India won against South Africa the chatter around the match was 30 per cent lower than that of the much talked about India vs Pakistan match, according to a report prepared by MEC.

The report states that the hashtag #IndvsSA garnered only 0.2 million mentions as compared to the hashtag #IndvsPak at 0.3 million mentions. Further another hashtag, #cwc15, garnered 0.1 million mentions for both the matches.

Shikhar Dhawan was the most talked about player during the India vs South Africa match, but received almost half the mentions as compared to Virat Kohli during India’s clash against Pakistan.

Sports brand Nike’s “#bleedblue” campaign continued to be the most talked about brand mention, but received only 40 per cent mentions compared to that during India and Pakistan’s match. Official broadcaster Star Sports campaign #Maukamauka gained talk value during India vs South Africa with their new TVCs says the report.

In its concluding remarks the report states that it is clear that no match generates as much excitement and engagement as an India vs Pakistan match.

February 24, 2015
Yepme launches TV campaign with West Indies cricket team

NEW DELHI: Featuring leading lights of the West Indies Cricket Team, Yepme.com has come out with its latest campaign that will be aired during the World Cup telecast on Star Sports and all other channels.

The campaign features players like Chris Gayle, Darren Sammy, Marlon Samuels and Captain Jason Holder sporting the Yepme collection of #freshfashion and sharing their take on how it goes with the famed West Indian flair.

The new campaign will play alongside the #freshfashion campaign starring Shah Rukh Khan.

Yepme has sponsored the West Indies team in the ICC World Cup 2015 that is currently underway in Australia. The West Indies Cricket Team will play sporting the Yepme logo on their jerseys.

Yepme.com founder and COO Sandeep Sharma believed that West Indies cricket stars like Gayle, Sammy and Andre Russel are known for their effortless style and have a massive fan following in our cricket-crazy nation.

“We are extremely proud of this association and look at this as an opportunity to spread the message about Yepme being the destination for the latest fashion with cricket lovers across the globe,” Sharma said.

Yepme.com has gone all out in attracting attention of cricket lovers during this World Cup. Recently, the brand announced its ‘Fly To Australia and cheer for West Indies team’ contest, wherein 50 winners who downloaded its app and answered a question on Fresh Fashion are given tickets to Australia and a chance to watch the West Indies team live, along with three days and two nights’ accommodation.

February 23, 2015
Dentsu Communications appoints Vipul Thakkar as national creative director

MUMBAI: Dentsu Communications has appointed former DDB Mudra group creative head- South and East Vipul Thakkar as national creative director.

As the creative leader of Dentsu Communications, Thakkar will work towards strengthening the agency’s southern network and expanding the Mumbai operation. His appointment is part of a broader strategy to strengthen on the group’s creative caliber.

Dentsu India Group executive chairman Rohit Ohri said, “I am delighted to have Vipul as a part of the Dentsu Communications leadership team. ‘Work that works’ has been Vipul’s mantra. His work has worked not only for the brands that he’s worked on, but also for the agencies he has worked in. He has built motivated integrated teams, seamless agency networks and a solid creative reputation for the organisations he has worked for. I’m confident that Vipul’s creative leadership, will take Dentsu Communications to greater heights.”

Dentsu Communications CEO Simi Sabhaney added, “Vipul’s deep knowledge of both the South and West markets and his ability to creatively connect the dots in the integrated communication landscape is a perfect combination for a company like Dentsu. I am delighted to welcome Vipul into the DCPL family.”

Thakkar said, “I am thrilled at this moment when I don the hat of national creative director at Dentsu Communications. It will be my pursuit to produce effective communication, eked out from both newer insights and everyday rituals. This is a great opportunity to tap the potential of the south and west markets and to work with the wonderful and energetic team, where I will aim to channelize all energies leveraging our strengths and in validating the proof of the pie by building brands- effectively and consistently.”

Thakkar is a seasoned advertising professional with over 19 years in the business. He joins Dentsu from DDB Mudra Group, where he was creative head – South & East.

He has created work for brand categories such as lifestyle, finance, beverages, fashion and FMCG. At DDB Mudra he was responsible for work on Royal Challenge, McDowell’s No.1, TTK Prestige, Peter England and Jos Alukkas. Prior to DDB Mudra, he was at Ogilvy Bangalore, where he created ads for ITC Bingo, Sunfeast Yippee, Allen Solly, MTR and Titan watches.

February 23, 2015
TV ad spends to grow to over Rs 15,500 crore in 2015: Pitch Madison report

MUMBAI: 2015 seems to be an exciting year for television spends. According to the Pitch Madison report, in 2015 television spends are projected to grow to over Rs 15,500 crore, up from Rs 14,158 crore in 2015, showing a growth of 9.5 per cent.

The report further states that for last year, television grew by 14 per cent on par with its projected growth rate of 15 per cent and maintained its contribution to the total advertising pie at 38 per cent. TV advertising, which grew by approximately Rs 1,700 crore, saw two giants – the elections and the e-commerce segment spending in excess of Rs 1,050 crore.

This year’s biggest sports extravaganza, the International Cricket Council (ICC) Cricket World Cup 2015 is expected to bring in revenue of Rs 1,000 crore of which Rs 500 crore is likely to be additional revenue. The balance will be part of organic growth across segments like BFSI, telecom, consumer durables, automobiles and others.

With regards to new channel launches, the report states, “The Hindi general entertainment channel (GEC) space saw three launches – Zindagi, Sony Pal and Epic and the re-positioning of Big Magic as a national channel last year. 2015 is expected to see the trend to continue with many more new channel launches from existing networks. This increased inventory supply will in turn lead to a hike in advertising revenue.”

With the government extending the deadline for phase III of digitization, the increased penetration of digitization will also see increased spending not only on SD and HD channels but also on niche channels. The report also mentions that the facility of geo targeting ads on TV (as seen recently with Star picking up the initiative for the World Cup) will pull in more premium, local and retail advertisers. E-commerce along with marketers of mobile social apps are expected to continue their intensive push through higher advertising spends.

The report also mentions that while Hindi GECs contributed nearly 27 per cent of their overall TV revenue and continue being the leaders, a change in the order saw Tamil Cable and Satellite (TN CS) garnering the second largest chunk of ad revenues, as it grew from 7.2 per cent to 8.5 per cent in 2014, thereby overtaking Hindi news channels.

February 21, 2015
Omnicom named most creative agency by Gunn Report

MUMBAI: Gunn Report for Media named Omnicom Media Group Agency OMD Worldwide as world’s most creative media agency. This year, the perennial first ranked network was joined in the top three by sister Omnicom Media Group agency PHD Worldwide, which claimed the third place ranking.

The Gunn Report for Media is the industry standard for evaluating media creativity, ranking agencies according to their performance in the top industry awards shows around the world. Most importantly, it recognizes the vital role media agencies play in today’s highly competitive and fragmented communications landscape. The rankings reflect a point system based on awards won in more than 50 annual award competitions worldwide.

In addition to OMD leading the list with 521 points, the top five slots were claimed by Starcom-Mediavest (Publicis) with 467 points; Omnicom Media Group’s PHD (357 points); Mindshare (Group M) with 294 points; and UM (IPG) with 209 points.

With agencies claiming the first and third slots on the ranking, Omnicom Media Group is the only media holding group to have two agencies in the ranking’s top five. With a combined 878 points earned by its OMD and PHD networks, Omnicom Media Group also earned the most combined points of any media holding group in the ranking, followed by GroupM, which earned a total of 738 points earned across its four agency networks.

For its ninth showing at the top of the list, OMD’s top ranking reflects recognition earned in 2014 by agencies in every region across its network, with stand-out performers including OMD Singapore, OMD UK, OMD Colombia and OMD MENA, which was the most awarded media agency at the 2014 Effies.

PHD joins the Top Three for the first time, having won four Gold Media Lions in Cannes – the most Golds won by any media agency in 2014. Among the standout performers are PHD UK and PHD India; as well as PHD Hong Kong, PHD New Zealand, PHD China, PHD Denmark and PHD Colombia. PHD was also recognized in the report for having two of the world’s most awarded campaigns in 2014.

Omnicom Media Group CEO Daryl Simm said, “Awards are a great testament to the innovation and creativity of our networks and our people. No source provides as comprehensive a measure of an organization’s ability to deliver great work on a global level as the Gunn Report — we’re very proud of this recognition.”

February 21, 2015
DDB Mudra wins creative mandate for Pepsi IPL 2015

MUMBAI: The creative mandate of Pepsi IPL 2015 has been handed over to DDB Mudra group. Last year the creative responsibility was taken care by Havas Media and the campaign was named ‘Come on Bulawoa Aaya Hai’.

Confirming the development to Indiantelevision.com, a source in Multi Screen Media (MSM) said, “Havas Media is a creative agency associated with Sony Six and takes care of their campaigns. Whereas DDB Mudra handles the creative responsibilities of Sony Max. In an internal meeting, MSM decided to hand over the responsibility to DDB Mudra.”

Sources in DDB Mudra also confirmed the development to Indiantelevision.com.

It should be noted that initially IPL was only showcased on Sony Max but since MSM launched its sports channel Sony Six, the flagship tournament started featuring on both the channels.

MSM president Rohit Gupta earlier in a conversation with Indiantelevision.com mentioned that the campaign will be on air by the end of February. He had said, “IPL is our biggest asset and we will promote is as aggressively as possible.”

IPL starts just 10 days after ICC World Cup and a rejuvenating campaign is needed to grow interest amongst fans.

February 20, 2015