Category: People

Mumbai: Following GroupM’s announcement of a global merger of Essence and MediaCom to form EssenceMediacom earlier this year, GroupM India has confirmed the elevations of Navin Khemka as CEO and Sonali Malaviya as chief strategy and transformation officer for EssenceMediacom South Asia. Both of them will play a powerful role in driving the integration of the digital and data-driven DNA of Essence with MediaCom’s multichannel, audience planning, and strategic media expertise, facilitating client growth globally through an agile response to an ever-evolving media landscape.

GroupM South Asia CEO Prasanth Kumar said, “Both Khemka and Malaviya are inspirational leaders, and under their leadership for MediaCom and Essence, they have been consistent in their efforts for the transformation of agency businesses. With both agencies coming together, we are all very excited and confident that we will continue to strengthen our client relationships and focus on our people and capabilities. I congratulate both on their new roles, and I am certain that this will be a formidable force in bringing some of the best work for our clients.”

EssenceMediacom APAC CEO Rupert McPetrie said, “The appointment of Khemka as CEO and Malaviya as chief strategy and transformation officer for EssenceMediacom South Asia provides us with very strong leadership and direction as we build our new agency of the future and transform the work we do for our clients. Both have a great track record, both have a firm belief in putting people first, and together they will bring new growth to our clients’ businesses.”

On his elevation, Khemka said, “I am looking forward to this transformational role of leading the merged agency of Essence and MediaCom. With our best-in-class data and digital-led solutions, I am confident that we will be able to future-proof our talent and offer new services. We thank all our clients for their continued trust and partnership. Our clients can now look forward to the sophistication from Essence-MediaCom that is required to succeed in the new era.”

He has over 25 years of experience across networks, working on the most aspirational brands. In his previous roles at GroupM, Khemka was part of the Mindshare team and was also actively involved in the merger of Maxus & MEC to form Wavemaker, ensuring a seamless transition of people, cultures, & clients. Under his leadership in the past four years, MediaCom has scaled new heights.

Speaking about her elevation, Malaviya said, “Clients today expect media to be at the frontlines of transformation – delivering rapid, scalable business change in an era of new possibilities. Every day, platforms evolve, creators emerge, and communities are formed. A flywheel of change is being powered at the intersection of consumers, content, and technology. I am looking forward to partnering with our highly talented teams and driving that change & achieving growth and transformation in a way that serves our consumers and clients—it is the best time to work in media!”

Malaviya has over 20 years of experience in management and media across industries and markets, including senior roles at Mindshare, PHD, and MediaCom in multiple markets. She came back to the GroupM family in 2018, where she was leading the agency’s Google business in India and Southeast Asia as Senior Vice President, Client Services. In 2021, Malaviya was elevated to MD of Essence India.

Both Khemka and Malaviya share a deep conviction for diversity, equity, and inclusion at the workplace, having personally led agency- and group-wide initiatives to embed the same. By combining the strengths of both teams at Essence and MediaCom, clients will be offered the best of both worlds, powered by the best and most diverse talent. Khemka and Malaviya will work together to bring additional specialisations such as e-commerce, addressable content, and digital OOH, to the offerings, while ensuring best-in-class core capabilities.

Both Khemka and Malaviya will be based out of Gurugram, and while Khemka will report to Kumar and McPetrie, Malaviya will report into Khemka. Both will continue to be a part of GroupM South Asia Exco.

Mumbai: On the occasion of Farmer’s Day, Astral Ltd.’s corporate social responsibility (CSR) arm, the Astral Foundation, released a short film. The film is based on the numerous contributions of Padma Shree Award winner Rahibai from the Ahmednagar region of Maharashtra.

The film celebrates Rahibai’s dedication for agrobiodiversity, the preservation and conservation of natural seeds, and spreading awareness about organic farming.

Hailing from Kombhalne, Rahibai learned about the side effects of hybrid seeds and crops at an early age despite not receiving any formal education. Thus, she started growing crops with only natural seeds and proceeded to preserve natural seeds for further cultivation. While her family and peers found her practises strange and pointless, her undying belief in her convictions led her to achieve several milestones for the benefit of her fellow villagers.

Furthermore, her dedication and efforts led her to emerge as an expert in natural seeds and their preservation, leading to her founding the Seed Bank of India, which is responsible for collecting indigenous seeds from all over the country. She was duly recognised for her contributions to the field of organic farming by the government.

Inspired by her lifelong dedication to her craft, Astral Foundation has contributed to her endeavours by setting up a water supply system so that there is water availability in summer months and, hence, her seed cultivation does not get affected.

“We are honoured to be associated with the respected Rahibai, and we appreciate her cause and philosophy toward organic farming and the preservation of natural seeds,” said Astral Ltd. VP of business development Kairav Engineer. “We think we should contribute towards such greater good for the farming sector which eventually will benefit everyone at the end of the day.”

“Our short film is a tribute to an inspirational woman who has taught us to overcome numerous obstacles and social barriers to achieve goals that could potentially benefit millions. Being a socially responsible corporate, we strive to wholeheartedly support noble causes such as Rahibai’s efforts towards organic farming and spreading awareness for the same,” he further added.

Mumbai: BBH India, a Publicis Groupe agency has announced that the agency’s CEO and chief creative officer Russell Barrett will be moving on to pursue other opportunities.

BBH India chief operating officer & managing director Himanshu Saxena will helm the agency’s leadership team.

Barrett has been with BBH for 12 years and has been instrumental in making BBH India one of the most sought-after creative agencies, winning several accolades including Cannes Lions, One Show Pencils, Andy’s, Spikes, D&ADs and London Internationals.

Speaking about the announcement Leo Burnett South Asia CEO & BBH India chairman Dheeraj Sinha said, “We would like to thank Russell for his invaluable contribution towards making BBH India the powerhouse it is today. He has laid down a very strong creative foundation and has been a fantastic partner to me in the time we’ve worked together. I wish him all the very best.”

He added, “We are fortunate that we have a stellar team of business, creative and strategy leaders at BBH who continue to run our businesses, relentlessly chasing growth and living up to the black sheep creative reputation. We are in the process of finalizing the new creative leadership at BBH India and will be making our announcement soon.”

Said Barrett, “I’ve had a brilliant journey for almost 13 years at BBH. It’s always been about the people, starting with Sir John Hegarty as a mentor, to the chance to work with some of the most brilliant minds and the nicest people globally and in India. I can positively say that the agency today is in extremely capable and talented hands. I wish Dheeraj and Himanshu and the amazing teams at BBH the very best as I prepare for new beginnings in the new year.”

Mumbai: E-commerce major, Myntra, has onboarded Sunder Balasubramanian as chief marketing officer. He announced his new position on LinkedIn.

Balasubramanian joins from Coupang, where he was the head of international marketing and managed the marketing launch of the brand in Taiwan and Japan.

 

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With an experience of more than 18 years, his roles span across the consumer-tech, FMCG, and advertising industries. Over this period, he has built proficiency in driving growth agendas, marketing and brand strategy, P&L delivery, new category development, digital marketing, innovation strategy, and team management and leadership.

In his career, Balasubramanian has also worked at Disney+ Hotstar, where he led the brand marketing, content marketing, and acquisitions mandates for the subscription business. Prior to that, he was the category head at Colgate Palmolive India, responsible for driving the P&L for the $500 million toothpaste business and leading brand and equity growth. He was with the FMCG giant for 13 years. He has also played a leadership role at McCann Worldgroup.

Mumbai: Arun Varghese, who previously held the designation of senior director – emerging tech and experiential marketing at Wavemaker India, has climbed the ladder. He is now the national head of emerging tech and experiential marketing at the agency. He made this public through a LinkedIn post.

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Armed with an experience of about 14 years, Varghese has been around at Wavemaker India for more than six years. He has been in various roles spanning across new business, events, and sponsorships, primarily in areas such as activations, emerging tech, and experiential marketing.

In his career, he has had two stints with 360Arc and has also worked with Edelman Cream India.

Following the resignation of NDTV India’s prime-time anchor Ravish Kumar, many other veterans are leaving one by one. The next one to join the forces is Abhishek Sharma.

After over 17 years of association with the media giant, Sharma, who served as one of the pioneer members of NDTV India’s Mumbai bureau, decided to exit.

This development took place soon after NDTV India’s co-founders Prannoy Roy & Radhika Roy and its senior executive editor Ravish Kumar decided to bid farewell.

On November 22, the Adani Group began the process of acquiring an additional 26 per cent stake in the company by launching an open offer that ended on 5 December.

Also Read: Adani gets 32 per cent subscription for open offer of NDTV shares

Mumbai: According to reliable industry sources, Disney+ Hotstar executive vice president and chief technology officer Akash Saxena has called it quits. He is expected to be replaced by Mukund Acharya, who has been playing the role of executive director of engineering at the OTT giant up until now.

Acharya has been with Disney+Hotstar since the beginning of 2019 and has moved up the ladder. In his role as executive director of engineering, he was responsible for leading engineering teams for monetization (adtech, subscriptions, payments), growth, and international.

Acharya has led various engineering roles at InMobi, Riverbed Technology, and Yahoo!

Saxena joined Disney+ Hotstar in 2017 and spent almost six years in various roles. Prior to that, he spearheaded the technology department of numerous companies like Craftsvilla, TinyOwl, and OpenTable. He was also the co-founder of Youpid.in, a matrimonial product that leveraged a person’s social network to help him/her find a suitable match for marriage.

Indiantelevision.com tried getting in touch with Saxena, but he was unavailable for comment.

Mumbai: Meera Vaidya is not your regular young woman from Mumbai. The daughter of a celebrated journalist father-turned TV and film producer and an educationist mother, Vaidya has not let her pedigree affect her in any way. In fact, she has rebelled against it on almost every occasion.

“My entire family was and still is in the media industry and being the rebel I was; I was adamant to do anything but join them, afraid of accusations of nepotism,” says Vaidya who graduated with her Master of Fine Art in creative producing at Columbia University in the US. “When I worked in Mumbai in the film world, I worked harder than most people in the office because I knew even a small mistake could be held against me.”

Instead of joining her father’s and cousin’s successful production house and studio, she decided to do an undergrad media course in the UK. “I have always wanted to make sure I know about everything before I made my decisions so when I took the media course it gave me a chance to explore different facets of media like journalism, marketing, and PR while living in the UK helped me broaden my worldview and knowledge on European films before I decided on the world of film,” she confesses.

Once that was done, she spent some time at a TV commercial production house, Chrome Pictures.

“I decided to do ad films since I knew I wanted to apply for film school and wanted to experience the whole production process multiple times,” says Vaidya. “In fact, in my year of working there, I rose from production assistant to AD to director’s assistant and was a part of over 15 advertisements. This is what I wanted to do, and I was finally doing it. I was contributing to the process of creating these films whilst understanding the production process from the root up.”

With her decision made, she applied to Columbia University, which gladly accepted her.

“Coming to Columbia only strengthened the things I learnt at work. It made me a better writer and helped me understand the world of indie filmmaking; I wouldn’t have that knowledge if not for it. I loved the things that others hated. I didn’t mind the paperwork for location permits. I realised that was where I was meant to be: in the middle of set, during the chaos in between shots, or during pre-production while developing scripts and budgeting,” reveals Vaidya.

It was not easy going all the way, however, she points out, especially because she was a young international woman of colour. “Teachers question your language skills, and people undermine my knowledge because of my age—I faced it all,” she reveals.

Her riposte to that is: “Work harder than ever.” “I made sure to write the best I could and be on as many sets as possible so I wouldn’t be undermined,” she says. That rigour has paid off, with her peers from Puerto Rico or New York asking her to be a producer on their projects. Her CV includes work on several short films and an OTT series.

Vaidya has learned the differences in shooting throughout the US. She shot and produced both Limpia and I Was Always Coming Back in New York. This work taught her how to manage and secure locations on a budget, organise and schedule a crew over a large city area, and ensure the films were completed on time. In Los Angeles, she shot and produced Out Of Water which taught her the specifics of managing LA permits and insurance, working with unions such as the actors guild SAG-Aftra, and working with the more commercial-minded crews of LA.

After these films’ completion, Vaidya then determined the best festivals for the films to be played at. She worked to place Limpia at both the Bushwick and Coney Island Film Festivals, where the film was well received, and I Was Always Coming Back at the Woodstock Film Festival, the LA Black Film Festival, and the Brooklyn Film Festival. After being an associate producer on a short that went to the Sundance Film Festival, Vaidya understood the benefits of film festivals, not only for the films but also to meet new creators and future collaborators.

Since moving to LA, Vaidya has not slowed down one bit. She continues to produce and develop feature scripts with her creative collaborators.

Her work ethic stems from her school education at the J Krishnamurthy institution in India, where she was trained in asking the question “why” to everything and in every situation. “The school followed many of his philosophies: living with the most basic resources, finding your self-independence, seeing the world in its rawest and uncensored form, and finally, always asking “why.” For the longest time, it was the last philosophy I never understood. “Why” was the answer to every question someone asked him. This was until my English teacher told me something interesting: “If you don’t ask yourself why until the point where you feel the most vulnerable and get to know yourself truly, then how would you write your characters in a way that they feel real?”

That piece of advice will serve her in good stead as she moves on in her career.

Mumbai: Media Partners Asia (MPA) has released a report titled “Asia Pacific Pay-TV Distribution 2022,” which predicts that, excluding China, Asia-Pacific (APAC) Pay-TV revenues will reach $35 billion by 2027.

According to the report, total Asia Pacific Pay-TV industry revenues, including subscriptions and advertising, will grow by an estimated 3.5 per cent  in 2022 and will grow at a 2.1 per cent  CAGR over the next five years.

Pay-TV subscriber growth in Asia Pacific (excluding China) will be relatively flat in 2022, with an estimated 1,06,000 subscribers cutting the cord.

The report, “Asia Pacific Pay-TV Distribution 2022,” examines the economics of the pay-TV and fixed broadband industries in 17 APAC markets, including subscribers, consumer and advertising spending, content investments, and future growth in the cable, DTH, and IPTV sectors.

Excluding China, the Asia-Pacific Pay-TV revenue pie is expected to grow 1.4 per cent  in 2022 and 1.7 per cent  between 2022 and 2027. India, Korea, the Philippines, and Vietnam will account for the majority of revenue growth in 2022. Between 2022 and 2027, India and Korea will continue to contribute the most to incremental revenue growth.

India, Korea, and Japan will continue to be the largest revenue-generating markets in Asia Pacific, excluding China, with a combined 74 per cent  share in 2022, rising to 78 per cent  by 2027. Australia, Malaysia, and the Philippines will continue to be important, contributing seven per cent by 2027, though both will experience cord cutting and face significant structural challenges.

Total Asia Pacific (ex-China) Pay-TV subscribers will increase from 232.9 million in 2022 to 234.7 million by 2027, with TV home penetration reaching 48 per cent in 2027, up from 50 per cent in 2022.

According to MPA analysis, cord cutting peaked between 2019 and 2021, with an aggregate 9.1 million subscription cancellations, driven by erosion in key markets such as Australia, Malaysia, and Thailand, as well as the contraction of the cable universe in India.

Going forward, MPA expects 1.0 million net new submarines to be added in total between 2022 and 2027, driven by India and parts of South and Southeast Asia but offset in part by contraction in all other regions. Over the 2022–27 period, India and the Philippines will lead in terms of net new subscriber growth.

India will continue to be the largest market, accounting for 52 per cent of total subs by 2027, with DTH satellite platforms driving the majority of growth as overall penetration remains flat.

Korea is the second-largest contributor, accounting for 16 per cent of subs by 2027, thanks to telco IPTV operators. Pakistan and Vietnam will each have six per cent of total pay-TV subscribers by the end of 2027, while Japan’s high ARPU but declining subscriber base will contribute five per cent by then.

Commenting on the report’s findings, MPA executive director Vivek Couto said, “Pay-TV’s future sustainability is anchored to bundled IPTV and home broadband services, with telcos and pay-TV operators also integrating premium online SVOD services through the launch of Android platforms, hybrid STBs, and various new packages. Linear TV remains important, with local and Asian content, sports, and niche international channels driving viewership. However, the growth of legal and affordable online SVOD options as well as the pervasiveness of piracy means that the value of premium sports and entertainment is migrating rapidly away from pay-TV to online. Operator consolidation grew between 2019 and 2021, and we expect more to occur in markets such as China, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, and Taiwan. Linear channel products are being rationalised in many markets across Southeast Asia as well as India, Hong Kong, Japan, and Taiwan.”

China is still the largest pay-TV market in Asia Pacific, but it is inaccessible to international investors and content providers. The high-volume, low-ARPU pay-TV market continues to expand, with total pay-TV subscribers expected to reach 578 million by 2022, representing 90 per cent penetration of TV households after accounting for multiple subscriptions. After surpassing cable TV as the largest pay-TV segment in 2019, IPTV continues to grow in terms of subscribers and revenue, owing to popular telco fibre broadband bundles and superior content offerings (particularly premium on-demand) over cable TV. MPA forecasts 41 million new IPTV subscriptions in China between 2022 and 2027, bringing the total base to 419 million by 2027, with IPTV accounting for 76 per cent of the total fixed broadband base.

Telcos & IPTV Rule Ex-India

The Asia Pacific IPTV market is expected to grow by eight per cent year on year in 2022, reaching 416.5 million subscribers, accounting for more than 60 per cent of total telco fixed broadband subscribers. China continues to drive much of the growth, followed by Korea, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, and Malaysia. Telco fibre broadband deployments continue to grow as high-speed connectivity becomes more common in homes. The importance of video remains, with IPTV and VOD services critical to bolstering the broadband bundle.

According to MPA projections, total Asia-Pacific IPTV subscribers will reach 464 million by 2027. Total Asia Pacific IPTV subscription fees will rise from $20.5 billion in 2022 to $24.7 billion by 2027, representing a four per cent CAGR, driven primarily by China and Korea with incremental growth in Southeast Asia.

Meanwhile, demand for low-ARPU TV channel bundles, HD services, and hybrid DTH/internet video services drives growth in the DTH satellite pay-TV industry. With an estimated 56 million DTH subscribers in 2022, India continues to be the largest DTH market, accounting for 73 per cent of total Asia Pacific DTH pay-TV subscribers. DTH will continue to be the primary driver of growth in India’s pay-TV market, capturing the majority of new TV households entering the pay-TV ecosystem.

The Philippines’ DTH market is expanding, reflecting demand for low-ARPU platforms with national reach (such as Cignal and GSat) that aggregate local and international TV channels. The DTH pay-TV market in other markets (such as Indonesia and Thailand) has been severely impacted and downgraded.

In mature markets with SVOD and broadband competition, DTH operators continue to harvest high-ARPU subscribers with HD services and next-generation STBs with VOD and broadband connectivity. Foxtel in Australia, Sky TV in New Zealand, and Astro in Malaysia are a few examples.

According to MPA forecasts, Asia Pacific DTH industry subscription revenue will grow at a CAGR of one per cent to reach $6.3 billion by 2027. India will remain the region’s leader, followed by Japan, Malaysia, and Australia. By 2027, the Philippines will be ranked fifth.

Mumbai: MGM’s Worldwide Television Group chairman Mark Burnett is exiting after the company’s $8.5 billion acquisition by Amazon.

Burnett has had a huge impact on the reality TV genre and has created shows like Survivor, The Voice, Shark Tank and The Apprentice which was hosted in the US by Donald Trump.

In 2014 he had sold a majority of his companies to MGM and came to the studio. Later he sold the rest of his companies for MGM stock.

In a memo to the staff he wrote, “It takes great teams of talented people to produce more than 3,200 total hours of television including long-running hits like Survivor, The Voice and Shark Tank and innovative scripted series like The Bible, which together have garnered 143 Emmy nominations.”

He further explained that he had a clear strategic vision to build and grow MGM’s television division with my dynamic team, which included buying great companies like Evolution and Big Fish, adding international scripted and unscripted teams, and starting a documentaries unit. He revealed, “We took calibrated risks and hired great people – and the business grew.”

“That growth was critical to MGM’s future, because MGM needed to maximize its value in order to attract a global streaming partner and be ready for its next 100 years.  I am proud to have been part of the team that achieved the historic sale to Amazon in 2022,” he said.

Burnett went on, “Now, after months of collaborative transition efforts, we have thoughtfully re- organised our teams so that they all have the opportunity to prosper under the leadership of Mike Hopkins, Jennifer Salke and Christopher Brearton. In these days of media layoffs I am proud to say that everyone in the TV division has been offered a way to continue to contribute. No one was left behind.”

“As I step away from day to day management and back into independently creating and innovating, I will continue to oversee my legacy series and be available to all of you and to Amazon for guidance and support. Thanks team – I literally could not have done any of this without each of you,” he stated.

Amazon Studios, Prime Video senior vice president Mike Hopkins in a note thanked Burnett for his countless contributions to success and, on a personal level, for his partnership and counsel throughout the integration. “I know you’ll all agree that he is one of the most innovative, creative, and prolific television producers in our industry, and we have been extraordinarily fortunate to have him on our team,” he said.

“Mark’s stepping aside of course raises both opportunities and questions about how we’ll be organised moving forward. You’ll be hearing more about this shortly,” he elucidated.

Hopkins further added, “I am incredibly proud of the outstanding television and film content that we produce, and look forward to 2023 and beyond, when as a fully integrated team we continue to build on this legacy. Thanks for all your commitment and dedication as we head into a dynamic and successful future together.”