Brands

GUEST ARTICLE: Why do brands need to be more vigilant about brand infringement attacks?

Published

3 years ago

November 18, 2022

Mumbai: The meaning of brand safety has evolved over time for marketers. In traditional marketing, a marketer’s focus was to ensure their trademarks and copyrights were protected.

When it came to brand safety, brands primarily focused on making sure their advertisements appeared in a safe environment.

With the evolution of the digital era, things became complicated for brands. Today, brand safety is more than just safe ad placement. It has grown to the point where it is necessary to take the right measures to combat infringement attackers who target unsuspecting and trusting customers of the brand.

The evolution of threats in the digital era

As digital technology took a revolutionary leap, fraudsters also took bigger and smarter steps to con marketers. They have used the digital realm as a medium to steal the trademarks and intellectual property of brands and use them against them.

In most cases, this digital theft leads to the theft of money or information from people who are loyal to the brand.

The fraudsters look for one loophole to seep through the brand’s protected assets and use them for their own benefit. And with the evolution of the digital arena, fraudsters are becoming smarter. With time, infringement attacks have gone beyond just tampering with the intellectual property of a brand.

Some of the evolving infringement threats looming on the brands are:

ATO attacks: The fraudsters have mastered the skill to replicate and misuse the brand’s domain, website, and logo. They have broadened their level of attacks from just intellectual properties to stealing the brand’s consumer data.

One of the highest-growing infringement threats to brands is account takeover attacks, where a fraudster gets access to a person’s online account. Generally, the fraudster takes over the account of the user and locks them out of their own account. According to a recent report, ATO attacks have increased by up to 90 per cent in the past two years.

The consequences of the ATO attacks are not limited to consumer data leaks. It leads to the brand losing the trust of a loyal customer. When a user’s account is compromised, they are unable to access the brand’s website or services.

The user’s data is a gold mine for fraudsters, as they use it to steal payment details and make purchases. Either the money is directly taken from the accounts or the points on shopping sites and apps are used to buy goods and services.

While the pandemic has caused a surge in ATO attacks, it has also made it necessary for brands to be more vigilant to protect their consumers’ data. To bring trust and safety to the entire customer experience journey, brands must take charge and ensure consumer data protection.

Fake customer care numbers: Fraudsters have hacked not only consumer data but also brand customer service numbers. With the growing demand for being online, brands have started putting their customer care numbers online. And the con artists have discovered yet another winning pot from which to profit.

The number of cases where people have been duped by a fake customer care executive has increased. When a consumer searches for the number online, they find the customer care number available. But here is the catch.

The fraudsters put fake customer care numbers under the name of a legitimate brand. And when consumers call on these numbers, they are often fooled into transferring money.

Eventually, the fraudster gets the money, the consumer loses the money, and the brand name used to dupe them loses its reputation without their knowledge.

Spam emails: The search engine is no longer necessary because fraudsters can now enter the inbox without raising suspicion. The fraudsters can use a brand’s email template, and logo to reach out to their consumers, just like a legitimate brand. In most cases, they lure users with things like an “extravagant offer” or an “urgent message” to take quick action.

Usually, the user is either asked to share their personal information in exchange for the offer or asked to download an app or visit a website. When the user takes the action, the fraudsters get access to their information and can misuse it for their own gain.

This is a wake up call

As digital marketing is set to take new leaps, cyber risks are also looming in the digital era, which is going to impact both brands and their loyal consumers. And with the growing threats, the need for brands to incorporate a shield for their new digital world has become a necessity. Thus, the brands have to go beyond the traditional definition of brand safety. To uphold the brand’s reputation, the brands have to focus on a solution to protect not just their brand but also their consumers and stakeholders.

The author of this article is mFilterIt director and co-founder Amit Relan.

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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

7 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

7 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

7 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.