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Tag: Amitabh Kant

  • Viacom 18 launches MTV Kickstart with #StartUpIndia

    Viacom 18 launches MTV Kickstart with #StartUpIndia

    MUMBAI: Viacom18 has joined hands with #StartUpIndia, an initiative of the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) to launch MTV Kickstart – one of India’s largest outreach program for young entrepreneurs in a bid to woo bright young minds brimming with exciting ideas.

    MTV Kickstart will be an annual program that will equip the youth of India to start their own business.

    What’s more, the initiative will ultimately be taken on the small screen as a reality TV show titled MTV Kickstart. The show will have youngsters fighting out for their pie of the funds from the investors. As a reward, the winners will get seed funding for their idea.

    Viacom18 EVP and business head youth and English entertainment channels Ferzad Palia said, “The show that will go on MTV is just a part of the initiative. MTV Kickstart is well beyond the show. It’s all about educating the youngsters in this country who have so many amazing ideas but don’t know how to go about it. When you say the word ‘business,’ several people get intimidated by the heavy jargons. While not lessening the importance of the start-up business, we need to approach the youth in a way that they are not put off with it. MTV being a youth icon with a huge following deemed as the right informal platform to relax the intimidation quotient, bring in a bit of a fun while keeping the importance of the initiative intact.”

    Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP) secretary Amitabh Kant said, “I am excited about our association with Viacom18’s MTV for instituting a platform called MTV Kickstart. The multi-platform program will help us engage with the dynamic youth of India, help them start-up with ease and inspire a new generation to follow their dreams and become successful entrepreneurs.”

    Launched as an annual property, MTV Kickstart is a multi-platform initiative that will start with an outreach plan spanning 52 weeks, reaching out to 300 colleges across the country with media buzz across TV and digital. MTV along with #StartUpIndia will be hosting two-day long Start-Up Festivals across Tier 1 & 2 cities to allow the youth to have personal interaction with India’s top entrepreneurs and investors.

    Viacom18 group CEO Sudhanshu Vats added, “Viacom18 has always been at the forefront of being the catalyst of change within the media and entertainment space in India. We are in the business of entertainment that enriches the lives of our audiences through meaningful content and by engaging with them across multiple platforms. We now wish to extend the catalyst role to the start-up space as well by being a part of the journey of young entrepreneurs who dream to create a better tomorrow for India. The government of India has done a commendable job at addressing the need of the hour by instituting initiatives such as #StartUpIndia to encourage young Indians to become entrepreneurs. Through the launch of MTV Kickstart, we are delighted to partner with #StartUpIndia to cultivate a culture of innovation within India and help young minds create exciting new ventures that drive India’s growth story.”

    Delivered through engaging and interactive content via television, web, mobile and social media, MTV Kickstart will work towards educating youth about the ecosystem of start-ups. The program will aim to educate through personal and informal interactions with start-up kings, investors, advisory and much more.

     The initiative will be driven by iconic youth brand MTV and will also witness unprecedented media push across the entire might of Viacom18 and Network18 media assets, and be relayed across MTV India channels in over 40 countries.

  • Viacom 18 launches MTV Kickstart with #StartUpIndia

    Viacom 18 launches MTV Kickstart with #StartUpIndia

    MUMBAI: Viacom18 has joined hands with #StartUpIndia, an initiative of the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP) to launch MTV Kickstart – one of India’s largest outreach program for young entrepreneurs in a bid to woo bright young minds brimming with exciting ideas.

    MTV Kickstart will be an annual program that will equip the youth of India to start their own business.

    What’s more, the initiative will ultimately be taken on the small screen as a reality TV show titled MTV Kickstart. The show will have youngsters fighting out for their pie of the funds from the investors. As a reward, the winners will get seed funding for their idea.

    Viacom18 EVP and business head youth and English entertainment channels Ferzad Palia said, “The show that will go on MTV is just a part of the initiative. MTV Kickstart is well beyond the show. It’s all about educating the youngsters in this country who have so many amazing ideas but don’t know how to go about it. When you say the word ‘business,’ several people get intimidated by the heavy jargons. While not lessening the importance of the start-up business, we need to approach the youth in a way that they are not put off with it. MTV being a youth icon with a huge following deemed as the right informal platform to relax the intimidation quotient, bring in a bit of a fun while keeping the importance of the initiative intact.”

    Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP) secretary Amitabh Kant said, “I am excited about our association with Viacom18’s MTV for instituting a platform called MTV Kickstart. The multi-platform program will help us engage with the dynamic youth of India, help them start-up with ease and inspire a new generation to follow their dreams and become successful entrepreneurs.”

    Launched as an annual property, MTV Kickstart is a multi-platform initiative that will start with an outreach plan spanning 52 weeks, reaching out to 300 colleges across the country with media buzz across TV and digital. MTV along with #StartUpIndia will be hosting two-day long Start-Up Festivals across Tier 1 & 2 cities to allow the youth to have personal interaction with India’s top entrepreneurs and investors.

    Viacom18 group CEO Sudhanshu Vats added, “Viacom18 has always been at the forefront of being the catalyst of change within the media and entertainment space in India. We are in the business of entertainment that enriches the lives of our audiences through meaningful content and by engaging with them across multiple platforms. We now wish to extend the catalyst role to the start-up space as well by being a part of the journey of young entrepreneurs who dream to create a better tomorrow for India. The government of India has done a commendable job at addressing the need of the hour by instituting initiatives such as #StartUpIndia to encourage young Indians to become entrepreneurs. Through the launch of MTV Kickstart, we are delighted to partner with #StartUpIndia to cultivate a culture of innovation within India and help young minds create exciting new ventures that drive India’s growth story.”

    Delivered through engaging and interactive content via television, web, mobile and social media, MTV Kickstart will work towards educating youth about the ecosystem of start-ups. The program will aim to educate through personal and informal interactions with start-up kings, investors, advisory and much more.

     The initiative will be driven by iconic youth brand MTV and will also witness unprecedented media push across the entire might of Viacom18 and Network18 media assets, and be relayed across MTV India channels in over 40 countries.

  • Amitabh Bachchan & Priyanka Chopra replace Aamir Khan as ‘Incredible India’ brand ambassadors

    Amitabh Bachchan & Priyanka Chopra replace Aamir Khan as ‘Incredible India’ brand ambassadors

    MUMBAI: Bollywood stalwart Amitabh Bachchan and India’s new international face Priyanka Chopra have been named as the brand ambassadors for Government of India’s ‘Incredible India’ campaign, making it the first time that the government has appointed actors.

     

    The endorsement agreement will be for a period of three years and the official announcement is likely to be made after 26 January.

     

    To date, Bachchan has been the face of many social campaigns like Gujarat Tourism, Polio Eradication Drive, Hepatitis B etc. Chopra, on the other hand, has made leaps and bounds in her career in recent years. Apart from being applauded in the roles she portrays in Hindi films, she also made headway in Hollywood by debuting as the lead in ABC’s television series Quantico and is also the first South Asian actor to win the Favourite Actress in a New TV series award at this year’s People’s Choice Awards.

     

    The duo replaces erstwhile brand ambassador Aamir Khan, who had been roped in by the creative agency working on the campaign – McCann Worldwide.

     

    It may be recalled that Khan was in the eye of the storm late last year, over his ‘intolerance’ remarks, which were blown out of proportion as well as quoted out of context in the media. Khan was the face of the ‘Athithi Devo Bhava’ campaign for almost a decade.

     

    Earlier this month, the Ministry of Tourism had denied removing Khan as ‘Incredible India’ brand ambassador in a statement. In response to media reports citing that Khan would no longer be endorsing the campaign in light of the ‘intolerance’ controversy that broke out late last year, the Tourism Ministry clarified that “there is no change in the stand of the ministry in this matter.” 

     

    The Ministry further clarified that at present it had a contractual agreement with creative agency McCann Worldwide to produce social awareness campaign and it was the agency, which had an agreement with Khan.

     

    However, a senior bureaucrat Amitabh Kant, who was a key figure in implementing the campaign during his tenure with the Ministry of Tourism, earlier justified the government’s decision to remove the actor from the portfolio.

     

    At that time, Khan, on his part, had said, “Whether I am brand ambassador or not, India will remain Incredible, and that’s the way it should be.”

  • Amitabh Bachchan & Priyanka Chopra replace Aamir Khan as ‘Incredible India’ brand ambassadors

    Amitabh Bachchan & Priyanka Chopra replace Aamir Khan as ‘Incredible India’ brand ambassadors

    MUMBAI: Bollywood stalwart Amitabh Bachchan and India’s new international face Priyanka Chopra have been named as the brand ambassadors for Government of India’s ‘Incredible India’ campaign, making it the first time that the government has appointed actors.

     

    The endorsement agreement will be for a period of three years and the official announcement is likely to be made after 26 January.

     

    To date, Bachchan has been the face of many social campaigns like Gujarat Tourism, Polio Eradication Drive, Hepatitis B etc. Chopra, on the other hand, has made leaps and bounds in her career in recent years. Apart from being applauded in the roles she portrays in Hindi films, she also made headway in Hollywood by debuting as the lead in ABC’s television series Quantico and is also the first South Asian actor to win the Favourite Actress in a New TV series award at this year’s People’s Choice Awards.

     

    The duo replaces erstwhile brand ambassador Aamir Khan, who had been roped in by the creative agency working on the campaign – McCann Worldwide.

     

    It may be recalled that Khan was in the eye of the storm late last year, over his ‘intolerance’ remarks, which were blown out of proportion as well as quoted out of context in the media. Khan was the face of the ‘Athithi Devo Bhava’ campaign for almost a decade.

     

    Earlier this month, the Ministry of Tourism had denied removing Khan as ‘Incredible India’ brand ambassador in a statement. In response to media reports citing that Khan would no longer be endorsing the campaign in light of the ‘intolerance’ controversy that broke out late last year, the Tourism Ministry clarified that “there is no change in the stand of the ministry in this matter.” 

     

    The Ministry further clarified that at present it had a contractual agreement with creative agency McCann Worldwide to produce social awareness campaign and it was the agency, which had an agreement with Khan.

     

    However, a senior bureaucrat Amitabh Kant, who was a key figure in implementing the campaign during his tenure with the Ministry of Tourism, earlier justified the government’s decision to remove the actor from the portfolio.

     

    At that time, Khan, on his part, had said, “Whether I am brand ambassador or not, India will remain Incredible, and that’s the way it should be.”

  • India’s direct selling industry has Rs 645 billion potential by 2025: FICCI-KPMG report

    India’s direct selling industry has Rs 645 billion potential by 2025: FICCI-KPMG report

    NEW DELHI: Secretary in the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion of the Commerce Ministry Amitabh Kant said that direct selling will have to be given a greater thrust as it empowers women, MSMEs and promotes manufacturing in India.

     

    Speaking at FICCI DIRECT 2015, an annual flagship event for the Direct Selling (DS) industry, Kant said the industry has a potential to grow to Rs 1000 billion by 2025 much beyond the FICCI-KMPG report projection of Rs 645 billion.

     

    Acknowledging the need for clarity in definition of direct selling and a separate regulatory framework for the industry, Kant said his department had already submitted the draft guidelines to the Ministry for Consumer Affairs for the direct selling industry and was hopeful for its implementation by various states.

     

    He urged the industry to embrace technology as the industry can deliver better and even faster once technology becomes its strength.

     

    The FICCI-KPMG report on ‘Direct selling- Mapping the industry across Indian states’ released by Kant showed that direct selling is today a successful industry operating in over 100 countries with a market size of $ 180 billion.

     

    In India, the market was estimated at Rs 75 billion (2013-14), and formed around 0.4 per cent of the total retail sales in the country.  To showcase the potential and highlight the opportunities and challenges faced by the DS industry, FICCI organizes its annual event on Direct Selling ‘DIRECT’ every year.

     

     

    FICCI Secretary General A Didar Singh said “Indian Direct Selling Industry” is an important component of the Indian economy and acknowledging this, we at FICCI through our focused task force on direct selling is working dedicatedly towards the growth of this industry and seeking regulatory clarity for this new industry. FICCI is working closely with the Central and State Governments on the same and today’s conference is a step in that direction. Today, we have launched the FICCI-KPMG report on the current state and contribution of Direct Selling industry in various states. This would be a reservoir of information on how this industry is contributing towards the development of various parts of India. During the event, he assured Kant that FICCI would deliver a white paper on “Technology for Direct Selling”.

     

    The Report ‘Direct 2015 – Direct selling- Mapping the industry across Indian states’ by FICCI-KPMG in India highlights the current challenges faced by the industry and the potential that the industry holds in select Indian states.

     

    According to the report, the industry has recorded high double digit growth of about 16 per cent over the past four to five years. The market has grown to become a key channel for distribution of goods and services in the country, especially for health and wellness products, cosmetics, consumer durables, water purifiers and vacuum cleaners.

     

    The report attempts to analyse the region-wise direct selling market comparing and contrasting growth patterns. In the last five years, the industry has recorded strong growth rates especially in the states of Assam, Delhi, Punjab and West Bengal. North India has emerged as the largest region by market size and accounted for Rs 22 billion in 2013-14; South India which holds the second highest share of the direct selling market was pegged at Rs 19 billion in terms of revenue in 2013-14. While the north east is currently the smallest market, it has recorded the highest growth rate of 14 per cent in India with revenues of Rs 9 billion. The growth has primarily been driven by rising income levels, high rate of urbanization and growing consumerism in the states.

     

    The report also lists the challenges faced by the direct selling industry, one of the biggest being the lack of regulatory clarity.

     

    The direct selling industry has significantly contributed to women empowerment, skill development, technology percolation and the growth of the SMEs sector in the states, besides contributing to the state exchequer. Total indirect tax contribution by direct selling industry to the government in FY14 alone is estimated at Rs 740-790 million. In addition, the industry also provides a viable means of alternative income, which promotes self-employment. Going ahead, the industry is expected to be driven by factors such as growth in consumer markets and increase in the penetration to globally comparable levels.

  • India’s IPR Policy to fully protect patents, GIs and copyrights: Nirmala Sitharaman

    India’s IPR Policy to fully protect patents, GIs and copyrights: Nirmala Sitharaman

    NEW DELHI: Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, today said that the final draft of the National Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) Policy has been arrived at through a transparent process with inputs from all stakeholders and has been circulated for inter-ministerial consultation before being posed to the Union Cabinet for approval.

     

    She also sought to allay apprehensions in the minds of foreign investors about the strength of the Indian IPR regime.

     

    Sitharaman was speaking here while inaugurating a seminar on ‘Protecting Brands Abroad with the Madrid System’ organized by FICCI in association with World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) and DIPP.

     

    The draft policy, she said, focuses on stronger enforcement of IPR by increasing the manpower strength in IP offices and reducing the pendency of IPR filings. Most of the offices have done away with manual interface as all applications, queries and decisions are made online. 

     

    Speaking on the Madrid Protocol on registering and managing Trade Marks worldwide, the Minister said that the system allows an applicant to file one application, in one language and pay one set of fees to protect the Trademark in all WIPO member countries.

     

    For SMEs and start-ups, the Madrid Protocol is a cost-effective and time-saving way of having rights protected worldwide, she said, adding that the system would go a long way in reducing processes and provide ease of doing business.

     

    Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion secretary Amitabh Kant said that the government’s thrust is on creating a world-class IPR regime along with bringing down the pendency of IPR filings to global levels, he said and added that there is an imperative need to build Indian brands that can effectively penetrate the global markets.

     

    The remarks were made during a seminar on Protecting Brands Abroad with the Madrid System whereby experts from World Intellectual Property Organization, Indian IP Office and industry discussed the advantages and incentives to business from international trademark registration.

     

  • LifeCell emerges as the Regional Award Winner of Google SME Heroes Challenge 2015

    LifeCell emerges as the Regional Award Winner of Google SME Heroes Challenge 2015

    MUMBAI: LifeCell, India’s largest private umbilical cord stem cell bank won the regional award at the Google SME Heroes Challenge 2015 for innovative use of internet to expand its business. LifeCell was also among the top 5 national finalists, shortlisted from 25 SMEs from different regions.

     

    LifeCell is the first company in the industry to have taken early strides in the digital medium to take the concept of umbilical cord banking across expectant parents in the country. Over the years the company has established significant presence in digital advertising to create awareness around the concept, educate the customer, generate interest and help them to actively consider umbilical cord stem cell banking as a wise investment for their children.

     

    LifeCell’s digital innovations and initiatives include content marketing campaigns, product discovery & purchase journey enabled by a robust technology platform that integrates its web properties, customer contact center and mobile applications to create a delightful experience for customers. LifeCell’s digitally driven content marketing innovations such as pregnancy properties, events, offers from its brand partners in the lifestyle and mother & baby sectors are hugely popular among expectant couples.

     

    LifeCell received the award in Delhi at a grand finale organized by Google, presided over Amitabh Kant, Secretary, Department of Industrial Policy & Promotion (DIPP) – Ministry of Commerce & Industry.

     

    Speaking at the event, LifeCell’ chief marketing officer V.Ravi Shankar said “LifeCell was established in 2004. Until 2008, the service was largely a prescribed one by medical practitioners to expectant parents. We found that our audience of expectant parents was turning to digital media and especially Google to get information on pregnancy best practices including nutrition, fitness, do’s and don’ts. This was a big opportunity for LifeCell to reach out to pregnant couples across the country. We have been hand holding our audience in their journey towards parenthood by providing engaging content and online & offline infotainment programs. Digital media began our innings by providing a gateway to reach out to our audience directly. Today digital media serves as the one of the significant channel for expectant parents to reach out to us, catapulting the growth of our business and brand.”

     

    Earlier in November 2014, at a grand event organized by Google in Chennai, LifeCell was selected as one of the five finalists from Chennai to compete at the national level against leading SMEs across the country.

  • BBC World to host golf tournament in partnership with Ministry of Tourism

    MUMBAI: BBC World will be hosting the Spirit of Golf 2007 tournament on 20 January in New Delhi. This is the second time the channel has hosted the tournament.

    The channel will host the event in association with the Ministry of Tourism, India. The event will see corporate and political leaders, and city socialites compete for the Spirit of Golf top honours. This year’s participants include: Mr. Lloyd Mathias, MD Motorola; Harinder Sikka, vice president -Sales & Marketing; Nicolas Piramel; Restaurateur; AD Singh and Mr. Robert Vadera.

    Ministry of Tourism Joint Secretary Amitabh Kant who will also be participating says: “Golf is a unique tourism product and has huge opportunity in India. There is outstanding private infrastructure already available and golf tourism will form an integral part of the Incredible India campaign. We are happy to partner with BBC World’s Spirit of Golf 2007.”

    Following the launch of BBC World’s first ever localised advertising campaign, What Affects the World, Affects You the Spirit of Golf initiative strives to take forward the channel’s commitment to its corporate business partners in India.

    BBC World global director airtime sales Jonathan Howlett says, “Spirit of Golf is part of our endeavour to constantly develop and strengthen relationships with our customers and business partners. The tournament provides an opportunity for them to come together and interact in that special way that a game of golf provides. This year we are delighted to have the support of the Ministry of Tourism in building on the success of last year’s tournament.”

    The prize sponsors for Spirit of Golf 2007 are Sri Lankan Airlines, ITC Welcome Group, Britain – The May Fair and ACP- Rail International. The event is being managed by TSM. The first prize is an all expenses paid five day vacation to the UK, while the runners-up will receive a two days three nights stay in a premium property from the ITC Welcome Group.