ITV

Tag: CEO

  • Global fashion and lifestyle brand “Smiley” to enter India

    Global fashion and lifestyle brand “Smiley” to enter India

    MUMBAI: Smiley, one of the most recognized icons in the world and an iconic global and lifestyle fashion brand, today announced its plans to enter India market through its anchor brand Smiley. The company’s plan is to set up exclusive Smiley stores which would have the complete merchandise of The Smiley Company – apparel, sportswear, shoes, bags, jewellery, school merchandise, accessories and even Smiley branded chocolates and confectionery.

    Brandspoke is seeking Indian partners including distributors, manufacturers, and franchise partners to establish Smiley as the preferred fashion and lifestyle brand.

    Smiley was founded in 1972 by creator Franklin Loufrani. Owner of the iconic smiley logo and emoticons, in 1997, Franklin’s son Nicolas Loufrani introduced the first emoticons which later became the universe of Smiley¬ World. Its products are sold worldwide with strong trademark and copyright protection.

    Smiley has already registered its trademark in over 100 countries and active in more than 25 different industries. The Smiley brand and logo have significant exposure through licensees in sectors like clothing, home decoration, perfumery, plush, stationery, publishing, and through promotional campaigns.

     
    Speaking on the Smiley Company’s strategy for India market, Mr. Nicolas Loufrani, CEO, Smiley said, “Smiley’s number one market in the digital world is currently India which represents almost 15% of our entire global fan base. Having started to seed our positive values online and seeing the tremendous interaction with our Indian fans we feel it is now time to extend our activities here and provide them with the Smiley products they all dearly wish to see”.

    About “Smiley London” and Smiley “Happy Sports” product ranges showcased at India Fashion Forum 2014, Mumbai, India.

    “Smiley London” is a daring revival of the Smiley heritage born out of the Brit¬ish electronic and house music scene, where Smiley ruled the dance floors. Smiley London revisits back in the day when it was about unity and togeth¬erness and revives the spirit of wearing your smiley with pride and keeping the beats alive.

    Smiley “Happy Sports” delivers a colourful and vibrant alternative to an overtly branded sports fashion market, drawing from the original concept behind sports fashion and reminding people that sport and activity is about movement, teamwork, togetherness, enjoyment and making the most of your life. Happy Sports works with bold and bright colour ways to deliver a collection which catches the eye.

    The ever expanding collection targeted at a young 18-to-35 years fashion audience is bang on trend stylish high quality tee’s, tops, hoodies, varsity jackets, baseball caps, beanies all with on trend print applications, such as metallic foils, urban camo’s and classic smiley prints.

    The designs are positive and energetic which is both universal and accessible, appealing to all ages and sporting interests. Smiley ‘Happy Sports’ sells a philosophy of ‘Stay Active, Stay Happy’.

     

  • Now Dish TV opts to dish out channel reach data

    Now Dish TV opts to dish out channel reach data

    MUMBAI: It is taking transparency and openness to a totally different level. First it prised open the bundled channels that IndiaCast was offering and it started selling them to subscribers a la carte. Now, India’s oldest DTH operator, Dish TV,with a subscriber base of nearly 12 million says that it is planning to open up crucial subscriber information to media agencies and advertisers. 

     

    The DTH provider says it is looking at providing reach data of various channels on its platform every month to advertisers and media buyers from February 2014 onwards to enhance their understanding of how viewers are watching it. The data which is scheduled to be released in February will be for the month of January. 

     

    “We have been approached by media planners and advertisers often to share our data to enable them to get a better handle on the performance of various channels and since this data is universe data and not based on a small sample, it could prove to be a very valuable addition to the existing published data for eg from TAM and or other rating agencies,” says Dish TV CEO RC Venkateish.

     

    The data given out will be as percentages. “We would provide the reach of each channel as a percentage of the total platform reach. So if a particular channel is in all packs it would reach 100 per cent of the platform, however if it is only in the top tier pack or is an a la carte then the reach would obviously be a fraction of the platform reach,” adds Venkateish. This means that if channel X is available in two packs whose subscriber base put together is 3 million that means its reach will be 25 per cent.

     

    Media planners have welcomed Dish TV’s openness with open arms. Madison Media COO Karthik Lakshminarayanan says: “It is a welcome move for advertisers. The data will be more robust and it will also help us in planning and taking better decisions. We will be aware of the strong markets of Dish TV and if our client wants then they can advertise on its landing pages.” He also added that it could also help Dish TV to rake in more revenue.

     

    On the other hand ZenithOptimedia CEO Satyajit Sen has a slightly different point of view. Although he does agree that the move is a good one, he feels it won’t help Dish TV get more revenue neither will it help in targeting better for advertisers. “Several times, channels oscillate due to uneven distribution and this transparency will help us understand the fluctuations better,” he says.

     

    In November last year, the daddy of the DTH community had introduced a special scheme called ‘on request channels’ through which people could subscribe to channels only if they wanted to, and remove unnecessary ones. This had started a round of fisticuffs between it and IndiaCast, which was renewing its channel deal with the platform. Both IndiaCast and Dish TV knocked on the doors of the Telecom Disputes Settlement Appellate Tribunal (TDSAT).The latter was ordered by the tribunal not to charge carriage fees and even call the scheme a la carte, while the former was told to discontinue the ads that were being carried on TV and in print, which were potentially inciting subscribers to go to other platforms.  From 1 January, 22 IndiaCast channels are available on a la carte on Dish TV and another 11 will follow from 1 April.

      

    RC (as he is known by colleagues) today believes that the move to take the channels a la carte has worked out exactly as he had foreseen it would. 

     

    Says he quite ecstatically: “Our recent initiative to empower consumers to avail channels according to their demand profile has been eye opening. The results so far have been fully consistent with our expectations and reinforce our beliefs that through the mechanism of forced bundling by aggregators a whole lot of channels with barely any pull are forced down the throats of platforms as well as consumers. Where true consumer choice is exercised you will find that the data is very revealing! In a way, despite valiant noises, the emperor isn’t wearing too many clothes!!!”

     

    So what do broadcasters have to say about Dish TV’s openness?  ZMCL CEO Alok Agrawal says that the move will benefit niche channels the most since TAM data provided about them isn’t always sufficient. However, Asianet business head Anup Chandrashekaran feels that one has to be cautious about any data dished out. “Dish TV also has ownership issues and so it is important to know how unbiased the data is. However, it is still a fraction of a majority and decisions can’t be taken on this data. It can be a good feedback though,” he says.

     

    Dish TV is a subsidiary company of the Essel group that runs the Zee Network, hence Chandrashekaran’s concern. 

  • Chhota Bheem, Honda to promote road safety among kids

    Chhota Bheem, Honda to promote road safety among kids

    MUMBAI: As the leading two-wheeler manufacturer to inculcate safe riding habits in India since 11 years, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India Pvt. Ltd – the Only Honda in Indian 2Wheeler industry today announced its latest step for promoting responsible riding and road safety.

    Partnering with POGO, Brand Honda has associated with Chhota Bheem – India’s most loved animation character for safety promotion among kids along with their families.

    Honda wanted to promote safety riding among kids in a fun manner, as educating young minds on road safety is an effective way of spreading message to the entire family. As a next step, Honda saw perfect synergy & brand fitment in Chhota Bheem who is the role model to not just small kids but entire family. In his exploits with his friends in Dholakpur village, Chhota Bheem character conveys all the aspects of a superhero – be it strong values, might, courage, discipline or learning.

     
    Very soon ‘Honda Safe Riding with Chhota Bheem’ will be organized in 11 cities across India where Chota Bheem will engage and interact with kids and people at large. The national inaugural event at Delhi will be followed by Jaipur, Indore, Lucknow, Bhubaneswar, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Greater Noida and Nagpur.

    ‘Honda Safe Riding with Chhota Bheem’ will provide an opportunity for kids to learn safety riding tips, meet ‘Chhota Bheem and get clicked with their favorite Super Hero. Fun and interactive activities like understanding road sense in CRF 50, painting competitions etc. will drive home the message of road safety through fun times with family.

    Further, all Honda dealerships will carry new POP material for spreading road safety message amongst kids suitably supported with free distribution of Road safety education material in schools. We will also be running a Chota Bheem TVC on Pogo to spread road safety messages backed by aggressive digital media campaign.

    Excerpts from Company officials-

    “As HMSI expands in production capacity, the social responsibility of the company is getting bigger. HMSI has further built it’s commitment towards road safety by associating with Pogo and Popular character Chhota Bheem. Honda together with Chhota Bheem shall spread the message on importance of road safety across the country”, said Mr. Keita Muramatsu – President & CEO, Honda Motorcycle & Scooter India

    “Safe riding is Honda’s priority worldwide and in India too. Research showed us that not just 73% kids between 4-14 years but also a high percentage of parents regularly watch Chhota Bheem.  Hence, it was an obvious choice for Honda to align with POGO & we are delighted to welcome Chhota Bheem. With his lively presence, Honda will spread safety message forward among kids and their families”, said Mr. Y.S Guleria, Vice President – Sales & Marketing, Honda Motorcycle and Scooter India

    Juhi Ravindranath, Vice President, Ad Sales, South Asia, Turner International India Pvt. Ltd. said, “POGO is excited to partner with Honda two wheelers on this noble initiative. Chhota Bheem’s immense popularity and   admiration with kids and parents only helps us reinforce the message of road safety.”

     

  • Y&R’s chairman & CEO Edward Ney is no more

    Y&R’s chairman & CEO Edward Ney is no more

    MUMBAI: Young & Rubicam former chairman and CEO, Edward N Ney, breathed his last on 8 January at 88 years old.

     

    He had joined the company as a young account manager in 1951 and worked his way up to preside over the company as CEO from 1970 till 1986.

     

    The industry attributes him for creating the agency’s integrated “whole egg” strategy which was later followed by others. In a press statement, WPP Group’s global CEO Martin Sorrell said that Ney “understood, probably more than anyone else, both the power of agency brands and, at the same time, the paradoxical need to bring them together… He understood it all and saw it sooner than most.”

     

    Besides his work at Y&R, Ney was politically active as well. He became a member of the Council on Foreign Relations in 1974. In 1989, President George HW Bush nominated him as the United States Ambassador to Canada. He served in Ottawa until June 1992.

     

    After his time as the ambassador, Ney returned to the agency as chairman.

     

    Ney is survived by his wife, a son and two daughters.

  • ZEE confirmed as Title Sponsor for 2014 Jaipur Literature Festival

    ZEE confirmed as Title Sponsor for 2014 Jaipur Literature Festival

    MUMBAI: The Jaipur Literature Festival has announced ZEE Entertainment as the new title sponsor for the 2014 Festival, taking place next week between 17 – 21 January 2014. The Festival will now be known as the ‘ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival’.

     

    Launched in 1992, ZEE is one of the largest media organisations in the world, entertaining over 700 million viewers across the globe weekly. Their sponsorship of the Festival furthers their commitment to quality entertainment in Indian languages, at home and abroad.

     

    The Festival, which is now in its seventh edition, will welcome a wealth of world-class literary talent next week, including Jonathan Franzen, Jumpha Lahiri, Amartya Sen, Harold Varmus, Tash Aw, Samantha Shannon and Reza Aslan.

     

    Inspired with this thought, “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” – (The World is my Family), ZEE has partnered with the Jaipur Literature Festival to extend its commitment to the Arts and culture, by bringing Festival audience and visitors the best literary minds from across India and the world.

     

    Mr. Subhash Chandra, Chairman, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited, said, “Literature, as they rightly say, preserves our cultural ideals, customs and morals. ZEE has been the cultural ambassador of our nation to the rest of the world for over two decades. Our traditions and rich culture, weaved into our content, reaches over 700+ million viewers across the globe. Our brand positioning – Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, resonates this effort of ours, to unify the diverse cultures and traditions across the world into one Family. Celebrating this legacy further, we are extremely proud to associate with Jaipur Literature Festival.”

     

    Mr. Punit Goenka, MD & CEO, Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited, commented “ZEE has redefined itself from being a broadcaster to a content company. We at ZEE, believe that one has to constantly innovate and offer creative content solutions to audiences to enhance their engagement. The ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival association further strengthens our endeavour in creating compelling and engaging story telling for our viewers.”

     

    Sanjoy K. Roy, Producer of the ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival, said: “We are thrilled to welcome ZEE Entertainment as title sponsor to the Jaipur Literature Festival, the world’s largest free literary festival. Their support will allow us to keep the Festival open to all, whilst bringing a wealth of world class talent to Jaipur each year. We look forward to a strong partnership as the ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival.”

  • GroupM launches new advanced television unit

    GroupM launches new advanced television unit

    MUMBAI: GroupM today announced the launch of a new innovative TV business unit that will offer clients superior targeting and engagement capabilities in what has become a technology driven, data fused, addressable media environment.

    The announcement was made by GroupM North America CEO Kelly Clark, who said the unit will be called Modi Media and will be led by Michael Bologna, GroupM’s Director of Emerging Communications. Bologna’s appointment as President of Modi Media is effective immediately, and his previous role is being folded into his new position.

    “We are preparing for a world of media consumption and advertising message delivery that is radically different from what we see today,” Clark said in making the announcement. “Data and technology are driving enormous change in the structure and the economics of the television business, and it’s critical that we are ready to help clients navigate the new landscape. Modi Media will develop powerful advanced TV solutions for advertisers.” Clark said Modi (pronounced “Mo-Dee”) will offer solutions that provide advanced targeting, less waste, improved ROI, and deeper engagement.

     Specifically, the unit will cover four practices:

    DIGITAL CONTENT DISTRIBUTION: Focused on the promotion of sale or rental of digitally distributed films across cable and satellite platforms and through connected devices (iTunes, Xbox, Amazon, Vudu).

    ADDRESSABLE TV: Addressable television is the ability to send a TV commercial to a specific household based on a brand’s actual target profile. Targeting criteria can include income, advanced demography, and purchase behavior, among others. Ads are served only to the homes that fit the specified target criteria. The current reach potential of addressable TV is 40 million TV homes across the US, and is expected to grow significantly.

    HYPER-LOCAL TV: Hyper-local television is the ability to insert a TV commercial directly to a specific zone or zip code based on geographic skews, sales data, trading radius etc. This helps focus clients’ TV advertising in highly concentrated local neighborhoods without having to buy an entire market, thereby reducing waste.

    INTERACTIVE TV (iTV): iTV enables advertisers to engage consumers more deeply with interactive content and promotions, using TV commercials as a “jumping off point.” Solutions include dedicated advertiser channels, commercial overlays for lead generation, smart TV applications and e-commerce. Modi will provide advertisers with strategic planning, buying, production, and data analysis across platforms including cable, satellite, telco and gaming services.

    Rino Scanzoni, Chief Investment Officer of GroupM, noted that Modi will be supported by the full resources and scale of GroupM including its TV implementation, optimization, research and data capabilities. The unit’s services will be made available to clients of all GroupM agencies, which include Maxus, MEC, MediaCom and Mindshare. In addition the new unit will offer its mservices to other WPP agencies and directly to clients who may not work with a GroupM media agency.

    Bologna started his career at MEC in 1998 as an assistant media planner on the agency’s AT&T account. He was an original member of MEC’s digital unit (The Digital Edge) and more recently has held positions that focused specifically on advanced television. He is known throughout the television and media industries for his expertise in the field of advanced digital communications.

  • Sony Six bags broadcasting rights for Australian Open

    Sony Six bags broadcasting rights for Australian Open

    MUMBAI: The sports channel from the Multi Screen Media bouquet, Sony Six, has been establishing itself as a channel in broadcasting non-cricket sports. Late last year, the channel had won the exclusive broadcasting rights to the Pakistan vs Sri Lanka cricket series.

     

    Continuing with the trend, it has now bagged the exclusive broadcast rights for the Australian Open – the Grand Slam of Asia-Pacific, in India for a duration of five years. The channel will solely telecast all matches of the tournament live from 2015 till 2019. 

     

     On the acquisition, the newly anointed MSM CEO NP Singh said, “Over the years, the Australian Open has established itself as one of the most revered competitions in the hearts of Asian sports fans. With the strong equity that the sport enjoys, we are committed to further expand the distribution of the tournament and strengthen our position in the market”.

     

    The Australian Open will be the channel’s first entry into broadcasting Tennis majors, having shown select ATP tournaments earlier. Apart from this, the channel exclusively broadcasts international sporting properties like Pepsi IPL, UEFA Euro 2016, Qualifiers for UEFA Euro 2016 and the European qualifiers for FIFA World Cup 2018, NBA, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and TNA

     

    Sony Six EVP & business head Prasana Krishnan said, “This acquisition signifies another endeavor by Sony Six into bringing diverse sports offerings for its viewers. The Australian Open is seen as the paramount opener to the Grand Slam competitions and we are proud to have this prestigious event in our bouquet of international sports content.”

     

    Tennis Australia CEO and Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley said, “I’m delighted we are partnering with MSM in India for the Australian Open. MSM presented a compelling proposition and demonstrated a commitment to promote the event and the sport of tennis in India which continues to cement our position as the Grand Slam of the Asian-Pacific.”

  • KVS Seshasai to take over as Zee Learn CEO

    KVS Seshasai to take over as Zee Learn CEO

    MUMBAI: In a BSE announcement, Essel Group’s educational company Zee Learn has informed that its current CEO Navneet Anhal will be stepping down. KVS Seshasai who was previously with Reliance Brands will take over as Zee Learn CEO from today (6 January).

     

    Anhal has been with the company since 2008 as business head of Mount Litera Zee School and was elevated to the positions of COO of Zee Learn in 2012 and to CEO in 2013.

     

    Seshasai has over 15 years of experience at Trent, Tata administrative services and Wipro Infotech. At Reliance Brands he was business head of Kenneth Cole and Thomas Pink.

     

    The kids channel Zee Q is also a part of Zee Learn that caters to children in the age group of 4 to 14. Zee Learn is involved in children’s education through a number of pre schools and schools.

  • Nevanta calendar 2014 to empower women

    Nevanta calendar 2014 to empower women

    MUMBAI: To start 2014 on a good and optimistic note, Nevanta Media has launched its 2014 limited edition calendar.

    The calendar brings together actors from Bollywood and TV, leading and emerging designers, along with dynamic women entrepreneurs to raise money for charity.

    Nevanta co-founder and CEO Gurpreet Sidhu said, “We always see the glamorous side of the fashion industry, but the Nevanta celebrity charity calendar brings out the human side. Everyone who worked on the calendar stepped forward to support Nevanta’s cause of empowering women. We also added a twist by bringing in successful and fashionable women entrepreneurs to the mix. And we at Nevanta are proud that we could make all this happen and encourage people to contribute to a good cause.”

    Apart from stars like Evelyn Sharma, Hrishitaa Bhatt, Sanjjanna, and Parul Yadav other celebrities featuring in the calendar are Shibani Kashyap, Pooja Ruparel, Smita Gondkar, Sampada Vaze and women entrepreneurs like Nevales co-founder Sunija Rishi, Chumbak co-founder Shubhra Chadda and Rudraksh’s owner Rasika Wakalkar.

    Known fashion designers like AD Singh, Namrata G, Nivedita Saboo, Ramesh Dembla and Nimirta Lalwani among others have extended their support to the calendar by dressing up the calendar girls.

    The proceeds from the sale of the table top calendar will go to the Samarthanam Trust of the Disabled, to train and rehabilitate visually impaired girls and women.

  • Canon India targets digitising Rs 3000 crore photo print market with DreamLabo 5000

    Canon India targets digitising Rs 3000 crore photo print market with DreamLabo 5000

    BENGALURU: Canon India (Canon) announced its entry into the Rs 3000 crore photo printing market in India, and more specifically the Rs 300 crore digital printing market with the introduction of the USD 500,000 (About Rs 3.2 crores) priced DreamLabo 5000 commercial inkjet printer equipment, with the intent of targeting the retail photo and album printing industry. This launch makes India the first country in South Asia where the DreamLabo 5000 machine is being installed says the company.

    Canon India President and CEO Kazutada Kobayashi, said, “Canon has always been at the forefront of bringing innovative products to customers. With this latest business entry, we are hoping to strengthen our ability to meet the printing needs of professional and wedding photographers. With the DreamLabo 5000, we clearly want to establish innovation leadership in India. For us at Canon India, this is not just a new machine, but the technology that can revitalise the entire industry and open up substantial new business opportunities. Canon is setting a new benchmark for the production printing of high quality photos with this launch.”

    Globally, DreamLabo merchandise has been positioned as premium item. The company is following a systematic approach with DreamLabo 5000. It started with a leading photolab in each region and then expanded the presence in that country or region. Its first customer for the DreamLabo 5000 in India is Bangalore-based 100 year old, 22 photo lab store chain G K Vale. G K Vale clocks revenues of about Rs 50 crore annually.

    GK Vale Managing director Anand Sukumar said to  www.indiantelevision.com, “DreamLabo 5000 will help our bottom line, and will not make a very major impact to our bottom line. We have received a good response and may even buy a second machine.”

    A campaign is being planned by both Canon India and G K Vale to attract commercial clients. Some of the ideas being mulled at Canon are including a small flyer or a booklet with each of the 20,000 digital SLRs’ that it sells monthly, in-store promotions at Canon Image Squares, among others. Industry sources reveal that Canon India is likely to spend around Rs 0.75 crore to Rs1 crore during the next calendar year towards above the line (ATL) and below the line (BTL) activities for promotion of its partners such as G K Vale. Canon India spends around Rs100 crore towards brand building, marketing, ATL and BTL activities. Dentsu handles the creative duties for Canon India.

    GK Vale spends about Rs 1 crore annually, but with the installation of the DreamLabo 5000, it will double its advertising spends on social media, print and outdoor and local radio.

    Commercial printing business contributes just about Rs 95 crores or 5 per cent to Canon India’s top line, revealed Canon India executive vice president Alok Bhardawaj. Canon expects revenue of just Rs15 crore during the next calendar year and is targeting revenue of Rs100 crore from this stream over a five year period.