Tag: Fiat

  • Google-Fiat tease Android-based car infotainment system

    Google-Fiat tease Android-based car infotainment system

    MUMBAI: FCA and Google are using CES 2017 to demonstrate a seamless integration of the award-winning Uconnect 8.4-inch connected vehicle system featuring Android, the world’s most popular open-source operating system.

    The collaboration focuses on the next generation of connected car systems, using the Android open-source platform. Android offers automakers user interface customisation, a full-featured automotive infotainment stack and ability to integrate Android apps into the vehicle’s infotainment system.

    A hands-on concept demonstration of the power of combining Uconnect with Android is on display at the global consumer electronics and consumer technology tradeshow CES, 5-8 January in Las Vegas, inside a Chrysler 300 sedan.

    FCA is in collaboration with Google regarding the next-generation connected car systems enabled by the power of an open platform and ecosystem of Android.

    “This collaboration with Google has been an extremely beneficial opportunity for both companies to explore how in-vehicle infotainment and connectivity technology continues to evolve, and what it takes to meet consumers’ increasing desire for innovation of information with minimal distraction,” says FCA head of electrical engineering Chris Barman. “With Android, we are able to maintain our unique and intuitive Uconnect user interface, all while integrating our easy-to-use systems with Android’s features and ecosystem of applications.”

    CES attendees can get one-on-one demonstrations of the Uconnect system powered by the latest version of Android, 7.0 Nougat, which includes core infotainment features such as radio and comfort controls.

    The Uconnect and Android integration also enable a system that is built for connectivity and compatibility with the universe of popular Android applications. The demonstration will show a seamless integration with Google Assistant, Google Maps and popular Android apps like Pandora, Spotify, NPR One and Pocket Casts.

    “Google is committed to building Android as a turn-key automotive platform that integrates deeply with the vehicle in a safe and seamless way,” said Google director of android engineering Patrick Brady. “This collaboration with FCA brings together the industry standard for connected car systems with Android to create powerful infotainment systems designed for the digital age.”

  • Google-Fiat tease Android-based car infotainment system

    Google-Fiat tease Android-based car infotainment system

    MUMBAI: FCA and Google are using CES 2017 to demonstrate a seamless integration of the award-winning Uconnect 8.4-inch connected vehicle system featuring Android, the world’s most popular open-source operating system.

    The collaboration focuses on the next generation of connected car systems, using the Android open-source platform. Android offers automakers user interface customisation, a full-featured automotive infotainment stack and ability to integrate Android apps into the vehicle’s infotainment system.

    A hands-on concept demonstration of the power of combining Uconnect with Android is on display at the global consumer electronics and consumer technology tradeshow CES, 5-8 January in Las Vegas, inside a Chrysler 300 sedan.

    FCA is in collaboration with Google regarding the next-generation connected car systems enabled by the power of an open platform and ecosystem of Android.

    “This collaboration with Google has been an extremely beneficial opportunity for both companies to explore how in-vehicle infotainment and connectivity technology continues to evolve, and what it takes to meet consumers’ increasing desire for innovation of information with minimal distraction,” says FCA head of electrical engineering Chris Barman. “With Android, we are able to maintain our unique and intuitive Uconnect user interface, all while integrating our easy-to-use systems with Android’s features and ecosystem of applications.”

    CES attendees can get one-on-one demonstrations of the Uconnect system powered by the latest version of Android, 7.0 Nougat, which includes core infotainment features such as radio and comfort controls.

    The Uconnect and Android integration also enable a system that is built for connectivity and compatibility with the universe of popular Android applications. The demonstration will show a seamless integration with Google Assistant, Google Maps and popular Android apps like Pandora, Spotify, NPR One and Pocket Casts.

    “Google is committed to building Android as a turn-key automotive platform that integrates deeply with the vehicle in a safe and seamless way,” said Google director of android engineering Patrick Brady. “This collaboration with FCA brings together the industry standard for connected car systems with Android to create powerful infotainment systems designed for the digital age.”

  • #PlayYourPart, BankBazaar urges youth

    MUMBAI: BankBazaar.com unveiled a video as part of their unique digital campaign for the wedding season, #PlayYourPart.

    The objective of the campaign is to compel the youth to rethink their financial dependency on their parents for their wedding. BankBazaar, as a youthful and disruptive brand, has always tried to bring about a change in the way people think about finance. With this #PlayYourPart campaign, the company aims to disrupt the traditional mentality when it comes to financing weddings.

    The digital advertisement campaign has been conceived and conceptualized by ad veteran Manoj Shetty, ex-Ogilvy Group Creative Head. During his 17 years of stint with Ogilvy, Manoj has conceptualized campaigns for various leading brands including Cadbury, Fiat, Bajaj, and Castrol.

    Bluebot CCO Carl Savio said: “When you realize that the average Indian middle-class family has to spend approximately one fifth of their life-savings to get their children married you know that something needs to be said. It’s time to tell youngsters to step-up and help their parents in whatever way they can.”

    BankBazaar.com brand  marketing head Prince Thomas  said: “The independent, earning youth of today is already depending on the online media for their financial essentials in every sphere from shopping to paying utility bills – be it in the form of internet banking, wallets, or credit and debit cards. With the #PlayYourPart campaign, we wanted to reach out to them to convey that finance is not just for the day-to-day essentials but also the once-in-a-lifetime experience, such as their own wedding.”

    The new digital advertising campaign went live on 28 November, 2016, and is being promoted across various digital platforms like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram

    The New Indian Wedding – #PlayYourPart

  • #PlayYourPart, BankBazaar urges youth

    MUMBAI: BankBazaar.com unveiled a video as part of their unique digital campaign for the wedding season, #PlayYourPart.

    The objective of the campaign is to compel the youth to rethink their financial dependency on their parents for their wedding. BankBazaar, as a youthful and disruptive brand, has always tried to bring about a change in the way people think about finance. With this #PlayYourPart campaign, the company aims to disrupt the traditional mentality when it comes to financing weddings.

    The digital advertisement campaign has been conceived and conceptualized by ad veteran Manoj Shetty, ex-Ogilvy Group Creative Head. During his 17 years of stint with Ogilvy, Manoj has conceptualized campaigns for various leading brands including Cadbury, Fiat, Bajaj, and Castrol.

    Bluebot CCO Carl Savio said: “When you realize that the average Indian middle-class family has to spend approximately one fifth of their life-savings to get their children married you know that something needs to be said. It’s time to tell youngsters to step-up and help their parents in whatever way they can.”

    BankBazaar.com brand  marketing head Prince Thomas  said: “The independent, earning youth of today is already depending on the online media for their financial essentials in every sphere from shopping to paying utility bills – be it in the form of internet banking, wallets, or credit and debit cards. With the #PlayYourPart campaign, we wanted to reach out to them to convey that finance is not just for the day-to-day essentials but also the once-in-a-lifetime experience, such as their own wedding.”

    The new digital advertising campaign went live on 28 November, 2016, and is being promoted across various digital platforms like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Instagram

    The New Indian Wedding – #PlayYourPart

  • Automotive brands struggle to differentiate themselves in India

    Automotive brands struggle to differentiate themselves in India

    MUMBAI: The automobile industry of India has always been a favourite among consumers, but according to the recent JD Power Asia Pacific 2014 India Brand Influence and Positioning Study (BIPS), very few automotive brands in the intensely competitive India passenger-car market are able to establish a distinct position in car buyers’ minds.

     

    In India, brands with the highest brand influence scores (on a 1,000-point scale) are Maruti Suzuki (837), Hyundai (758), Toyota (729), Honda (723) and Tata (703), while Mitsubishi (565) and Fiat (586) are amongst brands with the lowest influence.

     

    According to the study, strong brand influence may have a positive effect on purchase intent for a particular brand, as brand influence scores correlate highly with brand consideration rates. The study also segments the market using psychographic, demographic and behavioral attributes to help automakers identify and understand who their best prospects are in the new-car market.

     

    “Brand image and reputation have gained significant importance over the last five years for consumers in the Indian auto industry and are key purchase criterion,” said JD Power Asia Pacific Singapore executive director Mohit Arora. “Brand Influence scores measure the impact a brand has in the market, which is critical for automakers to track and measure,” he aaded.

     

    As per the report, in the Northern and Eastern regions of India consumers in India have substantial difficulty distinguishing between many of the larger European and US automotive brands such as Fiat, Ford and Renault. In contrast, Japanese brands, such as Honda and Toyota, are able to more effectively differentiate themselves from other brands.

     

    Despite its Japanese origin, consumers view Maruti Suzuki as an Indian brand, less modern than other brands but distinctly positioned as offering affordable and fuel-efficient cars. Similar to Maruti Suzuki, Tata is also seen as a brand primarily positioned on affordability and fuel efficiency.

     

    Consumers in India perceive these Japanese brands to be more contemporary, offering the latest technology and engineering and perceive them to have a more global image than their European, Korean and US counterparts.  

     

    Explaining the brand positioning, Arora elaborated, “Understanding their current positioning relative to the competition from a consumer’s perspective as well as the type of messaging themes that appeal most to a target segment helps automotive manufacturers sharpen their marketing efforts. Generally, consumers are able to differentiate more effectively on vehicle features they can see, touch and feel than on intangibles.”

     

    The 2014 India Brand Influence and Positioning Study is based on interviews with 8,009 car owners who have owned their vehicles from 30 to 42 months and who were asked to compare two vehicle brands. The study was fielded from January through April 2014 across 30 cities in India, a period when Indian car industry was at an all time low in sales and spirit.

  • DDB Mudra west appoints Manoj Bhavnani as senior CD

    DDB Mudra west appoints Manoj Bhavnani as senior CD

    MUMBAI: Joining DDB Mudra west’s formidable creative force under the leadership of creative head, Rahul Mathew, is Manoj Bhavnani who has joined as senior creative director.

     

    Bhavnani joins DDB Mudra west from Bates India, where he was creative director working on some of the agency’s biggest accounts such as Fiat, Tata AIG and Colgate. He was a part of the RedFuse team, a group created by WPP to exclusively handle the communication duties for Colgate.

     

    With over 11 years of work experience and a degree in Statistics, Bhavnani has also worked with top agencies in the country including FCB Ulka (earlier known as Draft FCB Ulka), Lowe Lintas, Grey Worldwide and Ogilvy & Mather. He has also authored a novel, ‘Screwed!’ which has been published by Penguin in September 2012.

     

    Bhavnani said, “It’s an exciting time to be joining DDB Mudra. The agency has been creating great campaigns that have picked up many awards. Rahul, Rajiv and Sonal have placed their faith in me to keep up the quality of work, and I hope I will repay their faith in the time to come.”

     

    Mathew added, “Over the past five months, Rajiv & I have been working hard at improving our product. Manoj is yet another step in this direction. He brings sound thinking and a lot of enthusiasm to our talented bunch. And am sure he will prove to be an essential cog in our creative machinery.”

       

    DDB Mudra west president Rajiv Sabnis said, “Manoj is talented professional who has cut his teeth on demanding large brands in some of the best agencies. His ability to produce consistently good creative work on global, process-driven businesses really got us talking. We look forward to his contribution, especially on J&J Beauty Care, and hope that he has long innings in DDB Mudra.”

  • Hathway appoints Jagadesh Babu Botta as EVP- operations

    Hathway appoints Jagadesh Babu Botta as EVP- operations

    MUMBAI: : Viacom18‘s 24×7 English comedy channel Comedy Central has been getting some popular international properties to India like Suits and Anger Management. This time, the channel brings a local flavour to its programming by airing Comedy Central presents Ash Chandler and the Ministry of Schitick on 21 April at 9.00 pm.

    The title presenter of the show is Fiat.

    The half an hour long show will have two to three minute gags by Chandler and his troupe – Varun Thakur, Anuvab Pal, Raunaq Rajani, Rohit Shankar and Neville Shah.

    “When Ash came ot us with the concept, we thought it must be given a shot. We are very happy to be dishing out local content of this kind on Comedy Central and are very optimistic of this experiment,” said Viacom18 Media SVP and GM – English Entertainment Ferzad Palia.

     This is the first time that a local stand up comedy show has been shot in the studio and will be aired on television. Most recently, the channel aired the Sugar Sammy on ground shows in the weekend prime time slot.

  • MTS launches mobile advertising service mAd

    MUMBAI: Sistema Shyam TeleServices Limited (SSTL), which nationally operates its telecom services under the MTS brand, pioneered the launch of its new service called ‘MTS mAd‘. The service provides brands a clutter breaking means to engage with customers on a one-to-one basis. It also allows MTS Smartphone customers using mAd will to make free local calls after watching a video ad.

    MTS mAd service is available on all Android devices on the MTS network including MTS MTag 3.1, MTS MTag 351, MTS MTag 352, MTS MTag 353, MTS MTag 401, MTS Pulse, Samsung Galaxy Y and Samsung Galaxy Ace Duos CDMA. The company plans to expand this service to Blackberry and BREW enabled entry level MTS handsets.

    MTS India chief marketing and sales officer Leonid Musatov said, “Innovation is one of the core values of MTS India. The launch of mAd service is a testament of our deep rooted commitment to the same value. MTS mAd is a unique service which enables our Smartphone customers to make free calls by just watching a video ad on their device. The service also provides an opportunity to leading brands to connect with their customers in a personalised manner. I am confident that the mAd service would find its appeal amongst both our customers and the advertising fraternity.”

    Brands like Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Mentos, Center Fresh, Fiat, Kellogg‘s, Titan and Lenovo have associated for MTS mAd service to engage with customers.

    MTS mAd service requires no charges for activation, application download and for data transfer while watching video ads. The user will get a seamless experience with no buffering and video streaming hassle. Customers using this service will be able to make as many as four MTS mAd calls in a day.

  • Grey appoints Kaizad Pardiwalla as branch head for Mumbai

    Grey appoints Kaizad Pardiwalla as branch head for Mumbai

    MUMBAI: Grey India has appointed Kaizad Pardiwalla as branch head for its Mumbai office. He will commence his operations from 11 April.

    Hari Krishnan, the former branch head will head the South operations as vice president and head.

    Both, Pardiwalla and Krishnan will report to Grey India COO Jishnu Sen.

    Prior to Joining Grey, Pardiwalla was working with Bates 141 and was heading there Mumbai office.

    At Bates, Pardiwalla worked on brands such as Virgin Mobile, Colgate Palmolive, Tang, Fiat, TVS, Tata AIG, MTV, Pfizer, ICICI Cards etc. His main mandate was to launch the digital marketing. Also, to run the advertising business with an objective to make digital, advertising and activation work in sync, to provide single idea led solutions to brands.

    On his appointment, Pardiwalla said, “I am absolutely delighted to be joining Grey as this agency has a strong motivation; winning some key accounts in the recent past. I am particularly looking forward to working with Jishnu and rest of the team to do even better work in the coming years.”

    Sen adds, “It‘s great to have Kaizad join us. Grey Mumbai is our flagship office, with a fabulous roster of clients and some really fabulous people. I expect Kaizad to bring his considerable talent and experience to lead the office to the next level of growth and fabulous ideas.”

    Pardiwalla started his career with Lowe Lintas in 1995 and moved to Ogilvy in 1997. After spending seven years at Ogilvy advertising, in 2004, he was appointed as business director, OgilvyOne Worldwide, the digital and direct marketing division of Ogilvy, where he headed the operations in the western region.

    After three years, he took on the reins as the national head of OgilvyOne India. Under his leadership, OgilvyOne Worldwide serviced clients such as American Express, Cadbury, CISCO, IBM, ICICI Lombard, ITC, The Economist and Vodafone.