ITV

Tag: Hindustan Times

  • iTV Network ups Varun Kohli as India News CEO

    iTV Network ups Varun Kohli as India News CEO

    MUMBAI: iTV Network has elevated Varun Kohli as CEO of its national Hindi news channel India News. Prior to this, he was India News COO and revenue head.

    Kohli will report to iTV Network group CRO and NewsX CEO Sanjay Dua.

    In his new role, Kohli will be responsible for leading the growth of the channel to next level.

    iTV Network managing director Kartikeya Sharma stated quite clearly:  “We are delighted to elevate Varun as the CEO of India News. This elevation is in line with our commitment to growth. His skills and wide experience  will surely help India news reach the next level of growth.”

    Dua added, “Over the course of time, Varun has played a more central role in the leadership of the company and with his elevation to CEO, India News; he will take on an even wider role. His strong track record of delivering growth and understanding of industry will help our continued success, moving forward.”

    “I’m humbled by the new role. iTV network is a young and dynamic organisation, which has witnessed tremendous growth in the recent years and I am privileged to be a part of this journey. My focus will be to lead India News to the next level of growth and tap newer opportunities in the ever expanding Hindi news space,” expressed a reticient Kohli.

    Prior to joining ITV network, he was head of sales for IBN7. With a professional experience spanning over 21 years, he has worked in media companies like Amar Ujala, Bennett, Coleman & Company Ltd., Deccan Chronicle, Dainik Bhaskar, Hindustan Times and Indian Express. All his experience will come to bear at the iTV Network which has ambitions to grow in the news television and related TV businesses going forward.

    Also Read:

    My World Revolves Around The Almighty

     

  • Lowe Lintas names Shayondeep Pal as Delhi creative head

    Lowe Lintas names Shayondeep Pal as Delhi creative head

    MUMBAI: Lowe Lintas has named executive creative director Shayondeep Pal as its creative head in Delhi. Pal takes over from Shriram Iyer, who was recently named Mullen Lintas NCD. 

     

    Pal will report to Lowe Lintas chief creative officer Arun Iyer.

     

    Pal has been part of the creative team in Delhi for more than six years and is involved in the creative execution of a number of campaigns for clients in the region like OLX, Micromax, Hindustan Times, Maruti Suzuki, Google and Pernod Ricard.

     

    Iyer said, “Delhi has been surging ahead with creative offerings that are top-notch and Shayondeep Pal has had an integral role to play in its success. With a creative firepower that’s palpable and the thirst to do more, I cannot wait to see what he has in store to drive the office in Delhi. I wish him the best in his new role at the agency.”

     

    Pal has been the creative lead on Micromax for the last four years and has worked on campaigns like Sliver 5 with Hugh Jackman, Qube, Canvas HD and Canvas 2. In fact, he has also directed a few commercials for Micromax. 

     

    He has also worked on the Hindustan Times campaign ‘You Read, They Learn,’ which went on to win an award at Cannes Lions in 2013.

     

    Pal said, “I am lucky enough to be part of a great team in Delhi. The opportunities are endless and I want to approach it with an open mind. The great thing is that the mandate is clear: how to make our brands famous and therefore, how to make our people famous. I want to make this place a talent magnet where people would line up to join us. One clear approach would be to look at the creative output from a holistic angle – through new media, unexplored media and not just 30-second commercials.”

  • Sports365 features in top 50 brands in the young organisation category

    Sports365 features in top 50 brands in the young organisation category

    MUMBAI: An online sports store, Sports365 recently earned the recognition as one of the top hot 50 brands in the young organisation category at the Bangalore Brand Summit, in the silicon valley of India.

     

    The country’s popular marketer community, Paul Writer awarded the brands at the summit that was held recently at Ritz Carlton, Bangalore.

     

    Presented by OneIndia, the summit saw a clique of many big-league brands participating in the event, across various categories like B2B, B2C, Large Organisations, SMB and Young Organisations.

     

    The players were judged on parameters like mindshare, innovation, growth and uniqueness of the concept. The final call of selecting the winners was taken through voting and the judgement of the jury panel that was chaired by Hindustan Times media thinker Madhavan Narayanan.

     

    Sports365’s co-founder and VP Aashutosh Chaudhari said, “Getting counted among the best 50 brands of Bangalore definitely feels good. We are highly elated with the honour and this has given us the motivation to constantly improve and upgrade the brand, in order to keep pace with the rapidly-developing business scenario of the country. We are a self-driven and budding organisation and this recognition has further given us the impetus to continue winning over our customers with innovative and contemporary products in our niche.”

     

    The summit was a converging point of over 100 dignitaries from leading brands of Bangalore and served as a platform for riveting trend discussions and brainstorming on innovative ideas. The 50 hottest brands of Bangalore were acknowledged in a gala ceremony that rounded off the event.

  • Piyush Pandey breaks stereotypes with Anouk ad

    Piyush Pandey breaks stereotypes with Anouk ad

    MUMBAI: Famous for coming up with out of the box ideas, Ogilvy and Mather executive chairman and national creative director Piyush Pandey has managed to touch a raw nerve with the Bold Is Beautiful campaign orchestrated for Anouk.

     

    Anouk is an apparel brand that specializes in Indian and traditional women clothes and is promoted by Myntra. Pandey and his maverick bunch were looking to convey the message that it’s not just the westerners who are progressive in their thinking and are breaking stereotypes and that traditional Indians are also very much doing it. To convey this message, O&M launched an ad featuring a lesbian couple in a live-in relationship. One of them has invited her parents to meet her partner and the ad emphasizes on their preparation to encounter The Visit.

     

    Speaking to Indiantelevision.com about the ad Pandey says, “No idea is drawn without keeping the brand in my mind. Anouk is an Indian wear specialist and there are a number of other brands who specialize in the same so we had to come up with something that stands out and that’s how Bold is Beautiful came into existence.”

     

    The ad went viral and has garnered more than one million views on YouTube. The ad began trending on social media too, and also kick-started a debate as to whether this ad featuring a lesbian couple was the first of its kind.

     

    When queried if the debate made a difference to the creators, Pandey replies, “I don’t know if this is the first or not and I wasn’t really concerned about that either. For me, if there is an understanding of the brand and the creative, you create complements or add value to that. And that’s what really matters. Of course we wanted our work to stand out and leave a mark but we were not concerned whether it was the first ad to feature a lesbian couple.”

     

    “The reaction we got so far is overwhelming and frankly speaking I did not expect it to be so positive. This only goes to prove that we have taken a step forward. I knew people will talk about it positively but such a wide reaction is highly satisfying. It’s almost like the viewers and the client telling us, Bold Is Beautiful,” Pandey adds.

     

     

    Breaking stereotypes has been a key facet for Pandey and his India team. Not long back the ad men did something similar with Her Life, Her Choices campaign for Titan Raga, which got again got more than one million views on YouTube.

     

    The film begins with a lady sitting in a cafeteria and a reading book. A man asks her if the seat is occupied and without looking at him she says that it’s empty. Eventually when she looks at him she finds the interruption was by her ex-lover. When she asks him how he has been, he makes a reference to her leaving him. As they talk and catch up, it is revealed that both of them are still single. On being asked why it is so, she tells the man that she never gets time from work. This being something he knew all too well, he makes a passing comment about how their relationship would have worked had she stopped working. She retaliates by saying that he could have also quit. Offended, he tells her that he could not have quit; seeing how he is a man and says, “How can a man not work.”

     

    Amused, she looks down at her Raga and tells him that he is still the same man that she had left all those years ago. She then proceeds to offer the ashamed man coffee as she goes on talking.

     

    The film ends with a shot of the watch and her voice over saying, “Khud se naya rishta.” (A new relationship with one’s self).

     

     

    Taproot also made an ad that broke stereotypes in recent times in their commercial for Airtel, where the wife is shown as being the boss. Both husband and wife work in the same office where the woman is the boss. The ad shows her giving assignments to her husband and also assigning constraint deadlines. However, post office hours, she goes home and cooks for him while he is busy working. The ad brings a smile to every viewer and also sends a strong message across.

     

     

    Sanitary napkin brand Sofy has also launched a non-conventional TVC where they ask why girls say they are down while they have their period and a send across a strong message that having their period is not something to hide. A few years back, daily broadsheet Hindustan Times launched a commercial featuring two homosexual men out for a date and a spectator stares at them with suspicion. At that very moment another man slaps him with a HT newspaper and the tagline says, “It’s time to open up.”

     

    Later, Fastrack came up with a commercial featuring a lesbian encounter as a part of its quirky series of ‘Move On’ ads.

     

    With Indian ads becoming progressive and open-minded, the message is loud is clear that the saree and kurta are apparels not thoughts and people should not be judged based on what they wear. The Indian ad fraternity is setting a strong example of a progressive nature and it is being lauded by the one and all.

     

    This time it was Ogilvy’s Piyush Pandey and his ‘men in black,’ who took the country towards liberalism one step at a time… tomorrow it will be someone else from another organization who is bold enough to break typecasts and come up with something liberally different!

  • Kyoorius launches ‘Melt’; says not competing with Goafest

    Kyoorius launches ‘Melt’; says not competing with Goafest

    MUMBAI: “Today there is a lot of talk about digital media, technology and data, but ultimately ours is an “ideas” business. And it’s great ideas that build great brands,” announced GroupM South Asia CEO CVL Srinivas. 

    Clinging on the same lines has witnessed the birth of a festival of creativity – Melt 2015, at the convergence of advertising, digital, media, marketing and emerging technology.

    Launched by Kyoorius in partnership with the three lords in the media and entertainment sector – D&AD, GroupM and Zee Entertainment Enterprises, the two day festival is an attempt to fill the gap, which addresses the blurred lines of advertising, marketing and digital space.

     

    “We felt there is nothing happening in India that stimulates the entire marketing and communications industry at large. So while there is something happening for the marketing, advertising and digital independently, it does not happen at the convergence of all these three put together,” said Kyoorius CEO Rajesh Kejriwal. 

    Elaborating on choosing the name Melt for the event, Kejriwal said that the lines are blurring today. “The media company is also doing creative and digital work and then there are digital agencies that are doing creative work. Advertising agencies have opened their own digital houses. It has all become a melting pot and so the name.”

     

    The festival doesn’t have sponsors, but has partners. These include: Hindustan Times, Happy Finish, Afaqs, Pepperfry, Future Laboratory, Hyper Island, The Partners, BrandMusiq, One Eyeland, Maxus, YouTube, Google, BARC and many more in the pipeline.

    To be held on 21 and 22 May at Nehru Center and NSCI at Worli, Mumbai, the festival will be filled with seminars, exhibitions and workshops, which will culminate with the Kyoorius Advertising and Digital Awards Night on 22 May to be held at NSCI Stadium. 

    Kyoorius expects close to 5000 delegates and 60 speakers attending the event across the two days. The event could also see close to 25 partners. “Next year will be larger wherein people from South East Asia will also be participating,” informed Kejriwal. 

    A lot of research has gone into creating the festival. “We met a number of marketing people and understood their problems and the terms that they didn’t understand, which could range from content marketing to brand activation. Through the research we found that there was a common problem between the media and the marketing people and so we wanted to put content that addresses their core issues,” added Kejriwal. 

    The sessions will address all issues across platforms. Starting with a creativity conference, which is aimed at the advertising community, day one will also see learning for the media people, for Facebook and Twitter marketing, session on measurement with the coming in of new ratings body amongst others.

    “Different partners have come onboard to curate content. There will be workshops like the Sonic branding workshop, YouTube workshop on launching a YouTube channel, on being a YouTube star etc,” informed Kejriwal. 

     

    According to GroupM’s Srinivas, the benefit of an event like this is that it can attract talent. “The biggest challenge as an industry is to be able to attract talent and then sustain them, because over a period of time advertising doesn’t remain an attractive career option. It is through events like these that we will bring the advertising sector back on the radar of young talented people and show them how attractive the sector is.”

    Talking about the reason for GroupM’s association with Zee Melt 2015, Srinivas said, “We wanted to play a role in showcasing what the industry does overall, especially the creative side of the industry, to get the young talent excited about the industry and hopefully to improve the talent quotient of the industry.”

    On Zee’s association with Melt 2015 Zee corporate brand head Roland Landers said, “When Kyoorius pitched the idea, we felt that it blended with what Zee does as a corporate brand.”

    Zee currently boasts of two brand intellectual properties: Zee Leadership series, targeted at CFOs and Zee Mindspace targeted at the CMOs. “When we looked at the Kyoorius event, it looked like a longer version of the Zee Mindspace event,” reasoned Landers.

    The network on day one will look at crowd sourcing of content. “We are a content company and we believe that anybody who has a good content idea can come to us with the idea. We will evaluate that through our screening process and the short-listed ones will be further evaluated by our senior team at the venue. If we like the idea, we can back it as well,” informed Landers.

    Zee has in the past partnered with a number of events from Goafest to AAAI, but this one is too close to its heart. Landers explained, “In events like Goafest, we are merely a presenting sponsor or title sponsor but beyond that we don’t get an opportunity to use our creative talent anywhere. With Melt, we believe it is the partnership that will evolve because we are integrating our own IP into this.”

    Many in the sector feel that the two day festival is in direct competition to the upcoming Goafest. When quizzed about the same, Kejriwal said, “There is a need for not just one or two but four such events.”

    He added, “Goafest is a great event, but then we do need more such events. The industry has 25,000 people, Goafest gets some 2000 to 3000 people, Melt 2015 should get close to 5000 people, but there are so many more people and learning doesn’t stop.”

    Kejriwal also feels that considering such events are targetted more at the younger lot, it is important to have an event of this scale in different parts of the country. “Not everyone can go to Goa and so we decided to keep it in Mumbai,” said Kejriwal while adding that since Delhi is a growing market, Kyoorius will be doing an event sometime next year in Delhi as well. 

    Echoing the same, Srinivas said that the industry can do with a lot more events like Goafest and Melt. “As an industry, we are still very young and there is a long way to go. We don’t see anyone competing with the other,” said Srinivas.
     

    The list of final speakers and the public announcement with regards to the event will be done between 15-20 April.

  • Dinesh Akula quits TV9, joins Express TV

    Dinesh Akula quits TV9, joins Express TV

    MUMBAI: It seems to be a season of movements in the news television sector. And the latest to join the long list is former TV9 executive editor Dinesh Akula.

     

    Akula has joined a Hyderabad based start up channel Express TV as senior VP-editorial and operations. In his new role, Akula will be responsible for the channel’s overall editorial content that goes on-air. “I will also be looking at the two websites-Telugu and English, of the network, apart from overlooking the entire operations,” says Akula.

     

    On the future plans, he says, “Well, it’s been just a couple of days since I joined and so currently I am understanding the structure of the organisation and then will start working on the network’s future plans.”

     

    Express TV is looking at launching two news channels in Tamil and Kannada languages. Not only this, the network is also hoping to launch an entertainment channel soon. “The biggest challenge this year was covering the general elections, and after that I was looking at changing my profile and Express TV gave me that opportunity,” he adds.

     

    The move has come after he spent close to seven years in TV9 where he was responsible for the on-air content, the look and feel, planning and execution of content strategies for TV9 Telugu and was earlier handling national news desk  for all the six TV9 channels. 

     

    With over 20 years of experience in media, Akula has worked with BBC in Bristol, Sky News in London, Star News (Now ABP News), Times of India and Hindustan Times in India among others.

     

  • 24 Ghanta to get HT’s Anirban Choudhary as editor

    24 Ghanta to get HT’s Anirban Choudhary as editor

    KOLKATA: Zee Entertainment Enterprises owned 24×7 Bengali news channel, 24 Ghanta, is all set to get on board veteran journalist and Hindustan Times deputy resident editor (RE) Anirban Choudhury, as editor.

     

    “Bye bye Hindustan Times…. shall remain ever grateful to you…forever,” he wrote on a social networking site.

     

    Choudhury, agreed to the development, but refused to reveal the date of his joining. “I would like to finish off all my assignments at HT before moving on to 24 Ghanta,” he said.

     

    In his new role, he will be looking after the overall operations of the channel. “Bengal is not just about politics. We would like to tell a story of a common man,” he said about his plans for the channel.

     

     “Zee has spent a huge amount on this channel, but still something was missing. The channel could not make its mark even after recruiting so many senior journalists. Hope Choudhury’s appointment works as a miracle,” said an official from the channel.

     

     “There is an urgent need to revamp the whole structure and the schedule of the channel. With Anirban at the helm of affairs, we hope that the channel would get back to winning ways. He was responsible for creating a market for HT in the eastern region and hope he would do the same for 24 Ghanta,” said an industry expert.

     

    24 Ghanta was launched in the year 2006 and it covers local, national as well as international news.

  • Hindustan Media Ventures Q1-2015 q-o-q income up 21 per cent; PAT up 25 per cent

    Hindustan Media Ventures Q1-2015 q-o-q income up 21 per cent; PAT up 25 per cent

    BENGALURU: Hindi newspaper ‘Hindustan’, Hindi socio cultural magazine ‘Kadambini’ and children’s Hindi magazine ‘Nandan’ publishers Hindustan Media Ventures Limited (HMVL – not to be confused with HT Media Limited of Hindustan Times, Mint and Fever FM fame) reported a 21.1 per cent growth in Total Income from operations (TIO) in Q1-2015 to Rs 222.6 crore as compared to the Rs 183.88 crore in Q4-2014 and 18 per cent more than the Rs 177.3 crore in Q1-2014.

     

    HMVL Q1-2015 PAT at Rs 33.9 crore (15.3 per cent of TIO) was 24.6 per cent more than the Rs 27.21 crore (14.8 per cent of TOI) reported in the immediate trailing quarter and 11.9 per cent more than the Rs 30.30 crore (16.1 per cent of TOI) in the year ago quarter Q1-2014.

     

    Let us look at the other numbers reported by HMVL for Q1-2015

     

    HMVL’s total expenditure (TE) in Q1-2015 at Rs 167.2 crore (75.1 per cent of TIO) was 7.5 per cent more than Rs 155.58 crore (84.6 per cent of TIO) in Q4-2014 and 18.8 per cent more than the Rs 140.7 crore (74.6 per cent of TIO) in Q1-2014.

     

    A major component of the total expenditure is raw materials (RM) consumed. HMVL’s RM in Q1-2015 at Rs 86.80 crore (51.9 per cent of TE) was 7.5 per cent more than the Rs 80.76 crore (51.9 per cent of TE) in Q4-2014 and 26.7 per cent more than the Rs 68.5 crore (48.7 per cent of TE) in Q1-2014.

     

     Y-o-Y the company attributes its growth to 17 per cent increase in advertising revenues to Rs 155.50 crore from Rs 132.60 crore primarily due to increase in advertising yields and a 17 per cent increase in circulation revenues to Rs  49.3 crore from Rs 42.1 crore primarily due to higher circulation and realisation per copy. 

     

    HMVL chairperson Shobna Bhartia said, “We have started the new financial year well and the first quarter saw a healthy growth in both revenue and profit. This was the result of growth in advertising, driven by our strong performance in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, and supported by our continuing dominance in Bihar and Jharkhand. With a strong brand, growing readership, and a healthy balance sheet we are confident of continuing to deliver value to our shareholders.”

  • HT Media needs to rethink ‘No TV Day’

    HT Media needs to rethink ‘No TV Day’

    MUMBAI: Hindustan Times is back with its ‘NO TV Day’ initiative. The campaign in its third year, now invites Mumbaikars (who, according to them, are the only ones owning a TV set) to switch off their TVs and celebrate quality time with family and friends through a wide range of activities specially put together by HT Mumbai (Does that mean Mumbaikars also do not know how to organize activities for friends and family and need an HT Media to do it for them?).

     

    The Facebook page of the campaign has many ads put together to promote the “Apna TV Band Karo Campaign.”  Bollywood actor Imran Khan is seen saying he enjoys cooking on ‘NO TV Day’ – not surprising considering the number of films he has been doing (or he rather did). 
     

    Another activity suggested is the ‘Get Fitter Mini Marathon’ at Carter Road, Bandra. Located in the western suburbs of Mumbai, it seems to insinuate that Mumbai can get fitter only at Bandra man (Read: the common Bandra lingo). 
     

    The ‘Head to Adlabs Imagica and Get Amazed’ has a number of postings on the page because maybe Essel World is now passé and not so amazing anymore. 
     

    Jokes apart, the campaign is being planned at a time when IPL mania has gripped the country. Why is the HT Media management trying to spike the viewership of Sony Entertainment’s most expensive and revenue generating product in the city of cricket lovers? 
     

    Is it a case of sour grapes with HT Media? Publication houses like India Today, DNA and the Times of India have their own channels but HT doesn’t. Maybe not now! But it surprisingly did so once in the late nineties. The Hindustan Times had started a Hindi entertainment channel, Home TV in collaboration with Pearson group of London which soon shut shop. And now with its ‘switch off your TV’ HT is behaving like a kid throwing tantrums.

     

    What’s also concerning is that HT Media’s No TV Day coincides with No Tobacco Day this time. Are they not really very different products? TV definitely is not equal to tobacco.

    The dynamic audio visual element of the TV medium allows its viewers to consume content as it comes alive on a screen immediately and live. It informs, it entertains, it engages, it educates, it connects and it is an integral part of our lives.

    As compared to this, newspapers take an entire day to publish information that has probably expired and has been dust binned. May be some of their analyses are pertinent and different, but in the era of paid content that’s something you have to really seek out. The world over newspapers are being given a decent or indecent burial. And TV and the digital medium are continuing to grow and thrive. In India, however, that’s not the case and newspapers are showing that they have a lot of legs. 
     

    Yes, the intent behind the HT Media initiative – get families and each one of us out together doing things they and we normally don’t – is laudible.  But why hit out at the medium of TV? Why call it ‘No TV Day’ when calling it “HT Media’s Family Day out” would do just as well.  Then do we really need a special day to spend time with our families?  And will HT Media decide what we should do with ours?

    The campaign also suggests that one can help a great deal in protecting the environment by turning off the TV for a day. HT has also organised ‘Nature Trails’ on ‘NO TV Day’ in Goregaon, in the western part of Mumbai. Can it ensure that the participants will not leave behind a trail of plastic bags, bottles and other wastes as they trudge along?  

     

    At indiantelevision.com we believe it makes more sense to watch TV in order to protect the environment. After all no trees are cut to make newsprint when you watch TV.

     

    HT Media managers would do well to take their communications seriously. Imagine what could happen if the channels were to take the anti-TV messaging to heart and were to organise a No Newspaper Day nationally? It could lead to a loss of crores for the whole newspaper industry.  Imagine what would happen if TV channels were to go online alone to promote their shows and for their TV guides? Again a loss of crores would hit the industry. Imagine if TV manufacturers were to cancel advertising in newspapers for a day? Again the impact would run into crores. 

     

    It’s possible that HT Media’s campaign may also be costing the TV industry some viewership (though many doubt that). Hypothetically let’s say it is, that means the ‘No TV day’ would be impacting TV channels’ revenues. The question is why are TV channels taking all this lying down? When probably they are among the bigger spenders in the newspaper’s pages.

     

    The appeal from all of us at indiantelevision.com to HT Media is that its managers should avoid using the term ‘No TV Day’ and coin something more positive and family oriented instead. It will be just as fun for its readers in Mumbai. 

     

    (We at the Indiantelevision.com group live and breathe audiovisual content – both on TV and online. But we also love newspapers. We believe they are relevant. At least for a few years. We also believe that HT Media’s ‘No TV Day’ campaign is a case of misdirected and wrongful communication, though it has been organised in good faith and with a good intent to bring families together.)

  • Hindustan Media Ventures reports 32 per cent higher PAT in FY-2014

    Hindustan Media Ventures reports 32 per cent higher PAT in FY-2014

    BENGALURU: Hindi newspaper ‘Hindustan’, Hindi socio cultural magazine ‘Kadambini’ and children’s Hindi magazine ‘Nandan’ publishers Hindustan Media Ventures Limited (HMVL – not to be confused with HT Media Limited of Hindustan Times, Mint and Fever FM fame) reported a 31.58 per cent growth in PAT at Rs111.21 crore (15.24 per cent of Income from Operations or Op Inc) in FY-2014, as compared to the Rs 84.52 crore (13.28 per cent of Op Inc) in FY-2013.

     

    Note: Rs 100 lakh = Rs100,00,000 = Rs 1 crore = Rs 10 million

     

    HMVL chairperson Shobhana Bhartia said, “We are glad to close the year with a strong growth in revenue and profitability. While our pricing initiatives have contributed to top-line growth, our sustained cost control measures have ensured an increase in profitability despite rising input costs.”

     

    “This year’s performance also reaffirms Hindustan’s dominance in Bihar and Jharkhand and its stature as the fastest growing daily in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand. With a strong brand, growing readership, and healthy balance sheet, we are confident that we will continue to deliver value to our shareholders,” added Bhartia.

     

    Let us look at the other main numbers reported by HMVL for Q4-2014 and FY-2014

     

    HMVL PAT in Q4-2014 at Rs 27.21 crore (14.80 per cent of Op Inc) was (-5.21) per cent lower than the immediate trailing quarter Q3-2014 PAT of Rs 28.79 crore (15.26 per cent of Op Inc, but 19.87 per cent more than the year ago quarter Q4-2013 PAT of Rs 22.70 crore (14.61 per cent of Op Inc).

     

    HMVL reported slightly lower Op Inc in Q4-2014 at Rs183.18 crore (-2.53 per cent lower) than the Rs188.65 crore in Q3-2014, but 18.32 per cent higher than the Rs155.41 crore in Q3-2013.

     

    For FY-2014, HMVL Op Inc at Rs 729.72 crore was 14.69 per cent higher than the Rs 636.27 crore in FY-2013.

     

    HMVL Total Expense in Q4-2014 at Rs155.58 crore was (-1.09) per cent lower than the Rs157.30 crore in Q3-2014 and 18.52 per cent more than the Rs131.27 crore in Q4-2013. In FY-2014, Total Expense at Rs 600.04 crore was 10.02 per cent more than the Rs 545.41 crore in FY-2013.

     

    Raw materials constitute almost half of HMVL’s Total Expense. The company spent Rs 80.76 crore (51.91 per cent of Total Expense) in Q4-2014 which was 0.16 per cent more q-o-q than the Rs 80.63 crore (51.26 per cent of Total Expense) in Q3-2013 and 27.52 per cent more y-o-y than the Rs 63.33 crore (48.24 per cent of Total Expense) in Q4-2013. In FY-2013, the company spent Rs 300.44 crore towards raw materials (50.07 per cent of Total expense) which was 13.47 per cent more than the Rs 264.78 crore (48.55 per cent of Total Expense).

     

    The company says that EBITDA increased by 29 per cent to Rs 181.8 crore from Rs 141 crore primarily due to growth in advertising and circulation revenues.

     

    It says that growth was partially offset by increase in consumption of raw materials due to increase in newsprint price and consumption.

     

    It saw an 8 per cent increase in employee costs to Rs 86.6 crore from Rs 80.4 crore; a  7 per cent increase in other expenditure to Rs 191.4 crore from Rs 178.7 crore due to increase in advertising and sales promotions expense.