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Tag: HTC

  • Rahul Sandil appointed vice president & general manager of global marketing & communications at MediaTek

    Rahul Sandil appointed vice president & general manager of global marketing & communications at MediaTek

    MUMBAI: MediaTek has  announced the appointment of Rahul Sandil as vice president and general manager of global marketing and communications. With over 30 years of extensive experience in marketing, communications, and business development, Rahul brings a wealth of knowledge and leadership to the role. He is based in the US.

    In his capacity as MediaTek’s chief  Marcom  executive, Rahul is responsible for overseeing the company’s global brand strategy, marketing innovation, strategic partnerships, and corporate communications, connecting cutting-edge technology with audiences around the world. His career is marked by a commitment to accelerating growth, launching industry-leading product lines, and executing impactful marketing campaigns.

    Before joining MediaTek, Rahul held senior leadership roles at Micron Technology, Microsoft, Amazon, HTC, and other global organizations in the technology sector. As vice president of corporate Marketing at Micron, he was integral in shaping the company’s marketing strategy and brand development. Additionally, he has served as an advisor and mentor to various companies, leveraging his expertise in AI, emerging technologies, and advanced digital marketing to drive sustainable growth.

    Rahul holds an MBA in marketing and  international business from the Management Development Institute, Gurgaon, and a BA (Honors) in  economics from St. Xavier’s College. He has also been actively involved in Aiesec, leading global initiatives to foster youth leadership and development.

    As a passionate advocate for innovation and meaningful connections, Rahul is poised to propel MediaTek’s marketing and communications strategies to new heights, driving brand growth and transformative initiatives that resonate across industries.

  • HTC, CRY tie up for girls’ quality education

    MUMBAI: Sonal (Name Changed) is an activist and she is only 12 year’s old. She is a member of the “Little star children’s group” from Shahbad dairy that works towards educating children on protecting themselves against abuse. Like the other members of the group, she has been working with other children from the basti who are yet not associated with the children group.

    She is a part of Aarzoo – a movement, a promise to fulfill dreams of countless young girls from the lower income group familiesby facilitating guidance and resources to supplement their dedication and enthusiasm. In association with ‘CRY – Child Rights and You’, and as a part of its corporate social initiative, HTC Corporation, a leading innovator in mobile and virtual reality technology, has launched the initiative ‘Aarzoo: ek wish har aarzoo poori karneki’ in India.

    The initiative brings together HTC and CRY in an effort to create education and basic training opportunities for the girl child from the under privileged sections of our society. As a part of this initiative, beginning February 2017, HTC will, for a period of six months, contribute part of consumer sales proceeds towards delivering an on-ground impact on girl child education for 1500 girls through CRY.

    ‘Aarzoo’ aims to bring positive changes in the lives of the under-privileged girls by giving them the opportunity to learn whilst working towards recognizing, promoting and protecting their rights. In order to build mass reach and awareness and establish connect it will involve the use of Digital consumer connect campaigns as well as on ground activation via events and activities. HTC employees will also join the drive by donating their time towards the cause – volunteer for CRY. The initiative will culminate with a large children festival in Delhi.

    HTC president-south Asia Faisal Siddiqui said, “According to DHS data around the world, female literacy rates are improving but India ranks 38th among the 51 developing countries for which comparable data is available. Indonesia, Rwanda, Ethiopia and Tanzania – all rank higher than India. I would like to reiterate our commitment towards providing quality education and enable better prospects for the girl child in the country.”

    Child Rights and You (CRY) regional director- north Soha Moitra said, “Educating a girl child is the first step towards transforming society and we are extremely glad that HTC is championing this cause and supporting us in making education accessible to every child. We believe this initiative will go a long way in empowering girls and bringing them into the mainstream.”

  • “Any model that guarantees 70% of your revenue is a great business to be in”: Fraser Castellino

    “Any model that guarantees 70% of your revenue is a great business to be in”: Fraser Castellino

    In April 2014 he was appointed as the COO of Kings XI Punjab, the team that sparkled on field during the seventh season of the Indian Premiere League (IPL). Fraser Castellino has over a decade of experience of working in the sports industry.  Besides leadership roles in IPL teams like Royal Challengers Bangalore and Rajasthan Royals, he was also instrumental in setting up the Sahara Group’s polo and other non- cricketing ventures. Castellino is a marketing graduate from Mumbai and also holds a bachelor’s degree from St Xaviers College.

    Ahead of the upcoming Champions League Twenty2O, Indiantelevison.com’s Herman Gomes talks to him about the franchises plan ahead and the factors that have contributed to the team making a profit this season.

    Excerpts…

    It was one of the best seasons for Kings XI Punjab having reached the finals. What are your thoughts?

    Yes, you’re absolutely right. We went on to win 11 out of the 14 games in the home stretch which was great. I think what was most exciting for me was the fact that Kings XI Punjab this year, demonstrated a brand of cricket which people identified with. People actually wanted to come and watch us play the games, because they loved the entertainment factor around our team.

    There were teams, who set up scores of 200 but we chased those down. There were teams that put us in to bat first, we scored and defended it. When I spoke to some cricket experts, one of them mentioned to me that teams did not know what to do with Kings XI Punjab. Opposing captains didn’t know whether to put us to bat or whether to make us chase or what to do at all because we guys seemed to tackle anything that came our way. That was a great and pleasant feeling.

    It wasn’t also that we were going overboard with it, but it was great to know that so many people identified and wanted to watch Kings XI Punjab.

    Earlier this year, KPH Dream Cricket showed a profit of Rs 78 lakh before tax. So you have finally broken even and made a profit. What has been the winning combination for your team?

    Yes, we have made a profit this year. There were a couple of reasons that contributed to this. We made a lot of smart decisions about the way we spent money this year. One of the first things was with player costs. A lot of people don’t know this but 60 to 70 per cent of the cost is actually the player cost which is the amount of money you spend on buying the players.

    If one spends Rs 60 crore, that’s 70 per cent of the budget. I think Kings XI Punjab this year was very smart in purchasing players and thus saved money. But having said that, we still bought a great team.

    Secondly, our team performed well. When a team performs well, people want to buy the tickets and come to watch the matches.  In India, there is a typical problem. People want to come for the games but in exchange for a free ticket. But this time we had people who actually were willing to buy the tickets and come and watch because they were enthused about the kind of brand of cricket that we played.

    Then there was sponsorship money. When a team is doing well, it makes money because the structure of the sponsorship contract ensures that when a team moves into the playoffs, the sponsor pays bonuses.

    Then finally is the prize money you win. The winning team as well as the runner-up make very decent sum money which comes to the franchise.  These factors have contributed to our winning combination.

    How well is the team preparing ahead of the upcoming Champions League?
    The Champions League is a very clear tournament. We get a participation fee for qualifying and participating in the tournament. And we pay 10 per cent of the player cost for the team. So one is already in a very good position, since they are making some money even without doing anything. The rest is taken care by the organisers. The travel etc is all paid by the organisers so there is no cost to the franchise. The big upswing is winning the tournament because the prize money is half million dollars. So that is the target for us. So in terms of preparing, we are looking at the apple and saying let’s go and shoot it.

    Have you looked at new deals with sponsors?

    We have signed two new sponsors ahead of the upcoming Champions League which is Air Asia and HTC. There are also a couple of other brands that will be announced in a couple of days. It’s simple business actually. All brands want to associate with the winning combination and many do well and perform.

    How difficult is it for a franchise to get a sponsor on board?
    The IPL is a successful property. Brands, want to be associated with it. But there are only those limited number of teams. So I think as long as we see the IPL remaining prime, every team will receive sponsorship. The amount of sponsorship one earns will depend on how the team performs and the stars one has. We have done well this season and we hope to continue doing it.

    How much of your local revenue comes from sponsorships?

    Sponsorship would be about 60 per cent of our local revenue. The rest comes from gate revenues.

    How is the team now approaching licensing and merchandising and how important is it for you?

    Licensing and merchandising should be looked at a greater context. Licensing is still progressing but if one looks at merchandising and the amount that teams make from it, I think there is a lot of potential to grow further. For Kings XI Punjab there is great potential. The Punjabi fan base is large. Our catchment area is not just Punjab or Himachal but everywhere the Punjabi exists.  This can be UK, Toronto, Canada Dubai or Australia. Punjabis are everywhere and these are our fans. The answer to your question is if we can take our merchandising internationally, then I think we will have a different story to tell.

    How much amount do you allot to digital marketing to interact with fans?

    There is a small team that works on various programmes. We have interesting deals where we don’t spend much money on digital marketing.  We in fact make money from it. Digital is actually a revenue line.  It’s small right now but for every video we put on YouTube, we earn money from it. In digital marketing there is a way of earning money and that will be our focus growing forward.

    During the off season what are the various programmes the team engages with?

    During this time our team works on sponsors, ideation, planning, thinking about players. We have programmes to engage with our fans like the Kings XI Punjab Cup which is a local identifying talent tournament. It is played all across Punjab in cities like Jalandhar and Amritsar. We target players between the age group of 18 to 25 years. These are players who play for colleges, clubs and various tournaments.

    Do you think the BCCI should be working more closely with teams to make them more profitable?

    The BCCI has done what they had to do. They have sold the franchise and every owner has bought the teams. They haven’t changed the terms and we need to work within those frameworks we bought in 2008 to make money.  I think any business that guarantees you 70 per cent of your revenue is a great business to be in. A team owner may have a different view but I personally feel BCCI doesn’t have to do anything more.

  • HTC the official sponsor of Kings XI Punjab

    HTC the official sponsor of Kings XI Punjab

    MUMBAI: With Champions League T20 2014 knocking on the door, Kings XI Punjab has announced HTC mobiles as its official sponsor. HTC, as part of the association, will occupy the right chest position on the Kings XI Punjab playing jersey.

     

    Talking about the partnership, Kings XI Punjab COO Fraser Castellino said, “We are extremely pleased with this association. HTC Mobiles represent youth and vibrancy and these are also the key attributes of Kings XI Punjab. We are hopeful of having a great season in the upcoming Champions League and are ready to take on the battle field.”

     

    The sixth edition of the Champions League is scheduled to start on 13 September 2014 and end on 4 October 2014.

     

    Confirming the development and wishing Kings XI Punjab good luck for the league, HTC India vice president and country head Faisal Siddiqui said, “We are happy to have partnered with Kings XI Punjab, a team known for its positive attitude and enthusiasm. Cricket is a widely followed game in India and youth has great interest in the sport. Therefore, we are hopeful and quite positive that with this association we will be able to further strengthen connect with the existing audience and expand our customer base too.  We would like to wish Kings XI Punjab all the best for the upcoming season and are sure that they will perform exceedingly well.”

     

    With clients like Kings XI Punjab and Kolkata Knight Riders, Creatigies Communications is a media, innovations and sports management agency and has been instrumental in establishing this partnership.

     

    Excited to bring the Kings XI Punjab and HTC together, Creatigies Communications founder & MD Navroze D Dhondy said, “We were right to believe that this would be a great partnership keeping in mind the similar vibes and energies both the brands have. HTC is synonymous with ‘smart-phones’ and KXIP with ‘smart-cricket’, both providing value and entertainment to the users. We are sure that this association will prove to be mutually beneficial and a long term one.”

  • NGC set on a photography sojourn with Cover Shot 2

    NGC set on a photography sojourn with Cover Shot 2

    MUMBAI: “Photography, as a powerful medium of expression and communications, offers an infinite variety of perception, interpretation and execution.” –Ansel Adams

     

    Adams, who is popular for his heart-touching photography the world over, in these two lines, has best described the art of photography – the perception of which can change from individual to individual and only those with a keen interest and passion can bring out the best in the art.

     

    While there are numerous talent shows on music and dance, one on photography is something really rare. One such show is National Geographic Channel’s Mission Cover Shot produced by Colosceum Media that won many accolades from the industry when its first edition was telecast last year. Set to enter its second season, the show has become bigger and better.

     

    While last year, with eight contestants passionate for photography, it covered the beautiful locales of Sri Lanka, this time the team wanted to tap a picturesque, unexplored local region. A place that is visually captivating, extremely rich in cultural diversities, extends a strong streak of adventure through its diverse terrains and naturally enhances the competitive quotient in the show by all that it has to offer to the aspiring photographers. And thus the team zeroed in on the North East.

     

    “While selecting the location for Cover Shot, one needs to understand, that it is almost like selecting a canvas. The venue practically sets the tone and context of the entire season, let alone the actual photographs. Hence it is but natural that the travel destination gets showcased in all its glory. Sri Lanka worked spectacularly for us, and so will north east,” says National Geographic and FOX International Channels VP Marketing, Debarpita Banerjee.

     

    Besides the new location, there’s not much change in the format of the show. Banerjee says, “Since the show had done well for us in the first season, the format broadly remains the same. However, this year, the competition between the contestants is way tougher and each one has a strategy to get the perfect shot. As a result of this competitive spirit, the show will have interesting snacky fodder for all reality television addicts and hence, will appeal to viewers beyond the infotainment genre.”

     

    While in the first edition, filmmaker Nagesh Kukunoor and award winning American photographer Ami Vitale judged the eight contestants, this year the judges include Rajiv Laxman and photographer Lana Šlezic. The number of contestants has also gone up to 10 this time.

     

    Rajiv says that the most fascinating part of the show is shooting it. “To get the frontal view of the contestants, my camera people had to be in front. At the same time whatever the contestants were shooting also needed to be captured and thus it was an interesting as well as challenging process,” says Rajiv, who thinks that the show is a good platform for people who are interested in photography as once getting the exposure on the show and with guidance from international photographers the skills improve.

     

    The first edition of the show was extremely successful. However, it wasn’t easy to convince people to come on board, be it the advertisers or the judges. “Explaining a new concept, without mainline celebrities, is always tough. But three things worked very well for Cover Shot – the fact that it is youthful, the fact that it is based on the very popular obsession called photography and the fact that it is in a reality format. Which is why, lots of brands that find relevance in the above three came on board. This year too we are expecting many such associations,” says Banerjee, also talking about the three sponsors on board last year – HTC as presenting sponsor who was also given in-show mileage; Aircel as the powered by sponsor and Cinnamon hotels as the associate sponsor.

     

    “We are expecting a good response from the advertisers this season as well, since the first one did really well, earning us the most commended reality TV show at the Asian television awards 2013. We have already pitched it to more than 10 brands for association and will soon have them on board,” she adds.

     

    Unlike the last season when Cinnamon hotels became the hospitality partner, this time there are none. However, the team says that they got immense support from The Ministry of Development of North-Eastern Region, North-East India.

     

    The focus of this year’s campaign is very contestant-driven and highlights the promise of whatever it takes to get that perfect shot to get to the cover page of Nat Geo Traveller. NGC’s in-house On-Air Promo team has aptly designed the promos keeping this premise in mind. Hence, one could look forward to a campaign that will exude stylish, contemporary, grungy, aggressive, adventurous and reality-led communication.

     

    Since the show is about breathtaking photography, photo exhibition is one of the most important promotional strategies. Other strategies include making the brand a part of the show by showing usage of the product in show. “Something that we did with HTC on Mission Cover Shot by making use of the phone as part of a task and since some stake-holders these days are wanting to do more and more on the digital space, we have different associations for them on our FB page along with other online strategies,” says Banerjee.

     

    Nat Geo Covershot: Mission North East will be launching on 11 April, Friday at 10 pm, which the channel says is one of its strongest slot. The winning shot will still be featured on the cover page of Nat Geo Traveller.

  • Kareena Kapoor to act in a Pak TVC

    Kareena Kapoor to act in a Pak TVC

    NEW DELHI: Actor Kareena Kapoor will be seen in a Pakistani television commercial to promote QMobile’s Noir series. The smartphone targets a high end market and competes with brands like Samsung, Nokia and HTC.

     

    Recently, QMobile introduced android powered Z3 and Z4 in the local market at a price range over PKR 30,000 boasting huge specifications, according to Pakistan‘s More Magazine. 

    Kapoor who flew to Bangkok for the TVC, is charging more than PKR 50 million for the project. The mobile company had brought a specialised production team from New York for it.

     

    QMobile CEO Mian Zeeshan Akhter said, “Being a Pakistan mobile phone company, QMobile has always set a benchmark when it comes to the introduction of technology in Pakistan. We also feel proud to take our commitment to next level by endorsing our brand with globally famed figures”. 

     

    Not only TVCs but Kareena will find prominent place on mega signboards and print material all over the country, an official of the company confirmed.

  • Zen Mobile launches TVC to promote the new Ultrafone 701HD

    Zen Mobile launches TVC to promote the new Ultrafone 701HD

    MUMBAI: Zen Mobile, from the Teleecare Group, recently launched the new Ultrafone 701HD, from the company‘s flagship Ultrafone series. To promote the product the company‘s inhouse agency- Glue Brandworks will roll out a TVC which will go on-air between July 25 to 27.

    Glue Brandworks founder, Gautam Mehta

    The commercial shows a boy day dreaming about the various features he would want in a phone. The TVC introduces ‘more me time‘ where he is sitting with his girlfriend playing a game on the phone where he is watching a football match. The frame continues to another imagery where he is in a mall shopping and trying clothes and his friend is clicking picture of him which showcases the features of an 8 MP camera. The next scene platforms the feature of low light photography where he is out for dinner with beloved followed by the feature of a 360 panaroma shot on a beach. The film culminates showcasing its ability to shoot clear and sound videos.

    Zen Mobile MD, Deepesh Gupta

    Announcing the launch, Zen Mobile, managing director, Deepesh Gupta said, “We did not want to promote it in the usual way by showcasing the product features and specifications. Through the commercial we have tried to demonstrate how the features can be used in real life situations. We have tried to keep the feel of the phone very international and young as it is targeted toward the age group of 15-30 years. The TVC has been executed to suit the international audience also as we plan to extend our operations in other countries to apart from India and Bangladesh. Zen Ultrafone 701HD is certainly one of the best innovations from Zen Mobile and reaffirms our business tenet of getting best of technology to the end consumers. We take pride in bringing pioneering technologies to the mobile users of today, which is in line with transforming their constantly evolving mobile experience.”

    Zen Mobile claims that they have tried to keep the product as innovative as possible in a brand competitive space, one of the biggest players being HTC. Glue Brandworks founder, Gautam Mehta states, “All the way through making the TVC we have tried to highlight the different features of the phone announcing an integrated lifestyle. The major challenge we faced while making the TVC was that the phone has too many feature and how do we make justice by demonstrating the features in a fun way and not a boring specification commercial.” The product will be promoted through regional print media and digital media. Zen Mobile plans to invest an estimate of rupees 40 to 45 crore (80 per cent of their marketing budget) in promoting the product in this financial year.

  • FT in content deal with HTC for news aggregation service

    FT in content deal with HTC for news aggregation service

    MUMBAI: The Financial Times has partnered with HTC for the launch of HTC BlinkFeed, a news aggregator available on the new HTC One smartphones devices, offering select FT content for free.

    HTC BlinkFeed brings content to the device’s home screen, enabling users to see content that is most interesting to them without having to open a series of apps. It offers instant access to a continuous feed of aggregated content, including daily blog posts and videos from the Financial Times.

    A limited amount of FT content is free, but readers will have to register and subscribe if they wish to read further articles.
    FT.com MD Rob Grimshaw said, “This move supports the FT’s successful channel neutral strategy, offering our readers flexibility and freedom of choice in how they choose to receive our content. As well as being on HTC BlinkFeed, FT content is available on News Republic, the multi-platform news aggregator app from personal mobile media company, Mobiles Republic. Mobile is an important channel for the Financial Times, driving around a third of traffic to FT.com and 15% of subscriptions.”

    The FT web app, launched in June 2011, now has more than 3.5 million users. The FT Windows 8 app launched in August 2011 and extended the FT’s mobile footprint across all three major tablet platforms (Windows, Apple and Android), giving readers more flexibility in accessing FT content.

  • HTC in 3-year deal sponsorship deal with UEFA

    MUMBAI: HTC, a global leader in mobile innovation and design, has signed a three-year agreement that will see it become the official global phone supplier partner of the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League.

    Kicking off in January, the partnership places HTC at the center of two of the world‘s most elite football competitions and will enable it to deliver new and innovative ways for fans around the world to get closer to the action.Whether in the stadium watching the game, or viewing content on a HTC device, fans will be there to share every moment.

    “Football elicits so much passion around the world and we are excited to partner with one of the leading sporting brands in the world,” said HTC Corporation CEO Peter Chou said. “We‘ll be working closely with UEFA to offer football experiences to all fans in addition to providing a richer overall mobile experience.”

    This partnership combines HTC‘s tradition of working with global leaders in the world of music, imaging, design and sport with the interests and cultural passion points of consumers around the world.

    As part of the partnership with the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League, HTC will also be the Official Global Smartphone Supplier Partner of the UEFA Super Cup Final in 2013 and 2014, and the UEFA Women‘s Champions League Final in 2013, 2014 and 2015.

  • HTC explores media options for its Explorer

    HTC explores media options for its Explorer

    DELHI: HTC has launched its media campaign to introduce the Explorer handset. While the print leg of the campaign has already been released, the TVC will be released on 8 December.

    The outdoor execution is along the lines of the print campaign itself. The main objective of the campaign is to break ice with its core target group (TG), which is youth.

    The insight for the launch was the fact that the youth of today is tech savvy and prefers keeping in touch with friends and peers through social media websites, chats, and mails. The goal was to communicate to the TG that HTC Explorer helps achieve all this through the magic of your fingers.

    The print campaign uses the finger imagery to portray legs doing various things like playing cricket, dancing, driving a moped etc. Once again, the message here was that the HTC Explorer makes it possible to do things using only the fingers. The outdoor campaign uses elements like hoardings, standees, posters, danglers, bunting.

    Apart from the print, TV and outdoor media, the company also used the digital platform to reach out to the TG. Its Facebook fan page recorded 80,000 likes in the first week of the launch and has nearly 170,000 likes till date, it said in a statement.
     
    The next step in the media campaign will be to launch communication to announce that HTC Explorer is the first phone in India to have regional MMS/SMS/email support in local languages.

    The commercial tells the story of a young boy trying to win back his girlfriend. He does everything possible to win her smile back through finger imagery. The visuals are complemented by a soundtrack that goes Tere maafi ko mai waiting waiting. The commercial ends with the boy getting his beloved back and sends out the message that with the HTC Explorer, the world is just a touch away.