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Tag: Interpublic Group

  • Mars appoints Nitin Guleria as head of media to lead global strategy

    Mars appoints Nitin Guleria as head of media to lead global strategy

    MUMBAI: Mars has announced the appointment of Nitin Guleria as its new Head of Media, effective September 2025.

    With more than 15 years of experience across global media, marketing, and communications, Guleria brings a wealth of expertise to the role. He joins Mars from Samsung Electronics, where he served as deputy general manager for over seven years, leading media and marketing initiatives across mobile and consumer electronics.

    Prior to Samsung, Guleria held leadership positions at Groupm’s Essence, where he directed cross-media planning for Google’s hardware division, and at Interpublic Group’s Cadreon, specialising in programmatic media strategy. He began his career with Optimise Media Group and Shoogloo, gaining early experience in business development, client servicing, and performance-driven marketing.

    At Mars, Guleria is expected to strengthen the company’s media strategy, drive integrated communications, and deliver impactful consumer engagement across key markets.

  • Omnicom–IPG merger gets greenlight from CCI, ad world braces for a mega shake-up

    Omnicom–IPG merger gets greenlight from CCI, ad world braces for a mega shake-up

    MUMBAI: India’s competition watchdog has given a decisive thumbs-up to one of the biggest shake-ups in adland: Omnicom Group Inc.’s acquisition of sole control over The Interpublic Group of Companies, Inc. (IPG).

    The Competition Commission of India (CCI) has formally approved the merger, clearing the way for New York-based Omnicom to swallow IPG whole. The deal sees EXT Subsidiary Inc.—Omnicom’s Delaware-registered arm created for the transaction— merging with Interpublic group, followed by its vanishing in a legal sleight of hand, with IPG emerging as a wholly owned subsidiary.

    The green light marks a major milestone in the creation of an advertising, media and communications (AMC) colossus that will now tower over rivals in over 100 countries—including India.

    Both Omnicom and IPG have long had a robust presence in India, vying for dominance in marketing communications and media buying. With the merger officially sanctioned, expect ripples—if not tsunamis—across client portfolios, agency turf wars, and talent poaching strategies.

    Omnicom brings to the table a vast arsenal of brand advertising, CRM, media planning, PR and specialty comms across more than 70 nations. IPG counters with an 80-brand empire powered by 57,400 employees delivering everything from creative and data to experiential marketing.

    The merger has got the go-ahead in 10 of the 20 global markets it has a presence in, according to reports. And it will have a smaller market share in India than WPP Media. 
     

    The CCI website only has a partial copy of the merger  application uploaded while its clearance document has yet to be put up. 

    As the global titans fuse, the industry braces for impact—and reinvention.

  • Vivendi shareholders give goahead to spinoff Canal+, Havas and Louis Hachette group

    Vivendi shareholders give goahead to spinoff Canal+, Havas and Louis Hachette group

    MUMBAI: If you thought, the world of advertising is only going through fusion following  the acquisition and merger of Interpublic group by the Omnicom group, you would be better off thinking otherwise.

    In Europe, there’s fission taking place. The combined general shareholders of Vivendi yesterday gave the company the go-ahead to break into pieces. 97.5 per cent of the votes were in favour of the separation of Vivendi from Canal+, Havas, and the Louis Hachette group (the company bringing together the 66.53 per cent investment in Lagardère and 100 per cent of Prisma Media). 

    The first trading day for the shares of these three companies will therefore take place, as announced, on 16 December 2024, respectively on the London stock exchange, Euronext Amsterdam and Euronext Growth Paris.  
    With a quorum of 71.96 per cent of shareholders present or represented, the two resolutions requiring approval by a two-thirds majority of votes, namely those regarding partial asset contributions subject to the French legal regime applicable to partial demergers (apport partiel d’actifs soumis au régime des scissions), were overwhelmingly adopted with 97.57 per cent of the votes for the Canal+ partial demerger and with 97.58 per cent  for the Louis Hachette group partial demerger.

    The resolution regarding the distribution in kind of Havas NV shares to the Vivendi shareholders, requiring the approval of a simple majority of votes, was adopted with 97.61 per cent of the votes. 

    Said  Havas chairman & CEO and chairman of the supervisory board Yannick Bolloré: “We are delighted with the very high adoption rate of our spin-off project. This undisputable result confirms the strong support of our shareholders for this transformative transaction. Over the past year, the teams have been working on this transformative project, which aims to better reflect the value of Canal+, Havas, Lagardère, and Prisma, which have been impacted by a conglomerate discount affecting the group for several years; to unlock their full potential in a global landscape filled with significant investment opportunities.This vote gives new momentum to Canal+ group, Havas, Lagardere and Prisma Media and marks a new era full of opportunities for Vivendi. The company will continue to play its role, particularly by pursuing the transformation of Gameloft and optimizing its portfolio of high-quality assets.”

  • Omnicom Group in advanced talks to acquire Interpublic Group – WSJ Report

    Omnicom Group in advanced talks to acquire Interpublic Group – WSJ Report

    MUMBAI: The headline in the Wall Street Journal was loud and clear just as the west was waking up and we in the east  were getting into bed –  two large marketing solutions providers – Omnicom group and Interpublic group –  were nearing a merger as their talks were at an advanced stage. The Omnicom group which is valued at about $20 billion would cough up about $13-14 billion to swallow IPG in an all stock deal.  

    Both groups had not commented on the news, but it sent shivers down many a senior media observer’s spine. For memories of the merger frenzy that overtook the ad world  in yester-years was still sharp in their minds. 

    Excepting this time, advertising and media agencies are being upended and transforming themselves in response to gut-wrenching technological changes brought about due to the internet and tech giants which are transforming how consumers are shopping, watching movies and series, ordering daily necessities and what have you. Direct to consumer digitally  – that’s the mantra that’s reshaping the world of products and brands. 

    Back to the merger, the proposed coming together would create the world’s largest marketing and advertising solutions company with net revenues of $20 billion, way ahead of WPP which reported  $15.1 billion in revenue.
    Growth in the world of advertising  and towards traditional media has slowed down – in some cases it has de-grown – and it is increasingly being gnawed away by spends on digital by Google,  Amazon and Meta where the consumers are. 

    Omnicom group’s latest revenues have grown just 6.5 per cent in Q3 2024 to $3.9 billion, while IPG’s growth graph was horizontal with revenues of $2.24 billion. 

    Almost every ad agency worth its salt has been chasing start-ups or firms with some gee-whiz tech solutions which would help them respond to the requirement brought about by digital acceleration and brand custodians’ demand for data driven marketing solutions.

    Ditto with both Omnicom group and the Interpublic group – which have been making announcements regarding investments  in technology and digital transformation. The Interpublic group recently pocketed Mumbai-based  retail analytics company Intelligence Node for nearly $100 million, while it also announced the launch of its marketing intelligence engine – incorporating generative AI – Interact.  Omnicom, on its part, has also been seen fishing for tech buys and recently caught  Flywheel Digital. 

    An Omnicom-IPG wedding would give scale to the two, plus it would help them consolidate their strengths in technology – whether data or analytics or artificial intelligence – in financial resources as they seek to remain relevant in an increasingly digital world. 

    The  year has seen seismic account shifts with Amazon dividing its advertising business between agencies Omnicom, IPG, WPP. ebay moved from Group M’s Essence Mediacom to Dentsu’s iProspect. Hershey dropped a cluster of agencies like Omnicom, Horizon, Dentsu and awarded its account to Publicis. Kellanova (earlier Kellogg’s) too went in for agency reviews. As did General Mills.  These shifts and re-looks too were on account of evolving marketing strategies driven by  digital transformation, data-driven insights, and the demand for creative excellence in a competitive global landscape.

    If the fusion of the two does come about, it could lead to another wave of mergers, acquisitions, consolidation, layoffs in a global economy which is already facing challenging times. Also, one will have to watch how other agency groups like Publicis and WPP react. Will they also throw their hat into the ring? Will they give counter offers? Interesting times ahead. Painful for some possibly! (updated 9 December 2024, 7 am)

    (The image was generated using Canva. No copyright infringement is intended)

  • Interpublic group acquires Mumbai-based ecommerce intelligence firm Intelligence Node

    Interpublic group acquires Mumbai-based ecommerce intelligence firm Intelligence Node

    MUMBAI: For clients, looking for granular information about shopping habits of customers online – especially in this increasingly D2C world – it surely is an intelligent move by . marketing solutions provider the  Interpublic Group. It has forked out, according to media reports $100 million, to acquire 12 year old Mumbai-based ecommerce intelligence platform Intelligence Node. The company which was co-founded by CEO Sanjeev Sularia and chief data analytics officer Yasen Dimitrov, serves top notch clients such as Jockey, Unilever, Macy’s, Li & Fung, Tesco, Mobly, Tata and Landmark. 

    This strategic move significantly enhances Interpublic’s commerce capabilities, providing clients with real-time product and market intelligence to understand shopper trends, drive sales growth and optimise performance in the dynamic digital marketplace. 

    Intelligence Node’s cutting-edge technology leverages AI to aggregate and analyse billions of data points across over 1,900 retail categories in 34 global markets, delivering dynamic insights into product attributes, media, pricing, availability, promotions, and consumer sentiment. 

    Through this acquisition, Interpublic will seamlessly integrate these rich data streams into its existing and future commerce solutions. Intelligence Node strengthens Interpublic’s ability to build and deploy agile commerce solutions, streamlining operations and maximising ROI for companies through faster, more informed decisions across product development, marketing, sales activation, and retail media.

    The aggregated commerce and transaction data from Intelligence Node enhances and complements audience data and identity solutions within Acxiom, the global data leader within Interpublic. Together, the companies create a comprehensive view of customers and products, offering brands and retailers unmatched capabilities to maximize market share. Intelligence Node will be leveraged across Interpublic’s portfolio of agencies and the company will maintain its current brand name.

    “As commerce and retail media continue their rapid convergence, actionable data is paramount to maximising brand performance,” said Interpublic group CEO Philippe Krakowsky Interpublic. “Intelligence Node’s robust platform provides the real-time market-wide signals that brands need to optimise retail media campaigns, commerce strategies, and ultimately drive performance in today’s highly competitive digital landscape.”

    By integrating Intelligence Node’s capabilities, Interpublic will offer clients:

    * Real-Time Market Agility:Dynamic data insights empower companies to react instantly to market shifts, competitor actions, and emerging consumer trends.
    * Precision Retail Media Optimization:Granular data on competitor advertising activity enables more effective and efficient retail media investment.
    * Digital Content and Search Optimisation: Intelligence Node streamlines content management and optimization leveraging generative AI to ensure product description pages are resonant, highly visible, and SEO optimised.

    “Joining forces with Interpublic allows us to deliver a best in class combined solution to companies navigating the complexities of today’s commerce landscape,” said  Sularia. “Together, we can provide the comprehensive data, advanced analytics, and strategic expertise needed to win market share and drive sustainable growth.”

    (Picture courtesy: Intelligence Node website)

  • Shashi Sinha receives AAAI Lifetime Achievement Award 2023

    Shashi Sinha receives AAAI Lifetime Achievement Award 2023

    Mumbai: IPG Mediabrands CEO Shashi Sinha, the media holding company within Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG), has been honoured with the prestigious AAAI Lifetime Achievement Award 2023. This recognition underscores his exceptional leadership and profound impact on the advertising industry.

    The Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) bestowed the AAAI Lifetime Achievement Award upon Shashi Sinha in acknowledgment of his visionary contributions, unwavering dedication, and tireless efforts in advancing the advertising landscape in India.

    In his illustrious career spanning close to four decades, Sinha has played a pivotal role in shaping the media and advertising domain. From his early leadership position at FCB Ulka to assuming the role of CEO of all media units under IPG Mediabrands (India) in 2013, Shashi has consistently demonstrated a deep commitment to the industry.

    Commenting on the award, Sinha remarked, “Heartfelt thanks to AAAI for this esteemed recognition. I extend my gratitude to IPG Mediabrands, my family, the advertising industry, and everyone who has been part of this incredible journey. While humbled by the Lifetime Achievement Award, it’s not the end. I believe there’s much more to explore and contribute on this journey.”

  • IPG Mediabrands India launches ‘Media Responsibility Index’

    IPG Mediabrands India launches ‘Media Responsibility Index’

    Mumbai: IPG Mediabrands, the media holding company within Interpublic Group (NYSE: IPG) has unveiled its inaugural Media Responsibility Index (MRI) in India, marking a significant milestone in India’s media landscape by championing responsible media practices. Collaboratively compiled by IPG Mediabrands and its intelligence arm, MAGNA, the MRI aims to elevate awareness and set a higher industry standard for safety in advertising for both brands and consumers. It serves as a guiding resource for marketers, allowing them to prioritise brand and consumer safety in their investment decisions across diverse media platforms.

    IPG Mediabrands India chief investment officer Hema Malik commented, “The MRI India is a testament to our commitment to responsible media practices in India. Our MRI report propels responsible media practices to the forefront of India’s media landscape, providing brands and marketers with essential tools to navigate the media terrain conscientiously. It reaffirms our dedication to ethical advertising, safety, and shared responsibility in media. While we take pride in Indian media companies leading in Safety and corporate responsibility, the MRI also underscores the imperative for Digital Platforms to elevate their efforts in Data Ethics. It highlights that while Indian media excels in several areas, there’s room to advance Sustainability and Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, further progressing responsible media practices in our country.”

    The MRI India evaluates media platforms across four crucial environmental, social, and governance (ESG) aligned priorities: safety, inclusivity, sustainability, and data ethics. This comprehensive approach equips brands to make discerning investment decisions, with consideration for brand and consumer safety in media strategies. The survey encompasses an extensive questionnaire containing over 200 questions, covering key principles such as promote respect, children’s wellbeing, misinformation, and data collection & use, providing a deep-dive analysis of each platform’s performance within these domains.

    The response from media platforms is a weighted index of all 10 principles across four priorities: safety, inclusivity, sustainability and data ethics. The index reflects the platforms’ position in the priority areas. Broadcast platforms surveyed cover close to 70 per cent of television Adex in India.

    Key findings specific to the Indian media landscape include:

    1. Broadcast and digital platforms excel in safety: Both Broadcast and Digital platforms exhibit consistency in safety with robust processes aligned with industry ethics and standards.

    2. Broadcasters face sustainability gap: Foundational sustainability efforts are needed from Broadcast platforms through measuring emissions, ESG frameworks and making public commitments on net zero goals. Digital is a mixed bag, some platforms have plans to improve energy efficiency and mitigate greenwashing.

    3. Inclusivity metrics highlight opportunity for growth: DE&I efforts need to be stepped up in broadcast and digital. Significant opportunity exists in enhanced measurement and statistical validation.

    4. Digital platforms urged to prioritise data ethics: Digital platforms are encouraged to bolster efforts in data ethics, in alignment with the Digital Personal Data Protection regulation.

    IPG Mediabrands APAC director, standards and investment product Harrison Boys said, “MRI India heralds a new era in media responsibility. It underscores the importance of putting safety, inclusivity, sustainability, and data ethics at the forefront of media strategies. Notably, the MRI showcases how Indian broadcasters excel in Safety, setting industry benchmarks. Furthermore, India’s substantial commitment to CSR projects mandated by the CSR Law aligns perfectly with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, demonstrating a unique opportunity for responsible media practices on a global scale. It is noted, however, that there is a significant opportunity in Sustainability, as well as ensuring Data Ethics practices are class leading in recognition of the regulation.”

    In an era where brands and consumers emphasise ESG criteria, the MRI emerges as an invaluable annual resource to support these objectives and champion higher media standards. It advocates for responsibility in media, mitigating concerns surrounding the societal impact of media and misinformation.

  • Vaishali Verma becomes CEO at IPG Mediabrands

    Vaishali Verma becomes CEO at IPG Mediabrands

    MUMBAI: Initiative, part of the Interpublic Group’s media management network IPG Mediabrands, has announced a major elevation and restructuring.

    Initiative COO Vaishali Verma has been promoted as the CEO of the agency. Verma will report to IPG Mediabrands India CEO Shashi Sinha, and will oversee the entire India operations.

    With over 22 years of experience in the area of media, advertising and marketing, Verma has been a strong force in helping brands connect better with consumers. Her work reflects a deep understanding of the evolution of Indian consumers backed with solid research based planning.

    Initiative – APAC regional president Will Anstee mentions, “I couldn’t be more excited to have Vaishali steer and deliver on our Initiative proposition in India. Her passion for the craft, her consistent high performance and the conscientious way she approaches every task, make her the natural choice for the role.”

    Talking about the appointment, Shashi Sinha adds, “What makes this truly special is that Vaishali is an insider and has grown from strength to strength in the group over the last 20 years. I am hugely proud to have such superlative talent from within steering the ship. She embodies IPG’s culture and values and is an inspiring leader. I couldn’t have found a better person to lead Initiative Media.”

    Verma says, “The advertising business is going through the most interesting times and it has never been more difficult than now to get consumer attention. Fortunately there is a better way of building audience relationship by being as relevant as possible and at Initiative we use culture as the bridge to stay relevant. Culture forms the canvas and the fabric of how we lead our lives. We help brands grow through culture by distributing ideas, content and conversation. At Initiative, we have the best of the global and local clients, the finest talent in the industry and cutting edge media tools. I think we have an opportunity to help shape the future of how brands engage with consumers. To be a part of this opportunity, to shape it with some of the sharpest minds in the business, is what excites me.”

    Verma started her career in advertising as a media planner with Mudra Communications in 1995, charting the media strategies of brands like McDonalds, Samsung and Nestle. She then moved to Universal McCann in 1997 as a senior media planner and worked with brands like General Motors, Reckitt Benckiser, Gillette, Madura Garments and ICI Paints. She joined Lodestar UM as general manager and handled brands like Wipro Consumer Care, Intel, ING Group and Madura Garments.

    In 2014, Verma was named the COO of Initiative and she has been overseeing the agency’s entire business in Southern India with the likes of Amazon Seller Service, MRF, Jockey, 3M, etc., leading a team of 100+ strong media professionals.

  • Interpublic Invests in Kiip

    MUMBAI: Interpublic Group, a global advertising group holding firm, has entered into a strategic partnership with Kiip, by investing in the mobile advertising company.

    On IPG‘s side, the partnership will be led the IPG Media Lab division of IPG Mediabrands, which will help introduce top-tier marketers to Kiip‘s mobile and gaming advertising platform focusing on rewards based consumer interactions.

    The investment by IPG was a part of Kiip‘s most recent round of funding which took place at the end of 2012 and included additional investments from Relay Ventures, Hummer Winblad, True Ventures and Digital Garage, totaling $11 million.

    Kiip‘s rewards network model includes an array of apps that connect a large community of mobile consumers to rewards for their in-app “moments of achievement” and enables brands to monetize mobile in a way that augments quality of content and engagement versus a standard interruption model.

    Interpublic chairman and CEO Michael I Roth said, “IPG is committed to developing emerging technology, talent and innovation, and bringing new solutions to clients. IPG Mediabrands and the IPG Media Lab identified Kiip as a key player in the increasingly important mobile market, with a thoughtful and effective model that connects brands with the modern consumer. It‘s always exciting when we can help our clients find new pathways to consumer engagement.”

    IPG Media Lab managing partner Chad Stoller said, “At the IPG Media Lab, we identify the best and most innovative companies with whom we and our clients can partner. Kiip‘s approach to engaging a brand‘s customers and rewarding them when it is most effective is particularly compelling. We look forward to being a strategic partner to Kiip and to working with them and IPG‘s clients to build real business solutions.”

    Kiip CEO and co-founder Brian Wong said, “This is a major moment for Kiip. By having a partner like IPG and the innovative team at the IPG Media Lab join us, we expect to see accelerated global growth with top-tier marketers who are looking to engage with mobile consumers. Having launched just over a year ago, the traction we have made introducing a new advertising model to major brands is remarkable and the potential of rewards-based communications with a connected consumer is nearly limitless.”

  • Interpublic group first quarter results disappoint analysts

    Interpublic group first quarter results disappoint analysts

    NEW YORK: Advertising company Interpublic group of companies, the world's second-largest owner of advertising agencies has reported a disappointing results for the FY2003. The group also named Christopher Coughlin (ex executive VP and CFO at Pharmacia Corporation) to assume charge of the newly created position of a chief operating officer.

    While announcing its results on 7 May, Interpublic reported a first-quarter net loss of $8.6 million, or 2 cents a share. That compared with a year-ago profit of $59.8 million, or 16 cents. The first quarter revenues rose nearly 1 per cent to $1.43 billion as foreign exchange fluctuations masked the weakness in the ad market abroad and project-related businesses such as public relations, says an adage report.

    The company, which has reshuffled its management as it contends with earnings restatements and a probe by the Securities and Exchange Commission. The holding company said it swung to a quarterly net loss hurt by higher costs, including severance, as it tries to turn itself around.

    Group chief executive and chairman David Bell was reported as saying that the results were 'disappointing and unacceptable.' He added that the efforts to increase revenues, including cost controlling measures, would begin to bear fruit in the second half of the year.

    Interpublic said its new business wins in the quarter totaled $1.3 billion, including clients such as Merck & Co. and AT&T Corp. , which encouraged some analysts.

    The company said it will accelerate its cost-cutting in the second quarter and believes the second-half of the year and first-half of 2004 will form a base for the future. Interpublic said it will give further details on its plans in August.