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Tag: Karbonn

  • Lloyd D’souza returns to Lava International as chief business officer

    Lloyd D’souza returns to Lava International as chief business officer

    MUMBAI: Lloyd D’souza has rejoined Lava International Ltd  as chief business officer for enterprise business, marking his return to the Indian smartphone manufacturer after a five-year absence.

    The appointment comes as D’souza brings a wealth of government and public sector experience to Lava’s enterprise division. His remit will focus on advancing business across government, corporate customers and public sector undertaking verticals from the company’s Noida headquarters.

    D’souza previously served as head of enterprise business at Lava between March 2018 and October 2020, where he oversaw enterprise sales, international operations, government sales and electronics manufacturing services. His departure coincided with a broader reshuffling in India’s competitive smartphone market.

    Since leaving Lava, D’souza spent over three years as director at Laqshanya Solutions Pvt Ltd, where he specialised in identifying government and public sector clients, coordinating customer relations and managing tender processes. He also held a senior vice president role at Square Panda Inc between October 2020 and February 2022.

    The executive’s career spans over two decades in business development and experiential marketing. He spent 13 years as director of Maverick Marketing, a full-spectrum experiential marketing agency, before transitioning to the mobile technology sector with Karbonn Mobiles in 2015 as executive director.

    At Karbonn, D’souza managed e-commerce, international sales and institutional sales operations during the height of India’s smartphone boom. His expertise in government affairs, crisis management and competitive tendering has made him a sought-after figure in India’s technology sector.

    Lava International, founded in 2009, has been working to reclaim market share in India’s increasingly crowded smartphone market, dominated by Chinese brands and global players. The company’s focus on government and enterprise customers represents a strategic pivot towards higher-margin business segments.

    D’souza’s return signals Lava’s renewed push into enterprise and government markets, sectors where his established relationships and tender management expertise could prove valuable for the homegrown brand.

  • The rising trend of coopetition among brands

    The rising trend of coopetition among brands

    MUMBAI: Who would have thought that companies would overcome their ego and actually collaborate with other brands to come up with joint advertisements? That is the new trend in the market-coopetition (a combination of cooperative and competition).

    Companies are willing to do anything today, including riding along with other brands just because it will benefit them. Coopetition essentially involves one company advertising through another company, so that each can benefit from the brand loyalty and reputation of the other. It is also called brand partnership and the term is relatively new to the business vocabulary and is used to encompass a wide range of marketing activities involving the use of two or more brands.

    An early instance of co-branding occurred in 1956 when Renault tied up with French jeweller Jacques Arpels to turn the dashboard of one of its newly introduced Renault Dauphines into a work of art. A unique case of coopetition was when Burger King made a proposal to archrival McDonald’s to create a unique burger McWhopper but Ronald McDonald frowned on it.

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    The most infamous case was the success story of Samsung and Sony partnership back in 2004. Two competitors who operate in the same television manufacturing business decided to come together in a joint venture to develop and produce LCD panels for flat screen TV sets. Teaming with a rival produced two innovations, knocking down other competitors from their positions and more than doubled the combined market share of these two companies. The companies ended their partnership of liquid-crystal displays for televisions in 2011.

    Although a common practice internationally, the phenomenon is fairly new in India. The most acknowledged has been Ariel washing powder and LG washing machine coming together for a brand alliance. The partnership was strengthened by a TVC that showcased LG as the best washing machine to wash your clothes using Ariel washing powder.

    Indian two-wheeler motorcycle company Hero Group and Japanese Honda Motor Company entered a joint venture to set up Hero Honda Motors Limited in 1984. The joint venture not only created the world’s single largest two-wheeler company but also one of the most successful joint ventures worldwide. But, on 16 December 2010, the companies signed an agreement to dissolve their partnership.

    We have also witnessed telecom companies partnering with handset manufacturers to strengthen their position jointly in the market. This results in an increased sale of handsets and mobile network subscribers. In 2017, Sunil Bharti Mittal-led Airtel launched Android-powered 4G smartphones in partnership with Karbonn Mobiles. Domestic handset maker Micromax and Vodafone also came together to offer a smartphone at an affordable price hence increasing the mobile and network penetration in smaller markets.

    The latest addition to the list is sanitaryware Parryware joining hands with toilet cleaner Harpic to educate and promote imperative lifestyle habits. Emphasising the need for hygienic and clean toilets, the duo has even jointly launched a television commercial which revolves around the need to keep toilets sparkling clean and germ free for maintaining hygiene as well as longevity, while showcasing bathrooms as an important factor that drives health and well-being of consumers in their living spaces.

    Additionally, various food delivery apps have also been tying up with cab hailing services and e-commerce websites tie-up with mobile handsets as an exclusive seller such as OnePlus with Amazon. Although the trend is fairly new, it is an interesting space to see two brands coming together to achieve marketing and revenue goals together.

    Also Read:

    Indian TVCs that rapped with consumers

    The attention grabbing gimmick of comparative advertising

    Why do we lack animated ads despite their popularity

  • PKL sponsors and partners cross 100-mark

    PKL sponsors and partners cross 100-mark

    MUMBAI: Star India chairman & CEO Uday Shankar has this uncanny ability to see  opportunity where many do not. For many years, TV broadcasters had only one sport which could be monetised: cricket. Which was a major limiting factor to developing  the overall Indian sports and sports broadcasting ecosystem. Hence, he and team Star India looked around for indigenous sport that could be developed around six years ago.

    One of the properties that popped up was kabaddi, a highy underdeveloped sport, which was being pushed by a company called Mashal Sports and industrialist Anand Mahindra. Shankar saw a lot of promise in the venture and today he can be rightfully be pleased with what has been achieved.

    “When we started out, it was difficult to get corporations to own franchises,” says Shankar. “Anand used his personal charm to get folks on board. But this year, when we added four teams, a large number of top corporates and individuals were very keen. We had a problem of plenty. “

    Not just owners. Even brands have been hopping on board to back the Vivo Pro-Kabaddi League (PKL)  as it has been gaining viewership from the first season to the ongoing fifth season. 

    The need for looking at the commercial aspect of sports and supporting it for the sake of business and branding, packaging and cultivating viewership were some of the ideas which have been proven on the ground — by Star India and the Kabaddi franchises.

    In Season 1, PKL hardly had any sponsor and partner, but, with the traction it has got for the past couple of seasons, it has managed to cross 100-mark in Season 5 including individual teams sponsors and partners.

    Talking to Indiantelevision.com, Unilazer Sports CEO Supratik Sen said, “All the sponsors including jersey sponsors, on-ground, and title sponsor for UMumba has a range of Rs 8 million to Rs 20 million which is generally applicable for all the other teams.”

    Vivo PKL Season 5 has seen many late-entrant brands as sponsors and partners. Brands are aware that PKL is the only major non-cricketing event dominating in the present times.

    Corporates, of course, support events for the sake of building their brands. Given the demographics in India, advertising was done for more visibility. “For the sake of going the whole hog into sports promotion,” an analyst says, “the complete supply chain would need to be looked at – from scouting for talent to sports good manufacturing etc. to CSR.”

    Remarked Sen: “The team performance helps to get the brands on board. From Season 2, we were pretty much close to breaking even, but it was notional. But now, the reach of sports has become more important instead of breaking even (and profits),” Sen said.

    The recently added sponsors and partners for PKL as well as the teams are: Title sponsor Vivo signed a Rs 3 billion ($ 45 million) deal for five years with the league a couple of months ago.

    The associate sponsors are — Gillette, TVS Motors, Mutual Funds, Bajaj Electricals, Nissin, Royal Challenge and RR Kabel are the partners. Recently, Ultratech Cement has been roped in as an associate sponsor.

    Dabang Delhi has roped in ISME (Indian School of Management and Entrepreneurship) and ISDI (Indian school of Design and Innovation) as its jersey sponsors and the new partners are Gold gym’s, zoom car and Insidesports.

    UMumba has shifted its title sponsor from Nise Gel to Zandu Gel. The team is powered by Manforce. Bangaluru Bulls has roped in Karbonn Smartphones as the title sponsor and Kent RO and Gem Paints as the principal sponsor.

    Puneri Paltan has got Force Motors as the principal partner and Syska as the new associate partner. Jaipur Pink Panthars has pocketed Muthoot Finance and Performax Activewears as the new associate sponsors.

    Tamil Thalaivas  was the only team with no sponsor in the beginning of Season 5 but it has now attracted Muthoot Fincorp as the title sponsor, powered by Maha Cement and associate sponsors are — Agni Steels, Nippon Paint, Smartron and Admiral.

    Telugu Titans has Greenko as its title sponsor and UP Yoddhas has roped in Karbonn Smartphones as its jersey sponsors.

    The sports sponsorship market in India witnessed a healthy growth trend in the last couple of years from Rs 51.9 billion in 2015 to Rs 61-65 billion in 2016 as per KPMG FICCI Frames 2017 report.

    The fifth season is touted to become one of the biggest league tournaments as one sees traction from several brands as sponsors and partners.

    Also Read :

    PKL 5 advertisers grow three-fold, sponsorships rise 320%

    How brands are reaching out to wide PKL audience

     

    PKL: sponsors adding up even as matches start

  • Splitsvilla is back on MTV with season 9

    Splitsvilla is back on MTV with season 9

    MUMBAI: Love is always thickened with various elements and fights or clashes are an innate part of it. After 8 successful seasons, MTV is back with one of the most popular reality show Splitsvilla. Television viewers can witness all the drama, clashes and fights from 12 June 2016 every Sunday at 7 pm. The show will hit TV screens right after the completion of Roadies X4.

    Produced by Colosceum Media, the channel has retained Sunny Leone and Rannvijay Singh as the hosts for the show. For the 15 episodic Splitsvilla, MTV has roped in four sponsors for this season and is likely to lock a deal with Karbonn.

    A source close to the development said that the per episode production cost of Splitsvilla  is approximately Rs 23 to Rs 25 lakh. Revealing further, the source said, “The hosts are all spiced up like never before. Viewers will be able to see many known TV personalities as contestants in the show”. With fights, jealousy, hatred, friendship, backstabbing and love, the show will see 16 wild contestants getting together.

    A 10 second slot rates for the show should be in the region of Rs 10,000 for originals and Rs 5,000 for repeats, opines a media planner.

    Splitsvilla is being shot in Pondicherry with many twists and clashes. In this season as well, show followers will be able to see the male and female ratio continuously changing during the entire course of the show.

     

  • Splitsvilla is back on MTV with season 9

    Splitsvilla is back on MTV with season 9

    MUMBAI: Love is always thickened with various elements and fights or clashes are an innate part of it. After 8 successful seasons, MTV is back with one of the most popular reality show Splitsvilla. Television viewers can witness all the drama, clashes and fights from 12 June 2016 every Sunday at 7 pm. The show will hit TV screens right after the completion of Roadies X4.

    Produced by Colosceum Media, the channel has retained Sunny Leone and Rannvijay Singh as the hosts for the show. For the 15 episodic Splitsvilla, MTV has roped in four sponsors for this season and is likely to lock a deal with Karbonn.

    A source close to the development said that the per episode production cost of Splitsvilla  is approximately Rs 23 to Rs 25 lakh. Revealing further, the source said, “The hosts are all spiced up like never before. Viewers will be able to see many known TV personalities as contestants in the show”. With fights, jealousy, hatred, friendship, backstabbing and love, the show will see 16 wild contestants getting together.

    A 10 second slot rates for the show should be in the region of Rs 10,000 for originals and Rs 5,000 for repeats, opines a media planner.

    Splitsvilla is being shot in Pondicherry with many twists and clashes. In this season as well, show followers will be able to see the male and female ratio continuously changing during the entire course of the show.

     

  • FunOnGo releases ‘Singh Is Bliing’ mobile game

    FunOnGo releases ‘Singh Is Bliing’ mobile game

    MUMBAI: FunOnGo Entertainment has released the official mobile game of Akshay Kumar’s upcoming film – Singh is Bliing, which is directed by Prabhu Deva.

     

    The action comedy is scheduled to release on 2 October, 2015 and also stars Amy Jackson, Lara Dutta and Kay Kay Menon in lead roles.

     

    FunOnGo Entertainment is the publisher and distributor of the mobile game. The company provides customised platform and managed services to clients such as Samsung, Micromax, Karbonn, Intex, Spice and Gionee.

     

    The game is designed in a manner where gamers get a feel of being in the shoes of action hero Akshay Kumar. The run up to the castle and the fight sequences on the floor are evocative of the fast pace, taut action that Kumar is famed for.

     

    Kumar said, “I really liked the game, the fights were so good that I ended up playing the game for most of the day.”

    The interactive mobile action game requires Rafttaar Singh to go on a mission to save Sara, who has been captured and held captive in a castle. The gamer plays as Rafttaar Singh and can unlock up to three stages of game play as he succeeds from one level to another. 

     

    FunOnGo Entertainment CEO Vijay Singh said, “We see the mobile phone as a fantastic gateway for film makers to reach their potential consumer. Our team plays an active role in publishing, marketing and distribution of the games we do. Mobile games provide for an immersive experience and turn curious bystanders to engaged fans.”

     

    Reliance Big Entertainment COO Shibasish Sarkar added, “In the business of entertainment, fans create customers and this impacts box office performance. Our alliance with FunOnGo to publish the official game is with the view to provide the customer a value added cinematic experience.”

     

    The Singh Is Bliing official mobile game is available for download on Android, iOS marketplace as well as on other app stores online.

  • Ten Sports unveils new logo; targets Rs 20 crore revenue from Ind-Zimbabwe series

    Ten Sports unveils new logo; targets Rs 20 crore revenue from Ind-Zimbabwe series

    MUMBAI: Sports broadcaster Ten Sports, which is airing the India vs Zimbabwe ODI series that kickstarted today (10 July), has also unveiled its new logo on the occasion.

     

    After the dismal performance of the ‘Men in Blue’ in the Bangladesh tour, this India tour of Zimbabwe has become an all-important series for both the audience as well as the broadcaster. What’s more, the broadcaster is targeting ad revenues in excess of Rs 20 crore from the series.

     

    Ten Sports and Taj TV global CEO Rajesh Sethi, “It is a step forward in consolidating all the channels under one uniform network and project the organization value to strive further, break new grounds, surpass our limits and achieve the unattained. The belief is articulated in our new network logo design which is synonymous to all kinds of sports and its belief of genesis to victory and the idents and new design was developed completely by the internal team.”

     

    The network also informed Indianelevision.com that an elongated and extensive research was conducted by the internal team before launching the logo.

     

    Sethi further added, “The interest in this series is very high, which is visible through the fact that around 60 per cent of our inventory has already been sold, this in spite of not having the more sellable names in the team. We are able to command a rate of Rs 3 to 3.5 lakh between ODIs and T20s per 10 second. We expect the revenue for this series to be well over Rs 20 crore with brands like Fogg, Karbonn and Pay You already being associated with the series,” said

     

    What could very well be the beginning of the end for the Dhoni era, this series pitches players who have been on the fringes or are making comebacks under a new captain. Zimbabwe that gave a respectable performance against Pakistan in May can’t be treated as push overs any more.

     

    As official broadcasters of the event, Ten Sports is looking to tap into the vast opportunity that the series brings along.

     

    On the production front, the channel has started its studio show Straight Drive, which will boast of star analysts such as Arun Lal, Atul Wassan and Charu Sharma. The show will see pre, mid and post-match round ups.

     

    To market the series, the channel has tied up with the upcoming movie Drishyam. It is also conducting fan engagement activities like contests and quizzes on various social media platforms.

     

    The channel feels that this could well and truly be the moment of truth for the evolution of cricket in the country and the series presents both a challenge and an opportunity for the ‘New Blues.’

  • Champions League Twenty20 2013: A Preview

    Champions League Twenty20 2013: A Preview

    MUMBAI: The coming weeks are going to be a treat for cricket lovers as they have many reasons to cheer. Sachin Tendulkar and Rahul Dravid will be playing their last internationl T20 matches. Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai Indians, Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad will be competing against giants from the countries of Australia, South Africa, West Indies, Pakistan, New Zealand and Sri Lanka.

    The Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians will fight for the top two spots in Group A to qualify for the semis, whereas Chennai Super Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad will compete in Group B.

    Six on air sponsors have already been signed – Karbonn Mobile and Tata Docomo have come on board as co-presenting sponsors while Airtel Broadband, Pernod Ricard, Bharat Business Channel (Videocon D2H),  Panasonic and Toshiba India have been roped in as associate sponsors.

    On ground sponsors include – Karbonn Mobiles, Panasonic, Britannia, Panasonic TV and Jaypee cements. This is the second year in a row that Karbonn Mobile has associated itself with CLT20. Previous sponsors include Nokia and Bharti Airtel.

    The total prize money is the same as the previous year as $6 million out of which the winning team will receive $2.5 million. ESPN Star Sports bought the global broadcast rights for CLT20 in 2008 at a whopping $900 million for the next ten years.

    A musical anthem Ragad Ragad has been created as part of the marketing campaign for this edition which is currently running on electronic and digital media. Prasoon Joshi has written the lyrics for it and the track performed by Mika Singh, who will also be performing at the opening ceremony on 21 September in Jaipur.

    CLT20 will also have bilingual commentary in both English and Hindi. Star Sports and Star Cricket HD will be in English while Star Cricket will have it in Hindi. Additionally, this year the first and the final matches will be telecast on Star Gold as well with Hindi commentary.  “We have also invested heavily on building strong Karbonn Smart CLT20 centric programming in the run-up to the league,” says ESPN Software India COO Vijay Rajput.

    Commentators who will be giving viewers an ear-gasmic experience include Harsha Bhogle,  Sanjay Manjrekar, Wasim Akram, Simon Doull, Alan Wilkins, Ravi Shastri, Sunil Gavaskar, Ian Bishop, Pommie Mbangwa, Laxman Sivaramakrishnan, Kapil Dev, Sanjay Bangar, Ayaz Memon, Deep Dasgupta, Murali Karthik, Aakash Chopra and Arun Lal.

    The action has already begun on ESPN Star Sports channels but the real deal is yet to begin.