Tag: Martin Sorrel

  • Martin Sorrell eyes India’s untapped digital potential with S4 Capital launch

    Martin Sorrell eyes India’s untapped digital potential with S4 Capital launch

    MUMBAI: Advertising giant Martin Sorrell, who was made to leave WPP last year and later announced his next new venture S4 Capital, has made a new revelation. The company’s India operation is soon to be launched having found the country head. Sorrell made the announcement on the sidelines of the IAA World Congress 2019 that’s taking place in Kochi this year.

    The business will commence later this week starting off in the digital content side with MediaMonks, a company it acquired last year for $350 million. First offices here will open in Mumbai and Bengaluru. The country, according to Sorrell, has a vast untapped potential because of its inclination to traditional media and still growing digital side. “With the growth of fake news and political debates on platforms like Facebook and Twitter, there’s an issue of privacy which has worried the customers. Transparency in data is important in India,” said Sorrell.

    Though lagging in digital media, Sorrell said, “India will be the most populous business because of the talent, quality of people and high tech capabilities.” Media industries today are in a much better place than 10 years ago. “Our biggest clients are tech. Our recruits are really excited about technology. We are more attractive to the population than ever before,” he added.

    40 per cent of client budget today is in the digital medium with Facebook, Google and Amazon being dominant players. In India, WPP has close to 50 per cent of market share.

    S4 Capital’s focus is on data, digital content and programmatic media buying.

  • Mark Read appointed WPP CEO & ED

    Mark Read appointed WPP CEO & ED

    MUMBAI: Global media agency WPP today announced the appointment of Mark Read as chief executive officer and his appointment to the Board of WPP as an executive director with immediate effect.

    WPP Chairman Roberto Quarta said, “The Board carried out a rigorous selection process, assessing internal and external candidates. That process, alongside Mark’s wise and effective stewardship of the business in the last few months, left us with no doubt that he is the right leader for this company, and we are delighted to announce the Board’s unanimous decision to appoint him as Chief Executive Officer of WPP.”

    “Recognised for his leadership throughout the industry, he has an intimate understanding of the business, he enjoys very strong internal support, and he has earned the respect and endorsement of our clients with his constant focus on their needs. He has played a central role in many of WPP’s most successful investments and initiatives, and he has deep experience at board and operational level. Most recently, Mark led the transformation of Wunderman into one of the world’s top digital agencies, and he understands the importance of culture in creating successful organisations. In short, he is in every way a 21st century CEO. WPP is a world leader in communications services. The priority for the Board and the task ahead for Mark and the new management team is to build on this position of strength, while pursuing a clear vision for change and value creation.”

    Mark Read said: “WPP is a great company with exceptional people and strong relationships with clients who place a high value on our work. Few organisations have our global reach – 130,000 people delivering results for clients in 112 different countries. Fewer still have our powerful combination of creativity and expertise in technology and data.Our industry is going through a period of structural change, not structural decline, and if we embrace that change we can look ahead to an exciting and successful future. Our mission now is to release the full potential that exists within the company for the benefit of our clients, to accelerate our transformation and simplify our offering, and to position WPP for stronger growth.”

    “To achieve that we need to foster a culture that attracts the best and brightest: inclusive, respectful, collaborative, diverse. What makes our company special is its people, and I am very proud to have been given the chance to build a new WPP with them,” Read added.

    Roberto Quarta has resumed his role as non-executive chairman on the appointment of Mark Read as chief executive officer.

    Andrew Scott will continue in his role as chief operating officer of WPP on a permanent basis as a key member of the senior management team. The Board would like to thank him for his efforts, alongside Mark and the rest of the executive team, during a period of significant change for WPP.

  • GroupM’s new suite [m]Platform to make media planning flexible

    GroupM’s new suite [m]Platform to make media planning flexible

    MUMBAI: GroupM has launched an advanced technology suite of flexible media planning applications, data analytics and digital services titled [m]Platform. The platform will improve advertisers’ ability to use audience-defining insights from hundreds of data sources to find and communicate with their consumers across all media.

    Brian Gleason, most recently the global CEO of Xaxis, has been named the CEO of [m]Platform. He will lead the continuous development of market-leading technology to ingest any data important to identifying a client’s audiences and applications that efficiently engage them on any platform.

    The connected platform ensures insights carry through the whole communications process: “Marketers are under tremendous pressure to deliver results from media investments. This flexible Platform approach enables us to focus US$7 billion worth of investments we’ve made in data and technology over 10 years to help them realize a marketplace advantage,” said GroupM Global CEO Kelly Clark. “Our agencies will now have deeper consumer insights and the most robust technology in the market.”

    [m]Platform makes it possible for media planners at GroupM agencies to use the most detailed consumer data to achieve results for their clients. It is supported by a team of data scientists, technologists and digital practitioners from across GroupM specialist companies and Xaxis. [m]Platform unifies data analytics and digital services including search, social, mobile, digital ad operations and programmatic into one team delivering a completely open and fully transparent data and technology architecture.

    [m]Platform connects wide-ranging WPP data sources across Kantar and Wunderman; third-party data providers; GroupM’s data from unique agreements with global media partners; and clients’ own data when they choose. This allows the creation of the most complete consumer profiles within a brand’s target audience, including rich demographics, technology usage, behavioral insights, purchase history, location data and more (varies by region according to local regulations).

    [m]Core is the first full-stack audience intelligence Platform combining cross-Platform data (display, mobile, video, offline CRM, apps, etc.) for a singular consumer identifier, [m]ID.[m]Insights is the largest audience-centric media planning tool with cross-channel planning, creative workflow management, unified audience frequency capping and location-based and in- demo reach[m]Analytics marries online and offline campaign-level data to[m]ID to enable analytics, attribution and optimization[m]Report merges data into a single, intuitive visualization dashboard with actionable.

    GroupM is building a global organization to support [m]Platform. Four regional presidents will report to Gleason. Recently named the president of Platform Services in North America, Phil Cowdell, is now the president of [m]Platform, North America. Lucas Mentasti has been named the president, [m]Platform, LATAM. Presidents in EMEA and APAC will be named shortly. Also on the [m]Platform global leadership team is COO Nicolle Pangis, chief strategy officer Jack Smith, and CTO Bob Hammond.

    Pan-regional collaboration will ensure consistent information and experience to global clients, but with the bespoke strategic point of view of their selected GroupM agency.

  • GroupM’s new suite [m]Platform to make media planning flexible

    GroupM’s new suite [m]Platform to make media planning flexible

    MUMBAI: GroupM has launched an advanced technology suite of flexible media planning applications, data analytics and digital services titled [m]Platform. The platform will improve advertisers’ ability to use audience-defining insights from hundreds of data sources to find and communicate with their consumers across all media.

    Brian Gleason, most recently the global CEO of Xaxis, has been named the CEO of [m]Platform. He will lead the continuous development of market-leading technology to ingest any data important to identifying a client’s audiences and applications that efficiently engage them on any platform.

    The connected platform ensures insights carry through the whole communications process: “Marketers are under tremendous pressure to deliver results from media investments. This flexible Platform approach enables us to focus US$7 billion worth of investments we’ve made in data and technology over 10 years to help them realize a marketplace advantage,” said GroupM Global CEO Kelly Clark. “Our agencies will now have deeper consumer insights and the most robust technology in the market.”

    [m]Platform makes it possible for media planners at GroupM agencies to use the most detailed consumer data to achieve results for their clients. It is supported by a team of data scientists, technologists and digital practitioners from across GroupM specialist companies and Xaxis. [m]Platform unifies data analytics and digital services including search, social, mobile, digital ad operations and programmatic into one team delivering a completely open and fully transparent data and technology architecture.

    [m]Platform connects wide-ranging WPP data sources across Kantar and Wunderman; third-party data providers; GroupM’s data from unique agreements with global media partners; and clients’ own data when they choose. This allows the creation of the most complete consumer profiles within a brand’s target audience, including rich demographics, technology usage, behavioral insights, purchase history, location data and more (varies by region according to local regulations).

    [m]Core is the first full-stack audience intelligence Platform combining cross-Platform data (display, mobile, video, offline CRM, apps, etc.) for a singular consumer identifier, [m]ID.[m]Insights is the largest audience-centric media planning tool with cross-channel planning, creative workflow management, unified audience frequency capping and location-based and in- demo reach[m]Analytics marries online and offline campaign-level data to[m]ID to enable analytics, attribution and optimization[m]Report merges data into a single, intuitive visualization dashboard with actionable.

    GroupM is building a global organization to support [m]Platform. Four regional presidents will report to Gleason. Recently named the president of Platform Services in North America, Phil Cowdell, is now the president of [m]Platform, North America. Lucas Mentasti has been named the president, [m]Platform, LATAM. Presidents in EMEA and APAC will be named shortly. Also on the [m]Platform global leadership team is COO Nicolle Pangis, chief strategy officer Jack Smith, and CTO Bob Hammond.

    Pan-regional collaboration will ensure consistent information and experience to global clients, but with the bespoke strategic point of view of their selected GroupM agency.

  • Interactive Television’s Buzz Index to help advertisers make smart investment in movies

    Interactive Television’s Buzz Index to help advertisers make smart investment in movies

    MUMBAI: Interactive Television, a unit of WPP, has launched ‘Buzz index’- a revolutionary buzz measuring tool for helping advertisers to make informed decisions for cinema advertising.

    Buzz Index is a measuring tool that identifies, captures and quantifies the ‘buzz’ around a particular film across all social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, blogs, boards, forums, news websites, aggregation, YouTube etc. which are true enablers for an unbiased evaluation of Bollywood and arrives at a unique buzz score. The Buzz Index of a specific film is based on four identifiers – positive conversation index, star cast buzz, positive views and unique authors.

    Methodology:

    After combining information from all the data points mentioned above, Buzz Index arrives at a benchmark score once the model for the index is run through Interactive’s Movie Buzz Database (2015 and updated yearly).

    All new releases will automatically be compared to the indexed number of 100 which is the average score or the Gold Standard for all films, primarily films that have done more than 100 crore at the box office. A film’s Buzz Index will be calculated regularly – (Week 1) 31 days before the film release, (Week-2) 24 days before the film release, (Week-3) 17 days before the Movie release and (Week-4) 10 days prior to the release.

    Interactive Television CEO Ajay Mehta said “Cinema advertising peaks around 10-12 blockbuster movies and in the absence of any measure of a film’s buzz, advertisers miss out on movies which are being talked about by their consumers. Buzz Index aims to change that so that even a small movie which is creating buzz and has a possibility of opening well should come up on the radar of the advertiser. With the launch of the Buzz Index , we want to make cinema advertising data driven rather than based on subjectivities. We aim to broad base the number of movies which can attract advertisers.

    The two biggest impediments to the growth of cinema advertising is monitoring and measurement. Buzz Index is our second initiative in this direction after CAM and we will be launching a lot more such initiatives in the near future to ensure that cinema advertising is transparent and accountable by being data driven and tech enabled.”

    It is common knowledge that audience preferences, pre-release affinity towards certain actors and films and consumption of digital data under the guise of “fandom” are very perceptive and honest indicators of a film’s future. If campaigns can be tailor made to align perfectly with a film, it is a much stronger advertising message; one that does not fall victim to over exposure or force fit. Capturing cinema advertising by harnessing the two most important factors shaping our generation today – social media conversation and an exuberant sentiment attached to films – was essentially the need of the hour to ensure that cinema advertising gets its due.

  • Interactive Television’s Buzz Index to help advertisers make smart investment in movies

    Interactive Television’s Buzz Index to help advertisers make smart investment in movies

    MUMBAI: Interactive Television, a unit of WPP, has launched ‘Buzz index’- a revolutionary buzz measuring tool for helping advertisers to make informed decisions for cinema advertising.

    Buzz Index is a measuring tool that identifies, captures and quantifies the ‘buzz’ around a particular film across all social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, blogs, boards, forums, news websites, aggregation, YouTube etc. which are true enablers for an unbiased evaluation of Bollywood and arrives at a unique buzz score. The Buzz Index of a specific film is based on four identifiers – positive conversation index, star cast buzz, positive views and unique authors.

    Methodology:

    After combining information from all the data points mentioned above, Buzz Index arrives at a benchmark score once the model for the index is run through Interactive’s Movie Buzz Database (2015 and updated yearly).

    All new releases will automatically be compared to the indexed number of 100 which is the average score or the Gold Standard for all films, primarily films that have done more than 100 crore at the box office. A film’s Buzz Index will be calculated regularly – (Week 1) 31 days before the film release, (Week-2) 24 days before the film release, (Week-3) 17 days before the Movie release and (Week-4) 10 days prior to the release.

    Interactive Television CEO Ajay Mehta said “Cinema advertising peaks around 10-12 blockbuster movies and in the absence of any measure of a film’s buzz, advertisers miss out on movies which are being talked about by their consumers. Buzz Index aims to change that so that even a small movie which is creating buzz and has a possibility of opening well should come up on the radar of the advertiser. With the launch of the Buzz Index , we want to make cinema advertising data driven rather than based on subjectivities. We aim to broad base the number of movies which can attract advertisers.

    The two biggest impediments to the growth of cinema advertising is monitoring and measurement. Buzz Index is our second initiative in this direction after CAM and we will be launching a lot more such initiatives in the near future to ensure that cinema advertising is transparent and accountable by being data driven and tech enabled.”

    It is common knowledge that audience preferences, pre-release affinity towards certain actors and films and consumption of digital data under the guise of “fandom” are very perceptive and honest indicators of a film’s future. If campaigns can be tailor made to align perfectly with a film, it is a much stronger advertising message; one that does not fall victim to over exposure or force fit. Capturing cinema advertising by harnessing the two most important factors shaping our generation today – social media conversation and an exuberant sentiment attached to films – was essentially the need of the hour to ensure that cinema advertising gets its due.

  • HDFC is India’s most valuable brand: Brandz India top 50 (2016)

    HDFC is India’s most valuable brand: Brandz India top 50 (2016)

    MUMBAI: The third annual BrandZ™ Top 50 Most Valuable Indian Brands ranking released by WPP and Kantar Millward Brown has lot of good and something bad for the marketing industry.

    On the positive side, the total value of India’s most valuable brands has risen by 30 per cent over the last three years, with the top 50 brands now worth $ 90.5 billion from $ 69.6 billion in 2014. But, unlike 2015, which saw an unprecedented growth in terms of brand equity that pushed  the brand value of top 50 brands to USD 92.2billion, 2016 saw a dip of 2 per cent, mostly owing to a decline in brand value of state-owned banks.

    Like last year, the financial sector dominated the top 10 spots accounting for 38 per cent of the top 50s brand value ($ 34.28 billion). HDFC maintained its number one position for the 3rd consecutive year with a brand value of USD 14.4 billion following a 15 per cent growth over the past year. It was followed by Airtel from the telecom sector with a brand value of USD 9.98 billion. State Bank Of India with a brand value of USD 6.352 billion stood at number three. “A brand cannot be built unless each one of us at HDFC Bank believes in it. Fundamentally, a brand is what we stand for in terms of the emotional value and the real value that we want to deliver to the customer. The emotional value is a combination of honesty, trust, integrity and being able to deliver the product at all times to the satisfaction of the customer. The real value is to deliver a differentiated product which changes the life of the customer which we have tried to do in financial services by making it more convenient, ” said HDFC Bank  managing director Aditya Puri.

    Among the new entrants in the top 50 list are airlines Indigo and Jet Airways at 26 and 36 positions respectively, followed by TVS and Reliance at 48 and 50, respectively.

    Top 10 most valuable brands here:

    Rank 2016

    Brand

    Category

    Brand value 2016 ($m)

    Rank 2015

    1

    HDFC Bank

    Banks

    14,438

    1

    2

    Airtel

    Telecom Providers

    9,978

    2

    3

    State Bank of India

    Banks

    6,352

    3

    4

    Asian Paints

    Paints

    4,089

    5

    5

    ICICI Bank

    Banks

    3,957

    4

    6

    Bajaj Auto

    Automobiles

    3,403

    6

    7

    Kotak Mahindra Bank

    Banks

    3,333

    9

    8

    Maruti Suzuki

    Automobiles

    2,850

    10

    9

    Hero

    Automobiles

    2,807

    7

    10

    Axis Bank

    Banks

    2,377

    8

    Interestingly, the top four ranks remained unchanged from 2015 rankings, something which The Store WPP, EMEA & Asia CEO David Roth calls an anomaly when juxtaposed against other mature markets or the global ranks.

    “Until recently in China, the top most valuable brand list was dominated by the state-owned Chinese companies, but now they are being taken over by technology and entrepreneurial companies. The global top 100 brands list has also seen some major changes. So yes, India is a bit of an anomaly as a developing state to see the same brands maintaining their positions for the last three years. But, I think it’s a matter of India’s growth and development cycle.”

    But, that says little about the immense competition that each brand faced to retain its position. According to Kantar Millward Brown managing director for south Asia, Dinesh Kapoor, 27 brands had slipped from its last year’s position while seven more brands dropped off the top 50 margin. “Brands required maintaining at least 35 per cent growth in its brand value to be able to hold on to its position,” shared Kapoor.

    Another way in which India drastically differs from the global markets is the absence of the technology brands from the top 50 list. 

    “Be it Global 100 or Asian market giant like China, technology brands have a huge presence in the top most valuable brands list. We see a clear absence of technology brands when it comes to India’s top 50 brands. Although India has been behind the scene of some of the major global technological innovations, it has been more from a service stand point rather than doing it in a branded way. I think there is a lesson to learn in this,” opined Roth. 

    Kapoor feels that the clear absence of Indian tech giants from the list is largely due to the companies not being listed. “You have to consider the methodology that goes into making this ranking. In order for a brand to be eligible for consideration for the list, it needs to be owned by a company listed on a stock exchange in India.  But, most of the tech companies that we speak of aren’t listed. The other big difference from global trends is the retail brands which have a strong presence in the more mature markets, whereas in India, only one retail brand — Reliance Retail —  has made it to the top 50 list.

    The report also warns marketers of the weakened brand loyalty among consumers. Internet penetration has risen sharply as the number of people living in rural areas accessing internet almost doubled over the past year, with almost 69% of urban internet users using the internet every day. This access educates consumers while providing them access to larger diaspora of premium brands available at affordable prices.

    While marketers have a lot to take away from the insight behind BrandZ India top 50 brands report, GroupM south Asia CEO CVL Srinivas shared what agencies can learn from this. “Reports like BrandZ are very useful for us who are in the business of media management for clients. In this age when competition is increasing and consumer’s attention span is decreasing, along with number of policy changes, a consolidated study like this helps us map a better strategy for our clients.  For example, the need for a brand to be present in multiple touch points with a singular communication idea and what it does to the brand’s value is the learning.”

  • HDFC is India’s most valuable brand: Brandz India top 50 (2016)

    HDFC is India’s most valuable brand: Brandz India top 50 (2016)

    MUMBAI: The third annual BrandZ™ Top 50 Most Valuable Indian Brands ranking released by WPP and Kantar Millward Brown has lot of good and something bad for the marketing industry.

    On the positive side, the total value of India’s most valuable brands has risen by 30 per cent over the last three years, with the top 50 brands now worth $ 90.5 billion from $ 69.6 billion in 2014. But, unlike 2015, which saw an unprecedented growth in terms of brand equity that pushed  the brand value of top 50 brands to USD 92.2billion, 2016 saw a dip of 2 per cent, mostly owing to a decline in brand value of state-owned banks.

    Like last year, the financial sector dominated the top 10 spots accounting for 38 per cent of the top 50s brand value ($ 34.28 billion). HDFC maintained its number one position for the 3rd consecutive year with a brand value of USD 14.4 billion following a 15 per cent growth over the past year. It was followed by Airtel from the telecom sector with a brand value of USD 9.98 billion. State Bank Of India with a brand value of USD 6.352 billion stood at number three. “A brand cannot be built unless each one of us at HDFC Bank believes in it. Fundamentally, a brand is what we stand for in terms of the emotional value and the real value that we want to deliver to the customer. The emotional value is a combination of honesty, trust, integrity and being able to deliver the product at all times to the satisfaction of the customer. The real value is to deliver a differentiated product which changes the life of the customer which we have tried to do in financial services by making it more convenient, ” said HDFC Bank  managing director Aditya Puri.

    Among the new entrants in the top 50 list are airlines Indigo and Jet Airways at 26 and 36 positions respectively, followed by TVS and Reliance at 48 and 50, respectively.

    Top 10 most valuable brands here:

    Rank 2016

    Brand

    Category

    Brand value 2016 ($m)

    Rank 2015

    1

    HDFC Bank

    Banks

    14,438

    1

    2

    Airtel

    Telecom Providers

    9,978

    2

    3

    State Bank of India

    Banks

    6,352

    3

    4

    Asian Paints

    Paints

    4,089

    5

    5

    ICICI Bank

    Banks

    3,957

    4

    6

    Bajaj Auto

    Automobiles

    3,403

    6

    7

    Kotak Mahindra Bank

    Banks

    3,333

    9

    8

    Maruti Suzuki

    Automobiles

    2,850

    10

    9

    Hero

    Automobiles

    2,807

    7

    10

    Axis Bank

    Banks

    2,377

    8

    Interestingly, the top four ranks remained unchanged from 2015 rankings, something which The Store WPP, EMEA & Asia CEO David Roth calls an anomaly when juxtaposed against other mature markets or the global ranks.

    “Until recently in China, the top most valuable brand list was dominated by the state-owned Chinese companies, but now they are being taken over by technology and entrepreneurial companies. The global top 100 brands list has also seen some major changes. So yes, India is a bit of an anomaly as a developing state to see the same brands maintaining their positions for the last three years. But, I think it’s a matter of India’s growth and development cycle.”

    But, that says little about the immense competition that each brand faced to retain its position. According to Kantar Millward Brown managing director for south Asia, Dinesh Kapoor, 27 brands had slipped from its last year’s position while seven more brands dropped off the top 50 margin. “Brands required maintaining at least 35 per cent growth in its brand value to be able to hold on to its position,” shared Kapoor.

    Another way in which India drastically differs from the global markets is the absence of the technology brands from the top 50 list. 

    “Be it Global 100 or Asian market giant like China, technology brands have a huge presence in the top most valuable brands list. We see a clear absence of technology brands when it comes to India’s top 50 brands. Although India has been behind the scene of some of the major global technological innovations, it has been more from a service stand point rather than doing it in a branded way. I think there is a lesson to learn in this,” opined Roth. 

    Kapoor feels that the clear absence of Indian tech giants from the list is largely due to the companies not being listed. “You have to consider the methodology that goes into making this ranking. In order for a brand to be eligible for consideration for the list, it needs to be owned by a company listed on a stock exchange in India.  But, most of the tech companies that we speak of aren’t listed. The other big difference from global trends is the retail brands which have a strong presence in the more mature markets, whereas in India, only one retail brand — Reliance Retail —  has made it to the top 50 list.

    The report also warns marketers of the weakened brand loyalty among consumers. Internet penetration has risen sharply as the number of people living in rural areas accessing internet almost doubled over the past year, with almost 69% of urban internet users using the internet every day. This access educates consumers while providing them access to larger diaspora of premium brands available at affordable prices.

    While marketers have a lot to take away from the insight behind BrandZ India top 50 brands report, GroupM south Asia CEO CVL Srinivas shared what agencies can learn from this. “Reports like BrandZ are very useful for us who are in the business of media management for clients. In this age when competition is increasing and consumer’s attention span is decreasing, along with number of policy changes, a consolidated study like this helps us map a better strategy for our clients.  For example, the need for a brand to be present in multiple touch points with a singular communication idea and what it does to the brand’s value is the learning.”

  • WPP acquires 61% stake in STW for $512 million

    WPP acquires 61% stake in STW for $512 million

    MUMBAI: STW Group, Australasia’s marketing content and communications services group, comprising over 75 operating companies, is all set to merge with WPP’s Australian and New Zealand businesses.

     

    Martin Sorrell helmed WPP has acquired a 61 per cent controlling stake in STW for approximately $512 million, of which $387 million will be paid via new shares with STW assuming debt of $125 million.

     

    Post the merger, STW CEO Michael Conaghan will continue in his current post and Robert Mactier will also remain chairman of the company.

     

    Mactier said, “Bringing together the respective iconic brands and wonderfully talented people of STW and WPP Australia and New Zealand under a single common ownership and will unlock tremendous local and global capability, experience and efficiencies for our clients as well as establishing a fantastic platform for our people to prosper.”

     

    “The transaction is EPS accretive as a result of the issue of new STW shares at a premium to market and also delivers a material reduction in STW’s leverage and the opportunity to unlock a range of synergies thereby creating significant value for our shareholders. Importantly, binding governance protocols and shareholder protections have been agreed for the benefit of the continuing minority stakeholders. I consider this a genuine win-win transaction for all our stakeholders. Post completion, we look forward to working seamlessly with WPP as our major shareholder and strategic partner as we embark on the exciting journey that is in front of us,” he further added.

     

    Connaghan said, “To finally align our shareholdings in those existing partnerships (J Walter Thompson, Mindshare, Maxus and Added Value) and now to expand our relationships across the full STW and WPP Australia and New Zealand portfolio of companies is an amazing opportunity. WPP is the leading player on the global stage in our industry. We have the potential to create a group unparalleled in this part of the world, totally focussed on our home markets, but allowing our clients and people open access to the best thinking on a global level.”

     

    Sorrell added, “The merger of our Australian and New Zealand operations with STW, will give us a unique opportunity to offer our local and international clients a comprehensive set of services and to make sure we can offer the best talent through country management. It will also enable STW to focus on the Australian and New Zealand markets, which it knows best, with a structure that will strongly incentivise its people.”

  • #WPPStream to discuss India’s digital future

    #WPPStream to discuss India’s digital future

    MUMBAI: If you thought business meetings can only be done in conference rooms and around round tables, it’s time to think again! To make work more than just work, Sir Martin Sorrel founded WPP’s best strategic planners are gathering in Jaipur to think about the digital future and what that means for communications, what it means for creativity and what it means for business.

     

    #WPPStream, an annual (un)conference, organised by WPP Group company is about no keynote presentations, no panel discussions and no ‘networking breaks’.

     

    Being held in India for the first time, Stream will see GroupM India employees along with WPP clients, WPP agencies and the broader technology industry gathering in Jaipur from 12-15 February. WPP Country Manager – India Ranjan Kapur will be playing the host in the country along with critically acclaimed filmmaker Shekhar Kapur.

     

    The focus of Stream India will be to celebrate and explore the growth and development of digital innovation in India. It will also bring Brands together with regional leaders from media and technology companies for a debate on India’s digital future.

     

    With over one hundred discussion sessions, Ignite talks (15 slides in 15 seconds), pitch show, tech lab, etc Stream India is going to be really prolific.

     

    Some of the topics to be discussed are:

     

    * More mobiles than books in India – can technology be used for better literacy?

    * Are Indian publishers geared up for digital publishing?

    * In Digital age, do we get connected or disconnected?

    * Digital technology is not a substitute to strong communication idea.

    * Mobile, your personal smart screen – how India is evolving

    * Online video – how will it change the concept of communication in India

    * Too much information. Does it lead to clarity or confusion?

    * If Medium is the Message, Can it light a Billion Souls?

    * Mobile – continuation or gradual transition of digital Web : Aren’t we killing the core proposition?

    * Will Mobile marketing be the gateway to digital for most brands in India?

     

    Midnight cooking, cinema, elephant polo and many other things are a part of the plan for an unwinding experience.