ITV

Tag: strategy

  • Sony PAL scores big as free-to-air favourite with desi hits and mass reach

    Sony PAL scores big as free-to-air favourite with desi hits and mass reach

    MUMBAI: Sony PAL is having a serious moment in Indian living rooms—and it didn’t get there by chance. The free-to-air (FTA) Hindi general entertainment channel from Sony Pictures Networks India (SPNI) has emerged as the fastest growing GEC in Hindi-speaking markets (HSM), with numbers that would make even primetime rivals sweat.

    BARC data from April to June 2025 puts the channel’s reach at a staggering 192 million viewers—the highest among all FTA Hindi GECs over 13 weeks (NCCS 15+, Weeks 14–26). In 9 out of those 13 weeks, Sony PAL ranked no. 1 in reach. That’s not just traction—it’s dominance.

    The channel cracked the code by serving up tried-and-tested fan favourites—Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah, Vighnahatha Ganesha, and The Kapil Sharma Show—for free. For the first time, these primetime giants were available without a subscription, and the move paid off.

    With its family-first programming slate and no paywall in sight, Sony PAL has become the go-to channel for viewers looking for comfort food in content form. It’s the kind of television that skips the sass but delivers on sanskaar and smiles, hitting the sweet spot for India’s heartland audiences.

    In a fragmented TV landscape, where loyalty is fickle and attention spans shorter than an ad jingle, Sony PAL has managed to hold its ground—and expand it. Its audience-first philosophy, combined with mass-friendly storytelling, is proof that when you make great content accessible, the viewers show up in droves.

    And right now, they’re turning up in the millions.

  • Heena Chaudhari steps up as associate director for strategic activations at Sony group Corp

    Heena Chaudhari steps up as associate director for strategic activations at Sony group Corp

    MUMBAI: Heena Chaudhari has gone up a level once again. The seasoned strategist and investment ace has been promoted to associate director – strategic markets’ activations at Sony group Corp , where she’ll be steering high-impact business initiatives across India and the Middle East.

    With a power-packed portfolio that includes investment management at Sony Innovation Fund and a board observer role at Nodwin Gaming, Chaudhari is no stranger to spotting what’s hot in media, entertainment, and gaming before the world catches on. Now, in her new gig, she’s charged with turning strategic visions into high-octane action.

    Her Sony journey began in 2023 as strategic markets’ activations manager, and in just under two years, she’s earned her stripes by crafting clever market entry plays and forging high-value collaborations in two of Sony’s most promising growth zones.

    Before Sony, Chaudhari held leadership roles at Embold Technologies GmbH and Yoozoo Games, juggling strategy, HR, sales ops, and product development like a pro. She’s been in the trenches with startups, scaled up global projects, and even donned the CEO’s right-hand cap more than once.

    Armed with over a decade of experience and a resume that reads like a masterclass in cross-functional execution, Chaudhari isn’t just moving markets—she’s redesigning how legacy giants like Sony grow in emerging ones.

    Her superpowers? Investment foresight, operational precision, and boardroom charisma. With the gaming and streaming boom in full swing and the Middle East–India corridor heating up, Heena Chaudhari’s next play could very well be Sony’s best move yet.

  • Tejas Networks appoints Sanjay Malik as executive vice-president and chief strategy & business officer

    Tejas Networks appoints Sanjay Malik as executive vice-president and chief strategy & business officer

    MUMBAI: Tata group optical, broadband and data networking products company Tejas Networks has announced the appointment of Sanjay Malik as executive vice-president, chief strategy & business officer, and senior managerial personnel, effective 30 January 2025. His tenure will continue until his resignation or retirement, as per the company’s internal human resource policy.

    Sanjay Malik, a respected business leader in the ICT sector, brings extensive global experience and a proven track record in driving growth and transformative initiatives. Known for his integrity, ethics, and action-oriented leadership style, he has delivered exceptional results in challenging business environments. Malik will work closely with managing director  Anand Athreya and the senior leadership team to shape corporate strategy, oversee business management, and engage with stakeholders.

    During his tenure as senior vice-president and India country head at Nokia Networks, Malik transformed the company into an undisputed market leader within three years, achieving record revenues. He successfully grew Nokia’s market share across wireless and wireline portfolios by focusing on cross-portfolio solutions and new customer acquisition.

    Malik’s career spans roles at Cap Gemini, HP, and Tata Unisys. An alumnus of the National Institute of Technology, Kurukshetra, he also holds a postgraduate degree in business management from the Indian Institute of Management, Mumbai.

    The appointment, approved by the board of directors based on the nomination and remuneration committee’s recommendations, aligns with Tejas Networks’ strategic goals.

  • Zenith enlists Tanya Gupta as director strategy

    Zenith enlists Tanya Gupta as director strategy

    MUMBAI: Zenith took up a lot of her share of mind. Senior media executive Tanya Gupta has taken the plunge and moved from Mindshare India where she was senior director strategy  & insights to Zenith where she is director strategy  (yes, the insights tag has been dropped).

    Tanya has done the rounds of agencies such as Wavemaker, Interpublic group, Isobar (where she spent four years), Group M, Admagnet, Affle . Reliance Retail and Dainik Bhaskar (going in reverse order, with Dainik Bhaskar being her first job).

    Her stints at Isobar and Interpublic group gave her an opportunity to work with brands like Microsoft and Coca-Cola (sparkling, juices and hydration) = two assignments she enjoyed greatly.

    She holds a bachelor s degree in business studies marketing. 
     

  • Hero Future Energies app partners with Marcom Avenue for website revamp

    Hero Future Energies app partners with Marcom Avenue for website revamp

    Mumbai: Hero Future Energies (HFE), a clean energy company, has joined hands with Marcom Avenue, an integrated marketing agency, to revamp its website and provide an enhanced user experience for its customers. This partnership aims to strengthen HFE’s online presence, highlight its clean energy solutions, and demonstrate its positive impact on the environment.

    The project, which involves multiple phases, will begin with meticulous planning and data collection, leading up to the launch of the revamped website. The Marcom Avenue will bring its expertise in various areas, including strategy & brainstorming, technology development & content development, and Vendor Management System (VMS) integration to deliver a comprehensive solution.

    The key deliverables of the project include a modern website design that captivates visitors, an improved user experience for seamless navigation, integration with social media platforms to expand HFE’s reach, an admin panel for efficient content management, and various technical enhancements to optimise performance.

    Hero Future Energies vice president & head – branding & corporate communication Dipankar Bose said, “This project marks an important milestone for Hero Future Energies in our digital transformation journey. We are confident that our collaboration with The Marcom Avenue will result in a visually stunning website that effectively communicates our clean energy solutions and showcases our commitment to a greener future.”

    The nature of the engagement between HFE and The Marcom Avenue is a one-time project focused on revamping the website and delivering the specified features and improvements. The Marcom Avenue will ensure that the website adheres to IT service guidelines, meets industry standards, and supports multi-language integration to cater to a wider audience.

    The Marcom Avenue, director Divanshi Guptaand said, “We are excited to partner with Hero Future Energies in their mission to drive clean and sustainable energy solutions, by combining our expertise in digital marketing and technology development, we aim to create a website that not only impresses visitors but also educates and inspires them to make environmentally conscious choices.”

  • Poornima Sharma is the new head of marketing partnerships at Netflix India

    Poornima Sharma is the new head of marketing partnerships at Netflix India

    Mumbai: Netflix India has recently promoted Poornima Sharma as head of marketing partnerships. She became a part of Netflix in 2020 and previously held the role of partner marketing lead. Sharma shared this news on her LinkedIn profile.

    In her prior roles, Sharma worked with Paytm Insider, the ticketing platform for festivals and events as head of brand partnerships and alliances. She also spent a year in OML Entertainment (before moving to Insider, which was a part of OML before it became a Paytm company), in the festival marketing team, where she worked on marketing for various properties including Bacardi NH7 Weekender, EDC India, and more.

  • Hitachi onboards BBH as creative partner

    Hitachi onboards BBH as creative partner

    Mumbai: Johnson Controls-Hitachi Air Conditioning India Ltd, India’s premium air-conditioner brand Hitachi, has appointed BBH India as its creative strategy and advertising agency partner. With this appointment, Hitachi aims to create a high decibel brand awareness and strengthen its brand leadership amongst the new informed world consumer.

    The agency won the business as part of a contested multi-agency pitch and will manage full-service responsibilities for strategic creative design and advertising. As Hitachi’s agency of record, BBH India will now spearhead the development of both consumer-focused and business-driven marketing campaigns for Hitachi’s HVAC and refrigeration solutions.

    Hitachi senior vice president – business planning & marketing Nilesh Shah said, “At Hitachi, our brand communication is always focused towards the changing needs and preferences of the new-age consumers who aspire for innovative product offerings. We wanted a strategic creative partner who can help us in strengthening our brand positioning as an Aspirational Premium brand by bringing in a fresh perspective to our brand proposition.  We look forward to this creative partnership with BBH and further building on our track record of memorable, creative campaigns across the target audience.”

    Commenting on the win, Leo Burnett – South Asia CEO & BBH India chairman Dheeraj Sinha said, “Air conditioning has become a crucial part of modern life, and, Johnson Controls-Hitachi Air Conditioning India Limited is an undisputed leader in creating world-class air conditioning products. As a team, we are very proud and humbled to be chosen as a creative partner of India’s most aspirational and premium air conditioning brand. We have a big task in front of us, as the brand is known for its stunning consumer campaigns and has consistently rolled out great pieces of creative work over the years. We are excited to co-create the next chapter of the brand story and level up the brand salience.”

    With over 35 years of legacy in India, Johnson Controls-Hitachi Air Conditioning India Limited manufactures a wide range of products under the Hitachi brand, such as room air-conditioners (split & window ACs) to commercial air-conditioners including chiller, cassette air conditioners, ductable air-conditioners & VRF systems. A part of Publicis Groupe, BBH is a full-service global creative agency network offering strategic brand ideas, integrated communications, pure-play digital solutions, and much more to some of the world’s best-loved brands.

  • Bharat24’s attempt towards becoming a national news channel for an emergent India

    Bharat24’s attempt towards becoming a national news channel for an emergent India

    Mumbai: Bharat24, the latest entrant amongst the Hindi news channels, is all set to pave way for new commencements in this market with its path-breaking news reportage. It aims to lead the national news scene and become the ‘Voice of India’ focusing on a credible first-to-report content strategy for the channel.

    As a news organisation, Bharat24 is striving to act as a bridge between the government and its people to provide them with transparent and right information. With the aim of setting a high benchmark for news reporting, the channel has put in place a strong network of 4000+ reporters (one reporter in each of India’s 4000 constituencies) and bureaus in all major states across India. It has set up a news control room with dedicated hotlines for seamless news gathering from its reporter network and news agencies. While it is observed that most national Hindi news channels focus on two or three states, Bharat24’s network strength has enabled it to focus on all Indian states, equally.

    Bharat24 has allotted 30 per cent of its screen to the news flash bands highlighting the significant 15-20 news stories from each state, mapping Twitter updates of prominent personalities in each state, international news events, etc. adding up to 1000+ news stories.

    In comparison to the silos of conventional set-ups, Bharat24 targets to be a disruptor news brand and has created an integrated news environment for the seamless broadcast of news. The channel has blurred the lines between the departments of input, assignment and output and the same teams remain vigilant across all aspects of news from news gathering to breaking it to the viewers.
    Within a short span of time, Bharat24 has also gained phenomenal advertiser support. It has roped in more than 35 clients within a month from launch – Amul, Policy Bazaar, Muthoot Finance, Reliance Retail, Kelvinator, R-pure masale, Jio Mart, Ankur Salt, JSW Paints, Wonder Cement, FOGG, BL Agro, Rajesh Masala, Rajdhani Besan, JK Cement, Suhana Masale, to name a few.

    While speaking about the channel’s strategy, Bharat24 chief business officer and strategic advisor to the board Manoj Jagyasi added, “Our intention is to improve the viewer engagement and experience of TV news consumption. I am delighted with the positive response that Bharat24 has been generating since its launch. The channel has resonated well with viewers and advertisers alike. It is a matter of great pride the channel was launched with many credible advertisers.”

    Inspite of being a late entrant in the news scene, the channel is at par with its competitors and is grasping the quickly changing market dynamics by adapting new-age technologies. Bharat24 boasts to be the first to introduce augmented reality (AR) enabled studios which enable the channel to deliver clean, clutter-free enhanced audio-visual content on-air. The channel also operates on the latest broadcast technology.

    Bharat24 is well distributed across all major DTH, online and cable networks.

  • Pocket Aces elevates Vinay Pillai to head of strategy

    Pocket Aces elevates Vinay Pillai to head of strategy

    MUMBAI: Homegrown digital entertainment company, Pocket Aces, has elevated Vinay Pillai to the dual position of head of strategy and head of clout. Vinay joined Pocket Aces in 2020 to scale Clout, its influencer management business, and has played a crucial role in getting it to a leadership position.

    In this enhanced role, Vinay will work on establishing key strategic partnerships that will not only aid in scaling the current revenue and profitability but also cement Pocket Aces’ leadership position in the sector long-term. Prior to Pocket Aces, Vinay was the co-founder of dekkho, India’s first content streaming OTT platform. Post dekkho, he headed the OTT platform at The Viral Fever, called TVF Play.

    Vinay is a computer science engineer and an MS from Columbia University, New York. He spent most of his career in product and strategy consulting with companies like DramaFever, DocPlace, and Booz in the US before returning to India.

    Commenting on his new position, Vinay Pillai shared, “I am extremely excited to take up this crucial additional responsibility to shape our strategic direction along with Aditi. Leading Clout over the last few years has been an absolute pleasure, and I have thoroughly enjoyed building it from scratch to a market leader today with an amazing team. Additionally, I look forward to now working with Pocket Aces’ finest leaders across other business units to help them scale our company to even greater heights. We have prided ourselves on always doing things in a data-backed way with a huge impetus on innovation. I feel honoured to now get to contribute in a Pocket Aces wide central capacity with our stellar young team and would like to thank Aditi for the opportunity.”

    Pocket Aces co-founder & CEO Aditi Shrivastava said, “For the head of strategy role, I wanted someone who would work alongside me to add to our vision of taking our cutting-edge media business to the next level. Vinay is a non-linear thinker. He has founder blood, as well as a blend of consulting and operational experience. These give him a unique vantage point on how to take on incumbents while also giving him the hard operational expertise of scaling businesses on the ground with growing teams. Vinay has done an excellent job of scaling Clout, and I’m excited to see him in this enhanced role. Vinay will be working closely with the rest of our management team, who will take the lead in putting our strategic direction into action.”

  • Mindshare onboards Mausami Prasad as national head of strategy & insights

    Mindshare onboards Mausami Prasad as national head of strategy & insights

    Mumbai: Mindshare India, the flagship agency from GroupM, announced the appointment of Mausami Prasad as national head – strategy & insights. Mausami will be based out of Mumbai and will report to Mindshare South Asia CEO Amin Lakhani.

    With over 22 years of experience in crafting strategy, Mausami has been passionate about knowing consumers, their behaviour, concerns, aspirations, and everything in between to help craft growth strategies for brands. Mausami has worked on both sides of the table – getting sharp insights at Colgate and Future Retail and doing cutting-edge work at Indica and Kantar. In her last stint at Kantar, she was leading the Unilever relationship for India and was a SPOC for South Asia.

    Mindshare South Asia CEO Amin Lakhani said, “We are glad to have someone as experienced as Mausami on our team. Today, our clients are focusing on integrated strategies to grow their businesses. The expertise Mausami brings to Mindshare will allow us to continue to support clients by crafting insight-driven approaches. I am certain that Mausami will play a pivotal role in the brand transformation journey for our clients.”

     “I believe in earning the leadership that I have been entrusted with and would love to create winning journeys with my team,” said Mausami Prasad. “I am excited to join Mindshare, an industry leader in shaping creative strategies for its brands and clients to help them achieve their goals. I am thrilled about this opportunity, and I would like to thank the team for believing in me. I look forward to contributing to Mindshare’s ‘good growth’ journey by creating exclusive strategies for our clients,” she added further.