ITV

Tag: The Times of India Group

  • TV Today’s digital strategy chief exits after one-year stint

    TV Today’s digital strategy chief exits after one-year stint

    MUMBAI:  India Today group/ TV Today network announced today that  Rudra Prasad Kasturi has stepped down from his role as chief strategy officer for digital business, precisely one year after joining the media conglomerate.

    In a brief statement, the company confirmed it had accepted  Kasturi’s resignation “to pursue other opportunities,” with his departure effective from close of business on 28 February.

    Kasturi, a seasoned media executive with previous stints at The Times of India group and Times Internet, where he held various leadership positions, appears to be maintaining his tradition of brief but impactful tenures at India’s leading media houses.

    Industry observers note that Kasturi’s CV now sports an impressively symmetrical one-year stint at India Today, neatly matching his seven-month escapade as  chief growth officer at Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd. Perhaps in the fast-paced world of digital media strategy, longevity is measured in months rather than years.

    The company has not yet announced a successor.

  • Four out of every five readers look for festive offers in the newspaper

    Four out of every five readers look for festive offers in the newspaper

    Mumbai: In the age of digital, consumers still look to The Times of India group publications for brand and sale offers re-iterating the fact that the print medium is still the best for discovery. And the festive season is no exception. With the stock markets at all-time high and many categories seeing healthy growth, brands are banking on the festive season to achieve their best performance of the year.

    In its third edition, “Times Wishlist” was back this year asking the most important questions for the festive season. “Times Wishlist” is a one-of-a-kind campaign that asks consumers questions about their purchasing behaviour during the festive period.

    This year was our most comprehensive analysis yet, with questions about not just what they want to buy but when they buy, where, and what sources influence their decisions. Emerging as the most popular choice, four out of five readers turn to newspapers for festive deals and offers and three in four prefer to shop in physical stores.

    A whopping 56 per cent of readers are looking to buy consumer durables this year, while 48 per cent are in the market for mobile phones. 33 per cent of people looking to buy mobile phones, intend to spend over Rs. 40,000 on the same. More than half of the readers who want to buy a car are planning to spend more than Rs. 20 lakhs.

    There is also a lot of excitement around the regional festivals, with around 69 per cent of readers in Kolkata looking forward to Durga Puja making festive purchases, while over 35 per cent in Ahmedabad will be shopping during Navratri.

    It is now up to the brands to use these valuable insights to make their move, as there is a captive audience waiting. 

  • Four out of every five readers look for festive offers in the newspaper

    Four out of every five readers look for festive offers in the newspaper

    Mumbai: In the age of digital, consumers still look to The Times of India group publications for brand and sale offers re-iterating the fact that the print medium is still the best for discovery. And the festive season is no exception. With the stock markets at all-time high and many categories seeing healthy growth, brands are banking on the festive season to achieve their best performance of the year.

    In its third edition, “Times Wishlist” was back this year asking the most important questions for the festive season. “Times Wishlist” is a one-of-a-kind campaign that asks consumers questions about their purchasing behaviour during the festive period.

    This year was our most comprehensive analysis yet, with questions about not just what they want to buy but when they buy, where, and what sources influence their decisions. Emerging as the most popular choice, four out of five readers turn to newspapers for festive deals and offers and three in four prefer to shop in physical stores.

    A whopping 56 per cent of readers are looking to buy consumer durables this year, while 48 per cent are in the market for mobile phones. 33 per cent of people looking to buy mobile phones, intend to spend over Rs. 40,000 on the same. More than half of the readers who want to buy a car are planning to spend more than Rs. 20 lakhs.

    There is also a lot of excitement around the regional festivals, with around 69 per cent of readers in Kolkata looking forward to Durga Puja making festive purchases, while over 35 per cent in Ahmedabad will be shopping during Navratri.

    It is now up to the brands to use these valuable insights to make their move, as there is a captive audience waiting.

     

  • Partha Sinha, Suresh Narayanan and Suparna Mitra part of the Effies Global “Best of the Best” Grand Jury

    Partha Sinha, Suresh Narayanan and Suparna Mitra part of the Effies Global “Best of the Best” Grand Jury

    Mumbai: Effie Global Best of the Best stands as the world’s most definitive effectiveness awards program. A beacon for the industry, drawing on the very best ideas work from around the world.

    Three industry stalwarts from India known for their extensive body of work will be part of the Grand Jury to determine the winners. Bringing their experience and insights to the jury discussions will be –

    Mr. Partha Sinha, President, The Times of India Group

    Mr. Suresh Narayanan, Chairman & MD, Nestle India and

    Ms. Suparna Mitra, CEO, Watches & Wearables Division, Titan Company Ltd.

    Global Grand Judges will review the Grand contenders selected to move forward in the competition to determine the Global Grand Effie Winners. The Global Grand Effie winners will then move on to compete for the Iridium Effie, the single most effective marketing effort worldwide. The grand jury will take place in September, 2023 in Singapore.

    The Global Best of the Best is everything its name suggests. A platform built on all the learnings, insights, data and experience gained from the industry and the entrants. It will select from only the work that has achieved Gold or Grand Effie winning status.

    Five other industry stalwarts from India have been selected to be part of the Round One judging

    Ms. Neha Ahuja, Director, Head of Marketing, Spotify India;

    Mr. Mitrajit Bhattacharya, Founder & President, The Horologists;

    Ms. Ruchika Gupta, Marketing Director, Beam Suntory India;

    Mr. Sujit Ganguli, Chief Marketing Officer, ICICI Bank; and

    Mr. Neil George, General Manager & Managing Director, Abbott Nutrition India.

    The round one judging will be done online. 

  • Lemma ropes in Puneet Biyani as company president

    Lemma ropes in Puneet Biyani as company president

    Mumbai: Lemma, an independent supply-side platform for digital out-of-home, announced the appointment of Puneet Biyani as company president. He will take on his new role immediately and be a key contributor to enhancing Lemma’s global footprint.

    Biyani joins Lemma with over two decades of experience in business operations, finance, international marketing, and strategy. His most recent stint was with Times OOH, a subsidiary of Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd.

    As president, Biyani will work closely with the board and the leadership team across APAC and other regions to craft the company’s business growth vision and expansion strategy into global markets. He will also oversee finance, business planning, process automation, fundraising, & business operations for Lemma across all markets.

    Having spent the larger part of his career with The Times of India Group, Biyani has extensive out-of-home advertising experience. He held the position of chief financial officer for Times Innovative Media Ltd. (Times OOH) while also leading their Mauritius business.

    Biyani has worked with global organisations like Price Waterhouse and Goldman Sachs. On the academic front, he is a gold-medal-winning chartered accountant and Harvard Business School alumnus.

    Lemma has become the go-to platform for enabling programmatic buying of out-of-home (OOH) media by a wide range of clients, including top digital media agencies, advertising giants, and major brands around the world today.

    On joining Lemma, Biyani said, “I am really excited to be part of this amazing team. Lemma has been a pioneer in the digital advertising segment. I look forward to working closely with the team on the exciting journey ahead. The space is bound to expand rapidly, and on the technology front, Lemma is well positioned to lead and shape the development.”

    “Having Biyani onboard as company president at Lemma will inject a new level of energy and innovative thinking to help accelerate the company’s growth and attain our vision of transforming DOOH into mainstream digital as we enter a new phase of scaling business,” said Lemma founder & CEO Gulab Patil.

    Patil adds, “His expertise aligns perfectly with our business expansion plan as we continue to strengthen our technology and team globally and enhance our programmatic DOOH presence.”

    Biyani will be based out of Lemma’s Delhi office and will serve as the liaison between all teams and markets from the capital city.

  • Shailesh Amonkar and Darshan Gangakhedkar join Planet Marathi as strategic advisors

    Shailesh Amonkar and Darshan Gangakhedkar join Planet Marathi as strategic advisors

    Mumbai: Vistas Media Capital Company’s Planet Marathi OTT announced its leadership expansion with veteran experts in media, marketing, and business. The OTT platform has onboarded Shailesh Amonkar and Darshan Gangakhedkar in the roles of strategic advisors. They will assume the responsibilities of mentoring and guiding the team on monetisation and strategy for the fast-expanding company and its various departments.

    To develop exemplary capabilities, the focus is on appointing effective mentors who will steer and back pivotal decisions with their in-depth insight and command developed through years of market experience.

    With three decades of core experience in revenue generation and brand building, Shailesh Amonkar considers himself both a marketing and a sales person at heart. Having worked with media conglomerates like The Times of India Group and Sakal Media Group, Amonkar has also worked in new media and new product development. His specialities include the building and monetisation of audiences and communities. Amonkar is an entrepreneur who runs Kemistry Media Solutions, a media consulting firm.

    Commenting on his appointment, Amonkar said, “Planet Marathi OTT has surpassed expectations with its spectacular performance and ingenious ideas in concept and marketing. It will be an honour to guide as well as learn from these great minds, both fresh and experienced, all of whom are brimming with ideas for the firm.”

    Darshan Gangakhedkar, a media sales expert, is an entrepreneur and media professional. He comes with 20 years of extensive experience and has won many accolades in the media sales space throughout his time in the industry. He has worked with prominent regional media businesses, including Hindi language media houses, Nava Bharat and Raj Express, and the leading Marathi language daily Sakal from the prestigious Sakal Media Group. 

    Gangakhedkar’s comprehensive knowledge of the language industry and exceptional skills in active media sales make him a great mentor asset. Speaking on his appointment, he said, “It is always great to be surrounded by teams who are willing to push boundaries. I have been following Planet Marathi OTT’s outstanding trajectory closely and it will be exciting to work on developing this business further, taking it to newer heights.”

    Planet Marathi OTT founder and head Akshay Bardapurkar shared, “We are happy to announce that we will have the guidance of two exceptional names in the fields of media, branding and sales, both Shailesh Amonkar and Darshan Gangakhedkar. Planet Marathi OTT needs the expertise of these talents to draw out bigger goals and set out in the right direction to achieve them. Our teams will work to develop products, revenue streams, branding and audience engagement in the OTT space under the guidance of these professionals.”

    Founded and helmed by national award winner, Akshay Bardapurkar who is known as a game-changing icon in the industry, Planet Marathi OTT has made a mark for itself in a short span of one year. Since its inception in August 2021, the OTT platform has seen a phenomenal spike of 500 per cent in its subscriber base due to its path-breaking content slate and genius marketing efforts.

  • Disney’s Srivastava joins WWE, to oversee TV, events, sponsorship & licensing

    MUMBAI: WWE has announced the appointment of Sheetesh Srivastava as vice president and general manager, WWE India.

    Srivastava will lead WWE’s strategic business initiatives and day-to-day operations in India and work with partners across all of WWE’s lines of business, including television, live events, marketing, sponsorship, new media, licensing and merchandising. Srivastava is a seasoned executive with more than 18 years of experience in driving strategic business growth in domestic and international markets. He will report to WWE EVP – international Ed Wells.

    “India is key to the global growth of WWE, and we are confident Sheetesh will successfully help develop our brand and business in this critically important country,” said Wells. “WWE is committed to expanding its presence in India, and we are pleased to welcome Sheetesh to further our efforts in the market.”

    India represents WWE’s single largest regional contribution to the brand’s massive social media community of 750 million followers globally. To increase engagement with fans in India, WWE recently launched WWEShop.in, the company’s first-ever local, e-commerce experience in India.

    Srivastava joins WWE from The Walt Disney Company in India, where he most recently led business development for Disney Media Networks, overseeing branded content creation, distribution, marketing and syndication. Earlier in his career, he held senior management roles at Reliance Broadcast Network, The Times of India Group, and Frito Lay India.

    Srivastava is an economics graduate from Lucknow University, and he received a master’s degree in business management from the Institute for Integrated Learning in Management.