Packing a Punch Meeting Brands Sunil Lulla
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November 1-15, 2013 Volume 2, Issue 12 `100 27 The last couple of years have seen much action in the television broadcasting business in India. An exhaustive report on what is happening. 24 70 38 PLUS MICROMAX Hugh Deal 6 TATA SKY Pocket Entertainment 16 TELEVISION 66 E-COMMERCE INTERVIEW AFAQS! EVENTS It’s all About Timing Packing a Punch Sunil Lulla Meeting Brands PUBLICIS BEEHIVE The box is as important as TTN’s CEO on what ad Chennai-based entrepreneurs what comes out of it. regulation actually means. decode brand values. Scaling Up 69 EDITORIAL This fortnight... Volume 2, Issue 12 oing by all the action in the past year or so you wouldn’t believe that television is a mature business that has been around for a long time. Indian television has EDITOR G Sreekant Khandekar November 1-15, 2013 Volume 2, Issue 12 `100 been going through the pangs of digitisation. It has been in a ferment about television PUBLISHER 27 ratings which have been affected by the inclusion of small-town India. And now it is Prasanna Singh trying to fathom what the coming capping of advertising time will mean to their balance SENIOR LAYOUT ARTIST sheets. The year 2013 has also seen a scrap between broadcasters and agencies (backed Vinay Dominic by advertisers) on the nature of billing (gross vs net) and yet another skirmish on the PRODUCTION EXECUTIVE way television viewership is presented. Andrias Kisku All of this action has also affected programming and what people watch in a big way. ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES Naveen Arora, (0120) 4077803, 4077866 Digitisation has encouraged the launch of many specialised channels – for example, four Noida The last couple of years have seen much action in the new channels have been launched in English alone because viewership in the genre has television broadcasting business in India. An exhaustive Arunima Bhattacharya, (022) 40429702-5 report on what is happening. jumped dramatically. That is because digitisation has given viewers greater power to Mumbai 24 70 38 PLUS MICROMAX view and then choose from what fare is available. Hugh Deal 6 [email protected] TATA SKY Pocket Entertainment 16 TELEVISION Infotainment channels too have received a leg up because of digitisation. There has MARKETING OFFICE 66 E-COMMERCE INTERVIEW AFAQS! EVENTS It’s all About Timing Packing a Punch Sunil Lulla Meeting Brands PUBLICIS BEEHIVE B-3, First Floor, Sector-4, Noida-201301. The box is as important as TTN’s CEO on what ad Chennai-based entrepreneurs what comes out of it. regulation actually means. decode brand values. Scaling Up 69 been a concerted push to have more local content even as the channels are providing feeds Tel: (0120) 4077800. in several regional languages. MUMBAI The same expansion of content was visible in kids’ channels too where four more 501-502, Makani Center, 5th Floor, Off Linking Road, Bandra (W), joined the game. Who could have thought some years ago that there would be sharp segmenting even within Mumbai - 400050 this genre? However, even as choice has grown, the little viewers began to spend more time on only a small Tel: +91-22-40429 709 - 712 number of programmes – basically going deeper than wider. BENGALURU S-1, New Bridge Corporate Centre, Then again, the inclusion of towns with a population of less than one lakh to calculate viewership 777 D, 100 ft Road, Indira Nagar, ratings did not affect some of the big general entertainment channels but hit Sony where it hurt. Life has its Bengaluru - 560038, India compensations. Stablemate Sab TV gained from the wider coverage of rating meters. SUBSCRIPTION ENQUIRIES Akhilesh Singh, (0120) 4077837 News channels, which are expected to suffer the most following the coming of the ad time limitation, [email protected] are naturally in a state of shock. The bulk of them have been losing money – and the coming of an ad cap Owned by Banyan Netfaqs Pvt Ltd and may make the business unsustainable for several. The jury is still out on the issue. Printed and published by Prasanna Singh, All in all, there has been a lot of action and we hope that the TV Special has captured that well. at 7-A/13, Ch. Ratan Singh Complex, Jawala Heri Market, Paschim Vihar, New Delhi-110 063. Printed at Cirrus Graphics Private Limited B-61, Sector 67, Noida (U.P.), 201301 Sreekant Khandekar Cover Illustration [email protected] Tiffin Box CONTENTS 68 76 PLUS RAMESH CHAUHAN INTERVIEW Bio in a Bottle 64 Gaurav Banerjee “Strategy is not SAB TV about throwing money around.” Cooking up a Story 67 READER’S DIGEST LONELY PLANET 22 14 Reader Friendly Trustworthy 69 The travel magazine adopts a look that is easy on the eye. ENORMOUS BRANDS New Beginning 69 POINTS OF VIEW 20 Research and Gut-feel FORMULA 1 IXIGO VOGUE INDIA Where does formal research Hitting a Speedbreaker On a Mass Trip end and gut feel begin? The Indian Grand Prix seems The travel-planning portal Black Magic 71 Experts argue the case. to be losing its sheen. launches its first TVC. afaqs! Reporter, November 1-15, 2013 5 1(:6$'9(57,6,1* MICROMAX A Hugh Deal Hollywood actor Hugh Jackman is promoting Mircomax’s soon-to-be-launched smartphone, Canvas Turbo. News Bureau ndian handset marketer Micromax has “democratising technologies for the masses.” appointed Hollywood actor Hugh Jackman as While it can be argued that penetration of Ibrand ambassador. For starters, he will endorse Hollywood films in India is high, to the bulk of the the brand’s new smartphone, Canvas Turbo, to masses, Jackman is just another handsome, white be launched in the Indian market shortly. A teaser model. But come to think of it, even if the masses campaign featuring Jackman is already doing the regard Jackman as a nameless model, it may not rounds online and on Indian TV channels. It’s a be an entirely wasted effort. After all, the brand short film featuring Jackman who utters the words has been trying to transcend its ‘Chinese-trading ‘Nothing like anything’, the brand’s tagline. company’ image and come across as a premium In the words of Shubhodip Pal, chief marketing officer, Micromax, Jackman embodies “the aspirational, reinventing and fearless persona of The move is in sync with Micromax.” The move is in sync with the brand’s the brand’s plans to expand plans to expand its footprint across international markets. The association with the actor will to international markets. help establish connect with the brand’s global “Jackman consumers. An advertising campaign across print, embodies the brand. In fact, that’s why we see so many whites in TV and online platforms is underway. aspirational, the brand’s ad films. The real question is: Will the final multi- Lending clarity on the TG, Pal says, “As Canvas media campaign featuring Jackman be released reinventing and Turbo is being launched in India, the TVC will only across international media or on mainstream fearless persona of be aired on Indian TV channels. And it will be Indian media channels as well? supported by a robust 360 degree campaign to According to team Micromax, the launch Micromax.” bring alive this new experience for our audiences, of Canvas Turbo will serve to “revolutionise SHUBHODIP PAL across print and online platforms in India.” the smartphone experience” for its users by [email protected] ‘ENORMOUS BRANDS’ New Beginning Ashish Khazanchi has announced the launch of his own venture, called along with Ajay Verma. By Rashmi Menon fter keeping a low profile since he quit Publicis (L-R) Khazanchi, Suchanti AAmbience in June, former and Verma: joining hands creative head of Publicis Ambience, Ashish Khazanchi announced the The agency has chosen the ‘Yeti’ as its logo, aspect. But we will also create those launch of his own venture along with IPs, products in the consumer and Ajay Verma, erstwhile chief growth because it is enormous and mysterious. media space, which make enormous officer of Draftfcb Ulka. The agency, difference in the entire scope of christened ‘enormous brands’, is for brands with mass aspirations, of brand evangelism in the coming things,” Verma explains. part of the Concept Group and the with the confluence of insight, years. Brands will have to find ways On partnering with Concept, group’s chairman and managing technology and unexpectism.” of connecting with the consumers, Khazanchi says that despite the agency director, Vivek Suchanti, will be He adds that consumers today which makes a difference in his having just 10 people doing the core associated with it. are finding newer ways to skip purchasing behaviour or salience of thinking and execution, the team Interestingly, the agency has advertisements. In such a scenario, the brand,” he adds, emphasising that will get access to an array of public chosen the ‘Yeti’ as its logo, which brands require new strategies to the agency will be media-neutral. relations, digital, media research and Khazanchi describes as “fugly” - not just communicate with their Agreeing with him, Verma adds media execution functions. While funny and ugly at the same time. The consumers, but create talk-worthy that the agency aims to provide Khazanchi will work on the creative reason: it is enormous and mysterious. connections. solutions in the communication front, Verma, managing partner, About the agency’s philosophy “It is not enough for agencies space, internet space. “The era of will man the business and strategy and its distinct quality, Khazanchi, to be engaged with just the craft passive ideas is getting over and is planning at the agency. Together, managing partner, enormous, says, of print or film.