India’s AdEx to reach an estimated Rs. 57,486 crores in 2016: GroupM

GroupM, the leading global media management investment conglomerate release its advertising expenditure futures report, This Year Next Year (TYNY). The report forcasts India’s advertising investment to reach an estimated Rs. 57,486 crores in 2016.

This represents a growth of 15.5% for the calendar year 2016 over the corresponding period in 2015. The last calendar year closed on a promising note, with the advertising expenditure in India closing at Rs. 49,758 crores, growth of over 14.2% over 2014.

The report further mentions, the dominant growth by FMCG sector with 28% share of the AdEx. Despite facing volume pressure, the sector is expected to continue ad investment aided by the softening of commodity prices.

In 2016 Ecommerce ad spends are expected to be high on the back of increasing competition, market expansion and newer players entering the space. Many leading traditional retailers will be expanding their Ecommerce presence in 2016 even as consolidation continues in the sector.

Another exciting development is the opening up of Ecommerce as a platform for advertising, which will see further traction in 2016.

With the advent of 4G services in India, telecom service providers are expected to roll out extensive marketing campaigns across media. This roll out will also see global and domestic handset manufacturers launching new models of 4G/ LTE handsets.

Another big contributor to the Indian AdEx this year will be the Auto sector, on the back of multiple launches across both 4-wheelers and 2-wheelers.

GroupM estimates the Digital AdEx to grow by 47.5% in 2016 to Rs. 7,300 crores from the earlier Rs. 4,950 crores. A significant part of this growth is on the back of higher investments in cross-screen campaigns. The digital AdEx is estimated to take a 12.7% share of the total AdEx in 2016.

Expectations 2016

2016 will see Video on Demand (VOD) services gaining popularity in India. The Asia Pacific region is expected to overtake Western Europe as the second largest market for VOD services by 2020, fueled by rapid growth of smart phones in China and India.

With the recent Netflix service launch in India several domestic and international players will actively market their VOD services and acquire customers in the next 12 to 24 months.

2016 is estimated to be a better year for newspapers than 2015. The increase in ad spends expected from print heavy sectors like Auto, BFSI and the Government sector augurs well for newspapers. Regional advertising of Telco and FMCG brands will benefit language dailies.

While print as a medium is facing a lot of pressure from digital there is still headroom for growth in certain pockets and amongst certain audience clusters.

While Radio is expected to grow at a little over 10%, there is scope for the medium to pick up towards end 2016 when most of the new stations (set up after Phase III licenses, round 1 were issued) are fully operational. Digital audio platforms are gaining in popularity, opening up a new format for radio.

There has been an upswing in Cinema Advertising in the last few years, which will continue in 2016 with an estimated 25% growth in ad spends. Recent acquisitions by larger multiplex chains will help create a far richer viewing experience for consumers, giving brands another avenue to capture their target audience.

The medium can expect more brands to come on board with longer term deals if they invest in measurement and build more accountability. At present Cinema advertising is less than 1% of the total ad spend.

This Year, Next Year, is part of GroupM’s media and marketing forecasting series drawn from data supplied by holding company WPP’s worldwide resources in advertising, public relations, market research, and specialist communications.

The TYNY report is the most comprehensive understanding of the estimated media spends by advertisers in the current year. It also highlights some of the industry sectors that will have a major effect on advertising spends across media.

Source: IndianMediaBook - Digital

TRAI seeks comments from stakeholders on delivering broadband services in a transparent manner

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) released a draft direction, seeking comments from stakeholders on delivering broadband services in a transparent manner. TRAI has requested the stakeholders to furnish their written comments on the draft Direction by 1^st February,   while the counter comments, if any, may be submitted by 8^thFebruary.

Department of Telecommunication vide its Notification No. 4/4/2009-Policy-I dated the 18th July, 2013, amended the definition of broadband which reads as under: “Broadband is a data connection that is able to support interactive services including Internet access and has the capability of the minimum download speed of 512 kbps to an individual subscriber from the point of presence (POP) of the service provider intending to provide Broadband service.”

Accordingly, it is proposed to supersede the earlier direction No. 4-1/2011 BB&PA dated the 27thJuly, 2012 and direct all telecom service providers providing broadband (wire line or wireless) services to furnish compliance to the new direction. This will ensure transparency in delivery of internet and broadband services and will protect interests of consumers of the telecom sector.

Source: IndianMediaBook - Digital

[Video Review] Kalki’s Printing Machine campaign, does it really impress?

After featuring Nimrat Kaur and Sayani Gupta, Culture Machine now rolled out another episode of its UnBlushed series and this time featuring Kalki Koechlin. The series is aimed at featuring female celebrities who are unapologetic, bold and beautiful.

Koechlin says her poem titled Printing Machine, which she wrote for the series talks about the violence and brutality that women face in India. The poem has been recited by Koechlin herself in a five-minute video which released on the women’s lifestyle channel Blush.

Directed by Akanksha Seda, the video features Kalki in one of her edgiest avatars, as she takes on the media, society and their approach towards women and crimes against them. In the video, Kalki talks about the increase in acid attacks, gang rapes, and foreigners being raped in the country. Printing Machine is inspired by one of the key influencers in people’s lives, news houses and the media.

Commenting on the video, Shubham Shobhit, Co-Founder & Director, Brand Diaries Creative Communications, said, “The content and execution which takes the idea ahead without going overtly feminist and speaking directly to the common man . The message seems more convoluted here for the masses to appeal. The length too can be put to question. But overall, it’s a good job done well.”

Printing Machine v/s My Choice

Last year, Deepika Padukone made headlines after appearing in Vogue’s My Choice video. The video was a montage of 99 Indian women of all ages ranging from actress Nimrat Kaur to film critic Anupama Chopra and set to Deepika’s narration. It received flak from a few viewers, who called it elitist and sexist.Generating a buzz on all social platforms, people have been pro and against My Choice.

Ever since the video went viral, both the actress and the video have been a topic of debate and many spoofs were made in response to it. Kalki’s Printing Machine is reminding us of My Choice. Now the question is, will Kalki face the criticism like Pudukone did.

“It’d be difficult for one to draw straight comparisons here since the Vogue’s my choice is about the liberty of women whereas Kalki’s printing machine talks about the insensitivity of the common man to react on the day to day trials faced by women. Honestly, it is too early for me to choose between the two”, opined Shobhit.

Source: IndianMediaBook - Digital

Vikrant Mudaliar appointed as CMO at Yatra

The online travel portal Yatra has roped Vikrant Mudaliar as the Chief Marketing Officer and he will be responsible for leading marketing activities across all Yatra business lines and group entities.

Commenting on the appointment, Sharat Dhall, President Yatra, said, “We are extremely excited to have Vikrant as part of the leadership team at Yatra. He belongs to a rare breed of marketing professionals who have created and built brands in new categories. Vikrant’s experience in traditional marketing and digital media coupled with his consumer understanding will be crucial in Yatra’s next phase of growth.”

Mudaliar will be responsible for driving the marketing and communications strategy to support the company’s overall strategic objectives. The role will also have him responsible for all traffic and consumer marketing initiatives across web and mobile platforms and driving customer engagement and loyalty.

He holds over seventeen years of experience and has handled leadership roles across business management, marketing, sales and strategy functions. He has experience across sectors such as e-commerce, media and entertainment, automobiles and consumer goods. Vikrant previously served as Chief Sales & Marketing Officer at Lenskart.

“Travel as a sector has always intrigued me and to work for Yatra at this pivotal time, when the industry is seeing customer empowerment like never before through innovative e-commerce platforms, is absolutely thrilling. Consumers are currently expecting brands to find relevant, unique and interesting ways to interact with them. Yatra has visibility and services across travel categories and I hope to make its reach wider and measurable in a lot of ways. I am keen to adopt new digital technologies in developing marketing innovations that help travellers identify Yatra as the most obvious choice,” commented Mudaliar.

He has also worked at Tata Sky Ltd. as Vice President-Brand Marketing where he played a key role in making Tata Sky the category leader and also a leading consumer brand in the country. While his longest stint was with Tata Sky for close to a decade, he has also worked at General Motors India, Jumbo Electronics Dubai and Pepsi Foods Ltd.

Source: IndianMediaBook - Digital

Startup of the Week: Labbaazar aims at capturing 15% of total market in next 2 years

Aimed at providing test, measuring and calibration instruments services, all at one place in different industry verticals inorder to choose the right product from various range of renowned leading brands, Rahul Gupta an Economics Graduate from Delhi University launched Labbazaar.

Speaking about the launch, Rahul Gupta, Founder & CEO, Labbazaar, said, “The idea behind Labbazaar was to provide genuine Test, Measure tools and equipment to the customer, who face availability issue with offline channels due to slow moving & high number of SKUs. Using the platform, professionals choose the right product from various range of renowned leading brands at authorized prices. Also, the aim is to offer wide range of products on one portal which helps in maximum customer satisfaction.”

Gupta started his career in the year 2003 in Advertising and then moved into trading of Laboratory Equipments in 2004. Rahul’s innovative bent of mind enabled him to venture into Commercial Testing and Calibration Laboratory Setup. From 2009, Rahul acted as Consultant for setting up of calibration and testing laboratories in Sigma Test and Research Centre. He also founded the Instrumentation Division of SGM Labs Solutions which deals in laboratories equipment’s and labs setups.

The lab supply segment

According to Gupta, the Lab Supply segment is estimated around 10,000 crores. Currently less than 1 percent is done online but it is expected to rise rapidly with growing industrialization in the country.

Gupta believes that there is immense potential in online Lab supply sector which has helped Labbazaar to expand significantly.

Speaking about the scope in the sector, Gupta said, “There is an ample scope in this segment but it is overlooked by current start–ups because other than IT knowledge and skills, this segment also requires strong scientific support team to understand customer requirements.”

However, the challenge in this segment is to bring brands on board, as they fear about disturbing their existing channels.

Mechanism of Labbazaar

The self-funded Labbazaar’s most of the customers are men between the age group of 20-35 and its actively using combination of traditional media and digital media to reach out to our customers.

“Labbazaar is an e-commerce portal that generates revenue from sale of products. Also, we ship directly from the warehouse so there is no involvement of any third party which helps in attaining faster delivery and cheaper shipment, added Gupta.

It maintains stocks for most of its products, and the warehouses are located in Delhi and Bangalore. The venture has partnered with Delhivery, FedEx for its major logistics and also uses India Post for remote locations.

Future plans

Mergers and acquisitions are in trend these days, but Lababzaar has no such plans at the moment. Gupta mentioned that venture is aiming at capturing 15 per cent of total market in the segment 2 years down the line.

“With industrialization, the market for tools and equipment is poised to grow and Labbazaar.in being the first ever venture in selling authorized tools and equipment in testing and measuring segment is expecting a significant share in the market,” concluded Gupta.

Source: IndianMediaBook - Digital

GAIA Good Health’s #ThingsYouGiveUp Campaign

GAIA Good Health, the health food brand in India, launched digital campaign #ThingsYouGiveUp in partnership with digital marketing agencies Xebec Digital.

Talking exclusively to IndianMediaBook, Sowmya Iyer, CEO, Xebec Digital, said, “Today’s individual is aspiring and does not mind giving up health on occasions to meet daily targets and achieve dreams. But there is always a room to compensate by making those smart choices. That’s where GAIA wanted to fit in.

The idea behind #ThingsYouGiveUp campaign was to make people realize that in this faced-paced life, health knowingly unknowingly does take a beating. We wanted people to realize the things they had given up on the pursuit of their career goals.”

As a part of the campaign, the brand asked people to share their story of compromises, its social pages saw people confessing and then realizing the importance of health through the #ThingsYouGiveUp campaign.

The campaign was run Pan India and executed in one phase. It witnessed people pour in personal realisations on how they have ignored important aspects of their health in pursuit of their career goals using hashtags #ThingsYouGiveUp and #GaiaGoodHealth which trended on social media.

The traffic to the campaign came through content marketing on various news websites, health and lifestyle websites

The contest was designed in a way that people started realizing how they neglect health. The brand started receiving stories of confessions and resolutions to walk the path to good life.

Gaia’s handle started receiving tweets like “Skipped breakfast to make it to work on time”, “Gave up Zumba lessons for studies” and “Gave up spending time with my family for work”, among others.

This created a social chatter with the brand handle receiving 35,804,506 impressions, 4,708 tweets, 2,675 mentions and 700 retweets.

“The most important thing that the campaign did was — it made people think, and reflect on what they have given up. So in a way– it wasn’t the brand being preachy and asking people to take care of their health.  It was the people talking to each other and sharing their realizations on how they ignore their health in daily life.

Since Gaia was the facilitator of this outpour of realizations, Gaia subtly but very powerfully reinforced its position as a brand that is committed to people’s good health and healthy living.”, added Sowmya

The brand further plans to carry forward the campaign into phase two. Now that India has shared realizations, phase two will make people act on these realizations through tangible next steps. That’s what the campaign will facilitate.

Source: IndianMediaBook - Digital

IAMAI requests Uttarakhand government to desist from imposing taxes on e-commerce purchase

The Uttarakhand government has imposed a regressive 10 per cent tax on all e-commerce purchases. The tax is incident on courier companies but will have to be borne by the customers as a separate head in the invoice.

The Internet and Mobile Association of India (IAMAI) believes that this amendment is unconstitutional and has been imposed to pander to small section of local traders.

A Supreme Court judgment of 2006 clearly states that Entry Tax has to be a form of ‘Compensatory Tax’, and the onus lies on the state to provide quantifiable evidence that the proceeds from the tax is to be used to facilitate trade and commerce for those entities on whom the tax is being imposed. Entry tax cannot be used as a tool for revenue generation or as a tool for compensating revenue loss due to e-commerce activities.

In this case, the tax is being imposed on courier companies, who are wrongly being poised as a ‘principal’ in the transaction. The principal within the state is the consumer, and this tax aims not to facilitate but punish consumers from availing e-commerce facilities.

Secondly, as per Article 304 of the Constitution of India, state authorities cannot discriminate between goods from outside the state and goods being produced within the state. State legislatures can bring about ‘reasonable’ restriction on movement of goods from outside in ‘public interest’, but such legislation has to be sanctioned by the President of India. This present move by Uttarakhand seems to focus more on the interest of local traders than general ‘public interest’, and in any case cannot be imposed without the President’s consent.

IAMAI requests the authorities of Uttarakhand to desist from imposing such taxes for the benefit of the consumers of the state of Uttarakhand.

Source: IndianMediaBook - Digital