Week at a glance: News channels & DD Free Dish; Radio reinvents; India’s EV ecosystem

Will current P&L of news channels support high bids for slots at DD Free Dish auction?

Does the latest round of bidding by news channels for DD Free Dish make business sense? Unlikely, given the overall pressure on the margins observed by the vast majority of the television news channels in India.

DD Free Dish e-auctions: 65 channels win MPEG-2 slots for FY2023-24 for Rs 1069.60 cr

The 67th e-auctions for DD Free Dish MPEG-2 slots have been concluded and the results are out. As per the information available, a total of 65 TV channels have won the MPEG-2 slots spanning 6 Buckets. The total money earned in these 6 buckets amount to Rs 1069.60 crore for FY2023-24.

CEAT changes: Anant Goenka named Vice-Chairman; Arnab Banerjee to be MD & CEO

The Board of Directors of CEAT Limited, an RPG Group company, at its meeting held on March 20, 2023, named Anant Goenka as the Vice Chairman of the tyre major. This appointment, effective April 1, 2023, follows Anant Goenka’s decade-long stint as MD and CEO of CEAT, a phase that witnessed a significant transformation of the tyre major, in technology, branding and production capabilities.

Mindshare India bags communications mandate for Maruti Suzuki

Maruti Suzuki on Thursday selected Mindshare India as its new communications agency. Shashank Srivastava, Senior Executive Director - Marketing and Sales, Maruti Suzuki India, confirmed this to Adgully.

WPP acquires data-driven influencer marketing agency Goat

WPP has annunced the acquisition of Goat, one of the world’s leading influencer marketing agencies. Goat will join GroupM, WPP’s media investment group, and merge with its influencer marketing solution INCA to create the industry’s first truly global influencer marketing agency with more than 300 employees in over 30 markets around the world. The combined entity – which will go to market as Goat – will operate as part of GroupM Nexus, the world’s leading media performance organisation with more than 9,000 expert practitioners.
MX Player announces departure of Nikhil Gandhi as Chief Operating Officer

MX Player, India's No 1 OTT platform, announced that Nikhil Gandhi has decided to step down as the company’s Chief Operating Officer (COO) to pursue other interests.

Radio Ga-Ga again: The reinvention, resurgence & relevance of radio in digital era

This 1979 song by the British new-wave band Buggles wistfully captured how the arrival of technology, especially the visual media, heralded the decline of radio as a medium. Since then, naysayers have been sounding the death-knell for radio. But, this simple medium thrived and continues to thrive to this day. In fact, in countries like India, radio is a kind of a leveller – its content palatable and appealing to everyone, from the hardscrabble neighborhoods of hinterlands to the middle-class suburbs.

A deep dive into India’s EV ecosystem – The challenges and the green road ahead

Electrification of vehicles in India is still at a nascent stage compared to countries such as Norway and China. While the four-wheeler electrification has been slow, the spotlight of the consumer EV revolution in the country is on two-wheelers (2W) at the moment. Ownership cost savings of electric 2W ranging from 20-70% over petrol 2Ws have piqued the interest of the average buyer, while the B2B players have already jumped on the opportunity, as per a Redseer study.

Experts highlight the ground realities of achieving DigitALL for gender equality

‘DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality’ has been chosen for International Women’s Day, celebrated on March 8, 2023. The United Nations and UN Women celebrated this day to recognise the women and girls who are championing the advancement of transformative technology and digital education.

Govt serious on complaints of increasing obscene content on OTT: Anurag Thakur

Union Minister of Information Broadcasting and Sports and Youth Affairs, Anurag Thakur, underlined the increasing obscenity and abusive language on OTT platforms, and expressed the Government’s seriousness on this issue. He was addressing a pree meet in Nagpur on March 19, 2023.

Exclusive: Interview with Karan Kundraa

In conversation with Adgully, actor Karan Kundraa speaks about his show ‘Tere Ishq Mein Ghayal’, his character, his dream role, how he deals with social media trolls, and more.

At Haier around 60% of marketing spends are on digital: Priyanka Sethi

In this interview with Adgully, Priyanka Sethi, Director - Head of Marketing, Haier India, talks about the latest marketing technologies and trends, including the integration of AI-driven systems into brand strategies.

Neeti Chopra & Swati Bhattacharya dissect Bombay Times Out & Proud @Work campaign

Following the overwhelming response to the first edition of the landmark campaign, Bombay Times has recently launched the second edition of the platform, called ‘Bombay Times Out & Proud @Work’, with the goal of making every workplace fair and inclusive.

We are going to see a lot of social commerce in the year ahead: Rubeena Singh

The year 2023 is seen as bringing in new operational efficiencies, stronger strategies, a far greater emphasis on building deep bonds with various stakeholders and consumers. In keeping with the current market ecosystem, technology and a human approach are seen as going hand in hand.

At Helios, we believe in going beyond transactional communication: Ajay Dwivedi

Introduced by Titan Company, Helios today is India’s largest multi-brand premium watch retailer. Spread across the country, Helios Watch Store has become a one-stop destination for superior Swiss watches, classic analog watches, modern digital watches and futuristic smartwatches from leading international brands. The store also houses Titan Company watches like Nebula, Titan, Titan Smart and Xylys.

Revolutionising grassroots cricket: Abhishek Desai on the story of CricHeroes

Since its inception, CricHeroes has been revolutionising grassroots cricket in India by introducing digital scoring and analytics In this interaction with Adgully, Abhishek Desai, Founder, CricHeroes, speaks about the platform’s journey, its impact on the grassroots cricket ecosystem, and the new products and features that CricHeroes is introducing to further enhance the cricketing experience for its users.

Women’s Premier League to have a transformational impact on women's cricket in India

The launch of Women’s Premier League tournament is a significant milestone for the sport in the country, and it signals the start of a new era for women’s cricket, says Kanav Sud, Business Head, Sportskeeda. In this interview with Adgully, he talks about the impact of the WPL on women’s cricket in India, the response from brands to the WPL, the unique strategies employed by brands for engaging the growing female fan base, and more.

No team member can be just an interchangeable cog in a machine: Nidha Luthra

In conversation with Adgully, Nidha Luthra, Executive Director, Thought Blurb Communications, speaks about how women have very different ways of leading their teams, compartmentalising work and personal lives, why conflict is not always a bad thing, and more.

Ruchira Karnik on how organisations can create a more diverse & inclusive workplace

In conversation with Adgully, Ruchira Karnik, Chief Revenue Officer, upGrad for Business, speaks about gradual shift in societal attitudes towards gender equality, how prioritisation can be the key to a successful work-life balance, the importance of grooming future women leaders, and more.

Delivering consumer-centric solutions is key: PivotRoots’ Yogesh Khanchandani

“We were able to help a vast number of SMEs navigate the post-pandemic landscape with greater ease and confidence. Our templatized e-commerce solutions and consultation services proved to be a game-changer for many businesses looking to establish a robust online presence and capitalise on the vast potential of the digital market,” says Yogesh Khanchandani, Co-Founder & Chief Business Strategy Officer, PivotRoots.

The art of teamwork has been at the core of leveraging growth for us: Siddharth S Pande

In this interaction with Adgully, Siddharth S Pande, Founder, Feed The Wolf, speaks about the inception of his company, the core business proposition, holding on to the short attention spans of consumers, collaborating with the finest team, and more.

TAM Sports kickstarts CTV and mobile monitoring service with this year’s IPL

TAM Sports (a division of TAM Media Research) has launched Connected TV & Mobile (Android & IOS) Ad monitoring and Verification service for IPL 2023 Live Streaming. This specialised service will provide real-time data and insights.

Viacom18 ropes in 13 streaming sponsors for IPL

The Indian Premier League 2023 will begin on March 31, 2023. According to reports, Viacom18, the company with the digital rights to stream IPL 2023, has signed about 13 sponsors.

16th edition of Goafest to take place from 24th to 26th May, 2023

South Asia’s biggest advertising festival, Goafest is all set to make a grand return. Co-hosted by The Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) and The Advertising Club, Goafest 2023 is scheduled to take place on 24^th, 25^th and 26^th May at Grand Hyatt, Bambolim, Goa. The prestigious fest will also witness the 54^th edition of the ABBY’s, South Asia’s Gold standard, that has been recognizing creative excellence in advertising for over five decades.

Zee Media onboards Mona Jain as the new Chief Revenue Officer

Zee Media Corporation Ltd, has roped in Mona Jain- a veteran media professional, as the new Chief Revenue Officer for all of its 14 news channel properties. She is all set to head the revenue generation, stakeholder engagement, and strategic investments across different channels of Zee Media. 

NBDSA order on complaint against Times Now’s debate shows on Teesta Setalvad

The News Broadcasting & Digital Standards Authority (NBDSA) has taken cognizance of three debate shows aired by Times Now channel on Teesta Setalvad. This was based on a complaint dated 1.7.2022 filed by Citizens for Justice and Peace, which mentioned about three debate shows aired on Times Now channel on 25.6.2022, 27.6.2022 and 28.6.2022.

Bisleri to be run by my daughter Jayanti: Chairman Ramesh Chauhan

Ramesh Chauhan, who is currently the chairman of Bisleri International, has announced that his daughter Jayanti will be running the business after Tata Consumer Products ceased the discussion of acquiring the brand.