Week at a glance: LG, Sony, TOI, Nick shore up ops; PwC’s M&E report

LG is betting big on experiential marketing campaigns in India: Amit Gujral
LG Electronics India, which recently celebrated 21 years in the country, is further stepping up efforts to design and manufacture innovative products and solutions that satisfy the specific requirements of Indian customers. To mark the occasion, LG rolled out an emotional yet inspirational campaign, themed #CelebratingTheNew. Amit Gujral, Head - Corporate Marketing, LG Electronics India, speaks to Adgully on LG’s marketing and advertising strategy for India this year. 

Sajan Raj Kurup takes back the reins as CLA and Rana Barua part ways
Independent agency CLA and Rana Barua have decided to part ways. Sajan Raj Kurup, who has driven the place from a 4 people on a dining table to a 183-people strong team across multiple offices, takes on the reins now and will drive the growth and diversification plans hands-on along with CLA’s long term financial consultant turned full time CFO, Venkat Balasubramanian; Ventureland CEO, Srijib Mallik, and a strong team of business leaders. 

Dus Ka Dum, Zindagi Ke Crossroads, KBC – Sony’s big gamble on non-fiction
Sony Entertainment Television is beefing up its weekday line-up with some non-fiction shows – ‘Dus Ka Dum’ on Mondays and Tuesdays at 8.30 pm with Salman Khan as host; ‘Zindagi Ke Crossroads’ on Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays at 8.30 pm with TV actor Ram Kapoor as host. Also in the pipeline is India’s premier game show, ‘Kaun Banega Crorepati’, which will go on air soon. Given the packed schedule of Sony Entertainment Television, Adgully spoke to its Executive Vice President and Business Head, Danish Khan, to know more about the channel’s strategy. 

We want to amplify the perspective we bring to our readers: Sanjeev Bhargava
The Times of India has rolled out a new brand campaign for its metro supplements (TIMS) – Bombay Times, Delhi Times, Gurgaon Times, Chennai Times, Bangalore Times and Calcutta Times – titled ‘Flirt with your City’. In conversation with Adgully, Sanjeev Bhargava, Director - Brand, The Times of India, gives further insights on the ‘Flirt with your City’ campaign, strengthening the Metro supplements, what Brand TOI stands for in today’s media scenario, attracting the younger readers and much more. 

Nick unveils 5th local IP Rudra; a combination of risk & strategy: Nina Elavia Jaipuria
Kids’ channels in India have been fortifying their offering with more and more homegrown characters and IP. The latest to join this bandwagon is Prince of Magic ‘Rudra – Boom Chik Chik Boom’ on Nickelodeon. Adgully caught up with Nina Elavia Jaipuria, Head – Kids Entertainment Cluster, Viacom18, to know more about the creation of Rudra, the strategy behind growing Nick’s local IP, the shifts in the kids’ genre in India and more. 

India’s M&E industry to clock over Rs 353,609 cr by 2022: PwC Report
According to PwC’s Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2018-2022, the Indian entertainment & media industry is expected to reach Rs 353,609 crore by 2022, growing at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.6 per cent between 2018 and 2022. 

Traditional media is still strongly placed in India: PwC’s Frank D’Souza
Following the launch of PwC’s ‘Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2018-2022’ report, Adgully spoke to  Frank D’Souza, Partner & Leader - Entertainment & Media, PwC India, on the key findings of the report, the growth of digital media – mobile, Internet, OTT – in India and how it compares with the West. 

Ogilvy announces new organisational design and brand identity
Ogilvy has announced the agency’s re-founding and new mission to serve as an integrated creative network that Makes Brands Matter. Continuing their “Next Chapter” transformation journey, the company introduced a new organisational structure and brand identity. The integrated Ogilvy brand brings together the three distinct units of OgilvyOne, Ogilvy & Mather Advertising and Ogilvy Public Relations along with various company sub-brands and specialty brands under a single, unified group. 

Concerns against Big B’s alliance with Horlicks puts back focus on celeb endorsers
Once again bringing to the fore the issue of the role and responsibilities of celeb brand endorsers is the opposition to Amitabh Bachchan’s association with Horlicks’ Mission Poshan. Now, a nutrition advocacy group, Nutrition Advocacy in Public Interest (NAPi), has written an open letter to Bachchan, urging him not to associate with Horlicks Mission Poshan. In the letter, NAPi states, “Horlicks is a high sugar product…which could contribute to childhood obesity and non communicable disease in later life.” 

OOH fiasco in Bangalore
On May 30, 2018, an advertisement hoarding for Samsung Galaxy Note was displayed inversely in the Residency Road, Bangalore that created ripples in the advertising industry. Posterscope, the agency that handles the OOH campaigns of Samsung, has criticised the slanderous act of the vendor who inversely displayed their client’s ad. Further to this act, they clarified that the claims made by the vendor was absolutely false and offensive in nature. 

The W Suite | We are not an inclusive industry: Sakshi Choudhary
Sakshi Choudhary, Creative Controller, Ogilvy India, gave up a promising corporate career to be part of the advertising business. Seven years into her journey, Choudhary created award-winning work for some of the world’s most iconic brands. A strong proponent for gender equality, Choudhary highlighted the rise of the ‘Female Economy’ in her address at the recently held Zee Melt 2018 conference. 

Offbeat: Sabina Chopra – Laughing life’s challenges away
Sabina Chopra, Managing Director, Indian Subcontinent, RCI, leads the execution of strategic priorities for the Indian market. She is responsible for driving business growth and delivering on-going value to RCI members and affiliates in India. She is based out of RCI’s Bangalore office. With more than 25 years of experience in the Indian travel market, Chopra brings a wealth of hospitality knowledge with her. 

Ad land’s Young Guns: Dhruv Shah, Social Kinnect
Dhruv Shah, UI/UX, Web & SEO Head, Social Kinnect, started his career in 2006 as a graphic designer in a start-up. He has worked on all vertices in the advertising world. He then moved into gaming, before Shah joined Social Kinnect in 2013 to handle Web Development, where he started to build a UI / UX and Development team. 

BARC Wk 22: Zee Anmol leads; Zee TV claws its way back to Top 3
BARC ratings for Week 22 of 2018 (May 26-June 1) [HSM (U+R): NCCS All : 2+ Individuals] saw Zee Anmol remain ahead of the rest of the top 10 channels and maintaining a wide gap with the No. 2 channel (Rishtey). Zee TV has been seeing gains in the last few weeks and reached the No. 3 spot this week. 

Naagin 3: Revenge, mystery, fast-paced plot line – what’s not to like?
Colors hit the jackpot with its supernatural series, ‘Naagin’. Produced by Balaji Telefilms, Seasons 1 and 2 of ‘Naagin’ topped the viewership of shows on Hindi GECs for several weeks. Season 3 of ‘Naagin’ hit the small screens on June 2, 2018, and has the audience hooked with its story of shape-shifting (Ichchhadhari) naags and naagins and revenge.