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How brands and big box retailers prepare for festive seasons or sales is, by now, an oft-told tale: extra staff come on board for just a few days, months are spent ne-gotiating exclusive deals, there’s

a ‘no-holidays-during-the-holidays’ rule for regu-lar store hands and the shifts stretch from 6 AM to midnight.

But what of India’s leading ecommerce play-ers? Apart from throwing in discounts every day, many of them are remarkably susceptible to isolating one day (or three) a year when they hope the largest chunk of money spent online by Indians will be on their sites or apps.

Flipkart’s founders were preparing for a bigger, better ‘big billion day’ as far back as January this year. It wouldn’t surprise us if in the last three months of 2015, there’s a grand orgy of conspicu-ous consumption, complete with “never before” deals on the apps and sites of Amazon, Flipkart and Snapdeal.

Online sales have existed for a while: Citibank’s OMG Sale and the Google Online Shopping Festival, for instance. But the one that’s most recalled for reasons good and bad is Flipkart’s Big Billion Day sale last year. It was online Darwinism at its finest. Those with fast net con-nections, twitchy fingers and instincts honed by

last minute bids on Ebay fared well. The ones who were disappointed — and it felt like there were at least a billion — fumed and fretted online till the Flipkart’s Bansals felt compelled to apologise.

So, what are etailers to do as they prepare to serve another big billion?

Be Ready For LiterallyA Billion TransactionsEtailers cannot make grandiose claims of serv-ing a billion and then not have the comput-ing power to deal with even half that number. Whether online or offline, infrastructural read-iness counts for a lot. Overseas, the main motiva-tion for such sales is offloading stock.

In India, it’s to get a larger number of people shopping online. Their first experience needs to be memorable. Error messages and products disappearing from shopping carts don’t make for great memories. Rajdeep Endow, MD, Sapient, observes, “No amount of advertising can bridge

the gap in how long a product is available for. It’s better to have a live clock ticking, counting down the duration of the deal rather than people find-ing inventory is over.”

Throw mobile-based apps into the mix and things get a lot more complex. On the one hand, there’s a walled garden of data to be mined. Observes Kumar Subramaniam, co-founder, Zero:Zero: “We know if the app’s been used to search for shoes, if the purchase was made, if there was an exchange, etc. The ecosystem is rich and etailers are just scratching the sur-face.” Which brings us to its biggest problem: complex user interfaces with lots of scope for unintended button mashing.

Subramaniam admits, “Shoddy UX is a big issue that is unaddressed. I guess it’s more painstaking than splurging crores on an ad campaign.” While still on apps, Harshil Karia, MD, Schbang, believes there’s a case to be made for them using data optimally and “compression and resizing of images is a must.”

Make Shopping SocialEven online shopping is not a lonesome experi-ence in India. There are phone calls made, links shared, and parallel teams of friends, family and colleagues tracking prices on other sites.

LIJEE PHILIPThe battlelines are getting drawn in yet another segment of the auto market. The Mini or the sub 4 metre SUVs (sports utility vehicle) is getting on to the want list of an increasing number of Indian auto consum-ers and enthusiasts. Every major car maker has announced plans to enter this highly competitive space by 2016. This segment, technically kickstarted by the Ford EcoSport and now with the recent launch of the Mahindra TUV300, also has Honda, Maruti Suzuki, VW, Renault and others firming up launch plans. By 2016 there could be as many as 8 mini SUVs on sale in the ̀ 6- ̀ 9 lakh price range, say experts.

To sweeten the deal for consumers many of these vehicles come with fea-tures that consumers may have had to pay a lot more for. Manufacturers are fo-cusing on safety features like airbags, vehicle sta-bility and anti-lock braking systems as well as more lifestyle oriented features such as keyless entry otherwise seen in high end sedans. EcoSport for instance offers a new feature SYNC with Ford AppLink, which enables users to access smartphone appli-cations through voice commands.

Ford was the first to identify the evolving needs of Indian consumers, looking for an

answer to meet urban mobility challenges such as congestion, parking. Since its introduction two years back, the core value-for-mon-ey proposition of Ford EcoSport continues to be strong for custom-ers looking for a quality product starting ̀ 6 lakh. Recently, Ford India celebrated the 200,000 sales milestone for the car.

The appeal: practicality and marketing that positions these as an everyday versatile vehicle.

“The consumer wants to experiment with different body-styles and may prefer a mini SUV to a hatchback or sedan. The tall stance works well for the ego and its road presence, and better ground clearance serves it well on potholed roads,” says Deepesh Rathore, founder & director, Emerging Market Automotive Advisors (EMAA).

Continued on Page 4 >>

MAGGI’S COMEBACK CAMPAIGN WAS AWW-INSPIRING. BUT HOW DID IT COME TO BE AND IS IT RIGHT FOR THE BRAND?

MISSING IN ACTION

Sub-4 metre SUVs are getting both Indian consumers and auto manufacturers to think small

Etailers cannot make grandiose claims of serving a billion and then not have the computing power to deal with even half that number

#Epic Sale Day

#Epic Fail Day

WHEN IS AN SUV NOT A ROADHOG?

BrandRevival

RAVI BALAKRISHNANMaggi made a comeback a few weeks ago: if not to the store shelves, at least on the internet with a series of ads about a bunch of Maggi loyalists who shared tales of their love for the noodle. There were socially dysfunctional young men looking to build bridges with their neighbours in the hopes of being asked over for a meal in a Maggi-less world. Fathers deprived of the one thing they could cook. Six ads in all, ending with a miss you message.

Interestingly enough, the sugges-tion that a campaign be done after a High Court order granting the brand conditional relief came from an agency. Not Publicis which has been handling brand Maggi for a while now but McCann Worldgroup which works on Nestle’s corpo-rate campaign and Nescafe. Says Prasoon Joshi, chairman, McCann Worldgroup Asia Pacific, “Instinct is very important. There’s a huge faith and belief behind these ads. We believed the consumer was dy-ing to hear from us and we were dying to talk to them. It’s a cam-paign that shows respect to the consumer.” Joshi who penned the ads himself was inspired by com-ments on Twitter and Facebook. He recalls, “There was a longing; this was something people genuinely miss. These are authentic state-ments: things like I never woke my mother up. Or I never looked at the restaurant menus for I never needed them.”

It took just four days to get the campaign off the ground and on-line: from ideation to shooting, ac-

cording to Joshi. The agency which worked with Ginger Water Films was also given unprecedented lev-els of freedom. The speed at which the ads were made is impressive by any reckoning but particularly sig-nificant for Nestle: a company that was accused of reacting too slowly to a brewing crisis at the time of the controversy around Maggi, its

flaghsip brand. It’s a change attrib-uted to the arrival of new manag-ing director Suresh Narayanan who replaced Etienne Benet.

A more controversial shift is how McCann managed to snag the first big post-controversy assignment for Maggi. Sources at Publicis point us to statements by Nestle which claim the campaign was more cor-

porate mandate than advertising as usual. For his part, Joshi clarifies, “We were already their partners. It was their decision that we partner them at this juncture. I think it’s an honour. Everybody is around you in happy times but true partners stand by you in crisis.”

While the ads have been widely viewed and shared, are they bang on strategy?

While admitting the ads are warm and fuzzy, relevance could be the missing link according to Dheeraj Sinha, chief strategy officer, Grey Group South & South East Asia, “Given the intensity of the contro-versy some warm fuzzy digital ads won’t solve things in people’s minds. ‘Was there lead or no? What have

you been feeding us all these years? Are you

or are you not in the clear?’ These are the questions to which we need stark answers. Emotions aside, it has raised

people’s hackles in terms of what

is going on, and un-fortunately at the time,

there was no conversation from the brand.”

It’s arguable though if Maggi would have been exempt from critique had it started the conversa-tion with an overtly corporate mes-sage. But these are questions that will have to be answered before the noodle makes a confident return to the tables of its legion of fans and supporters.

ravi.balakrishnan@timesgroup.com

“They wanted us to partner them at this juncture. Everybody is around you in happy times. True partners stand by you in crisis”Prasoon Joshi, McCann Worldgroup

MINI SUV SALES

FORECAST

2014 Sales55500 units

2018 Forecast06600 units

2022 Forecast374000 units

2025 Forecast426000 units

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“How many crores can you give me for comedy every year and how many people you want to reach, and I will work towards achieving that with comedy”

Vir Das on the business of comedy>> Page 2

Continued on Page 4 >>

What can India’s big etailers learn from previous ‘sale’ disasters? And how do they ensure they have the right sort of epic sale this time around? By Ravi Balakrishnan

OR

Funny Business

SOURCE: EMMAAA

THE ECONOMIC TIMES SEPTEMBER 23-29, 2015

Product: ETNEWMumbaiBS PubDate: 23-09-2015 Zone: BrandEquity Edition: 1 Page: BEFP User: kailashk0106 Time: 09-17-2015 01:40 Color: CMYK

One of the least controversial events in advertising is Portfolio Night. Held across various countries, senior creative directors from top notch agencies gather under one roof to give guidance to fledgling

ad aspirants, who come bearing portfolios in hand. It’s every ad enthusiast’s best chance to meet and seek advice on their work from say a Piyush Pandey (or David Droga in NY) without going through proper channels. In May 2015, Uber – a six year old startup in the mobile cab rental space, launched a similar initiative in five cities across MENA (Middle-East and North Africa). Only this was for startups seeking inves-tor guidance (and/or money).

Last month, Uber conducted the same activity in Delhi, Mumbai, Pune and Bengaluru where 10-12 venture capitalists, seed fund and angel inves-tors agreed to go on a four hour Uber ride in order to meet startup enthusiasts. Called #UberPitch, the event was organised in association with con-

tent creator The Viral Fever’s TVF Pitchers – a series based on the life of entrepreneurs in the Indian startup ecosystem. Each startup guy was allotted 15 minutes with the investor. Over a 100 entrepreneurs could get through to an investor either in the car or on call. All one had to do was book a ride on Uber which read ‘Uber Pitch’ as op-posed to ‘Uber X’ or ‘Uber Go’ et al.

But isn’t it an investor’s job to meet new start-ups every day? And isn’t an entrepreneur’s life all about pitching his idea to gazillion people per hour? Arunabh Kumar, founder of TVF, explains: “People only go to VCs once they have a proof of concept. This initiative al-lowed them to discuss ideas that may not have converted into business plans yet.” That’s what networking events are for, you’ll reason. “But all you do there is exchange cards and meet someone for two minutes at the most,” says Sanjay Mehta, an angel and PE in-vestor and one of the participants.

These investors were wary of pitch-ers’ seriousness but they were mostly not disappointed. “There were people who had left well-paying jobs to pur-sue ideas. Their enthusiasm was infectious,” Mehta adds.

In fact, Sohil Shah, manager at Intellecap Impact Investment Network, met a young boy who had bunked classes to meet him. “He had a list of ideas none of which were feasible businesses. But he was

very receptive to feedback and wanted to work harder,” Shah recounts. Under normal circum-stances, he would’ve got his team on preliminary evaluation and met an entrepreneur after a few rounds of background check. This eliminated all those layers. Of the 10 he met and the few he spoke to over phone, 3-4 made it to a a second round of conversation. And Mehta is close to finalising a deal with one, from what we hear.

Among the participants was Savio Joseph, co-founder of digital agency Teen Bandar. It was his first pitch to anyone and it ended up happening over a phone call. “I told the investor about han-dling social media duties for politicians. I was asked questions like potential of the offering, cli-ent conflict, talent pool, tools etc. I realised we get so caught up in the rut of getting things done, we forget to think about the most basic and yet the most important questions,” he shares.

Since there was no boardroom, the atmo-sphere allowed for a casual interaction. Something entrepreneurs are in dire need of, says Sajid Fazalbhoy, principal at Blume Venture Advisors. It could have been bet-ter organised, admits TVF’s Kumar, but there’s always the next time. Given that the announcement was made only a few hours before the launch, managing to jam Uber’s incoming traffic within minutes of the clock striking 12 noon was a definite feat. A shortlist in Promo & Activation at Cannes Lions’16, perhaps? Or a fund-raise or two?

We’ll know soon.

shephali.bhatt@timesgroup.com

What’s in it for...TVF PitchersWhere brand gurus have racked their brains to figure out why brands like Vodafone would associate with sport events like F1, #UberPitch

was a perfect associa-tion for TVF Pitchers since the web series is based on Indian start-ups. This gig may just have got them 100 subscribers who can trigger a multiplier effect on viewership numbers. If startups are the cool thing

in business, content creators like TVF and AIB are storytelling’s answer to the ‘next big thing’. In such a scenario, TVF Pitchers sets a good ex-ample of meaningful associations that can go a long way in building brand goodwill as opposed to mindlessly partnering any Snapdeal, Dick and Harry from the ocean of available clients.

UberThese days, the only positive PR a startup gets is when it announces a fund raise. User com-plaints on the cloud balance that out fairly eas-ily. Offering free rides to 10 odd cabs for four hours across limited localities in four cities was 10 times better than offering discount coupon codes that are often too complicated to avail. Besides free publicity and the shared love from TVF Pitchers fans, it also earned good karma points from at least a hundred startup enthusi-asts. Something many hyperlocal service start-ups are in desperate need of.

Entrepreneurs and wannabe entrepreneursA chance to meet seasoned investors for 15 min-utes without sending multiple e-mails to their as-sistants for 30 days straight. A veteran’s opinion on whether entrepreneurship is their cup of tea after all. A sense of how to present to an investor without using any props (like a pitch deck). A 10 minute refresher course on ‘How to think about your startup idea from a business perspective’.

InvestorsAn opportunity to meet the next Elon Musk, perhaps? Okay, Jeff Bezos, maybe. Let’s be realistic here.

Accelerator PitchHow a hyperlocal service brand and a content creator got together to establish brand goodwill in the startup ecosystem By Shephali Bhatt

“The fatality of good resolutions is that they are always too late”. Oscar Wilde’s words hold true for naysay-ers of social listening or what I call “Socialing”. With Maggi’s near-death experience, brands are scurrying to embrace it, but face the conundrum of its use and applicability. It’s not just about clever posts. So what should we listen to? What do we do with it? And how much should we listen?

These questions and more flummox brand heads as they stand beneath the swords of social trolls and shut their eyes to the possibility of being struck by them. To make it work, brands have to keep their eyes, ears and mind wide open, know when to talk and what to say.

Socialing is not about hearing what you want to hear: The traditional approach of pre-defining brand parameters sets you going for broke. You’d like to be the most trusted, ad-mired, youthful, interna-tional blah blah brand. But many of these are no longer key brand drivers especially to the young. Apart from obvious key words, it is important to use those that drive consumer conver-sations at the periphery of word lists. A water purifier must not only look at pure water, safe, healthy etc, but also “missing school again” paediatrician, water bills etc.

Socialing for assessing change in preference: A shift in the number of positive (or negative) sentiments and search statements can indicate how well your communication has permeated. This is ideally bench-marked against competitive brand sets. Over a period of time, it can be-gin to reflect the impact of your mar-keting efforts towards other tracker scores and sales/trials/store walk-ins etc.

Socialing for trendcasting and in-novations: Astute listening will give you deep insights about trends in the making and what is likely to be first adopted by micro influencers. Social Listening teams need to work closely

with product and design develop-ment to provide this insight and extrapolate trends that can shape future innovations.

Socialing for better and faster ser-vice turnarounds: The lack of which has caused many a brand to lose cus-tomers in an instant. Monitor your Twitter and Facebook closely and while addressing grievances, ensure your key opinion leaders are not left aggrieved. Speed is of the essence. Maggi could have lessened the back-lash had it responded early enough.

Socialing for better media planning. In an effort to show solidarity in the wake of the Costa Concordia incident, Holland America Cruise Line paused display ads and turned them back on when they were able to identify the perfect time to resume advertising, based on conversation direction and public sentiment derived from social-ing word clouds.

Invest in three key pillars to create a strong listening ecosystem:1) Identifying which tool and what scale will work best for your objectives, Adobe Social, Netbase,

Brandwatch, BlabPredicts, Radian6. If nothing, at least start with the free tools such as Hootsuite, Icerocket, Topsy, Google Alert.2) Build a skill + intuitive team that knows and goes beyond listening and reply-ing with posts.3) Develop and execute strategic Social Listening with highly relevant and impactful content that de-liver on key objectives.

Merc edes -B en z USA needed to reach a new generation of buyers: people who perceived it as “old luxury.” It needed topics that would help the brand stay relevant. Using predictive tools and industry cultural research, WAVE began pro-viding trend information and content recommendations. Less than a month into the program, WAVE-inspired posts across Twitter, Instagram and Vine returned nearly 13,000 favor-ites/likes and 8,000 Vine loops.

So, it’s time for you to tide over the Social Listening bête noire and use this powerful tool to make your con-sumer your brand co-creator. The success of your brand today will be determined by whether you are truly Socialing or simply socialising with your consumer to maintain dialogue.

The trick is to listen with ears, heart and mind and look into the future with your consumer. Now go ahead…ap-pease Oscar Wilde by telling yourself ‘Better late than never’.

(The author is CEO, Razorfish India. Views expressed

are personal)

TURNING A DEAF EAR TO SOCIAL LISTENING?

IGNORE SOCIAL CHATTER AT YOUR OWN PERIL

CHARULATA RAVIKUMAR

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AMIT BAPNAWhat got us curious enough to meet up with the famous comedian Vir Das was to primarily decipher his claim of being a comedy consultant to brands. Now that is a term that we haven’t come across too often in the country, at least not yet, even as comedy buzzes thanks to the antics of AIB and TVF, amongst others. Das’s consultancy spiel: “It’s about going to a brand and asking how many crores can you give me for comedy every year and how many people you want to reach, and I will work towards achieving that with comedy as the backbone.”

Life was not this funny for Das al-ways. He had gone to the US to study Economics and, once there, ended up studying theatre instead. A stint across TV channels was followed by launch-ing himself as a stand-up comedian, possibly much before the country had heard of local stand-up artistes. His dream is “to be an arena comedian and sell 1000 to 4000 seaters”. His company Weirdass Comedy, which he founded in 2010, is a full-fledged content company that anchors comedy across formats, from stand-up to live shows to comedy festivals to television and digital shows and soon-to-be-launched feature films. “We have taken live IPs and turned them into digital content destinations.”

Das’ company is working with a bunch of brand across categories and formats. For the launch of Rebtel, a Sweden based technology brand, Weirdass came up with a series of eight digital videos, 100 tweets, and 50 memes. Everything was done in-house, from the TV to digital cam-paign, from production to concep-tualising it in-house. For Flipkart’s Big Billion Day (2014), it created two videos; for the lifestyle brand Bossini, it did a digital survey around happi-ness to resonate with the brand’s ‘Be happy’ positioning. There is a soon-to-be-launched digital campaign for Nivea as also for an apparel and a shoe brand, Das lets on. Titan was a part of Weirdass’ live show ‘Unbelievable’, and also got 12 videos generated in the pro-cess. “There was so much of demand for comedy across genres and formats, from brands to agencies to live festivals to award shows and TV channels, that it really turned into a hard-to-ignore opportunity,” adds Das.

KV Sridhar, chief creative officer, SapientNitro, reckons comedy has found its place in the Indian sun. “All these years society and the brands were

uptight, we could not laugh at ourselves. That is changing now, and brands too are loosening up.”

Das explains that often marketers are pleasantly surprised to find this one shop that does everything under one roof, eliminating the need for indi-vidual visits to a digital agency, a tele-vision company, an event company and a digital video company. He adds with his trademark goofy grin, “Most of the ad agencies were anyways coming to us on the sly asking us to write some stuff.

We decided that we had written enough for the agencies, and it was time to pitch directly to the client, thereby cut-ting out the middleman.” The other be-lief he has is that those who represent comedy should be the ones directing it and producing it, else lots of things get lost in multi-party translation.

Prashanth Challapalli, digital head - iContract, loves the idea of indepen-dent content creators who have mas-sive social currency creating content for brands, as they bring the audi-ence’s perspective to content, which sometimes brands might miss out on. Harshil Karia, managing director at Schbang, a digital agency, has worked with Weirdass for Foster’s beer for a bunch of live shows across the country. In his view, Das’s services work well if

the brand wants to position itself in the space of comedy since he helps brands to integrate message through content.

Amidst all this hype and buzz, isn’t Das tempted to raise funds in the cur-rent flush-with-funds scenario? He avers that while the investor calls are coming, it is not the right time to go for external funding yet – he is still enjoy-ing the freedom that 100% ownership allows him. “So far we have had enough capital to execute everything we wanted and have managed to keep healthy toplines on our own.”

Das, 36, acknowledges that he won’t be hot and sexy forever. As long as he is, though, he will continue to be inspired by Bill Cosby and Johnny Lever to belt out the weirdass brand comedy.

amit.bapna@timesgroup.com

Most of the ad agencies were anyways coming to us on sly asking us to write some stuff

Vir Das with

his team

BHARAT CHANDA

Why Vir Das is Laughing his Weirdass Off Brands of all hues, from Titan to a Johnnie come lately like Swedish telecom label Rebtel, are queueing up outside the stand-up comedian’s studios

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People only go to VCs once they have a proof of con-cept. This initiative allowed them to discuss ideas that may not have converted into business plans yetArunabh Kumar, The Viral Fever

These are people who don’t know what kind of investor to approach - VC, angel or seed fund. The activity helped clear a lot of their doubtsSohil Shah, Intellecap Impact Investment Network

Lot of entrepreneurs would have heard about TVF Pitchers. This event put it right in front of the series’ target audienceSavio Joseph, Teen Bandar

Advertisers are not happy withAp-ple News, a new app that comes with Apple’s upcoming iPhone and iPad software update iOS 9.According to The New York Post, ad execs have been complaining that Apple has imposed strict rules on how adverts will be dis-played alongside content from publish-ers in the new app.Apple News, which becomes available

with iOS 9 on September 16, includes a slick new interface that includes the ability to display graphics, videos and more with a quick and intuitive

interface. Apple’s previous effort, Newsstand, has been shuttered to make way for the service. One advertis-ing exec compared agencies to Taylor Swift, the artistwho famously kicked up a fussabout Apple Music when it was discovered that indie musicians would be penalised by the service. “We’re like Taylor Swift, [Apple News is] giving us some great ways to distribute our product, but they’re not giving us a lot of ways to monetise it,” the exec told The Post. Apple has moved off some of the harder aspects of the advertis-

ing policy — such as not allowing links to the publishers websites — but other controls remain. The News app won’t allow DoubleClick, Google’s advertising service, to be integrated, and pre-roll video adverts will be vetted by Apple before they are allowed to run.Just as with Facebook’s “Instant

Articles,” publishers have to choose how much control they want to give a third party — in this case Apple — while simultaneously reaching the largest audience.

(Source: businessinsider.in)

Advertisers are not happy with Apple’s upcoming news app

THE ECONOMIC TIMES SEPTEMBER 23-29, 2015 2

Product: ETNEWMumbaiBS PubDate: 23-09-2015 Zone: BrandEquity Edition: 1 Page: BEPER1 User: kailashk0106 Time: 09-17-2015 01:32 Color: CMYK

DELSHAD IRANICase I: Ronald McDonald V. The King (Not of Rock N’ Roll)Last month, Burger King made an indecent pro-posal to McDonald’s. The King ambushed Ronald when he invited the latter, in full page ads, to combine forces to give birth to the McWhopper, an unholy union of their burgers, uniforms and more. Burger King, it seems, wanted a tempo-rary truce for a greater cause. But did it really want to make burger love, not war? If Burger King had planned the Peace Day marketing ma-noeuvre in collaboration with McDonald’s from the start, then, yes. In that case the two compa-nies would have created the obese abomination and lived happily ever after, for a day. Also, peo-ple would pay for McWhoppers by promising to end their beefs and longstanding grudges, thus generating more earned media for both.

The proposal, however, was quite public. “We’re being completely transparent with our approach because we want them to take this seriously. It would be amaz-ing if McDonald’s agrees to do this. Let’s make history and generate a lot of noise around Peace Day,” said Fernando Machado, senior VP, global brand management, Burger King Corporation. But McDonald’s first British CEO, Steve Easterbrook, who used to be the fast food giant’s chief brand officer, declined in an open letter that ended with a helluva kicker; “P.S. A simple phone call will do next time.” As far as rejec-tion letters go, this one was a slap in the face by a gloved hand attached to a Savile Row suit.

Easterbrook, with his unconventional re-buttal, turned a peace offering into a new battle front. If we examine the evidence and not let emotions govern reason, it wasn’t McDonald’s doing, technically. Rules of civility aside, the purveyor of

happy meals was unwittingly dragged into the conversation. It was Burger King who started the fire. McDonald’s merely added gallons of oil from its deep fryers to the flame.

Perhaps that was the King’s plan all along – to put McDonald’s in a corner. But we speculate. Withdrawn, Milord.

Case II: State of Twitter (on behalf of Heineken) V. Google Inc & The Crooked ‘E’A few weeks ago, Google Inc. unveiled its new logo that pretty much looks like its old logo. In the case of ‘People of Twitter V. Google logo’, the guardians of our collective conscience believe the internet company was heavily inspired by Dutch beer brand Heineken’s logo. Specifically the crooked ‘e’ in Heineken. (Just slightly tipsy. But can walk in a straight line at a pinch.) Despite a flurry of accusation by astute observ-ers, Google kept mum. Heineken, however, chose to respond with a tweet: “Hi Google, you’ve inspired us too… #Googlelogo #SmilingE”, ac-companied by a picture of the Heineken logo in Google’s colours. (See the evidence.) Suddenly Google’s big news became about Heineken.

(However, considering public opinion on the search giant’s new, expensive logo, this was per-haps fate dealing Google a lucky distraction.)

The Judgment (2015)The two cases highlight two very different

approaches to what is essentially the same problem; how should a brand react when drawn into a brand war not of its mak-ing. Some exercise caution. Some dive

right in, hoping wit will keep them afloat. There’s a third highly risky option, one we

wouldn’t recommend if it gave us a basket full of muffins and puppies, and that is ‘shutting up’. At least not in McDonald’s case. Says marketing consultant Harish Bijoor, “The competition just cannot blink. Every conversation is a repartee that puts the last guy who spoke on top. It’s a never ending exercise. That’s the reason why brands in the old days acted snooty.” Sure, McDonald’s didn’t emerge smelling like the proletariat, either, some people thought its response was snobbish and rude. But many lauded the burger major for its restrained comeback to a marketing ambush.

Pretending the conversation doesn’t exist is foolish. Heineken’s move to cash in on the chat-ter not only embedded the brand in the hottest global topic of the day; but also got it kudos for be-ing a sport and directing the conversation about its brand. Lenovo, too, was implicated in the Scandal of ‘e’, but chose to not mind it.

The bottom line is that it doesn’t matter who started the fire. And yes, the brand won’t always fry if you choose to ignore a conversation. But taking the higher road certainly doesn’t guaran-tee any loyalty points or fans either.

delshad.irani@timesgroup.com

We Didn’t Start The Fire !

Star and Sony are betting big on their apps complementing their TV programming. But when and how will these apps earn their keep? By Pritha Mitra Dasgupta

App on a Hot Tin Roof

DELSHAD IRANI“Enormous wouldn’t have come to fruition if I wasn’t shafted at Publicis,” says Ashish Khazanchi, co-founder of Enormous, which will celebrate its second birthday in a few days’ time. “It’s like this; you want to leap out of that airplane and fly. But you’re freaking scared to jump. Sometimes the instruc-tor has to push you off the edge. I was pushed and it’s the best thing that hap-pened to me. (I still haven’t sent ‘Thank You’ cards and stuff,)” he says with a faint glimmer of serious intent. Co-founder Ajay Verma, however, believes they would have jumped, anyway, unas-sisted; “It probably would have taken a little longer” if Khazanchi, who was vice-chairperson and national creative director of Publicis Ambience, hadn’t been side-lined at the Publicis Groupe agency, that is.

Khazanchi and Verma, the former chief growth officer at FCB Ulka, became loyal patrons of coffee shops on Carter Road during the time leading up to Enormous’ birth. A lot can happen over coffee, as the Café Coffee Day campaign would have us believe, and it did for the Enormous duo. Only it was at a Costa Coffee in a Mumbai sub-urb where they sealed the deal. The Tata Sky - Jhingalala hit maker, Khazanchi, says, “We had a fair bit of equity behind us. So, we thought, ab humein aata hai

advertising karna, ab to seekh gaye,” he laughs. Verma says, “The timing was right, the market was opening up. People weren’t thinking that “I’m en-gaged with an agency.” That relations between clients and large network agen-cies, in a perpetual state of dysfunction, were strained and increasingly became transactional, helped their cause. He rues, “We used to be welcomed in the clients’ offices because we would bring something they had never thought of and it did wonders for the brand. There was an aura around agencies and ad guys. We had seen that era, we had lived it. So, the question is can we now bring

some of that back?” Can they?

Before starting Enormous, Khazanchi spent several hours with Taproot’s found-er Agnello Dias, who had been there, done that. They would learn from Taproot’s mistakes and success. Says Khazanchi, “90% of Indian independent agencies owe a lot to Taproot. It wasn’t just some tiny shop doing bou-

tique-y work. It showed the world that independents can be trusted with big brands and budgets. That we do work that’s not flaky, it’s rooted in strategy and makes a considerable difference to brands’ fortunes.” Independents, he tells us, became viable because of Taproot (in 2012, Dentsu acquired 51% stake in the agency.)

However, the Indian ad industry has been hit by periodic waves of indies, often with indistinguishable ambition and offering. So, what does Enormous bring to a table swamped with estab-lished agencies and now “solutions companies” not two-minutes old? We asked their client. Says Radhika Ghai Aggarwal, co-founder, ShopClues.com, “They best understood our consumers, their ecosystem and aspirations. They cracked the right tonality and language we wanted to communicate in. In them we found passionate partners who

mirror the unshackled and out of box approach of a startup. We have been able to deliver clutter breaking and differen-tiated communication.” The campaign ‘GharWapsi’ for ShopClues’ 6 to 9 PM sale was an instant hit, even with some consistently uncharitable industry insiders. What sets Enormous apart, according to Verma, is that Khazanchi and he are different. “We play to each other’s strengths. Ashish (who has an MBA also by the way) thinks dis-ruptively and I bring in technology experience.” (Verma was CEO of a tech

company called eBUS.) Furthermore, early investment from Concept Communication’s Vivek Suchanti al-lowed Enormous to turn down undesir-able work. A luxury afforded by a few, ir-respective of size. “We had the courage to say no,” says Verma. So, Enormous waited for the big fish instead of settling for mackerel. Despite the good fortune, Enormous, just a few months old then, did lose a large Delhi-headquartered business to one of the biggest network agencies in the country simply because the indie didn’t have an office in the

capital at the time. Now they do. In twelve months, Khazanchi and

Verma plan to take Enormous to three times the current size of the agency. They’re also in the process of beefing up their digital capabilities with new hires, including a veteran digital super-specialist. “We’re not just talking about social media here, we’re talking about creating the next big digital platforms,” they tell us. Khazanchi says, “Today, about 45% of the industry is e-enabled businesses. We do realise we’ve got more than a comfortable leaning toward that sector. But, in our third year we want to get those Lenovos, IBMs, Skodas, Marutis, Tatas and Godrejs also.”

Well, considering the fact that a fairly large chunk of Godrej’s busi-ness is parked with another indie, Creativeland Asia, we just might be in for some fierce indie-on-indie action in the future.

delshad.irani@timesgroup.com

Got any funny emails floating around your office or at home? Seen a scam in some-one’s portfolio? Please send them to us at bawdy.copy@timesgroup.comWe’ll dish all the dirt you dish to us

Torrential WinThis is about the industry awards night that’s now conspicuous for an entirely different reason. It seems while one agency was celebrating its big win on a particular brand, some of the jury members present at the show were raising eyebrows at the final ver-dict. The entry involved the brand making inroads on torrent sites (sites that happily display porn content as well). A particular juror wondered why a family-brand would want itself present on such sites and wrote the entry off as scam. His objection to the win may have been lost in the din of the celebratory drum roll, but it did remind us of this agency that was winning metals at a torrential rate in yet another controversy-loving industry awards fest three years ago. Celebrations turned sour when some of their metals were rescinded on the account of being scammy. Not rubbing salt on dry wounds here (because that would be pointless), just trying to con-vey that torrents will always give instant gratification but everyone knows that without a strong fire-wall, sooner or later, they’ll screw the system over.

Exodus: Season2 Coming Soon Around this time last year, this network agency went through its first mass mid-level exodus in years fol-lowing a senior creative’s exit. Fresh rumours of his position being filled by an insider have led to the possibil-ity of a season 2 of ‘Quit Agency Movement’. The creative may have supporters in the higher rung but his popularity among peers and juniors is fairly questionable, we hear. The rumour is also being resented by most quarters of the agency because it was believed the role was promised to an old hand from the group who’s managing a substantial chunk of the business in another part of the country. Turns out he was assured of this position every time he made his intentions of moving out clear to the bosses that be. We hope the agency knows better than to retain people on the back of fake promises.

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WHAT’S THE ENORMOUS SECRET ANYWAY? IndieVibe AN OCCASIONAL COLUMN THAT TRACKS THE HOTTEST INDEPENDENT AGENCIES

In the ̀ 540 billion television industry in India that commands approximately `174.6 billion of advertising revenues, only two television networks, Star India and Multi Screen Media (MSM) have embraced the multi-platform strategy

and launched digital avatars of their broadcast properties. Both Hotstar by Star India and Sony Liv by MSM made a debut earlier this year. But both platforms are now taking giant leaps with original content. While Sony Liv has launched an exclusive fiction show called Love Bytes, Hotstar has signed up Indian comedy group All India Bakchod (AIB) to create

exclusive content. “I am told that based on exten-sive, exhaustive research, AIB are considered mildly entertaining and we should give them a show on our network. I have complete faith that we will regret this in the months to come,” says Uday Shankar, CEO of Star India jokingly.

While both the networks will give their arm and leg to build these two platforms, it is only dif-ferentiation in content that will give them scale. But Amardeep Singh, co-founder of Interactive Avenues and CEO of MAP, says, “It is easier for these platforms to monetise the existing bouquet

of content like fiction. But if they acquire new content at steep rates, it will be very difficult.”

Industry sources reveal that Star India has paid a whopping ` 75 crore to AIB for 20-episodes (10 in English, 10 in Hindi) starting in October this year. “The con-tent will be shown both on-air and on Hotstar and it will

be an inte-gration of sorts,” says

the source. He further adds that

the channel asked ̀ 10 crore for the title sponsor, `7 crore for the co-sponsor and ̀ 5 crore for associ-ate sponsors. “Now it has already come down to `4 crore for the title sponsor,” he says.

Another media planner says, “Star paid ̀ 300 crore for the Indian Premier League (IPL) digital rights for Hotstar and Starsports.com. And it will be very difficult for them to recover the cost.” But Singh adds, “Platforms like YouTube are successful because they don’t spend tons of money to create content. But since there is a huge demand and people are watching television con-tent on digital platforms, acquiring expensive content could be a strat-egy to build the brand.”

Sony Liv, launched its exclusive fiction show in September. Uday Sodhi, executive vice president and head - digital business, MSM, says, “We should not compare the cost of creating content for Sony Liv with that of television shows because they are not the same. The viability depends on the cost of the content and how you plan to monetise it.We are in the early stage of monetisation of the digital platform,” he adds .

Industry sources say that while Zee Network is waiting for the genre to gain scale and pace, Viacom18 is likely to launch its digital platform by the end of this year.

Multiscreen consumption varies across mar-kets but the difference is not as stark as one

would assume, says a recent report from Carat. While in Metros 42% of the population uses smartphones / tablets while watching TV, the number in non-metro markets drops only to 36%. Chennai, Noida, Mumbai and Pune populations take the lead in this behaviour. Access to Internet is at 48% with 90% of this audience also access-ing it through mobile phones. Digital today is no longer just a media delivery option, it defines

who the individuals are and how and why they exhibit different behaviour patterns, says the report.

Jai Lala, head - trading & partner-ships at GroupM, says that while Sony Liv has so far been tent pole oriented, Hotstar has been consistent in creating spikes. “Moreover, Star uses its network to promote Hotstar extensively. While Sony Liv is also promoted by MSM but not to the ex-tent of Hotstar.”

Lala also adds, “Currently these platforms share data like number of downloads, number of views or specific shows and events. But there is no one to monitor the incremental reach (television+digital). And therefore it will be great if companies like Comscore start track-ing these platforms.”

Big shows, big monies and big promotions. But it won’t make the gestation period short. And ex-perts say it will take anywhere between 5-7 years for these companies to break even.

pritha.dasgupta@timesgroup.com

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How should brands react when others make them ‘part of the conversation’

As far as rejection letters go, this one was a slap in the face by a gloved hand attached to a Savile Row suit

In our third year we want to get those Lenovos, IBMs, Skodas, Marutis, Tatas and Godrejs

Experts say it will take anywhere between 5 to 7 years for these companies to break even

BAWDY COPY

Agency:EnormousFounders: Ashish Khazanchi & Ajay VermaPeople:32 (Mumbai & Delhi)Clients: SBI General, ShopClues, Meru, Baskin Robbins, CashKaro.com, Lenskart, Runwall Group, Principal Mutual, among othersTop Work: Meru Cabs - ‘Ab Haath Na Hilao, Bas App Dabao’; ShopClues.com - ‘GharWapsi’

THE ECONOMIC TIMES SEPTEMBER 23-29, 2015 3

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Furthermore, “SUVs are hugely aspirational and profit margins are much higher on SUVs than hatch-backs and even sedans. Customers find the high stance and road pres-ence an SUV offers very appealing. It gives a sense of confidence to the driver,” says Hormazd Sorabjee, edi-tor, Autocar India

To sweeten the deal for consum-ers many of these vehicles come with features that consumers may have had to pay a lot more for. Manufacturers are focusing on safety features like airbags, vehicle stability and anti-lock braking systems as well as more lifestyle oriented features such as keyless entry otherwise seen in high end se-dans. “Technology is certainly a key differentiator and Ford EcoSport being an extremely intuitive vehicle certainly helps. The vehicle gives customers smart features to stay connected while improving safety and comfort behind the wheel with features like SYNC with AppLink which enables users to access smart-phone applications through voice commands and curtain airbags,” says Anurag Mehrotra, Executive Director, Marketing, Sales and Service, Ford India.

Honda’s BR-V, its maiden venture into this segment, is said to be based on the Brio platform. Powered by a

1.5 litre petrol engine, it sports safe-ty features like ABS, airbags , EBD and vehicle stability assist, even if Honda is unwilling to officially commit to the launch. Jnaneswar Sen, senior vice president – market-ing and sales, Honda Cars India will only say, “We are looking into the segment; every manufacturer is looking at it.”

Hyundai is exploring opportuni-ties to increase its product portfolio in the SUV segment as it sees many white spaces where it could have a full model SUV line up. The Korean car major which recently launched the Creta SUV is said to be explor-ing a mini SUV on the i10 platform. However, company officials say there are no plans to launch such a product in the near future. Others like Maruti Suzuki (with a sub 4 metre mini SUV which will borrow styling cues from the XA- Alpha), Volkswagen, Datsun, and Skoda are also looking at the mini SUV segment.

Competitive pricing coupled with safety and technology features like AMT (automatic manual transmis-sion), meet the needs of the price sen-sitive customers.

The appeal is to consumers of compacts and sedans. The growth of mini/compact SUV segment will be in the range of 20% - 25% as it’s an emerging segment with low base vol-

umes. As the market matures, con-sumers want cars that can express their lifestyles and mindset, says Sen of Honda Cars India. The future of the sub 4 metre segment will depend a lot on the incoming GST structure as price proposition is the key to this sub segment, says Rakesh Srivastava, senior vice president - sales & market-ing, Hyundai Motor India.

Industry experts say that India is a big car market, and most buyers are not first timers. Yet, “the buyer wants to stay small, and try some-thing new” avers Rathore, of EMAA: a well packaged vehicle with more utility but priced competitively like a hatchback.

While earlier SUVs were body-on- frame machines (like the Safari or Bolero), now it’s the monocoque body style which weighs lesser making it more fuel efficient, an important buying criteria.

EMAA forecasts sales of 3.06 lakh mini SUVs per annum by 2018. Total utility vehicle sales for the April to August period stood at 2.17 lakh units, and the mini/compacts UVs accounted for 56% of the total sales, according to the SIAM (Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers ) data. Encouraging figures but still a long way to go before the proverbial drive into the sunset.

lijee.philip@timesgroup.com

Convergence of A Different Kind: Today, each member of the

house plays different roles and helps in making the family

a success.Lesson: Brands need to recognise

this changing role of both the woman and the people in her life. The woman cannot be relegated to just the kitchen, cleaning and

mopping. She plays a pivotal role in many aspects of her

home and those cannot be ignored by brands.

Working Hard My Way: Awoman wants to work in order to contribute to her family in what-ever way she can and to feel self-

sufficient irrespective of how big or small the work she does

is. For example, having a tiffin service or taking up

tailoring projects give her a sense of self-worth.

Lesson: Advertisers continue to portray a woman in ex-

tremes: she is either confined to the kitchen and her home or

is the alpha woman, an over-achiever whose work comes first. This however does not depict the

reality of today

Husband - The Driving Force:While her husband continues to be her best friend, he is now also

her support system. He motivates

and encourages her to move ahead and do more.

Lesson: Perhaps the marketers who have moved beyond

ads where the focal point is making the husband happy are

on to something.

It’s My Life: While she consid-ers her husband to be her closest

friend, she also needs her personal space and time with her friends.

She feels no guilt in wanting some self-time and to be able to express

her individuality.Lesson: Marketers must keep in mind that they are speaking to a woman who cherishes and asks

for some me-time. She has more to her than just her family or work;

she is multi-faceted and has an identity beyond these two.

Looking Good, Feeling Better: Her appearance is a reflection of

her personality. Being present-able and the best version of herself is extremely important to her. She takes great care to make sure she

grooms herself well. Gone is the reliance on inner beauty. She is

confident of the way she looks and knows how to control it.

Lesson: Marketers need to stop looking at her as a damsel in dis-

tress and someone who know her way around fashion and beauty.

amit.bapna@timesgroup.com

The core team behind the Study( Ruta Patel – head,

strategic planning, FCB Ulka Mumbai, Kavita

Gadkari – strategic plan-ning consultant and Arthi Basak – general manager,

strategic planning, Interface Communications) share the key take-

aways for the modern-day marketers with Amit Bapna. Excerpts

Ajay Kelkar, co-founder and COO of Hansa Cequity suggests, “I don’t know how many of these sites rely on augmented reality or apps that allow you to share information or deals with friends and family.” He suggests using augmented reality to create a social sharing experience. For instance, trying out a muf-fler or scarf and buying it off the app instead of going to the store. He believes, “If tech plat-forms move from managing high volumes of transaction to better experience that would be a game changer.”

Rely on Big Data. But Not Just On Big DataAccording to Karthik Nagarajan, national director – content and social media, GroupM, “Data influences almost 40% of orders received by the larger players.” While the most obvious use is recommenda-tions, Endow says it’s globally harnessed to project demand and make sure etailers have the infrastructure to meet it, or to create or optimise real time campaigns. Throw in external data and it allows for a more com-pelling sales pitch. Kelkar observes, “For Ajay a Maharashtrian in Kolkata, Ganesh Chaturthi maybe more important than Durga Puja. It is a more personalised expres-sion of an offer.”

Have a Good Explanation Ready For The BacklashThe apology from Flipkart last year was heartfelt but it’s unlikely to have the same impact if used again. There’s always going to be backlash and etailers need to work out what they are going to say well in ad-vance. Consider the number of attackers: Disgruntled customers frustrated by a slow-er than the norm delivery. Vigilant shoppers

tracking whether an etailer inflates prices before discounts. Online smartasses who live for the chance to poke fun at etailers and their dodgy selections — run a search for Hilarious Reactions to the Amazon Prime Sale, if you don’t believe us. Also the parameters of success or failure need to be defined. If stock has sold out, it’s a success, in spite of what angry online critics may say.

Try To Do Things DifferentlyAt some point, etail-ers need to figure out if they are really building brands or just coming through as an undifferenti-ated mass of deal providers. Nagarajan admits, “I’m not sure how much unaided recall people have on one sale against the other since they

all come at you via newspaper ads or TV commercials.” One way of making things memorable is by opting out of the big sale rat race. Kelkar suggests: “Like credit card com-panies give pre-approved offers what stops etailers from giving me preapproved sales rooms?” Given they are not as time bound as brick and mortar stores, it’s entirely possible to have a personalised sale for every custom-er, perhaps on their birthday. Kelkar says, “It allows people to experience the site in dif-ferent ways at different times: to fragment the base, from all users coming at the same time for price-offs.” However this approach discounts a very critical aspect: Scoring a deal few others got, that many were in the running for. The bragging rights that accom-pany buying a Rs 40,000 camera for half the price are often a bigger draw for a consumer than a consummate love for photography.

ravi.balakrishnan@timesgroup.com

Epic Sale Day...Continued from Page 1 >>

When is an SUV not a roadhog?Continued from Page 1 >>

UPCOMING MINI SUVS FOR INDIA

Honda BR-V based on Brio platform Volkswagen Tiguan Datsun Redi-Go based on the Redi-Go concept Next gen Fiat Avventura based on Punto Maruti Suzuki XA Alpha concept Renault mini SUV on the Sandero Stepway base Hyundai mini SUV based on i10 platform Mahindra mini SUV based on S101 platform Tata Motors Nexon concept Nissan, Skoda, Toyota launching mini SUVs (name yet not clear)

SOURCE: EMMAAA

This is the third edition of the WomanMood study under-taken by FCB Ulka to un-derstand women residing in Tier 1-2 towns in India us-ing the Mind & Mood™

technique. While WomanMood I (2001-2) and WomanMood II (2006-7) derived insights from a solid, tradi-tional framework to understand the Indian woman, WomanMood III (2014-15) created a new and more versatile frame-work with the development of these 7 Key Paradigms that include , herself, her roles, her spaces; her wishes, worries and adaptability; her money matters, her shopping, her health and grooming , her societal persona and her dark side. Here are some exclusive excerpts and key takeaways from the study

Shopping Habits Beauty & Personal Care: The Indian woman now seems to want to look her best! While cosmetics and deodorants were discussed very excitedly women seem to follow no particular daily beau-ty regimes.

Food:She is the only decision maker when it comes to her kitchen. Her moth-er-in-law, husband and children are now the influencers. She knows ‘food at home’ is an important event of her daily routine and a time of bringing the family together. She is willing to innovate to create that excitement for her kids and the family. While the taste of food will be her master-stroke, nutrition is now also a key element in her cooking.

Automotive:·The 2-wheeler is her most reliable, personal self-ride car-riage. Whether young or old, married or single…there is a 2-wheeler in every home. Affordability, conve-nience especially for short distances from point-to-point with the added benefit of having multiple users in every household, makes 2-wheelers the preferred choice. The need for a 4-wheeler seems distant and unnec-essary for their current lifestyles.

Technology: Mobiles, Internet & Online Shopping

Mobile telephone usage is entire-ly functional however WhatsApp is really their playing field. It’s all about instant chat, jokes, videos and group chats.

When it comes to Internet us-age, they are wary and it therefore becomes need-based. It’s always re-ferred to as a mechanism that is im-portant for more formal and official interactions therefore not essential for their personal use.

The younger women hold ‘online shop-ping’ flags high! Clothes, footwear and cosmetics are often searched and com-pared…books occasionally.

Durables & White Goods:They actively participate in home fur-nishing decisions. New curtains, tapes-try, paint, layout changes and furniture

are decisions they lead. Although her husband allocates the budgets and will fi-nally approve. They keenly participate in decisions regarding the purchase of white goods – refrigerators, washing machines and ACs as well. And in fact, her kitchen appliances fall entirely in her domain

– mixer grinders, cooking stoves, pres-sure cookers and pots and pans are all her own decisions.

Money MattersHer husband may control the purse strings yet she budgets, manages and quite often negotiates for more money towards necessary expenses. In a way, it may seem like the husband is plainly speaking the ‘money making machine’ while she herself may well be the ‘em-ployer’! She prides herself at being able to manage her limited funds prudently and managing to sneak in ‘savings’ at the end of the week or month. Health and GroomingIt is safe to say that keeping fit and

healthy is not a top priority for women unless there is medical attention required. Our woman today also seems to fight a losing battle to convince her husband about keeping fit with regular exercise. So she keeps a check through the food she cooks for

the family. Their kid’s health is para-mount.

The Dark SideRecent happenings in the country have made her resilient and have pushed

her to a point where she would like to take these issues on safety very seriously. Her bolder persona helps her rationalise on why she needs to be more alert on the crassness of issues particularly women are subject to in our country. However, she takes vicarious pleasure even through her entertainment… it’s no longer bouquets for the ‘Saas bahu’ sagas. Those seem passé now with ‘Reality Shows’ doing the trick to win her chuckle!

Methodology25 Mind & Mood Workshops; 18 In-Home Women InteractionsCentres : Jaipur, Meerut, Nagpur, Ranchi, Jodhpur, Vijayawada, Madurai, CoimbatoreProfile :18-24 years (unmarried); 25-34 years (single or married, with or without children, working or non-working); 35-50 years (married with older children); SEC AB

Look Out

Marketers

Kavita Gadkari Ruta Patel Arthi Basak

WhatWomen Really

Want FCB-Ulka’s

WomaMood study, in its third edition, delves deep

into the pysche of the

emerging Indian woman

and what makes her

tick

German carmaker Mercedes-Benz sees business potential in offering on-demand limousine services using driverless cars, Daimler Chief Executive Dieter Zetsche said, in what amounts to a direct challenge to Uber.Germany’s oldest carmaker

is considering setting up large fleets of autonomous cars to cater to a new customer base which is less attracted to vehicle ownership but still interested in using premium transportation services like limousines.“This is a concrete development goal of

ours,” Zetsche told Reuters on the sidelines of a Mercedes-Benz event on the eve of the Frankfurt auto show.Daimler already has car2go, its

own car-sharing service which allows subscribers to locate and rent a nearby vehicle from a fleet

of Daimler-owned vehicles using a smartphone.“It would be even more convenient if the car came to you autonomously,” Zetsche said. “And it would be extremely practical if the car2go appeared without needing to be prompted, once my appointment in the calendar had come to an end.

(Source: businessinsider.in)

Mercedes wants to go directly after Uber

Regn.No.MAHENG/2002/6711 Volume 14 Issue No. 38Published for the Proprietors, Bennett Coleman & Company Ltd. by R. Krishnamurthyat The Times Of India Building, Dr. D.N.Road, Mumbai 400 001 Tel. No. (022) 6635 3535, 2273 3535, Fax- (022)-2273 1144 and printed by him at (1) The Times of India SuburbanPress, Akurli Road, Western Express Highway, Kandivili (E), Mumbai 400 101. Tel. No. (022) 28872324, 28872930, Fax- (022) 28874230 (2) The Times of India Print City, Plot No. 4, T.T.C. Industrial Area, Thane Belapur Road, Airoli, Navi Mumbai-400708 and (3) TIMES PRESS, Plot No. 5A, Road No. 1, IDA Nacharam Ranga

Reddy District, Hyderabad-500076. Editor: Ravi Balakrishnan(Responsible for selection of news under PRB Act). © All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without the written permission of the Publisher is prohibited.

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