Noor Fathima Warsia

noorw@exchange4media.com @Noor Fathima Warsia

Microsoft Advertising’s Vice President, Global Agencies, Mark Bresseel, was candid enough in his address at the Festival of Media 2010 to state that it was a tough journey for anyone to convey to brands and agencies that technology was becoming very key to communication. Most of them still said, ‘they don’t do social’ or wondered why they should be on digital platforms.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 20, 2010 8:51 AM

Insights, content and connection - ViVaki’s Managing Partner Jack Klues based his conversation with the audience at the Festival of Media 2010 on these factors. Sharing the examples of client Coca-Cola, Klues said that the future was about mining new sources of data, and then engaging people in a contextually relevant manner. He also said that there was a need to reframe relationships with media owners and leverage them into inspire new and breakthrough content.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 20, 2010 8:50 AM

Jimmy Wales, Founder, Wikipedia undertook a 24-hour bus ride to reach Valencia from London. Wales was the opening Keynote Speaker of Festival of Media 2010 and in the hour that he spent, highlighted some of the reasons that led for Wikipedia to be one of internet’s most successful experiments.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 20, 2010 8:29 AM

Media and advertising executives have been struggling to get in and out of Europe, either returning from MipTV at Cannes or on their way to attend the Festival of Media at Valencia. And many who were travelling from MipTV to Festival of Media (didn't include too many Indians) would have some bizarre tales to share of the most unplanned road trips that only had a start and finish point, and filling in the blanks as the journey moved along.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 19, 2010 8:46 AM

The Festival of Media, which is taking place in Valencia from April 18-20, 2010, has faced its own share of problems due to the flight cancellations in Europe after a volcano erupted in Iceland. The festival organisers have decided to proceed with the festival, and have made changes to the agenda, keeping with the speakers that finally were able to make it to the event.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 19, 2010 8:45 AM

Bluetooth is a good technology that many use, but as an advertising tool, it has failed. Changing sensibilities have created an urban literacy that is now opaque to a generation. What should be known about this new age so that innovations work and advertising plans succeed?

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 16, 2010 8:19 AM

There was a time when mobile was a niche medium, or a part of the larger digital medium. Today, mobile has grown enough for many mediums to emerge and flourish. Some of these mediums discussed at MipTV 2010 included applications, augmented reality, mobile social networking, touch web and enhanced location awareness or location data.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 16, 2010 8:17 AM

At any media and advertising forum, it is commonplace to hear deliberations on how communication with today’s audience has to rise from normal to new heights of engagement. However, it is not so common to hear about evolution of limbic resonance leading to playing games with sharks; bridges and trucks tweeting, or of a connected audience that is creating a world where computing is not in the laptops or computers, but in various aspects of life itself.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 16, 2010 8:15 AM

The mood at MipTV 2010 remained energetic and charged. There was no denying the fact that the toast of the festival was digital and the impact of new technology on television. The debates in the Indian circuit were whether India had reached the place where the digitally-connected audience made sense to India too. While some didn’t think that it did, some felt now was the time to get on to the 360 bus in India.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 16, 2010 8:13 AM

Gerd Leonhard, Media Futurist delivered what was clearly one of the most thought provoking sessions at MipTV. For Leon, audience fragmentation means choices for media companies as well – there are many ways of reaching the right kind of audience. He stressed that today’s audience were formerly known as consumers; they are more connected and more in control. So the game has to move to trust and delight, and more importantly new engagement platforms like social media.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 15, 2010 9:01 AM

Video advertising was touted as an area that was likely to drive Internet growth and allow revenues to come in for the medium. However, as video advertising is not taking off, experts at MipTV look at what are some of the ways in which Internet advertising per se can be made relevant, and the role that video advertising plays in that.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 15, 2010 8:59 AM

A key agenda for the global digital fraternity is how to monetise audiences, and generate revenues from digital platforms. The subject was discussed at length at the Digital Think Tank series at MipTV 2010. Some of the points that came through were that digital companies should work on an open source model that more people could partner with. Also, the mixed economy comprising free and paid content ‘freemium’ needed more push.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 14, 2010 8:27 AM

Digital, its monetising mystery and the yet untapped potential, is once again the flavour of discussions at MipTV 2010. The first Keynote Session was dedicated to digital deliberation. Jonathan F Miller, Chief Digital Officer, News Corp, spoke on some of the forthcoming trends that included resurgence of music, casual games and applications. The second Keynote session saw Electus’ Ben Silverman speak on hyper globalisation that was adapted in localisation, and the need to gear for a new age of technology.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 14, 2010 8:25 AM

The Palais de Festival at Cannes is hustling and bustling with energy again. Television programming market MipTV is showing all signs of recovery with various content sellers presenting the best of what they have, and content buyers shrewdly moving between stalls to pick the ideas of tomorrow. The five-day market began on April 12, 2010. Indian delegates were not very high in numbers, but market organisers inform that most channels are present.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 13, 2010 8:09 AM

Twitter is busy with various expansions plans, including the creation of a media hub that would allow the platform to partner with media companies and explore ways of impacting viewership. Twitter is working with Nielsen to make sense of how tweets can impact the eyeballs of a programme. However, amidst all this action, the big announcement from the company is of its revenue model. It is understood that Twitter is looking at advertising and revenue sharing models to monetise its numbers. An announcement is expected on April 13, 2010.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 13, 2010 8:06 AM

Even if you were someone who missed all the reports and Apple advertising around the iPad, set foot at a New York airport, and you cannot miss iPad. I ended up buying an Apple iPad, and I must say that the first observations, the sheer attraction that the product is, and the topic of conversation that it has become in advertising offices, are all very interesting. Here are some notes from the diary of a ‘new iPad user’…

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 12, 2010 8:42 AM

The winning streak of OMD continues with the agency adding two more accounts to its kitty – Hindustan Pencils Ltd and Cotton World. The cumulative account size is pegged at Rs 18 crore. No pitch preceded both the wins. OMD officials have confirmed the wins.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 8, 2010 8:50 AM

The manner in which tennis player Sania Mirza and cricketer Shoaib Malik’s marriage decisions became primetime and continuous feed for news channels, once again raises the question whether the definition of news needs a revisit for Indian broadcasters.

Noor Fathima Warsia Apr 5, 2010 8:50 AM

The CII organised a full day discussion between the Indian broadcasters and Ministry of Information and Broadcasting to discuss some aspects such as regulation and ratings that have been a cause for concern for the industry for some time now. The takeoff of the discussions was that the industry would finally get BARC (Broadcasters’ Audience Research Council) functional, and establish a co-regulation model with support from the MIB.

Noor Fathima Warsia Mar 31, 2010 8:35 AM

It was a busy weekend for some Hindi general entertainment channels. The reason is an analysis suggesting that unlike popular belief, when IPL is compared with the GECs, it is still the latter that delivers higher-rated shows, ensures viewer loyalty and attracts male viewership. What was interesting to note is the manner in which GECs can unite when it comes to face IPL, and one wonders why...

Noor Fathima Warsia Mar 29, 2010 8:19 AM

Ekta Kapoor’s reign on primetime was as legendary as Star Plus’ dominance of television in India for the better part of the last decade. Like all things in life, however, the last two years saw the fall and fall Balaji Telefilms’ shows, but the content company has been trying to stabilise once again. One of the latest efforts is the second company, Alt Entertainment, that launched with the production of ‘Love, Sex & Dhoka’, and once again there are conversations on what’s next for this creative genius.

Noor Fathima Warsia Mar 22, 2010 8:30 AM

In its overall marketing game plan to push the envelope across all of its sub-segments, Samsung Mobile’s current focus is on the two-year old sub-segment - Guru. The corporate major has launched a mega-campaign on the back of IPL for Guru. Asim Warsi, Head – Marketing, Samsung Mobile, speaks to exchange4media more on the campaign and its objective.

Noor Fathima Warsia Mar 22, 2010 8:29 AM

FICCI Frames 2010 kicked off with a full house on March 16, 2010, and much of the credit for that can be given to the eminent speakers that sat on the stage for the inaugural session. The feel of Frames was unshakeable and nothing seemed different. There was a sense of déjà vu – you were there, you had done that. And yet, FICCI Frames manages to look as important as ever.

Noor Fathima Warsia Mar 17, 2010 8:41 AM

FICCI Frames is rarely known for engaging the advertising community. Yet this year, the event saw none other than WPP’s CEO, Sir Martin Sorrell, as the Keynote speaker of the day. In typical Martin Sorrell style, the advertising visionary divided his address in points to give his view on why he was bullish on the communication services or marketing services industry.

Noor Fathima Warsia Mar 17, 2010 8:39 AM

The announcement of Karan Johar as the Co-Chairman of FICCI Frames has led to many conversations on what this new thinking, known for its creative and freshness, and more importantly, ideas that can engage the younger audience, bring to FICCI Frames, which is now in its 11th year.

Noor Fathima Warsia Mar 15, 2010 8:25 AM

The media industry has often got caught in the debate whether two measurement systems would help the industry grow or create a recipe for disaster for media sellers and buyers alike. The merger of NRS and IRS may have sorted that dilemma for the print industry and the clear strength of TAM Media Research has kept things simple for the broadcasting industry. However, aMap is present as a second television measurement system, and time and again has created the dreaded confusion as well.

Noor Fathima Warsia Mar 15, 2010 8:24 AM

TAM Media Research has released the numbers for the opening match and inaugural ceremony of DLF IPL – Season 3. Whether it is another signal of a recovering economy or the fact that IPL is back in India, but with a TRP of 6.95 in the six metros, the opening match has scored better than last season, however not as high as Season 1. TAM has also released the numbers for digital households.

Noor Fathima Warsia Mar 15, 2010 8:21 AM

Even if the week gone was an aberration for Hindi general entertainment channels, as far as genre performance is concerned, it signifies the positive direction that the genre has been in, in the last few months. At one point, Colors and Star crossing the 300-GRP mark made news. This week, Star Plus, which has beaten Colors second week in a row, Colors and Zee TV, all crossed the 300-GRP mark. The second tier channels have also thrown consistent robust numbers.

Noor Fathima Warsia Mar 11, 2010 7:44 AM

Everyone loves rankings. In broadcasting, Ratings gives Ranking. Last week was one of the most interesting ‘ratings week’ of 2010 so far. Media heavyweights commented on how most channels claimed to be ‘No. 1’ during Budget coverage – Facebook had some interesting comments. Then of course, Hindi GECs got many talking when, after over five months, Star Plus took the No. 1 slot from Colors.

Noor Fathima Warsia Mar 8, 2010 7:24 AM

It is one of those rare advertising moments when brands wage public war taking the advertising route. The long Holi weekend saw Hindustan Unilever’s Rin take on Procter & Gamble’s detergent brand Tide in a direct comparison, and stating in the ad that Rin is better than Tide. Three days of uninterrupted media bombarding of the ad has raised many conversations and the big question – does this work?

Noor Fathima Warsia Mar 3, 2010 7:37 AM