ZenithOptimedia brings Newcast to India

ZenithOptimedia has launched its specialist division Newcast in India. The division which specialised in non-traditional media solutions is operational in markets such as the UK, Russia and Germany, and a few other market as well.

The Indian division will be lead by Navin Khemka, senior vice-president, Zenith Optimedia. This will be his additional responsibility besides his current role.

Newcast will develop and create different ways to reach consumers with the brand’s message.

Khemka says, “It is not just about the best possible placements, but about concepts and strategies that involve media, creative departments, the product and the brand to one unit, so that the marketing communication gets the best possible result.”

This division will provide services such as branded content, sponsorship, events and experiential marketing.

Khemka clarifies that while some people may mistake the new division to be offering only BTL solutions, in reality, it will also look at developing mass media campaigns and executing them through many media platforms.

Ambika Srivastava, chief executive officer, ZenithOptimedia, says in an official communiqué, “We are aiming to look into a fresh perspective in providing return on investment to our clients in this new emerging media space. We will focus on projects which are measurable with the same passion as we do for regular media across our client portfolio.”

The division will be based in ZenithOptimedia's head office in Gurgaon. The company, for the moment, will not hire a new team to work in the new division but has allotted five senior people who will devote 20 per cent of their time to this division.

Mark Waugh, head, Newcast UK, who is co-ordinating the roll-out of Newcast worldwide for ZenithOptimedia, remarks in an official statement, “India is genuinely at the cutting edge of much new media innovation right now, which is why we have chosen it as the first market to launch Newcast outside Europe, ahead of even China and the US.”

“The launch of Newcast as a division of ZenithOptimedia Group in India will allow the agency to future-proof its media planning for clients. Clients, for the first time, will now have access to neutrally planned activity in areas such as sponsorship, events and branded content, with the execution of the ideas conducted by specialist in-house teams, alongside the traditional media plan.”

As for the challenges for the new division, Khemka says that since ZenithOptimedia is a pioneer in this field and there is hardly any identified market for it, it may be difficult to convince clients about its offerings. However, he confesses that the division has already bagged a client – a magazine for which they are co-creating a creative along with the magazine's creative team.

Khemka has been in the media industry for more than 14 years across planning and buying roles in Mudra, Carat, Mindshare, Cheil and ZenithOptimedia. He currently heads the business units for HP PSG, Future Brands, Times Business, Bharat Hotels, HTC, Yakult, Pioneer and Delta.