Discovery promotes Rajiv Bakshi as vice-president, marketing

Bakshi has about 12 years of experience, of which he has spent more than five years at Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific

Discovery Networks Asia-Pacific, a part of the No.1 non-fiction media company Discovery Communications, has promoted Rajiv Bakshi to the newly created position of vice-president, marketing. Earlier, he was director, marketing and communications. Based in New Delhi, Bakshi will continue to report to Rahul Johri, senior vice-president and general manager, India.

In his current capacity, Bakshi will be responsible for creating and implementing strategic marketing initiatives for Discovery's entire portfolio of six networks in India.

Discovery promotes Rajiv Bakshi as vice-president, marketing

"The challenge forward is how to position each channel successfully, specially the new channels. Each channel has a unique proposition and is in a different growth phase, so the most interesting aspect of the current role is to balance each one and yet achieve the desired growth for each channel," says Bakshi, who joined Discovery in 2004.

"He has been a key contributor in driving brand recognition, achieving significant rating milestones and enhancing corporate reputation," says Johri in a press-statement.

Bakshi is a management graduate with major in marketing and has more than 12 years of experience.

The company has been on a roll since the beginning of the year. In January, it launched two channels – Discovery Science, which focuses on scientific research and discoveries; and Turbo, which revolves around motoring vehicles. This was followed by the introduction of a series on the superstar Shahrukh Khan, called Living with a Superstar on its lifestyle channel, Travel and Living, in February.

In March, the company introduced India's first high definition channel, Discovery HD, with all content in HD.

In India, Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, Travel & Living, Discovery Turbo and Discovery Science reach about 118 million subscribers cumulatively. Discovery Channel is currently aired in three languages (English, Hindi and Tamil); Animal Planet is aired in two languages (English and Hindi); while Travel & Living, Discovery Turbo and Discovery Science are telecast only in English.

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