Yahoo! India homepage premieres Pepsi commercial

Company press release, May 21, 2003

New Delhi

Yahoo! India makes history as it hosts a streaming ad on its homepage. The ad is an exclusive premier of the 'Pepsi Party' TVC. The third in Pepsi's new summer ad campaign series of four ads, it is being launched on the Yahoo! India website two days before the actual release on TV!

Web surfers who visit the homepage of Yahoo! India on May 20 and May 21 will be able to watch the entire ad featuring Kareena Kapoor, Preity Zinta, Fardeen Khan and Saif Ali Khan. It is for the first time in India that a streaming ad is being launched on an Internet homepage. The ad is also premiering on the Pepsizone on the Yahoo! India website at pepsizone.yahoo.co.in.

Pepsi and Yahoo! have also launched a joint consumer contest, titled Find Out Whats There? As part of this contest, consumers who log on to the Yahoo! India site and watch the ad, have to answer two simple questions. Ten grand prizewinners of the contest get an opportunity to spend an evening with one of the stars of the ad. Other contestants have a chance to win one of over a 100 consolation prizes. The contest will run till June 16, 2003.

Says Mr. Shashi Kalathil, Executive Director (Marketing), Pepsi Foods Pvt. Ltd. Pepsi has yet again taken the lead in setting the agenda of innovation by breaking through conventional mediums to explore uncharted territories, extending its new campaigns to the virtual world. It is an additional medium for us to reach out to the hip and happening online community, which adds a new and vibrant dimension to the mainline TV campaign for the brand.

About the ad:

In a casting coup of sorts, Pepsi brings together Kareena Kapoor, Preity Zinta, Fardeen Khan and Saif Ali Khan for its new summer campaign. The stars have been carefully chosen for this ad. Fardeen, Saif, Kareena and Preity have been cast in a way that makes them real and approachable...the guys and gals next door. The ad has been directed by 28-year-old Shaad Ali of Saathiya fame.

Set against the backdrop of summer, Pepsis new ad campaign epitomizes the uniquely irreverent Pepsi attitude. The action takes place in an apartment complex where the guys are shacking up together and two girls move in next door. And when their paths cross, the fun begins because the guys will do anything for their Pepsi, even if it means being quite besharam to outwit the cool babes.

Male bonding is in, its cool to just hang out with the guys and share the things you have in common....a kind of whats there statement. The guys create a fun world around them full of mischief and daring to do things differently. Counter balancing this is a strong element of girl power - independent and striking out on their own with cool confidence. These insights are the core of the new campaign and its all rooted in wanting more Pepsi and more fun out of life!

About Yahoo! India

Yahoo! India (www.yahoo.co.in), launched in June 2000, is an Internet guide designed specifically for netizens in India and for users abroad with a special interest in India. It is the 23rd world property in Yahoo!'s comprehensive global network. Yahoo! attracts the largest traffic of netizens in India of over 15 million users. Yahoo! features a directory of Web sites organized by a team of Web surfers into 14 easy-to-use categories and communication properties. To further meet the needs of local consumers, Yahoo! India offers comprehensive local and global information in the areas of news, finance, cricket, weather, movies and greetings. Today Yahoo! in India has over 70 employees operating out of Delhi, Bangalore and Mumbai. Yahoo! has an enviable client list comprising all the leading advertisers across a host of industries and has a robust and fast growing business in wireless services enabling several of its offerings through leading telecom operators.

For more information, please contact:

Suhas Patel

9820520582