Goafest 2023 witnesses increase in sponsorships from print publications

Goafest 2023 has roped in 45 sponsors. Of these at least 12 sponsors are print publications. Hindustan Times, The Hindu, The Times of India, Rajasthan Patrika, Mathrubhumi, Sakal, Vijayavani, Malayala Manorama, Pudhari, Dainik Jagran, Amar Ujala and Dainik Savera are the print sponsors for the event this year. This is in stark contrast to last year when the event had only two print sponsors.

Prasanth Kumar, president, Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) and CEO, South Asia, GroupM, says with the acceleration of digital, most of them are seeing and valuing the evolution and transformation of the industry.

"The whole idea is to get everybody because we have a collective ownership. Many publications have a digital product and everyone is thinking about the future of creativity and the future of content. So the topic is relevant to them," he said.

It is not just the print sponsors, but overall the number of sponsors this year has doubled. The event is co-presented by Aaj Tak and Disney Star.

The event, which will be held from May 24 to May 26, 2023, is expected to be bigger and better this year. With the theme 'The Future of Creativity', there will be lot more speakers and participants coming in.

There will be 11 masterclasses and 50 speakers conducting 15 sessions over the two days. The masterclasses will address about creative production, video optimization, storytelling, among other subjects. This year, the organisers have brought in more international speakers. It has also consciously attempted to bring in younger leaders.

"The panels have a good balance. The objective was not to just get the panels, but to get useful expertise on the panels," he added.

The panels will comprise people representing sports, Bollywood and other forms of entertainment as well.

"We will have people from the startup world, gaming, influencers and OTT. They are all part of our ecosystem," said Jaideep Gandhi, Chairman, Goafest 2023 Organising Committee.

For the sessions it has partnered with industry bodies, including Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI), to address important topics.

This year, it has launched a unique initiative 'Advertising Rocks' to showcase the creative community's musical talent. Bands and solo performers from the advertising, and media fraternity in India will get an opportunity to entertain delegates at Goafest 2023.

"The idea is to give the talent within our industry an opportunity to explore it. We become the stage for them to perform and show their skill," added Kumar.