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| Rajiv Chandrasekhar: Now he can breathe
easy |
After
hanging fire for nearly six months, the approval for sale of telecom
service licences came from the Union Cabinet on March 25. Earlier,
telcos could change hands, but not sell licences. That came in the
way of potential mergers in the industry. The recent decision ''makes
consolidation easier,'' says Rajeev Chandrasekhar, CEO of BPL Innovision
and Chairman of the Cellular Operators Association of India (COAI).
In fact, some telcos are already gearing up for consolidation. Hutchison,
for instance, is in the process of amalgamating the three independent
cellular circles of partner Essar with the seven it operates and
has been the first to take advantage of the cabinet decision. It
is acquiring Escort's Punjab licence for close to Rs 150 crore.
However, if you are expecting a wave of mergers
to sweep through the industry, you'd be disappointed. With cellular
rates falling almost every month, courtesy competition from the
CDMA-based limited mobile (or wireless in local loop, will) service
providers, investors are wary about the cellular operators' ability
to turn in profits. ''Investor sentiment is at an all-time low,''
quips Chandrasekhar. The sentiment could change overnight if the
government were to allow intra-circle sale of licences as well.
That would allow the stronger competitor to buy out his weaker rival
in the same circle. ''Why do we need seven service providers in
one circle?'' questions Vimal Bhandari, Executive Director, IL&Fs.
However, in the interest of competition, the government is unlikely
to offer any such sweeping concession to the industry. Poor operators,
happy customers.
-Suveen K. Sinha
What
You Watch...
...Isn't always
easy to tell. Especially to those marketers, who spend crores of
rupees every year on TV ads, building their brands. Consider the
two tables alongside. A marketer taking a call on advertising slots
should have no problems, right? After all, two-thirds of viewers
choose to watch news. And that decision is made easier by the fact
that ''watch when there's nothing better'' shows like the film-based
countdowns are low on viewer involvement and high on serendipity.
So news wins, countdown show loses, right? Not quite. Unless there's
hard news-like the Gulf war-on, interest in news can dip to a low
17.8 per cent. So? ''Depending on your marketing objective, 'watch
when...' programmes may be better for driving familiarity with an
audience untouched by your brand,'' says V. Balasubrammanium, Director
(India), WPP Marketing's Advanced Techniques Group.
-Shailesh Dobhal
PINCH
Commodity Clamour
It isn't as glittery
as gold and marketers aren't alchemists either. So what's so attractive
about selling something as plebian as salt? If that's a question
you were to ask Ravi S. Naware, Chief Executive, ITC Foods, expect
a sagacious smile followed by an evangelical discourse on the opportunities
of packaging the commodity as a lifestyle product. But the fact
is that at nearly 25 per cent, the Rs 550-crore branded salt category,
dominated by Tata and HLL, has been growing faster than other staples.
Why? ''Branded salt was better evolved than some other like atta
or sugar,'' says Jagdeep Kapoor, CEO, Samsika brand consultancy.
Result: Enter ITC's Aashirvaad salt, preceded by Aashirvaad atta
and rice-all in a span of 10 months. ''Our existing retail network
is big and strong enough for us to cut through the clutter,'' says
Naware. Coming up next from ITC Foods: branded spices and cereals.
-T.R. Vivek
Headlines Today
The New News Paradigm
Firing the latest salvo in the Rs 225-crore
market for news channels, TV Today Network-part of the India Today
Group, which also owns Business Today-launched its, and the country's
first, 24-hour English news channel, Headlines Today, on April 7.
The free-to-air channel-whose sister Hindi news channel Aaj Tak
claims a 63 per cent share among news channels in the Hindi speaking
markets-is targeted at the 18-to-34 year old, well-educated, English-speaking
audience across all Indian cities. ''The channel will cater to those
who want short, sharp, condensed and sleekly-presented news,'' says
G. Krishnan, CEO, TV Today Network.
Starting with a strong distribution network
(of 16-million cable & satellite households at launch), Headlines
Today will quickly move to 25-million C&S households within
a month, claims Krishnan.
-Shailesh Dobhal
Annus
Memorabilis
Top 10 events that marked 2002-03.
The World Cup Strikes
India didn't win it, but advertisers and set had a field day.
Dhirubhai Ambani Dies
The story of India's most famous, and controversial entrepreneur,
came to an end.
CDMA Comes To Town
The alternative, limited mobility telephony enters the booming telecom
market.
Taj's 100 years
Built before the Gateway of India, Mumbai's landmark hotel completes
a century.
The Tech CEO Show
Starring Bill Gates of Microsoft, Scott McNealy of Sun, and Michael
Dell of Dell Computers.
Indian IT's Rude Shock
Indian techies get arrested, and nations protest over loss of IT-related
jobs to Indians and India.
Jaswant's Moment
The aristocrat among politicians presents his maiden budget-amidst
cheers from the middle class.
Ratan Tata Retires
The most-respected name in corporate India retires as Executive
Chairman of Tata Sons.
Enter The Guru
Bollywood discovers that crossover movies sell. Enter The Guru,
Bend It Like Beckham, American Desi...
Return Of The Native
Global Indians converge in Delhi to schmooze and brainstorm at a
Pravasi Bharatiya Divas.
The
Rs 5 Challenge
Living on a Rs 5 per transaction guideline.
It was with mixed feelings that I woke
up that morning-my wallet was reasonably full, but my editor had
set a Rs 5 a transaction limit, the result of a particularly bright
idea (at least, I thought so) I had sent in on companies launching
products at price points between Re 1 and Rs 5. ''Live it,'' I was
told, ''and write about it.'' And so began my sustenance-grade odyssey.
Breakfast: As an out-of-town reporter at the
start of his career living alone in Mumbai, this has never been
a big meal for me. A Nescafe Redimix (Rs 3.00) and a packet of Parle
G biscuits (Rs 2.00) suffice.
Clothes: I find out I can get a packet of Ariel
or Surf Excel for Rs 3.00 but use some Andersen-style accounting
to convince myself that my monthly arrangement with the maid (and
the half kilogramme pack of Tide-Rs 65) can't cost over Rs 150 a
month, or Rs 5 a day.
The Bath: The Lux soap alone set me back Rs
5, but it should last a fortnight and I propose to amortise its
cost over that period. The Clinic Plus shampoo sets me back Rs 2.50.
I am still within the limit.
The Grooming: That amortisation thing comes
to the rescue again: Fair & Lovely @ Rs 5.00 (yup, some men
use it); Parachute coconut oil @ Re 1.00; and Lifebuoy family talc
at Rs 2.00
The Commute: I am told you can travel reasonable
distances by bus for that amount in Chennai, Bangalore, and Delhi.
My first class train pass from Borivilli to Churchgate cost just
Rs 500, which works out to much less than Rs 5 a pop.
Communication: I work out the day's communication
strategy on my journey in. I shall only take mobile to mobile calls;
use the office phone for all other calls; and not send more than
five SMS messages.
Lunch: I bribe the office peon with a cigarette
(within limits) to buy a packet of Maggi (Rs 5.00) and cook it for
me in the pantry.
Medication: Noodles always give me a heartburn;
this time is no different. I send the peon out for some antacid.
He comes back with Eno fruit salt (Rs 4.00) and, since the pharmacist
had no change, Nestle's Activ throat soother (Re 1.00).
Tea: It is going to be 6.00, my ordeal is nearly
complete, and I am ravenous. I can choose between Cadbury's Five
Star, Perk, or Dairy Milk (all Rs 5.00), Britannia's Little Hearts
(Rs 4.00), and a Coke (Rs 5.00). I fudge and successfully pester
my chief of bureau to sponsor a trip to the streetside chaat vendor.
I still have some Eno left.
-Dipayan Baishya
CALENDAR
Five Things to Watch Out For This Fiscal
BPCL and HPCL will be divested, and Reliance
could get the off-the-shelf petrol-retailing infrastructure it has
set its heart on.
India will have a new finance secretary in
June when S. Narayan retires. The hunt is on
The Conditional Access System may finally be
implemented; it will redefine the broadcast business in India.
Indian Hotels' MD R. Krishna Kumar will turn
65 and retire; Executive Director Zubin Dubash could succeed him.
The vat mess will continue to play itself out
over the rest of the year. Already the BJP has distanced itself
from the pro-vat brigade.
-Debojyoti Chatterjee
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