Kamat pointed out that that with fundamental changes happening, media fragmentation on the upswing, true integration and talent was required to churn out top advertising. He stressed on the relevance of content and that mutual respect between both the agency and the client was vital and not the procurement evil. "Purchase departments have been now given the responsibility for calling for pitches."

Shantaram said that ad agencies are still too focussed on what to say than what to do. "We are currently focussed on the content and not the context. We need to change our approach and redefine ourselves and form relationships. Our advertising need to affect transformation and bring in incremental change."

The challenges that were pointed out were that agencies were being treated as suppliers and not strategists. The need for the hour was most definitely said to be raise the level of confidence agencies currently command with clients.

The AAAI Diamond Jubilee seminar 'Beyond the Horizon' culminated with Lintas India chairman & MD Prem Mehta giving the valedictory address, the recipient of the AAAI Premnarayan Award last year.

Mehta summed up the day highlighting the key issues addressed through the day. The need to build partnerships, remuneration cuts and the need for agencies to invest in themselves were thoughts that Mehta shared. The good news Mehta pointed out was the fact that racing fragmentation was accompanied with the phenomenon of an evolving consumer - both socially and economically.

He added, "Marketing has come of age, but the Indian industry is such that it has not seen the luxury of evolution. Aspects like pricing are becoming deciding factors. On the overall scene, this has led to the reduced ability to invest long term, which is a cause of concern."

He urged the gathering to introspect and inch towards integrated communications outfits and move beyond the agency -client divide and embrace each other to produce a more fruitful outcome.