MAM
Publicis Groupe acquires Match Media in Australia
MUMBAI: Publicis Groupe has acquired Australia’s independent media agency Match Media.
Match Media will be part of ZenithOptimedia Group’s newly launched global media network, Blue 449. As part of the Blue 449 network, Match Media will benefit from the extensive range of “open source” services offered within Publicis Groupe in order to better equip its clients with the latest technologies, accompanying them through their fast-paced business transformation fuelled by digital, technology, innovation, and consumer empowerment today.
Match Media was founded in 2003 by John Preston. The agency, headquartered in Sydney, has more than 75 employees and specialises in media strategy and buying, digital planning and buying, search, social and analytics. Over the last twelve years, Match Media has focused on helping clients grow by creating work that works.
Match Media will retain its management team under the leadership of John Preston as CEO and James Simmons as COO. They will in turn report directly to ZenithOptimedia Asia Pacific global managing partner and APAC chairman Gerry Boyle. Match Media in Australia will be the vanguard to expansion of the Blue 449 network across Asia-Pacific.
The network launched in February with the rebranding of Walker Media in London to Blue 449. There are now four Blue 449 hubs – Australia, France, Italy and UK – and a further 13 are planned for launch by the end of the year.
Boyle said, “Blue 449 is a new global network comprised of like-minded entrepreneurs who are embracing technology and data as a means to delivering growth for clients. As a progressive digitally focused agency, Match Media is the perfect fit and we are pleased to announce their addition to the Blue 449 network.”
Preston added, “Match has enjoyed a wonderful run in its twelve year history as an independent. Now, the rapidly changing world of data and technology has motivated us to explore potential partners that will allow us to provide our clients access to the latest technology and a suite of world class platforms and tools. The challenge was finding a partner who could supercharge our existing offering but also had a kindred spirit. Publicis Groupe and its network ZenithOptimedia really impressed us with their digitally progressive vision and their focus on harnessing the independent entrepreneurial spirit that is in our DNA. I am really looking forward to the next evolution of Match as part of the Blue 449 network.”
Simmons said, “This is the natural next big step in the story of Match. We have been on a continual journey of improvement and have built what we believe to be an excellent foundation. The time is right to leverage the assets that Blue 449 can bring to our clients, people and business to grow and create another chapter of pushing the boundaries in the media agency landscape.”
Digital
Content India 2026 opens with a copro pitch, a spice evangelist and a £10,000 prize for Indian storytelling
Dish TV and C21Media’s three-day summit puts seven ambitious projects before an international jury, and two walk away with serious development money
MUMBAI: India’s content industry gathered in Mumbai this March for Content India 2026, a three-day summit organised by Dish TV in partnership with C21Media, and it wasted no time making a statement. The event opened with a Copro Pitch that put seven scripted and unscripted television concepts before an international panel of judges, and by the end of it, two projects had walked away with £10,000 each in marketing prize money from C21Media to support development and international promotion.
The jury, comprising Frank Spotnitz, Fiona Campbell, Rashmi Bajpai, Bal Samra and Rachel Glaister, evaluated a shortlist that ranged from a dark Mumbai comedy-drama about mental health (Dirty Minds, created by Sundar Aaron) to a Delhi coming-of-age mystery (Djinn Patrol, by Neha Sharma and Kilian Irwin), a techno-thriller about a teenage gaming prodigy (Kanpur X Satori, by Suchita Bhatia), an investigative crime drama blending mythology and modern thriller (The Age of Kali, by Shivani Bhatija), a documentary on India’s spice heritage (The Masala Quest, hosted by Sarina Kamini), a documentary on competitive gaming (Respawn: India’s Esports Revolution, by George Mangala Thomas and Sangram Mawari), and a reality-horror competition merging gaming and immersive fear (Scary Goose, by Samar Iqbal).
The session was hosted by Mayank Shekhar.
The two winners were Djinn Patrol, backed by Miura Kite, formerly of Participant Media and known for Chinatown and Keep Sweet: Pray & Obey, with Jaya Entertainment, producers of Real Kashmir Football Club, also attached; and The Masala Quest, created and hosted by Sarina Kamini, an Indian-Australian cook, author and self-described “spice evangelist.”
The summit also unveiled the Content India Trends Report, whose findings made for bracing reading. Daoud Jackson, senior analyst at OMDIA, set the tone: “By 2030, online video in India will nearly double the revenue of traditional TV, becoming the main driver of growth.” He noted that in 2025, India produced a quarter of all YouTube videos globally, overtaking the United States, while Indians collectively spend 117 years daily on YouTube and 72 years on Instagram. Traditional subscription TV is declining as free TV and connected TV gain ground, forcing broadcasters to innovate. “AI-generated content is just 2 per cent of engagement,” Jackson added, “highlighting the dominance of high-quality human content. The key for Indian media companies is scaling while monetising effectively from day one.”
Hannah Walsh, principal analyst at Ampere Analysis, added hard numbers to the picture. India produced over 24,000 titles in January 2026 alone, with 19,000 available internationally. The country now accounts for 12 per cent of Asia-Pacific content spend, up from 8 per cent in 2021, outpacing both Japan and China. Key exporters include JioStar, Zee Entertainment, Sony India, Amazon and Netflix, delivering over 7,500 Indian-produced titles abroad each year. The top importing markets are Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Egypt, the United States and the Philippines. Scripted content dominates globally at 88 per cent, with crime dramas and children’s and family titles performing particularly strongly.
Manoj Dobhal, chief executive and executive director of Dish TV India, framed the summit’s ambition squarely. “Stories don’t need translation. They need a platform, discovery, and reach, local or global,” he said. “India produces more movies than any country, our streaming platforms compete globally, and our tech and creators win international awards. Yet fragmentation slows growth. Producers, platforms, and tech move in different lanes. We need shared spaces, collaboration, and an ecosystem where ideas, technology, and people meet. That is why we built Content India.”
The data, the pitches and the prize money all pointed to the same conclusion: India is not waiting for the world to discover its stories. It is building the infrastructure to sell them.
