MAM
Mindshare launches global wearable technology unit Life+
MUMBAI: Mindshare, the global media agency network that is part of WPP, has set up a global wearable technology group called Life+ to help brands take advantage of the nascent technology.
Life+ is headed by Mindshare North America MD- Mobile Jeff Malmad and is designed to help brands understand the opportunity that wearable technology presents, whilst ensuring issues around privacy and consumer utility are considered and prioritized from the start.
Mindshare clients will be able to work with leading wearable technology companies to learn, discuss and eventually create, brand related applications, integrations and product developments based on wearable tech APIs.
Life+ has already formed a strategic partnership with MapMyFitness, the leader in the emerging connected fitness category, building on its advanced technology, data, and rapidly growing global fitness community to create unique opportunities for Mindshare clients. The MapMyFitness platform engages over 26 million members by supporting over 400 cutting-edge fitness and activity tracking devices, along with top ranked fitness tracking apps on iOS and Android.
The partnership began at an event in New York on 8 July, where Life+ and MapMyFitness worked with Mindshare clients to research consumer receptivity points within their quantifiable ecosystems, including adaptive messaging opportunities based on physical state and needs. MapMyFitness will be joined by other, undisclosed, wearable technology companies to work with Mindshare client teams on brand integration opportunities as part of Life+.
Life+ is open to any Mindshare client interested in understanding the opportunities that wearable technology can offer in enabling consumers to meet their goals and lead better lives.
Mindshare defines ‘wearables’ as any technology worn by a human externally that is ‘beyond the three screens’ and that integrates with a human’s own biometric characteristics, which includes activity trackers (Jawbone), smart watches (Samsung Galaxy Gear), augmented reality devices (Google Glass) fitness watches and sensors (Garmin) and the broader spectrum of health-related devices.
Mindshare chief digital officer Norm Johnston said, “Twenty years after the launch of the first Internet advertisement, and a year after the long-awaited mobile tipping point, digital marketing is now entering a third and radically different chapter. This new, expanded Internet will give smart brands a chance to give consumers valuable brand content and utilities in a myriad of new hyper-connected destinations. Mindshare look forward to helping our clients navigate and accelerate their efforts in this space.”
The launch of Life+ follows Mindshare’s launch of Audio+ in November 2013, a tie-up with audio recognition service Shazam to audit, map and leverage a brand’s audio assets.
Brands
Flipkart completes reverse flip to India ahead of IPO
Walmart-owned e-commerce giant shifts domicile from Singapore to Bengaluru
MUMBAI: Flipkart has completed its restructuring to move its parent company from Singapore back to India, marking a key milestone as the Walmart-owned marketplace prepares for a potential initial public offering on Indian stock exchanges, ET reported, citing people aware of the matter.
The move, often referred to as a “reverse flip”, relocates the company’s legal home to India and aligns its corporate structure more closely with its largest market. It also clears an important regulatory step for Flipkart as it explores listing plans.
As part of the restructuring, several Singapore-based entities have been merged into Flipkart Internet Private Limited, which will now serve as the main holding company for the entire group.
The consolidation brings a number of major businesses directly under the Indian parent company. These include fashion platform Myntra, logistics arm Ekart, travel booking platform Cleartrip, healthcare marketplace Flipkart Health, and fintech venture Super.money.
Under the new structure, global investors including Walmart, Microsoft, SoftBank, and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board will hold their stakes directly in the Indian entity rather than through an overseas holding company.
The redomiciliation required approval from the Indian government because Chinese technology company Tencent owns around a 5 to 6 per cent stake in Flipkart. Under Press Note 3, investments from countries sharing a land border with India require prior government clearance.
Flipkart had already secured approval from the National Company Law Tribunal in December. With the latest clearance from the central government, the company has now obtained all the regulatory approvals needed to complete the relocation, ET reported earlier.
Flipkart had originally shifted its holding structure to Singapore in 2011 to tap global capital more easily. However, as India’s capital markets have matured, several start-ups have begun returning their domiciles to the country ahead of public listings. Companies such as Razorpay, Groww, and Meesho have taken similar steps.
The company is now expected to move ahead with its IPO preparations and has begun early discussions with merchant bankers. According to people familiar with the matter, Flipkart could file its draft prospectus later this year, setting the stage for what may become one of the most closely watched listings in India’s e-commerce sector.
Flipkart has been majority-owned by Walmart since 2018, when the US retail giant acquired a 77 per cent stake in the company for $16 billion in one of the largest e-commerce deals globally.
