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McCann-Erickson is Cadbury Schweppes’ AOR for Dentyne
NEW JERSEY: Cadbury Schweppes has selected McCann-Erickson Worldwide Advertising as its global advertising agency for Dentyne chewing gum and certain other non-chocolate confectionery brands. The total billings exceed $60 million.
An official release informs that the Dentyne franchise includes Dentyne Classic, Dentyne Ice, and the recently launched Dentyne Fire, a spicy cinnamon gum. Other brands awarded to McCann include Clorets, Certs, Max Air (Mexico), Deemints (Latin America), and the Dandy chewing gum brands in Europe — STIMOROL, V6 and DIROL. These brands came together in one company earlier this year, when Cadbury Schweppes acquired the Adams confectionery business from Pfizer the release states.
Cadbury Schweppes’ group director of Adams Brands and Gum Rob Desatnick said, “We selected McCann Erickson on the strength of their global capabilities, excellent creative work and outstanding consumer insights.We believe our interests are best served by maintaining partnerships with two global ad agencies. We are very pleased with our continuing relationship with J. Walter Thompson Company, which will remain unchanged.” JWT is the agency of record (AOR) for Halls cough drops, Trident gum and the Bubba brands. These are Bubblicious, Bubbaloo and BubbaXtreme.
The previous agency for Dentyne and many of the other brands awarded to McCann was Bates Worldwide. Its former parent company, Cordiant Communications Group, was recently acquired by the WPP Group. WPP also owns JWT.
MAM
Talking heads: TV9’s chief takes the host’s chair with style — but could do with a laugh
Barun Das has swapped the boardroom for the studio and is pulling off a polished interview show — mostly
MUMBAI: There is something quietly audacious about a media chief who decides that running a television empire is not quite enough and plants himself in front of the camera for a good chinwag with the great and the good. Barun Das, chief executive of TV9 Network, has done precisely that, and for the most part, he carries it off with considerable aplomb.
Duologue with Barun Das, now in its fourth season on JioHotstar, is exactly what it says on the tin: two people, two chairs, no frills. In the earlier seasons, Das has sat across from a rather stellar roster, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, Aparna Sen, Viswanathan Anand, Kiran Rao, among many other renowned names. And in the fourth instalment he has had guests of the likes of Aamir Khan, Sourav Ganguly, Bianca Balti (Italian super model and cancer survivor), Lothar Matthäus (German football World Cup-winning captain). Throughout, he has coaxed from them nuggets that their publicists would probably rather keep under wraps. Cricket, relationships, spirituality, acting, health, behind-the-scenes machinations that plague politics, intellect, nepotism, nothing is entirely off the table.
Das’s greatest asset is his manner. Unhurried, well-dressed and disarmingly calm, he has the rare gift of making his guests feel so thoroughly at ease that they occasionally forget they are being filmed for television. The questions arrive softly, like a spinner tossing up a googly rather than a fast bowler hurling bouncers, and more often than not, they draw out a telling answer. He has no cue cards or teleprompter to help him along, which is probably a rarity for a host. Some credit must go to the research team operating quietly in the wings, who evidently do their homework so that Das does not have to fumble for his.
Where Duologue stumbles, however, is in its almost determined refusal to lighten up. Each 45-minute episode carries the solemn weight of a budget speech. A dash of wit, a moment of mischief, the odd belly laugh, none of it makes an appearance. Serious conversation has its place, but even the most earnest of interviewers, think David Frost at his best, knew when to let the air out of the room.
Das has built something worth watching. He simply needs to remind himself, and his guests, that a smile never hurt anyone.
Rating: 4.25 out of 5.
Available on JioHotstar.
