MAM
Nokia, Castrol in pact with ESS for interactive on-air promos
SINGAPORE: Nokia and Castrol have teamed up with ESPN Star Sports (ESS) on the sports broadcaster’s live coverage of the new English Premier League (EPL) season. This will involve an interactive and integrated on air and online promotion.
An official release informs that the partnerships aims at making the most of the EPL broadcast on ESS. In addition it extends to the sports news programming ESS produces around EPL matches as well as online on www.espnstar.com and ESS’ China site www.espnstar.com.cn.
Nokia Man of the Match: Each week the Nokia Man of the Match SMS contest invites football fans to vote for the Man of the Match for Saturday and Sunday matches. Those who voted for the player who is also chosen by the commentators as the Man of the Match can win a Nokia 3650 mobile phone. The entries are tallied and the winner is chosen on Premiership Saturday for the Saturday match and Super Sunday for the Sunday match. The contest is open to cell phone users in India, Hong Kong, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, China, Thailand and Brunei adds the release.
Two other upcoming promos from the world’s leading mobile phone supplier include the Nokia Spot the Ball SMS and and online contest on Super Sunday and the Nokia EPL Fantasy League online contest on the programmes Football Focus and Here We Go. These will start in a few days time.
Nokia Mobile Phones Asia Pacific director marketing services Pasi Jarvenpaa added, “This sponsorship gives us a great opportunity to communicate the benefits of new technologies such as Java and XHTML to consumers and provides a fun and interactive platform for us to bring the exciting world of techno-tainment to diverse audiences in the region who enjoy watching EPL.”
Castrol Goal of the Week: The Castrol Goal of the Week runs across numerous EPL matches and invites sports fans to vote for their goal of the week on espnstar.com. The promo runs through some EPL-related programmes produced by ESS. They are the news bulletin Football Focus on Tuesday,Goals on Wednesday, Here We Go on Friday. Entries with the same choice as those of the panel can win goodies from Castrol. In addition a framed Castrol football jersey personally signed by Real Madrid icon David Beckham is also up for grabs.
Castrol Asia Pacific’s marketing director A.S. Ramchander said, “The Castrol brand is all about winning, passion and excitement, and the team was searching for a media opportunity to help us drive these values with our core target audience.”
According to peoplemeter data, a single EPL match delivers 25 per cent more viewers than all Singapore cable news channels combined. In a week, ESPN (including the EPL matches) delivers 167 per cent more viewers than all three cable news channels combined in the same week. While Asia’s sizeable out of home audience remains unmeasured by in-home peoplemeter measurements, research indicates that 64 per cent watch the EPL outside their homes every week.
Over the next ten years, EPL’s potential Asian audience among males 15+ with access to cable and satellite, is expected to grow by 63 per cent from the current 249 million to 407 million. The broadcast of EPL on ESS is sponsored by Tiger Beer and Toshiba.
Brands
Hyundai Venue crosses 1 lakh bookings, adds HX8 Diesel AT variant
New top-spec automatic diesel trim brings ventilated seats, OTA updates and paddle shifters.
MUMBAI: Hyundai Venue just hit the jackpot and upgraded the prize because when you cross 1 lakh bookings, you don’t just celebrate, you throw in paddle shifters and ventilated seats for the ride. Hyundai Motor India Limited (HMIL) announced that the all-new Hyundai Venue has achieved 1 lakh bookings, cementing its strong position in the compact SUV segment. To mark the milestone and further enhance customer choice, the company introduced the new HX8 Diesel Automatic (AT) variant.
The HX8 Diesel AT is powered by the proven U2 1.5L CRDi diesel engine paired with a 6-speed automatic transmission. It adds a host of premium comfort, safety and convenience features, including:
- Ventilated front seats
- Dual-tone leatherette seats with VENUE branding
- Electric 4-way driver seat adjust
- Controller Over-the-Air (OTA) updates
- Hyundai Bluelink connected car technology
- Electric parking brake with auto hold
- Rear disc brakes
- Ambient lighting on crash pad and central console
- Drive mode select (Eco, Normal, Sport)
- Traction control modes (Sand, Mud, Snow)
- Paddle shifters
HMIL, managing director & CEO Tarun Garg said, “We are delighted that the new Hyundai Venue has crossed 1 lakh bookings, reaffirming the strong trust Indian customers place in our brand. The introduction of the new HX8 Diesel Automatic variant further strengthens the Venue lineup, offering customers the perfect blend of diesel efficiency, torque-rich performance and effortless convenience.”
Backed by Hyundai’s extensive sales and service network, the Venue continues to appeal to buyers seeking a feature-rich, comfortable and future-ready compact SUV. The new variant reinforces HMIL’s focus on delivering advanced technology, safety, comfort and value while adapting to evolving customer preferences.
In a segment where bookings are the real horsepower, Hyundai isn’t just counting milestones, it’s handing drivers an automatic upgrade that makes every journey feel like the victory lap.
