Brands
Vodafone’s Friendship Day video: Keep relationships real
MUMBAI: Millennials today across the world are obsessed with their smartphones and are getting more dependent on their devices and the internet by the day. This has led to a new phenomenon called phubbing which has become rampant in our everyday lives. Phubbing is the term used to describe the habit of snubbing someone in favour of a mobile phone. Knowing or unknowingly most people today choose to look into their phones even as they sit across the table from someone.
“Relationships have moved from being warm and personal to being online and distant. While one can argue that the internet brings the world together, it also is making people grow more apart. As a brand which is a partner to one’s relationships, we wanted to take a relevant stand against Phubbing and ask the youth to indulge in real conversations with each other”, shares Ogilvy India EVP Hirol Gandhi.
Research and data on India embracing feature phones and social media usage is erupting everywhere. A recent study by Kantar, IMRB and MMA on the feature phone usage in India indicated that people in India spend about three hours a day on the phone. “In our Friendship Day film, we chose to showcase the youth and their relationship with the internet and social media, and how they are today sub consciously choosing to ignore the connections that can be made offline while enhancing their connections online. It really is a representation of a lot of us,” shared Ogilvy India ECD Kiran Anthony.
From the launch of the #LookUp movement around Valentine’s Day, to building momentum on Father’s Day and now releasing the 3rd story on Friendship Day, the LookUp movement is gathering huge applause. “The LookUp campaign has struck a chord among millions of Indians – with over 50 Million Video Views, 80,000 conversations, almost 260,000 people engaged & industry best Video View Completion rates, the #LookUp movement in only growing from strength to strength, and continues to inspire the Youth & grow brand love for Vodafone,” concluded Vodafone India EVP – Marketing Siddharth Banerjee.
Brands
Uidai partners with Google to help users locate Aadhaar centres
Verified Aadhaar centres to appear on Maps with services and access info
MUMBAI: Finding an Aadhaar centre may soon be as easy as finding your favourite café. In a move aimed at making public services more accessible, the Unique Identification Authority of India has partnered with Google to display authorised Aadhaar centres on Google Maps. The feature, expected to roll out in the coming months, will allow residents to locate verified centres quickly and confidently.
More than 60,000 Aadhaar centres, including state of the art Aadhaar Seva Kendras, will be mapped. When users search on Google Maps, they will be directed to authorised facilities rather than unverified listings, helping curb misinformation and confusion.
The listings will do more than drop a pin. Users will be able to see the nature of services offered at each centre, whether it is adult enrolment, child enrolment, or limited to address and mobile number updates. Details such as operating hours, parking availability and divyang friendly infrastructure will also be shown wherever applicable.
Uidai CEO Bhuvnesh Kumar, said the collaboration is part of the authority’s continued effort to improve ease of living for Aadhaar holders by making authorised centres simpler and faster to navigate.
The partnership will deepen in its next phase, with Uidai using Google Business Profile to manage information and respond directly to public feedback. Looking ahead, the two organisations are also exploring the option of enabling appointment bookings through the Google Maps interface, potentially allowing residents to plan their visits with greater efficiency.
Google India country head, strategic partnerships Roli Agarwal, said integrating verified Aadhaar centres would help millions access trusted services with confidence, bringing essential government infrastructure closer to the people who need it most.
If all goes to plan, a routine Aadhaar update may soon begin not with a queue, but with a search bar.
