MUMBAI: What would you choose ? a good book or a mediocre film adapted on it? For most kids today apparently it is a no contest, they wouldn?t go anywhere near the book. So what can we do about it? Strand has the answer. It was in the form of a large installation at their annual sale. To promote reading among kids you need more than just a SALE you need an idea that persuades them especially their parents.

At the book sale in Mumbai, Strand installed a large autobiography of Mahatma Gandhi. As you approach the book and asked a question, it started answering it.

People found it intriguing as well as fascinating. Not just Gandhiji, kids present at the venue got to ask questions to Helen Keller, Nelson Mandela, Steve Jobs and a few more great people. It was as if the great legends were preaching their philosophy and surprisingly, the children were excited to learn from them.

?People may not like reading but they still love talking, the book may not be a big hit with kids but cell phone definitely is. We decided to position books as a means to have breakthrough conversations in life. And that?s where the idea of a talking book emerged.? Revealed KV Sridhar National Creative Director, Leo Burnett, India.

Vidya Virkar, Managing Partner, Strand Book Stall strongly feels that parents should read at least one story a day to their kids which will turn their kids into active readers.

All in all, the Talking Book was a great success, Strand Book Stall is eager to take the activity to more places like in Mumbai and outside.Surely kids will have a great time and will hopefully start a relationship with books.

Mumbai: Ormax Media has released a report on understanding the remote control dynamics in single TV households in India, called ?And The Remote Goes To??

This large scale syndicated study was conducted across 7 cities and 5547 respondents. The cities covered were: Mumbai, Delhi, Ahmedabad, Indore, Lucknow, Jalandhar and Hyderabad, among regular prime time television viewers.

The study aims to answer the question that obssesses the television industry: "Who controls the remote at different times?" The report captures the gender and the age profiling of the remote in- charge for different one-hour slots, from 7pm to 11pm, on both weekdays and weekends. It also captures the differences in the profile of the remote in-charge by markets, SEC and family size.

Speaking about the study, Shailesh Kapoor, CEO - Ormax Media said: "One of the limitations of television ratings is that they don?t tell us who the decision maker is. All marketing is about talking to decision makers and influencers, not the atual consumers. In television, this reality is even more pertinent, given the nature of TV viewing in India - single TV households where the entire family watches TV together. In such a scenario, whom should you be talking to. A man or a woman or both? The youth, the newly married, the middle aged, the older or all? What is the best time and day to attract each of these segments? This study answers several such relevant but under-rated questions."

The report is available to broadcasters, media agencies and advertisers for a one-time subscription cost of Rs. 40,000. Kapoor said: "This study was done to share useful data across the industry. Hence, we have priced it in a way that the entire television and media fraternity, including the smaller channels and advertisers, can use it for better understanding of their audiences."

New Delhi: In continuation of its endeavour to provide innovative and delightful customer experience, HomeShop18, the online & on-air retail marketing and distribution venture of Network18 Group will bring Santa Claus to your doorstep this Christmas & New Year. In a unique customer engagement initiative, over 300 delivery boys across 12 cities would deliver all your Christmas gifts dressed as Santa, spreading joy and cheer this festive season.

The unique delivery service will be available to customers across, New Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Ahmedabad, Chennai, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Ludhiana, Noida, Faridabad, Ghaziabad, Gurgaon on all the purchases made from 16th to 31st Dec, 2011.

To make this season of joy even more exciting, HomeShop18 has announced a special promotion ?December Delights?. This exclusive shopping festival offers HomeShop18?s customers an opportunity to win a Volkswagen Polo Highline, a Kindle Fire and exciting daily prizes like cameras, pen drives, watches, speaker systems and more. The festival will also offer mega discounts and combo deals on products from the categories ? Home & Toys, Fashion and Digital. And, all these are for those lucky customers who will rush in time and buy before the stocks end.

Announcing the launch of this new initiative, Atrash Aman, Director, Marketing and Strategy said,?

We at HomeShop18 are in the continuous look out for ways to increase customer engagement in order to make virtual shopping more fun. Christmas is the season of sharing and joy and what better way than having Santa come give you your gifts on your doorstep. This is an extremely exciting and busy season for us as we already see a huge increase in traffic on the ecommerce website?.

With a robust distribution network reaching out to over 3,000 locations and selling over 10 million SKUs and 500 established brands, the e-commerce firm expects its sales to peak as the Christmas shopping season gets into full swing. The company?s revenue stood at Rs 410 crore last fiscal and it aims to double the figure this fiscal through expansion of its operations and distribution chain. HomeShop18 had recently acquired online books retailer CoinJoos.Com and inked an agreement with Korean Trade & Investment Promotion Agency and GS Shop to help small and medium Korean companies to enter the domestic market.

MUMBAI: Mumbai kids were bowled over on Sunday as outstanding sportsmanship, fans? favourite toon stars and mega prizes all rolled together to make Cartoon Network?s Toon Cricket 2011 the biggest and coolest kids? event of the year.

Presented in association with Cadbury at Chitrakoot, Andheri West in Mumbai, Toon Cricket - The Ultimate Eleven gave local kids a non-stop-fun experience with their number one superhero: Ben 10. And for the first time in Toon Cricket history, five kids chosen from a lucky draw will get an exclusive opportunity to join the Ultimate Eleven team, led by the iconic Ben 10, featuring on Cartoon Network.

Now in its eighth successful year, Toon Cricket is the perfect match of India?s most popular sport, cricket, and kids? favourite cartoon stars such as Ben 10, Tom and Jerry, and Scooby Doo. Kids are entertained all day throughout the event, with special character appearances, stage performances, games and prizes.

Monica Tata, General Manager, Entertainment Networks, South Asia Turner International India Pvt. Ltd. said: "When combining India?s favourite sport with kids? favourite toon stars, the result is a fun-filled, action-packed sporting extravaganza. We are delighted to see such an overwhelming response from our audience year after year at Toon Cricket. Through such events we are bringing the Cartoon Network experience from the TV and into kids? lives, providing a 360 degree fun element to the channel."

MUMBAI: A unique concept offering FREE Bus tickets to people traveling across Maharashtra 9X Jhakaas, Maharashtra?s first Marathi Music channel is offering ?Free? ride to people traveling across Maharashtra on a special 9X Jhakaas Bus. Titled ?Life Banawel Jhakaas? this on-ground activity will take place across Maharashtra on a special ST bus arranged by 9X Media.

A special 9X Jhakaas branded Bus will travel across key towns and cities in Maharashtra offering free tickets for more than 10 days. Making the life of the commuters ?Jhakaas?, ?Life Banawel Jhakaas? campaign of 9X Jhakaas will provide commuters a memorable experience with exciting on-the-spot contests and fun activities, besides the free ride to their destination. The commuters will not only reach their respective destinations but will also win super cool 9X Jhakaas goodies and gifts during the journey.

Starting 8th December 2011 this 9X Jhakaas branded Bus will travel across the key towns of Maharashtra including Pune, Satara, Kolhapur, Sangli, Pandarpur, Solapur, Latur, Beed, Aurangabad, Ahmednagar, Shirdi, Nashik, Thane and Mumbai amongst others. This 9X Jhakaas Bus ensures that the commuters not only reach their destination but their journey will also be made a memorable one with opportunities to win goodies.

Speaking on the occasion Mr. Punit Pandey, Sr. Vice President & Business Head ? 9X Media Group said "9X Media has always endeavored to provide its viewers with the best and the latest music coupled with the iconic animated characters which provide entertainment 24X7. Staying true to the brand name 9X Jhakaas this initiative is an extension to our efforts to entertain our viewers by reaching out to them in their daily commute and making their life truly Jhakaas."

So hop on to the 9X Jhakaas special Bus and have a Jhakaas experience on your journey to your next destination and make your life Jhakaas with the "Life Banawel Jhakaas" campaign.

MUMBAI: Suryoday Trust‘s Maharashtra President Mr. Punit Balan under the guidance of respected P.P. Shri Bhaiyyuji Maharaj runs social service programmes in the field of health, agriculture, education, environment, children and women‘s welfare. The said trust has its presence in more than 4 states with more than 140 projects that work towards the betterment of the nation and upliftment of the underprivileged section of society.

One of the foundations under the trust, Suryoday Aids Foundation primarily works towards providing HIV affected children with a holistic approach of prevention, treatment, care and support apart from creating awareness related to AIDS across the globe. The said foundation has already established institutes in Pune and Akola to provide these affected children with food, clothing, shelter, medical aid and education. There are almost 100 children who get unconditional love and respect under one roof.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Punit Balan, a successful businessman turned social worker states "The country has witnessed a sharp rise in the deadly diseases over the years and unfortunately there are inadequate resources and machinery through which the rehabilitation and recuperation of affected persons can be ensured. In order to eradicate the social stigma surrounding AIDs, we have started this organization to solve this problem and provide appropriate relief to victims. It gives us immense pleasure to be associated with an internationally acclaimed personality like Pitbull who in turn will champion our efforts across the globe. The youth is the builder of the future and what better way to reach out to the youth than by associating with a concert of this magnitude ".

Let‘s champion this cause with the P3P Pitbull India Tour 2011 scheduled to take place in Noida, Mumbai and Pune in December. The event is supported by 3rd Rock Entertainment, Big Dream Entertainment and Cross Bar Entertainment Pvt. Ltd.