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ADC World Advertising awarded Air Deccan’s aircraft fleet graphics for branding contract
BANGALORE: Air Deccan’s (AD) Captain Gopinath says that his dream is to have people fly for free, and hopes that one day ancillary income would make this possible-this is catering revenue, advertising revenue, other types of income that airlines can generate besides seat charges.
That the aircraft body can be a medium like a billboard was first demonstrated by Goinath’s. airline in India and was one of the initiatives taken by AD in that direction. Today, AD announced in Bangalore that it has awarded the fleet graphics for aircraft branding contract to ADC World Advertising for a period of five years. This means big money potential to the Airline and how.
“We will be flying around 8 million passengers this year – this means 16 million eyeballs.” said Gopinath.
While refusing to disclose the size of the revenues that aircraft branding generates, AD principal sales & marketing officer, Samyukth Sridharan explained “We currently have 19 A380’s and 20 ATR’s. Branding an aircraft is not as simple as it seems. We have to take into account the cost of paints, the additional weight of the paint added and the additional fuel required for that, well taking all these into account, if I were asked to offer a single aircraft – I’d charge Rs 1 million a month for an A380 and half that amount for an ATR, do the math yourself, and this is just the outside of the aircraft.”.
Gopinath and his team are looking at all avenues for generating ancillary revenues and growing them from the current 9% to between 25-30% of annual revenues over the next three years. They are looking at web-enabled insurance, excess baggage, which currently brings them around Rs.35-36 per passenger on a average, in-flight shopping, and in-flight catering.
“I think in-flight sales on Air Deccan contribute about 12% to Café Coffee Day’s present revenues,” informed Sidharan.. AD receives around 24,000 calls daily for bookings. At the end of the call, our people offer ICIC credit cards or loans, this too will help generate ancillary income for us,” he added.
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Lego brings Messi, Ronaldo, Mbappé, Vinicius together
Campaign clocks 314 million views ahead of FIFA World Cup 2026 buzz.
MUMBAI: Four legends, one frame and not a single tackle in sight. Lego has pulled off a crossover few thought possible, uniting Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappé and Vinícius Júnior in a single campaign ahead of the FIFA World Cup 2026 only this time, they’re building dreams brick by brick.
Titled “Everyone wants a piece”, the campaign features the quartet assembling a Lego version of the World Cup trophy, before placing miniature versions of themselves atop it, a playful nod to football’s ultimate prize. Shared widely across social media, the ad carries a pointed disclaimer: it is not AI-generated, a subtle but telling signal in an era where even reality is often questioned.
The numbers tell their own story. The campaign has already crossed 314 million views on Instagram across the players’ accounts, with fans hailing it as a rare, almost nostalgic moment particularly for the reunion of Messi and Ronaldo, whose last shared campaign ahead of the 2022 World Cup became one of the platform’s most-liked posts.
Beyond the film, Lego is extending the play with exclusive, player-themed sets tied to each of the four stars, part of a broader football-led programme designed to ride the global momentum building towards 2026. The idea, as echoed by the players themselves, leans into the parallels between football and play experimentation, creativity, failure, and triumph.
Messi described the sets as a way to bring on-pitch moments into an imaginative, hands-on world, while Ronaldo called the transformation into a Lego figure a rare honour, blending sport with storytelling. Vinícius, meanwhile, struck a more personal note, recalling childhood moments of building with Lego and framing creativity as a universal language that transcends borders.
The timing is no accident. With the 2026 World Cup set to run from June 11 to July 19 across the United States, Canada and Mexico, and featuring an expanded 48-team format, global anticipation is already building. Argentina, led by Messi, will enter as defending champions, adding another layer of intrigue.
For Lego, the campaign does more than celebrate football, it taps into its mythology. Because when icons become figurines and rivalries turn into play, the beautiful game finds a new kind of pitch. one built, quite literally, by hand.
