MAM
Balsara elected president of International Advertising Association India chapter
MUMBAI: Madison Communications chairman and managing director Sam Balsara has been elected as the new president of the India chapter of the International Advertising Association (IAA) at its recently concluded annual general meeting held in Mumbai.
Balsara has been elected president for the year 2005-06.
The new managing committee has includes: Pradeep Guha as vice president, Mukul Upadhyaya as secretary, Ashok Nerkar as treasurer and M G Parmeshwaran, Goutam Rakshit, Ramesh Narayan, Ishan Raina as members. Hormusji Cama has been made co-opted member and Roger C.B. Pereira and Pheroza Bilimoria are special invitees.
Spread over 93 countries and with over 6,000 members worldwide, the IAA champions advertising as a force for growth in all free market societies. Advertising revenues ensure an independent, pluralistic, affordable media with competing channels of information for consumers, which are the foundation of democracy itself.
The IAA is uniquely positioned to recognise emerging cross-border trends before they become obvious, and provide marketing communications professionals with an international, multi-industry forum for the global exchange of knowledge, best practices, professional development, experience and ideas.
The India Chapter was initiated over 20 years ago with a view to foster a healthy environment for the growth of globalisation in the communications industry. It has a membership of around 40 members and membership to IAA is by invitation only.
Balsara said, “With the presence of such strong industry associations like Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI), Indian Newspapers Society (INS) and Indian Broadcasting Foundation (IBF) and Clubs like The Advertising Club, Bombay; the IAA India Chapter needs to identify the unique and distinct role that it can play in the advertising and marketing fraternity. Probably it will be in the area of global practices, exploiting its global reach across 93 countries, and access to 6000 key decision makers.”
The major item on the agenda of the IAA in the current year is the holding of the IAA World Congress in Dubai from 20 – 23 March, 2006 and the IAA , India Chapter hopes to play a key role in taking a large delegation from India to this Congress.
Also on the cards is a series of dinner meetings exclusively for the IAA members and their guests to be addressed by “International Indians”. The first guest in this series will be Harish Manwani, earlier marketing director of Hindustan Lever and currently president Asia, Africa, Middle East and Turkey, based in London.
The Dubai Chapter, which is one of the largest chapters of IAA has lined up a rich fare in terms of global speakers and relevant topics and the Congress would also give Indian professionals an opportunity to check out the opportunities available in Dubai because of rapid and unbelievable progress made by the country in the last few years. It is for the first time that the IAA World Congress is being held at a destination that is so close to India.
Apple rarely announces minor updates with much fanfare, and iOS 26.4 is no exception. No dramatic redesigns, no flashy keynote moments. What it delivers instead is a focused set of improvements that sharpen the experience you already have. If that sounds underwhelming, spend a week with it. You will change your mind.
Apple Music Learns to Listen Better
The biggest shift in this update lives inside Apple Music. Apple has brought AI-powered playlist generation to the app, and it works on mood rather than genre. Type something like “rainy evening at home” or “running late on a Monday,” and it builds a playlist that actually fits. This is not algorithmic guesswork dressed up in new clothing. It genuinely reads the intent behind vague descriptions and responds well.
Alongside this, a new concerts feature scans your listening history and surfaces live events happening near you. It is a smart bridge between your digital music habits and real-world experiences. Apple is quietly making the case that a music app should do more than just play songs.
Shazam also gets a meaningful upgrade. It can now identify songs without an internet connection. This might sound like a minor convenience, but anyone who has tried to Shazam something at a crowded venue with patchy signal will tell you it is anything but minor. The feature works locally on-device, which also means it is faster.
CarPlay Gets Smarter Controls
CarPlay has been updated with deeper integration for intelligent voice assistants. The goal is to reduce how often drivers need to look at a screen or tap anything at all. You speak, things happen. It is a clear step toward making the driving experience safer without stripping away functionality. The integration feels natural rather than bolted on, which is a harder thing to achieve than it sounds.
The Fixes You Feel Every Day
This is where iOS 26.4 earns its keep. Keyboard responsiveness has been improved, and the difference is noticeable immediately. Typing feels more accurate and less combative. Accessibility features have been refined across the board, with better contrast options and adjusted spacing that makes the interface easier to read without forcing you into larger text sizes.
The Health app has also been updated. It now surfaces more actionable insights from your daily data rather than just displaying numbers. If your sleep patterns have shifted or your activity levels have changed, the app now contextualises that clearly instead of leaving you to interpret raw figures on your own.
These are the kinds of changes that do not photograph well for a press release. They also happen to be the ones that make your phone feel genuinely better to use.
A Few Other Additions
New emojis have been added in this update. They will find their way into your conversations faster than you expect. Family Sharing has also been updated, with more granular control over shared payments and subscriptions. If you share an Apple account with family members, this puts clearer limits on who can spend what, which has been a long-requested fix.
What This Update Actually Represents
iOS 26.4 is Apple doing what it does best when it is not trying to make headlines. Every addition here serves a clear purpose. The AI music features are genuinely useful. The CarPlay improvements address a real safety concern. The small UI fixes accumulate into a noticeably smoother daily experience.
There is no bloat. Nothing feels experimental or half-finished. That discipline is harder to maintain than it looks, especially as operating systems grow more complex with each passing year.
If you have been holding off on updating, this is the one worth installing.
