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Cricketers ride World Cup bandwagon on TVCs
MUMBAI: With World Cup cricket 2003 just three days away, the advertising world is all geared up with its cricket-centric ads .
The latest commercial to join the bandwagon is the Reliance Infocomm mobility services ad featuring India’s opening batsman Virendra Sehwag . The ad created by Reliance-owned advertising agency, Mudra Communications will primarily focus on the service being offered and is expected to air during India’s first match in the tournament scheduled for 12 February 2003.
Reliance Infocomm is one of the associate sponsors of World Cup 2003 along with Hero Honda, FMCG major Hindustan Lever ( which will promote its brands Rin and Close-Up) and consumer durables major Samsung. The presenting sponsor for the tournament will be Pepsi.
Simultaneously, Frito-Lay India too has launched its new flavour, Saif-n-Kaif Hot & Sweet Chilly, Caribbean Style, named after the snack’s latest brand ambassadors- Bollywood star Saif Ali Khan and Indian cricketer Mohammad Kaif. The contrasting personality traits of the two stars are seen as being core to the twin taste in the new flavour.
As brand ambassadors, Saif and Kaif will promote the brand and will be involved in the ICC World Cup promotions that Frito Lay will run in the month of February 2003, states a press release.
” Research with core target audience (13-18 boys and girls) indicates that Saif is relatable and brings with him an ease and a boy- next- door’s natural wit-‘n’-charm. He is seen as a guy who infuses fun in any situation,” says Frito-Lay India, Managing Director, Manu Anand. “On the other hand, Mohammad Kaif symbolizes the fiery spirit of young India. The Natwest win established him as a gritty cricketer to reckon with. Together Saif and Kaif represent the two contrasting values which are embodied in the flavour experience,” he adds.
Lay’s will continue using the S&K duo through various exciting innovations in promotions, packaging and new flavour launches.
The new flavour will be available across the country in packs priced at Rs 5 and Rs 10 respectively and to mark the ICC Cricket World Cup, a new cricket bag is being launched at Rs 20.
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Paramount set to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery in $81 billion deal
Shareholders back merger, combined entity could reshape streaming and studios.
MUMBAI: Lights, camera… consolidation, Hollywood’s latest blockbuster might be happening off-screen. Shareholders of Warner Bros. Discovery have voted in favour of selling the company to Paramount in a deal valued at $81 billion rising to nearly $111 billion including debt setting the stage for one of the biggest shake-ups in modern media. The proposed merger, still subject to regulatory approvals, would bring together a vast portfolio spanning HBO Max, CNN, and franchises such as Harry Potter under the same umbrella as Paramount’s own heavyweights, including Top Gun and CBS.
At the heart of the deal is streaming scale. Executives have indicated plans to combine HBO Max and Paramount+ into a single platform, potentially creating a stronger challenger to giants like Netflix and Amazon’s Prime Video. Current market data suggests HBO Max holds around 12 per cent of US on-demand subscriptions, compared to Paramount+’s 3 per cent, together still trailing Netflix’s 19 per cent and Disney’s combined 27 per cent via Disney+ and Hulu.
Paramount CEO David Ellison has signalled that while platforms may merge, HBO’s creative identity will remain intact, stating the brand should “stay HBO” even within a broader ecosystem.
Beyond streaming, the deal would redraw the map for film production. Combining two of Hollywood’s oldest studios Paramount Pictures and Warner Bros., the new entity aims to scale output to over 30 films annually, while maintaining a 45-day theatrical window. Warner Bros. currently commands around 21 per cent of the US box office, compared to Paramount’s 6 per cent, underscoring the strategic weight of the acquisition.
But scale comes with scrutiny. Critics warn that fewer players could mean reduced consumer choice, rising subscription costs, and potential job cuts as the combined company looks to streamline overlapping operations while managing billions in debt.
The news business, too, faces a reset. CNN would join forces at least structurally with Paramount-owned CBS, raising questions about editorial independence and positioning. The merger has already drawn political attention in the United States, particularly given perceived ties between the Ellison family and Donald Trump, though the company maintains that newsroom autonomy will be preserved.
If approved, the deal would mark another milestone in Hollywood’s consolidation wave shrinking the industry’s traditional “big six” studios to a “big four”, with Paramount joining Disney, Universal, and Sony at the top table.
In an industry built on storytelling, this merger may well become its most consequential plot twist yet.
