MAM
Imax continues strong growth in india by expanding partnership with Inox leisure ltd
MUMBAI: IMAX Corporation (NYSE: IMAX) and INOX Leisure Limited (INOX) today announced an agreement to open two new IMAX® theatres to India, expanding their partnership to twelve open or planned theatres nationwide. IMAX and INOX first entered their fast-growing partnership in 2016. One of the new theatres will open as the first IMAX location in Lucknow and the other city is yet to be announced. Additional terms of the deal were not disclosed.
The new agreement highlights the rapid growth of IMAX in India, one of the company’s fastest growing major markets. IMAX has nearly tripled its theatre network in India over the last three years, from 15 open or contracted theatres in 2016 to 42 today. Through the first half of 2019, IMAX theatres have generated more than $7.76 million at the box office in India, up 18% over the first half of 2018. Earlier this month IMAX announced that it would debut Saaho, T-Series and UV-Creations’ highly anticipated action film, in IMAX theatres in India and select international markets beginning August 30, 2019.
“An IMAX theatre, with its advanced screen, sound and projection technology, offers a fantastic experience making the audience feel as if they are a part of the movie,” said Alok Tandon, Chief Executive Officer of INOX Leisure Ltd. “It’s stunning architecture adds to the joy of watching a movie inside an IMAX theatre. We are excited to take The IMAX Experience® to more and more customers in newer markets with the signing of this deal. We are committed to make the right moves in the technology space to offer the best to our patrons and this deal strengthens our commitment.”
“India has one of the most longstanding and vibrant cinema cultures in the world, and we will continue to bring the biggest blockbusters and events to its passionate audiences,” said Giovanni Dolci, IMAX’s Interim Head of Global Sales. “We are grateful to INOX for our growing partnership and the opportunity to make The IMAX Experience available across key markets throughout the country.”
With the country’s slate of local language and Hollywood blockbusters, the India market continues to demonstrate strong demand for The IMAX Experience®. IMAX theatres are now currently in operation in multiple cities across the country including Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, Chennai, Gurugram and Noida, with more markets still to come. This year’s Avengers: Endgame smashed opening weekend box office for IMAX and stands as the company’s top grossing release of all time in India.
MAM
Madison World to launch AI platform M BrAIn for media planning
Agency group invests about $1 million as it shifts to AI driven growth planning.
MUMBAI: If media planning once ran on spreadsheets and gut instinct, the next chapter may run on algorithms and curiosity. Madison World is preparing to roll out the first version of its proprietary artificial intelligence platform Madison M BrAIn in early April, as the independent agency group accelerates its transition toward AI driven planning and product led media services.
The platform, expected to involve an investment of around $1 million, is designed to reshape how the agency approaches strategy by combining internal knowledge, external data sources and advanced AI models into a single intelligence ecosystem.
According to Madison Media, OOH and Hiveminds partner and group CEO Ajit Varghese the initiative forms part of a larger structural rethink within the organisation. “Traditionally agencies built frameworks around media planning and allocation. We are redesigning that structure into what we call a Growth Planning System (GPS),” Varghese said.
The shift reflects a growing belief that effective media strategy must begin earlier in the decision making process. Instead of jumping directly to channel allocation, planners must first decode the market itself identifying consumer barriers, purchase triggers and the core challenges facing a brand.
Once those insights are mapped, agencies can build clearer growth agendas for clients and design media strategies that connect more closely with business outcomes.
To support that approach, Madison has built Madison M BrAIn as what it describes as a human AI cognitive ecosystem. Acting as a central intelligence hub, the platform aggregates proprietary insights alongside external data sources and large language models, enabling planners to access deeper market intelligence before building campaign strategies.
Varghese said one of the core objectives is to democratise knowledge across the organisation. “In the past, this level of understanding was largely available to senior leaders or experienced strategists. With Madison M BrAIn, even a junior planner should be able to access the same intelligence and approach clients with a far more informed perspective,” he said.
The agency has already implemented the new planning philosophy internally and completed three months of testing for the AI platform, with early trials showing encouraging results in terms of learning capability and system performance.
While the first version relied on global large language models, Madison is now developing its own proprietary Small Language Model (SLM) to serve as the core of the M BrAIn ecosystem.
“The SLM will be able to read global LLMs, but the LLMs cannot read the SLM,” Varghese explained. “That ensures all the intelligence we build remains within the Madison ecosystem and strengthens our proprietary knowledge base.”
The first version of Madison M BrAIn is expected to go live in early April, with a more refined version targeted by the end of June. Over time, the platform will integrate additional external data streams and APIs including consumer insight platforms, social listening tools and client datasets.
These integrations are expected to enhance the system’s learning capability and enable it to generate increasingly sophisticated strategic recommendations.
Although the platform is currently being deployed for internal use, Madison sees potential for it to evolve into a licensable product in the future.
“At the moment, our focus is to stabilise and strengthen M BrAIn internally. But over time there is potential for this to become a product that could be licensed externally,” Varghese said.
The AI platform is also part of a wider technology transformation underway at the agency group. Alongside M BrAIn, Madison is building a broader digital infrastructure called the Catalyst operating system, which aims to integrate operational processes, data and product platforms into a unified ecosystem.
This broader technology stack could require an additional $1 million to $1.5 million investment over time, though spending will be phased and reviewed regularly.
“We are evaluating progress every three months and prioritising the most critical capabilities first,” Varghese said.
Madison expects the full AI and operating ecosystem to be fully functional within 12 to 18 months, positioning the agency to combine human strategy with machine intelligence as the advertising industry enters its next data driven phase.
