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Majority of Indians interconnected with the world through email, social media: Ipsos poll
MUMBAI: The majority of Indians are interconnected with the world due to email and social networking sites such as Facebook and Twitter, according to a new poll by Ipsos.
68 per cent of people across India who are connected online send and receive emails and 60 per cent communicate through social networking sites, and a quarter (25 per cent) of them use voice-over IP (VOIP) for audio conversations conducted via an Internet connection.
Ipsos India Head of marketing and communications Biswarup Banerjee said, “Internet penetration in India has been very good in recent years, however, relative to country like China, India still does lack behind. According to Industry estimates 103.6 million people will go online in 2012, and the number of users is expected to more than double to 221.6 million by 2015. This along with proliferation of internet access through smart phone will further increase the usage of email, social networking sites and other online communication tools”.
Incidentally according to another Ipsos survey, around 40 million Indians access the Internet through their smart phones, 56 per cent of smartphone users in the country access the Internet multiple times a day, nearly 40 per cent surf the Net at least once a day and only 6 per cent never use their phone for connecting to the Web.
A strong majority (85 per cent) of online-connected global citizens in 24 countries use the Internet for emails while six in ten (62 per cent) use it for social networking, and little over one in ten (14 per cent) use the Internet for connecting with people through voice-over IP.
Globally Email is King…but social media is close behind: Most (85 per cent) global respondents who are connected online report they use the Internet for sending and receiving emails, including a majority of those in each country surveyed except for Saudi Arabia where only half (46%) say so. Those in Hungary (94 per cent) are most likely to say they use the Internet for emailing, followed by nine in ten of those in Sweden (92 per cent), Belgium (91 per cent), Indonesia (91 per cent), Argentina (90 per cent) and Poland (90 per cent).
Social media popularity is high among global citizens using the Internet. A majority of them (62%) say they visit social networking sites, forums or blogs including eight in ten of those in Indonesia (83 per cent), Argentina (76 per cent) and Russia (75 per cent) and seven in ten of those in South Africa (73 per cent), Sweden (72 per cent), Spain (71 per cent) and Hungary (70 per cent). Even in countries where social media surfing is less popular, a sizable minority of those connected online still report using the Internet in this way: 35 per cent in Japan, 42 per cent in Saudi Arabia and 50 per cent in France.
“Although Facebook and other popular social networking sites, blogs and forums, were founded in the United States the percentage of users was lower at six in 10, and in Japan it fell to 35%, the lowest of the 24 countries in the global survey. The fact that more than six in 10 people worldwide use social networks and forums, suggests a transformation in how people communicate with each other,” said Banerjee.
Although Americans and Japanese are thought to be very tech savvy, voice-over IP (VOIP), audio conversations conducted via an Internet connection, were not very popular in both countries with less than 10 per cent of people using the relatively new technology, compared to 36 per cent in Russia, 32 per cent in Turkey and 25 per cent in India.
Ipsos interviewed a total of 19,216 adults in the month of February in an online survey across 24 countries like Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, Britain, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Poland, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Turkey and the US.
MAM
Barista partners Ginny Weds Sunny 2 with mango campaign
Cafe chain blends cinema buzz with summer menu and 20 per cent offer.
MUMBAI: Love may brew slowly, but marketing clearly doesn’t especially when coffee meets cinema and mangoes steal the spotlight. Barista Coffee Company has partnered with the upcoming hindi film Ginny Weds Sunny 2 as its official beverage partner, in a move aimed at tapping into youth culture through entertainment-led engagement. The collaboration is not just a logo placement exercise. Instead, Barista is translating the film’s high-energy vibe into its cafés with a themed summer menu titled “Main Hoon Mango”, accompanied by a limited-period 20 per cent discount on combo offerings across outlets.
Actors Medha Shankr and Avinash Tiwary feature in the campaign, seen engaging with the mango-themed menu inside Barista cafés, a visual cue designed to blur the lines between reel and real-life consumption moments.
The strategy reflects a broader shift in how consumer brands are leveraging hindi film industry not just for visibility, but for immersive, on-ground engagement. By embedding the film’s narrative into its product experience, Barista is aiming to drive footfall, especially among younger audiences who increasingly seek experiential touchpoints over traditional advertising.
Barista Coffee Company CEO Rajat Agrawal described the partnership as both a branding and growth play, focused on expanding reach beyond the existing customer base and aligning with evolving consumer preferences.
The emphasis on a seasonal, flavour-led hook mango, one of India’s most culturally resonant ingredients adds a timely layer to the campaign, aligning with summer consumption trends while riding on the film’s promotional momentum.
For Barista, the move is part of a larger positioning shift. Rather than operating purely as a coffee retail chain, the brand is increasingly framing itself as a lifestyle destination, one that intersects with entertainment, conversation and shared experiences. By integrating cinema into its physical spaces, Barista is effectively turning cafés into micro-extensions of the film’s universe, where consumers do not just watch a story unfold but participate in it sip by sip.
The 20 per cent offer further nudges trial, lowering the barrier for consumers to engage with the themed menu while amplifying recall through a tangible incentive.
Brand-film collaborations are hardly new, but their execution is evolving. Where earlier partnerships relied on co-branded ads or product placements, the current playbook leans towards immersive storytelling and retail integration.
In that sense, Barista’s “Main Hoon Mango” push is less about promotion and more about participation inviting consumers to experience a slice of the film within a familiar, everyday setting. As the film industry continues to act as a cultural amplifier, such partnerships underline a growing truth, in today’s attention economy, it is not enough to be seen brands must be experienced.
And if that experience comes with a mango twist and a cinematic backdrop, all the better.
