MAM
NDTV effect: TAM lists 6 action points to plug loopholes
MUMBAI: TAM, the television ratings provider, has assured the Indian Society of Advertisers (ISA) and the Advertising Agencies Association of India (AAAI) that it will work on a six-point action plan to plug loopholes in the system.
The assurance was given at a meeting ISA and AAAI had with TAM on Thursday, 16 August to obtain facts about the audience measurement system. The meeting was held in the backdrop of broadcaster NDTV‘s suit in the US against TAM and its parents Nielsen and Kantar, claiming the ratings were fudged.
During the meeting, TAM shared its perspective with ISA and AAAI and outlined the following six key action steps:
- Appointment of a security officer and a security agency
- Expansion in number of meters in the existing 6 top metros
- A review by the industry of research processes that determine what TAM reports in its weekly reports. And what meter homes are left out of reporting for being data outliers
- Getting the outlier homes independently audited
- Faster panel rotation
- An internal audit team to be put in place as soon as possible
In a joint statement, AAAI president Arvind Sharma and ISA chairman Bharat Patel said, “As key users of audience research data, advertisers and advertising agencies need to know facts directly from the research agency. And if there are challenges at any level in the research, the research agency needs to share its proposed action plan with us.”
They further said, “We look forward to speedy implementation of the six action steps outlined by TAM. With formation of Broadcast Audience Research Council-BARC on the anvil, it will be appropriate for us to request BARC to review if these steps are adequate.”
MUMBAI: In India’s fast-moving payments race, Visa has just swiped in a new leader. The company has named Suresh Sethi as its India country head, marking a key leadership shift as it sharpens its focus on digital payments growth in the market. Sethi steps into the role following his recent exit from Protean eGov Technologies, where he served as chief executive officer. He succeeds Sandeep Ghosh, who has moved on after more than four years at Visa to pursue an external opportunity.
The appointment comes at a time when Visa is doubling down on its expansion strategy across India and the wider region, deepening partnerships and accelerating adoption in an increasingly competitive digital payments ecosystem.
Sethi brings with him a broad, cross-market perspective shaped by decades of experience across corporate banking, retail financial services, mobile money and large-scale government technology initiatives. He began his career at Citigroup, where he spent 14 years working across India, Africa, South America and the United States, focusing on transaction banking services within the corporate bank.
His appointment signals a blend of institutional experience and market familiarity qualities that could prove critical as Visa navigates a landscape where fintech innovation, regulatory evolution and consumer adoption are all accelerating at once.
As digital payments in India continue to scale rapidly, the leadership change underscores a simple reality, in a market where every tap, scan and swipe counts, who leads the charge can matter just as much as the technology itself.
