MAM
Sports to see degrowth in ad revenue: Joy
MUMBAI: Sports will see a degrowth in advertising revenue while Hindi general entertainment channels (GECs) will lose their pricing power this fiscal, said Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (Zeel) executive director revenue and niche channels Joy Chakraborthy.
Television will, however, grow faster at 12 per cent while print will crawl at 2-3 per cent as advertisers exercise caution in spending.
“Sports revenue will be under attack because of India‘s debacle against England. The cricket World Cup revenues were also captured in the last fiscal,” said Chakraborthy in an interview.
Sports broadcasters earned a combined ad revenue of Rs 15 billion in FY‘11, buoyed by the World Cup and the Indian Premier League (IPL).
“The India-West Indies series was affected as some of India‘s stars were not playing. The England series has been a setback. Seeing the performance of the Indian team, the Champions League Twenty20 is obviously facing the music,” said Chakraborthy.
The Hindi GECs will see growth but there will be redeployment of ad monies among the top four. “In a four-horse race, the pricing power will be somewhat muted and there will be revenue fragmentation. Media agencies will be in a better bargaining position,” averred Chakraborthy.
When queried about a possible ad slowdown, Chakraborthy admitted that advertisers have become “more cautious” and are entering into quarterly and shorter term deals.
“Not too many annual deals are happening. But India being an emotional country, a single strong wave can lead to a turnaround.”
How deep will the ad economy be hit with FMCGs hinting at slashing their promotional budgets? “There is a concern but at the same time many of the FMCG companies are launching variants. If HUL states that it is slashing its ad budget, frankly speaking it is no more a scare. But what could be disturbing is that we are seeing a drop in high-yielding inventories filled by telecom, banking and finance and real estate companies. We are hoping that like telecom which came in a big way a few years back, we will see a new category emerge,” said Chakraborthy.
The biggest problem in the television industry is that fragmentation is peaking. “A slowdown is good in a way as it will ensure that networks with sustaining power will gain. Costs will also get corrected as companies try to protect their bottom lines,” said Chakraborthy.
Brands
Amazon inks $30m carbon credit deal with Indian rice farmers
Methane-cutting farming push links climate goals with farmer income
NEW DELHI: Amazon has signed a $30 million agreement to purchase carbon credits generated by Indian rice farmers, marking one of the largest agriculture-linked carbon deals in the country to date and signalling a shift in how corporates approach climate action.
The agreement is being executed through the Good Rice Alliance, a collaboration between Bayer, GenZero, and Shell Nature-Based Solutions, backed by Singapore’s Temasek. Rather than dealing directly with individual farmers, Amazon is tapping into this alliance to scale the programme efficiently.
At the heart of the initiative is a relatively simple shift in farming practice known as Alternate Wetting and Drying. Traditionally, rice paddies remain flooded, creating oxygen-free conditions that produce methane, a greenhouse gas far more potent than carbon dioxide. Under the new method, fields are periodically allowed to dry, disrupting methane formation while maintaining crop yields.
The benefits go beyond emissions. The approach significantly reduces water usage, a crucial advantage in regions already facing water stress. For farmers, it also opens up a new income stream. By adopting climate-friendly techniques, they earn carbon credits that can be sold to companies like Amazon, effectively turning sustainability into a revenue opportunity.
The current phase of the project covers more than 13,000 smallholder farmers across roughly 35,000 hectares. Amazon expects the initiative to offset about 685,000 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions, offering a measurable contribution to its broader climate commitments.
The deal is notable not just for its scale but for its direction. While many companies have historically focused on forestry or renewable energy offsets, this move highlights growing interest in agriculture-based solutions that tackle methane emissions directly. It also reflects the increasing sophistication of carbon markets, where even small, decentralised farms can be integrated into global climate strategies.
For India, the implications are significant. As the world’s largest rice producer and one of the biggest methane emitters, scaling such models could play a meaningful role in meeting climate targets while supporting rural livelihoods.
For Amazon, the message is clear. Climate action is no longer just about reducing emissions within operations. It is also about reshaping supply chains and ecosystems. And in this case, the path to net zero runs straight through the paddy fields.
