MAM
WPP Media officially rises from GroupM, blending AI and ad muscle in $60bn makeover
MUMBAI: WPP has pulled the plug on GroupM and plugged in something slicker: WPP Media, its all-new, AI-charged global media company. The move signals a seismic shift in the advertising giant’s playbook, as it bets big on “creative personalisation at scale” in the AI age.
The newly minted outfit unites more than $60 billion in annual media investment across 80-plus markets and claims to work with over 75 per cent of the world’s top advertisers. Mindshare, Wavemaker and EssenceMediacom aren’t going anywhere—they’re now operating as bespoke agency brands under the WPP Media umbrella, powered by shared tech, data and production firepower.
At the heart of this revamp is WPP Open, the group’s AI-enabled marketing platform backed by a cool £300m annual investment and heavyweight AI partnerships. It’s billed as the ultimate integration engine—fusing creative, production, data, commerce and media delivery in one turbocharged stack.
WPP Media CEO Brian Lesser explained: “Consumers already expect advertising to be relevant and engaging and buying experiences to be seamless; those expectations are only going to accelerate in the age of AI. WPP Media is built for a world in which media is everywhere and in everything. By investing in our AI-powered product, integrating our offer with data and technology, and equipping our people with future-facing skills, we’re helping our clients to stay ahead of rapidly changing consumer behavior and unlock the limitless opportunities for growth that AI will create.”
WPP CEO Mark Read highlighted: “We believe that WPP is the strongest marketing partner for the world’s leading brands in the AI era, where technology and talent converge. The move to WPP Media continues our strategy to simplify and integrate our offer for clients. While GroupM was built for a time when media scale mattered most, WPP Media reflects the power of AI, data and technology and simpler, more integrated solutions.”
It’s not just about the tech, though. The company says it’s doubling down on people—investing in learning and development to future-proof talent for the AI-powered marketing world.
Points out Read: “Our vision for the future is clear – marketing that is informed by data, led by seamlessly connected teams of brilliant people, and full of new opportunities for our clients.”
To spread the word, WPP is rolling out a cross-channel B2B blitz aimed squarely at CMOs and C-suite suits. The message: AI is here, it’s hungry, and it needs humans to thrive.
In true WPP flair, the relaunch isn’t just a name change. It’s a brand makeover, a tech upgrade, and a culture reset—all rolled into one. As the world’s biggest advertisers brace for an AI tidal wave, WPP Media is positioning itself as the surfboard.
AD Agencies
Abhay Duggal joins JioStar as director of Hindi GEC ad sales
The streaming giant brings in a seasoned revenue hand as the battle for Hindi television advertising heats up
MUMBAI: Abhay Duggal has a new desk, and JioStar has a new weapon. The media and entertainment veteran has joined JioStar as director of entertainment ad sales for Hindi general entertainment channels, adding 17 years of hard-won revenue experience to one of India’s most powerful broadcasting operations.
Duggal is no stranger to big portfolios or bruising markets. Before joining JioStar, he spent a brief stint at Republic World as deputy general manager and north regional head for ad sales. Before that, he put in three years at Enterr10 Television, where he ran the north region for Dangal TV and Dangal 2, two of India’s leading free-to-air Hindi channels. The north alone accounted for more than 50 per cent of total channel revenue on his watch, a number that tends to get attention in any sales meeting.
His longest stint was at Zee Entertainment Enterprises, where he spent over six years rising to associate director of sales. There he commanded the Hindi movies cluster across seven channels, owned more than half of north India’s revenue across flagship properties including Zee TV and &TV, and closed marquee sponsorships across the Indian Premier League, Zee Rishtey Awards and Dance India Dance. He also handled monetisation for the English movies and entertainment cluster and the global news channel WION, a portfolio that would stretch most sales teams twice his size.
Earlier in his career Duggal closed what was then a Rs 3 crore single deal at Reliance Broadcast Network, one of the largest in Indian radio at the time, before that he helped launch and monetise JAINHITS, India’s first HITS-based cable and satellite platform.
His edge, by his own account, lies in marrying data and instinct: translating audience trends, inventory signals and client demands into long-term partnerships built on cost-per-rating-point discipline rather than short-term deal chasing. In a media landscape being reshaped by streaming, fragmented attention and AI-driven advertising, that kind of rigour is increasingly rare and increasingly valuable.
JioStar, which blends the scale of Reliance’s Jio platform with the content firepower of Star, is doubling down on its advertising business at precisely the moment the Hindi GEC market is getting more competitive. Bringing in someone who has spent nearly two decades doing exactly this, across some of India’s most watched channels, is a pointed statement of intent. Duggal has spent his career turning audiences into revenue. JioStar is clearly betting he can do it again, and bigger.
