iWorld
Facebook declares Internet.org innovation challenge
NEW DELHI: Facebook has declared the Internet.org innovation challenge in India today. The objective of the campaign is to make internet more accessible and relevant to four sections of the population that are currently underserved in India: women, students, farmers and migrant workers.
These communities face maximum structural barriers when it comes to using the internet. McKinsey & Company’s recent study affirmed that the lack of relevant local and multilingual online content and services is one of the primary barriers to internet adoption. Even if they get connected online, the material they find turns out to be insignificant. Internet.org’s initiative will give people access to apps, websites and services that are relevant to their lives and readable in their own languages.
Facebook will be presenting four $ 250,000 innovation challenge award prizes: one to the leading app, website or service or idea that best meets the needs of each of the designated population categories. Two $25,000 impact award prizes will also be granted in each category.
Winners will be announced at Mobile World Congress in March 2015 and interested individuals, organisations and groups can submit applications through 31 January 2015.
Companies, governments and individuals need to work together to remove connectivity barriers. This will ensure everyone has access to the internet globally.
iWorld
Ankuur Rajesh Kapila named national sales head – India at ZEE5 & digital
Former sports-gamification executive to drive revenue strategy and digital monetisation across India
MUMBAI: A seasoned dealmaker across television, sport and digital, Kapila steps in as national sales head – India, charged with sharpening revenue strategy, widening market reach and deepening digital monetisation. The mandate is clear: convert scale into sales and attention into advertising.
The move bolsters the streaming ambitions of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited as competition intensifies in India’s crowded OTT market. The focus will be on stronger advertiser tie-ups, smarter packaging and monetisation that keeps pace with shifting viewer habits.
Kapila arrives from JioStar India Pvt. Ltd., where as vice president – sports gamification he helped scale Jeeto Dhan Dhana Dhan into one of the country’s largest live play-along ecosystems. During the Indian Premier League and major international tournaments, the platform engaged over 300 million fans, blending branded integrations with sponsorship-led revenues.
The appointment also marks a homecoming. Across a 14-year earlier stint at the company, Kapila handled brand solutions across regions and genres, led key account management for the GEC cluster and oversaw programming and content acquisition at Zee Studio. Few executives have worked as many sides of the revenue engine.
For ZEE5, the signal is unmistakable: monetisation is back in the spotlight. With advertisers chasing measurable impact and platforms chasing profitability, Kapila’s brief is to make growth pay. In the streaming wars, scale is vanity, revenue is sanity, and momentum is everything.
