• The real inflation

    And the nation cringes as the inflation goes way beyond 8%, and threatens to go even more. A litre of petrol, which was about Rs.20, when i first started using it, now costs well over Rs.50.
    I remember the kind of vehicles that used to accompany mine in the petrol stations. A few Ambassadors and Fiats, on their way to extinction, a lot of Maruti- the normal 800 as well as Omnis and the occasional Esteem, and mostly two wheelers. The scene has changed with global brands vying for the customer’s attention. So we have the Hyundais and Fords and Chevrolets and Skodas bringing out bigger and costlier cars that are aimed to showcase its user’s affluence and highlight his standing, which is er, a little above that of his peers.?
    Of course, the way he behaves on the road would make you doubt this premise.I have very often, in the course of conversations, heard the owners of the big cars complaining about how their cars guzzle fuel. And how they feel the pressure when the petrol prices go up. And i have always wondered that even if we manage to control inflation, will we ever find a way to control inflated egos.

    until next time, pricks… for the ego

  • Local Portals

    I came across this today – a local site for Kolkata – I Love Kolkata.com, powered by the ABP group. The site for Kolkata Mirror had been launched a while back, though the paper itself has not been launched in the market. The first two pages of a google search threw up only one other contender for a complete city portal – that was Calcutta Web.

    As far as design goes, ILK is quite ahead of the other two. I also liked the ILK usage, which also means ‘people of a specific kind’, in addition to being an acronym for ‘I Love Kolkata’. The site has the regular news coverage, and blogs as well as city info. In comparison, the KM site does look a bit haphazard, but as per the WAT article, this is only a ‘primitive avatar’. The Calcutta Web site is way down on the design parameter, and is an aggregator of news from all the city’s newspapers and has city info.

    But wait, this is not about design. What i want to discuss is the content. While its a given that a newspaper site should have the news stories it carries in its print edition, does it always have to try to be a city portal and a blog platform. In its print version, the newspaper is a one stop shop for most readers and their first source of info on most things to do with the city. For the newspaper too, classifieds are a big source of revenue. But, will a net user rely or expect the news site to carry information like say listings or dine out options, or will he rely on a vertical like eventsbangalore or burrp for that? Yes, it does dependent on the maturity level of the user, but thats a dynamic thing.

    User generated content. Will only discuss blogs for now. Will an existing blogger switch to a newspaper blogging platform? Will the new user stick on to it after he discovers that there are platforms for whom constant improvement of services is a competency, unlike newspaper sites that lets you create blogs. The other point to note before taking a decision on this is an informal but very informative research done here. While the figures are the result of a lot of mashups, and may not be spot on, the fundamental logic is right. According to this, the percentage of creators is a dismal 4%. India seems to be a country of spectators. At this stage of the internet in India, is is wise to waste pixel space on a non core competency?

    Yes, in evolved internet landscapes, it is possible to have excellent user blogs like this, on a newspaper based site, or even something as ‘adventurous’ as this. But in india, is it better for media websites to stick to a CNN IBN model? That would give some exclusive content, with a built in quality control. Once the net evolves, UGC can be scaled up accordingly. For now, isn’t it better to use the web as a base to build solid equity and credibility on a digital platform and figure out ways to use the interactivity factor that the net provides to showcase different perspectives on existing content?

    Now, you might say that in a news overloaded internet space, why would anyone want to visit a newspaper site for news. I guess, traditional media still rides on a credibility factor.

    until next time, click to print, no its the other way 🙂

    PS. Saw another local portal in the making for Bangalore – mybangalore.com

  • Mobilisation

    For those in India who look forward to the internet taking a major stake in ad spends, this (via PluggdIn) cannot be music to your ears. While the internet spend has grown by over 90% in 2007, as far as absolutes go, its a mere 2% in the overall media spend. And with the total figures increasing for all media, its a case of the rich getting richer, and the poor getting much lesser than what they deserve. Ironically, The Times Group finds a place among the top spenders on the net.

    In this report, mobile has been included under digital which has internet, search and mobile. I think its only a matter of time before it becomes a separate category altogether. Like i have written earlier, the mobile is poised to become the internet’s saviour in India. Which is one of the reasons why I’d consider this news very significant – Yahoo has announced a tie up with Idea and MTNL for mobile advertising as well as One search. The SMS search was launched late last year. And if we go by the interesting stuff that Yahoo has been doing globally, the space is bound to throw up some fun stuff considering that Yahoo can leverage all its content from mail to messenger to social media on this platform. (Remember the Reliance-Yahoo Messenger ad?)

    Meanwhile, their friends at Google have not been idle either. Their SMS search was launched just before Yahoo. Their deal with Airtel was also well hyped and they have also launched a voice based local search earlier this year. (while on that, this one – Ubona is an interesting service in Bangalore)

    Also, its not just the web giants who are fighting for the mobile advertising pie. One example would be Nokia’s acquisition of Enpocket, which already services a few clients in India. And in this context, one cannot afford to ignore the major happening in october (hopefully) and the impact it would have on internet access via mobile.

    until next time, net losses

  • Driven

    Its been a while since 1983. 25 years, and as the car maker which transformed the Indian automobile scene with their very first car in that year, its reason enough to celebrate. And the new TVC does justice to that. From the now almost extinct original Maruti 800, which was a bestseller till 2004, to the Swift, the car with the highest sales figures in 2006, its been a long road, with Omni, Maruti 1000, Zen, Baleno, Alto, Esteem, Gypsiy, SX4, Versa, Vitara and a divestment all packed in between.

    While i partially agree with this – the ‘local’ all encompassing big brand concept that has been used by many other brands succesfully has been used here too, I think the timing could not have been better. With Chevrolet, Ford, Skoda, Toyota, Honda, Renault etc and the other desi Tata, coming out with models and talking about everything from fuel efficiency to attitude, it was time to hit India with something that rarely fails – an emotion packed family drama which would trigger bouts of nostalgia.

    And it does well, with some excellent camerawork that takes you from the modern jet setting India, to a typical, traditional Kerala temple procession scene, complete with elephants, to the timeless ‘papa impatiently waiting at the gate for the daughter who’s late’ and an armed forces mountain terrain scenario, from the usage as the proxy school van to a hitchhiker asking for a lift to reach home in time for Diwali, all with the different brands that have got it a 6.5 million customer base; a really hummable theme music, that I hope they will retain for some time, and a powerful line ‘India comes home in a Maruti Suzuki’.

    In essence, a stance that befits a market leader of ethnic origin with the best distribution and service chain in the country, which has consistently worked on its products and has decided to use a communication that took me back to some wonderful times and trips in a Maruti 800, one that I’m sure would have the same effect on millions of Indians, and who in their next car purchase decision, are sure to remember an old companion.

    until next time, a Capital idea

  • A Prisoner of Birth

    Jeffrey Archer

    Lord Archer hits the bulls eye.. again. Loosely resembling the classic ‘The Count of Monte Cristo’, this book belongs to the league of his earlier works ‘Kane and Abel’, ‘As the Crow Flies’ etc. Watch out for the awesomely written court room scenes in the climax. I really wish this would be made into a film. The character of Nick Moncrieff makes me wonder about its inspiration. Other than the brilliant twists and turns that usually characterises his work, I also liked the showcasing of an old world charm in this book – Mr.Munro, Sir Matthew Redmayne, Mr.Arnold Pearson, characters who believe in fairness, who respect not just the law, but the spirit of the law. An excellent read, and yes, there is a sweet twist in the tail. 🙂

    Spoiler Alert- Please read only after you’ve finished the book. While i have said ‘loosely resembling The Count of Monte Cristo, notice the subtle reworking of the plot. While the original plot was based on the love for the central female character, in this one the plot is set in motion by Spencer’s lust for Beth. While Edmond Dantes escapes from prison by replacing a dead body, whose secret he uses to find the treasure, in this case Danny uses his physical resemblance with Nick to switch identities and escape, and then uses Nick’s inheritance.