The Hindu Business Line : Advertisers hit for a huge six

Media planners foresee a scenario where advertisers would be seeking compensation for the lack of audiences following India's lacklustre performance.

Mumbai March 24 With India losing to Sri Lanka on Friday, the advertising fraternity's worst nightmares have come true. Advertisers are gearing up to get compensated on their monies spent in the World Cup.

However, the official broadcaster SET Max is unruffled, claiming that it will not have to re-negotiate its deals in spite of audiences dipping by nearly 40 per cent after India's near exit from the 2007 World Cup.

Mr Rohit Gupta, Executive Vice-President, Ad Sales, SET Max, said, "All deals which have been signed will have to be honoured. There will be no negotiations based on India's performance. Advertisers will have to honour their commitments. It is not that we would have asked for higher rates if India were to win .''

Nevertheless, advertisers are feeling the pinch, since out of nine India-specific matches, the audiences just got to watch three. The Sansui brand, which has recently signed up Rahul Dravid as its brand ambassador, is taking a fortnight's break from television.

Memory tab

Says Mr Anil Khera, CEO, Sansui India, "We will take a fortnight's gap till people's memory fades and then get back to advertising our brand on television. Now people will watch cricket in a more relaxed way."

But Sansui is not doing away with Rahul Dravid. The electronics company has decided to continue the contract with the Indian captain for the next two years. "Rahul is the most dependable man in his team and we will continue our association with him," adds Mr Khera.

Other advertisers such as ITC, which had launched a snack brand on the eve of the World Cup and also has Sachin featuring in its new brand of Sunfeast biscuits, would be reviewing its advertising strategy.

According to Mr Ravi Naware, Divisional Chief Executive, Foods Division, ITC, "While we will continue to have Sachin in our ads, going forward we will evaluate our advertising strategy. We will re-consider whether we want to buy airtime on the channel and have to see whether we are getting the eyeballs for our brand."

However, media planners foresee a scenario where advertisers would be seeking compensation for the lack of audiences, following India's lacklustre performance.

Observes Mr Manish Porwal, Executive Director, Starcom MediaVest Group, "TV ratings will slip between 30 and 40 per cent. While exposure to the game will come down, the engagement quotient of the game will rise. At the same time, advertisers will go back to Sony to re-negotiate deals as they would feel the money spent has not been worth it."

India's performance would affect the returns on the investment made by advertisers, who would look for compensations.

Added Mr Prasanth Kumar, National Trading Director, Group M, "Advertisers will seek value for their returns. One would have to find solutions for them.'' As a spokesman for Nimbus, which is marketing air-time for Doordarshan, pointed out, it won't be able to charge a premium for ads now that India is virtually out.

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