Business News

• Published in: Business today (New Delhi, India) India), 2006-06, p.15-32
• Main Authors: Chandramouli, Balaji, Malik, Aman, Sachitanand, Rahul, Carvalho, Brian, Gopalan, Krishna, Shukla, Archna, Sharma, E Kumar, Mukherjee, Ritwik, Agrawal, Shaleen, Dagar, Shalini S, Bajaj, Kapil
• Format: Magazinearticle
• Language: English
• Subjects: Ambani, Mukesh; Emerging markets; Interest rates; Market penetration; Petroleum industry; Public sector; Stock exchanges; Tax reform; Wage & price controls
• ISSN: 0974-3650

Advertisers confirm his claim. According to media buyers, ESPN star Sports is charging Rs 80,000-1,00,000 for a 10-second spot, almost 70-80 per cent more than World Cup 2002, and nobody is complaining. Says Anita Nayyar, Managing Director, Starcom (North India and Pakistan), a media buying agency: "Soccer is gradually emerging as a popular sport among niche male audiences; this group is the most difficult one to catch on TV." Indeed, TRPs for soccer in recent years have seen a consistent rise and ranged between one and three for English Premier League and Spanish Primera Liga matches. "The FIFA World Cup in 2002 reached a cumulative audience of 30.3 million in India and the finals got a rating of 9.1, which is comparable to One-day cricket," says Venkateish. "We expect it to be even better this time," adds Nayyar. "There has been a latent demand in India for good sport events other than cricket. We, as the official sponsors of the FIFA World Cup, are providing an alternative to sports enthusiasts in India," says Andreas Gellner, Managing Director, Adidas. Coca-Cola and Adidas are adding to the buzz by running football-related contests; the prize: a ticket to Germany to watch the World Cup and play in a parallel soccer event. Football is still nowhere near the league of cricket in India, but media buyers say companies will spend about Rs 50-80 crore on World Cup-related marketing initiatives over the next month. The railway ministry has set up an independent cell for public private Partnership (PPP) to raise Rs 1,50,000 crore by 2015. The money will be used to part finance the Railways' 11th Plan outlay of Rs 3,50,000 crore. The cell will work independently as a separate mini-ministry and will prepare the conceptual and policy framework for the PPP, a senior railway ministry official says. The official is quick to clarify that PPP should not be confused with privatisation. "In a Left-supported coalition, one should not talk of privatisation," he adds. The PPP cell will be headed by J.P. Batra, Chairman of the Railway Board, and will have two joint secretary-level officers and four to six director-level bureaucrats. The ministry is looking for people to fill up these positions.