Universal Music launches new division 'U-bee'

After unveiling the first EDM music label, Universal Music Group India has further strengthened its brand with the launch of a new division ‘U-bee’ in its business development department. The new division is formalized to create brand anthems and corporate jingles for the clients. It is also associated with brands to create proprietary music for media exploitation which can be monetized through music sales. Universal Music India & SAARC MD Devraj Sanyal said, “The medium to large enterprises especially the SME segments are leaning on innovation as a big part of their brand plan. UMI's new vertical helps create brand anthems which will further fortify their branding using ‘Music’ as their medium. Apart from these songs being used in frontline and BTL advertising, the ability to use these pieces to actually generate revenue is phenomenal using UMGI's own networks, is an industry first as these songs sung by major artistes are also great compositions on their own”. Universal Music India digital & business development head Ashish Joshi said, “In today’s market, having a strong brand can significantly change the way your consumers see you. And music lends that strong impact to a brand. While the aim is to enhance brand recognition, memorability and throughout of advertisements, we will use our digital network and other media partnerships to create additional revenue stream for such brands.” UMGI has also been partnering with ad film production houses, media and communication agencies to provide music for television commercials using digital network and other media partnerships to promote the anthems.

How would you rate this year’s budget for media industry?

The budget is a great opportunity to build investors' sentiments and remove anomalies which is vital for growth. Last year, due to unfavorable global factors, India’s economy was largely affected. This year, the Finance Minister has proposed a fair bill which is for the most part populist in nature. It bodes well for new investors. For the IT industry however, this is a moderately encouraging bill and has made few strides in the development of the sector. Certain benefits we see that will accrue to the industry at large would be:

Equally significant is the fact that broadband penetration in India stands at just 1% as against the wireless tele density of 74%. With the national broadband plan envisaging 160 million broadband connections including 60 million wireless broadband connections by the year 2014. There does exist a need to support this growth path. Levy of zero service tax on internet and broadband service would certainly act as a catalyst in this process. The government must also spend on upgrading technology infrastructure in the country as well as invest heavily in e-governance. This will serve many purposes. It will create demand locally, bring efficiency and transparency to government, as well as improve education through e-learning. Service tax exemption on advertising on media platforms, excluding TV and radio, could result in availability of up to Rs 1,500 crore more to advertisers for spending on campaigns, according to industry experts. Given that marketing budgets of companies always take into account the service tax component, now there will be more money available to be spent on media other than TV and radio (which are not exempt from service tax). According to him, the total annual advertising spend in India is currently estimated at USD 5 billion (around Rs 26,000 crore), of which around 45 per cent is spent on television and radio. In the Budget for 2012-13 Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee announced that "selling of space or time slots for advertisements other than advertisements broadcast by radio or television" will come in negative list and will be exempt from 12 per cent service tax. The budget heralds good news for growing sectors like outdoor and digital. The service tax exemption would ultimately benefit the advertisers who spend a lot on outdoor and Internet. According to the 'Pitch Madison Media Ad Outlook 2012' (PMMAO) report the Indian media advertising industry has been pegged at Rs 25,594 crore in 2011. Government has taken proactive steps to reduce the cost of the 3G Handsets. For mobile productivity applications, we require penetration of good (3G) mobile data connection. If Government could provide sops to Telecom operators for providing 3G connectivity in Rural markets, it would increase the penetration of Mobile productivity applications like Education, Healthcare, Mgoverance. Like every year this year’s budget has also given the Indian citizens reasons to laugh and cry. Hope this government’s outlook to media and advertising industry would come out productive in more than one aspect.