Each leaf of the calendar carries a border depicting the traditional fabric of the represented States alongwith a brief descriptive. The 12 page calendar depicts Taj Mahal of Uttar Pradesh, the back waters of Kerala, Lotus Temple of Delhi, Golden Temple of Amritsar, Mahabodhi Tree of Bodhgaya in Bihar, Tso-Moriri Lake of Ladakh, Kedarnath Temple of Uttaranchal, Victoria Memorial of West Bengal, Gurudongmar Lake of Sikkim, Hampi Ruins of Karnataka, Jaisalmer fort of Rajasthan and the National animal – Tiger.

The promotional calendars of the Ministry of Tourism of the Indian Government are widely distributed in India and Overseas, with the objective of promoting the tourism destinations and products of the country. They are sent to the trade and media in India and Overseas, Foreign Missions in India and Indian Missions Overseas, India tourism Offices in India and Overseas, etc.

Meanwhile, the India Promotion Calendar invited a severe criticism from the people of Gujarat which could not find any place in the Calendar.

“It is unfortunate” said a supporter of Gujarat Tourism adding “here in Gujarat you will discover centuries of history as spanning the geological core of the earth onto a fascinatingly vibrant future.”

Union Government led by Congress, should not play politics with its political rival BJP which rules Gujarat when promoting the country as a preferred tourist destination, said a tourist service provider from Gujarat.

It is said that Gujarat is unique in its geological and topographical landscape. From volcanic outpourings through bedrock to fossil fields of indegenous dinosaurs; from the art of the neolithic cave painter to the stone masterpieces of a series of civilized architecture. Gujarat has it all.

Earlier in 2010, noted actor Amitabh Bachchan had been roped to be the brand ambassador of the Gujarat Tourism. Since taking over the brand ambassador of Gujarat, Amitabh Bachahan promoted places like Kutch, Dwarka, Somnath and Gir National Park.

All these destinations are seeing double digit growth in tourist arrivals including 30 per cent increase in foreign tourists. In 2006-07, the figure stood at 1.27 lakh, which increased to 1.70 lakh in 2009-10. In 2010-11, nearly two lakh tourists arrived.

In the second phase of campaign, Bachchan is promoting places like Saputara, Ambaji, Adalaj step wells and the Buddhist circuit. Gujarat Tourism Corporation is expecting sharp increase in tourist arrivals for these places as well.

Over the next two years, the Gujarat Government will pump in Rs.650 crore towards developing tourism activities and promoting tourism infrastructure.

This article has been contributed by Abhijit MUKHOPADHYAY, CEO, IDS Technologies & IDSTPR

Recently Sony has launched this phone.

Atithi Devo Bhavah [Atithi devo bhavaḥ] (English: ‘The guest is God’ or ‘Guest become God’) is a Sanskrit verse, taken from an ancient Hindu scripture which became part of the “code of conduct” for Hindu society. Atithi Devo Bhavah regards a procedure of the Host-Guest relationship. Recently it has also become the tag line of India’s Ministry of Tourism’s campaign to improve the treatment of tourists in India; the Indian version of Peter Drucker’s customer satisfaction slogan, ‘The customer is king’.

India attracts millions of tourists each year, 3.3 million in 2003, but lags far behind other destinations. To attempt to improve the number of tourists travelling to India, the Tourism Department of India started the Atithi Devo Bhavah campaign with the theme The Incredible India.

‘Atithi Devo Bhavah’ is a Social Awareness Campaign aimed at providing the inbound tourist a greater sense of being welcomed to the country. The campaign targets the general public, while focusing mainly on the stakeholders of the tourism industry. The campaign provides training and orientation to taxi drivers, guides, immigration officers, police and other personnel who interact directly with the tourist.

Bollywood actor Aamir Khan was roped in as the brand ambassador of the ‘Atithi Devo Bhavah’ campaign for the Ministry of Tourism.

As the old saying goes, “Treat others as you would like to be treated yourself.” That is the essence of Atithi Devo Bhavah. It’s all about developing a sense of responsibility towards tourists in India and preserving India’s rich culture and heritage.

And for that to happen, there was a need to change the attitude towards tourists. There were vivid instances where the touch of hospitality was seen lost. It was hospitality on which India was known for. – The campain – Atithi Devo Bhavah was aimed to bring that warmth back.

Atithi Devo Bhavah was a seven point program of hospitality and training. The insight of seven points are hereunder:

Samvedan Sheelta or Sensitisation: Educate various sections of the tourism industry on how each one of them contributes to the growth of the tourism industry.

Prashikshan or Training and Induction: Teach people how to approach and interact with a tourist, as this forms the ‘moment of truth’ in any service industry.

Prerna or Motivation: Motivate people to participate in this programme through various measures e.g. awards/recognition for the best worker in the segment.

Pramani Karan or Certification: Certification to ensure that standards shall be maintained at all times in the training programme.

Pratipushti or Feedback: Obtain feedback from the tourists about the service they have received and the experience they’ve had.

Samanya Bodh or General Awareness: The mass media communication campaign will be undertaken to create general awareness among the public about the necessity and the benefits of the Atithi Devo Bhavah programme.

Swamitwa or Ownership: Adopt the Atithi Devo Bhavah movement as your own, fellow Indians, for many livelihoods are dependent on tourism.

The social campaign by the Ministry of Tourism, Government of India, Atithi Devo Bhavah has done a miracle for the ministry. The impact of this specific campaign can be measured based on two parameters – Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) in India and Foreign Exchange Earnings.

Foreign Tourist Arrivals (FTAs) during the Month of September, 2011 was 4.01 lakh as compared to FTAs of 3.69 lakh during the month of September, 2010 and 3.31 lakh in August, 2009. There has been a growth of 8.7 per cent in September, 2011 over September, 2010 as compared to a growth of 11.6  per cent registered in September 2010 over September, 2009. The growth of 8.7 per cent in September 2011 is higher than 5.3 per cent in August, 2011. FTAs during the period January-September, 2011 were 42.20 lakh with a growth of 10.0 per cent, as compared to the FTAs of 38.35 lakh with a growth of 8.0  per cent during January-September 2010 over the corresponding period of 2009.

Foreign Exchange Earnings (FEE) during the month of September 2011 were Rs. 5748 crore as compared to Rs. 4678 crore in September 2010 and Rs 3798 crore in September 2009. The growth rate in FEE in Rs terms in September 2011 was 22.9 per cent as compared to 23.2 per cent in September 2010 over September 2009. FEE from tourism in rupee terms during January-September 2011 were Rs. 53761 crore with a growth of 16.6 per cent, as compared to the FEE of Rs. 46115 crore with a growth of 22.7 per cent during January- September 2010 over the corresponding period of 2009.

FEE in US$ terms during the month of September 2011 were US$ 1208 million as compared to FEE of US$ 1015 million during the month of September, 2010 and US$ 785 million in September 2009. The growth rate in FEE in US$ terms in September 2011 over September 2010 was 19 per cent as compared to the growth of 29.3 per cent in September 2010 over September 2009. FEE from tourism in terms of US$ during January-September 2011 were US$ 11886 million with a growth of 18.7 per cent, as compared to US$ 10012 million with a growth of 30.5 per cent during January-August 2010 over the corresponding Period of 2009.

A proud to be Indian said, this is really a good initiative taken by the Government of India to improve India’s image. We Indians have very good ethics and moral values, but somewhere there is some glitch caused due to increasing westernization and broadcast explicit media on television. All we need is a refurbishment and revival of our moral ethics and this is being done very well through the campaign – Atithi Devo Bhavah.

After many instances of foreign women being raped in India were observed, foreign visitors got discouraged. To repair India’s tarnished image, Atithi Devo Bhavah campaign with brand ambassador film actor Aamir Khan was initiated to increase people’s awareness which is now paying dividend.

[This article has been contributed by Abhijit MUKHOPADHYAY, CEO, IDSTPR (http://www.idstonline.com)]

‘Atithi Devo Bhavah’ campaign proves ‘The Customer is King’

When almost all Indian television channels and telecom service providing companies are making money on the response to the anti-corruption movement by Anna Hazare, Gujarat based Info Data Soft Technologies [popularly known as IDS Technologies] (www.idstonline.com) has found it an innovative way by developing an interactive game to engage people to fight against corruption.

The soon to be launched game which is on trial run, would require intelligence of the gamer where the person would be unearthing the various scams and corruptions already fed into the library of the game.

Christened as “Ralegame” (Ralegam is a small village in Maharashtra which is the work place of Anna Hazare),  the game can be played on major Operating Systems like Linux,  Mac OS X, Microsoft Windows,  Solaris, Unix including IBM and Google Chrome. The Ralegame is also compatible with Mobile applications like Android, BlackBerry OS, Embedded Linux, iphone, Palm OS, Symbian and Windows Mobile.

The game – Ralegame – came as an inspiration from the huge mass support to Anna Hazare to fight against corruption. The mass movement is very similar to the 8^th century old English heroic poem – Beowulf. In this saga, Beowulf, a hero of the Geats, battles three antagonists: Grendel, who has been attacking the resident warriors of the mead hall of Hroogar (the king of the Danes), Grendel’s mother, and an unnamed dragon. After the first two victories, Beowulf goes home to Geatland in Sweden and becomes king of the Geats.

Beowulf is considered an epic poem in that the main character is a hero who travels great distances to prove his strength at impossible odds against supernatural demons and beasts having very much resemblance with Anna Hazare. Anna Hazare is also putting all his energy, strength and stamina to fight against corruption prevailing in the society. The poet who composed Beowulf, while objective in telling the tale, nonetheless uses a certain style to maintain excitement and adventure within the story while Anna’s fight against corruption is also full of excitement and adventurous.

The person, who would like to play Ralegame, would first indentify himself / herself and then would use an avatar of Anna Hazare who has been projected as a crusader against demons called “corruption” and “scam”.  Anna Hazare who in real life an Indian Army veteran, has been vested all power from the masses and equipped with huge arms and ammunitions including artilleries to unearth the scam and punish the real culprit behind the scam immediately.

The gamer have to use his / her strategic intelligence to unearth the scam he / she choose. The domestic version of the game is packed with all major scams starting from 1948 to latest Commonwealth Games Scam. The library includes scams like Jeep Purchase (1948), BHU Funds (1956), Mundhra Scandal (1957), Teja Loans (1960), Kuo Oil Deal (1976), HDW Commissions (1987), Bofors Pay-Off (1987), St Kitts Forgery (1989), Airbus Scandal (1990), Securities Scam (1992), Indian Bank Rip-off (1992), Sugar Import (1994), JMM Bribes (1995), Telecom Scam (1996), Fodder Scam (1996), Urea Deal (1996), CRB Scam (1997), Vanishing Companies Scam (1998) to IPO Demat Scam (2005), Scorpene Submarine Scam (2005), Punjab City Centre Project Scam (2006), Taj Corridor Scam (2006), Hassan Ali Tax default (2008), The Satyam Scam (2008), Army ration pilferage scam (2008), The 2-G Spectrum allocation scam (2008), Illegal money in Swiss Bank (2008), Orissa and Karnataka Mining Scams (2009), Madhu Koda Scam (2009) to latest Commonwealth Games Scam.

The beauty of the Ralegame is that each scam is having a money tag. The more the scams are unearthed and culprits are punished, the user will have a chance to win more and more points. Here points are not only mere points or virtual currency, points can be encashed by converting into physical and real currency and not cash in virtual. IDS Technologies, with support from various sponsor and partners, would send the money through a bank cheque as a payment directly to the postal address of the gamer.

The NASSCOM-E&Y study shows that the global gaming market was estimated at USD 36 billion in 2008 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 10.5 per cent to reach USD 53.6 billion by 2012. The Indian gaming industry was estimated at USD 167 million in 2008 and is forecasted to grow at a CAGR of 49 per cent to reach USD 830 million by 2012

In 2008, the console gaming segment is estimated to account for the largest share of the Indian gaming market, followed by mobile gaming, online gaming and PC gaming. In 2012, console gaming is expected to retain market share and still account for the largest share of the Indian gaming market, followed by mobile gaming, online gaming and finally PC gaming.

Industry insiders opine that in the next two years, this market will grow faster with the arrival of games based on local stories.

After Mumbai attack in 2008, we have seen various gaming companies have developed games keeping in mind the social plot where portraying terrorist Ajmal Kasav as a villain.

This article has been contributed by Abhijit MUKHOPADHYAY, CEO, IDS Technologies & IDSTPR

Yahoo! India has opened entries to the second annual Big Idea Chair awards. With over 183 entries last year, the Big Idea Chair awards invite contributions by clients, agency strategists, media gurus and individuals who have creatively leveraged the digital advertising platform. The award ceremony will be held in October 2011 in New Delhi. Agencies can submit their entries by 5 September 2011.

Yahoo! India said, “Celebrating the quest for innovative and impactful advertising campaigns, the Big Idea Chair, a global initiative by Yahoo!, recognizes some of the best work by the online advertising community and also fosters creative excellence that enabled marketing excellence in digital advertising. Advertising agencies can submit entries that have included the use of the Internet as part of their media mix strategy over the last twelve months. All entries will be adjudged on creativity, proven results and flawless execution.”

This year’s Big Idea Chair award will have  nine award categories:   Best Use of Display Advertising; Best Online Video Advertising;Best Use of Social Media;Best Use of Technology (on the internet or mobile); Digital 360° Award (implemented on all digital channels including display, search, social, mobile);Best Use of Mobile Advertising; Best Use of Search; Best Use of Regional Languages; and the Yahoo! Big Idea Chair Award.

For more information regarding the Big Idea Chair and to send in entries, visit http://www.bigideachair.in.

Let’s do a role play today.  No..no, I am not taking about the same role play which we often perform in the chat rooms. This could be a role play for communications and public relations specialists who are serious about managing the reputation of their respective brands during a crisis situation.

Think of a scenario. This scenario is having a direct link with the ongoing tussle between the Indian Government led by the Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh and the Civil Society led by Mr. Anna Hazare. The background of the tussle runs like this:

India is indeed in a serious need of an Anti-Corruption Law. Now, to have a strong and effective anti-corruption law, under pressured Government has constituted a committee comprising of five members from the Government side and five members from Civil Society. After series of meeting and discussion, both the agitating sides came out with two different drafts of the proposed bill. The Indian Cabinet pushed the draft before the Indian Parliament which has been prepared by the representatives from the Government rejecting the draft prepared by the Civil Society.  The Cabinet, however, included many effective points from the draft of the Civil Society before forwarding it to the Parliament for enactment of the Act.

Now, not satisfying with the rejections of the six vital sections to be included in the proposed Act, Civil Society led by Mr. Anna Hazare triggered a nationwide agitation. He effectively used media, both print and electronic, ATL and BTL campaigns to mobilize masses in his support and demand.

The Government, on the other hand, which has to work under a Constitutional and legal framework, cannot but accept all suggestions from the Civil Society. Above all, it is the Parliament and Legislations which decide to pass or reject a bill before getting it enacted.

The Government wishes to stress that the issue before India is not whether a Lok Pal Bill (popular name of the Government’s draft) is necessary or desirable. All of elected representatives have agreed that a Lok Pal Bill must be passed as early as possible. The question is, who drafts the law and who makes the law? The Prime Minister of India submits that the time-honoured practice is that the Executive drafts a Bill and places it before the Parliament and that Parliament debates and adopts the Bill with amendments if necessary. In the process of adoption of the Bill, there will be opportunities for the members of the Civil Society including Mr. Anna Hazare and others to present their views to the Standing Committee to which this Bill has been referred by the Speaker of the Lower House of the Indian Parliament. The Standing Committee as well as Parliament can modify the Bill if they so desire.

As wished sections are not included in the proposed bill, Mr. Anna Hazare and his team, threatened Government to go for an indefinite hunger strike against the Government until and unless the bill proposed by the Civil Society is passed by the Parliament.

After that, Government using and flexing its own muscle, imposed prohibitory orders on the venue of the fast. Without taking a chance Government arrested Mr. Anna Hazare and some top leaders of the team before they start their indefinite fast.

Hang on, I am not here to tell you what happened between the Government of India and Mr. Anna Hazare. All media channels are covering it.

Let’s now start the role play.

Imagine that you are the Chief Executive of your company with a very reputed brand. As a Chief Executive, you have control of money, power etc. At the same time, you have to work under a constitution of the organization. Also think that one of your stake holders has mobilized a campaign against you or the brand that you manage using various communication channels and exploring various means.

This is a very ideal situation for Communications or Public Relations professionals to manage the crisis and to bring it under control without causing much damage to the reputation of the brand.

The situation mentioned above, is very much similar to the context of the tussle between the Government and Team Anna. The face-off between the Government and Team Anna would leave us a huge management lessons on how to mobilize masses with you against the authority, how to use the media effectively and how to generate maximum RoI (Return on Investment) or “brownie points” without spending a single penny. On the other hand, it was a total calamity and disaster for the Government’s communication machinery which collapsed. No representatives from the Government were seen to address or brief the media during the high-voltage drama despite the fact the basic thumb rule during the crisis is to “tell it all and tell it fast.”

Given this situation, we are expecting our readers to contribute and comment how to manage the crisis of this magnitude. We are also expecting our readers to explain, how only strengthening communication machinery could have helped the organization to overcome the crisis.

This article has been contributed by Abhijit MUKHOPADHYAY, CEO, IDSTPR (http://www.idstonline.com)

India’s leading passenger car manufacturer Maruti Suzuki India Limited is all set to unveil the new version of its bestselling Swift model when the entire Automobile industry in India is crippling due to economic slow-down.

The new Swift which is scheduled to be launched on August 17, is based on an entirely new platform with new dimensions and added features, is expected to be longer (by 2.4 per cent), lighter and more spacious than the present variant. The new Swift’s petrol variant will run around 20 km per litre, while the new diesel Swift will boast of a mileage of 23 km per litre.

The Indian Automobile industry which got a hard hit because of recent economic slow down has sometimes registered a negative growth. The waiting period after booking a car has also got reduced from earlier more than 60 days to mere next business day for many branded car.

Car manufacturing companies are blaming rising fuel price and costlier auto loans for this sluggish market.

The major banks in India have already hiked the lending rates of auto loans. Very recently, HDFC Bank has increased its base rate from 10 per cent from earlier 9.5 per cent while its PLR has been revised from earlier 18 per cent to 18.5 per cent.  The move by HDFC Bank comes soon after two of its competitors-State Bank of India (SBI) and ICICI Bank-announced hike in lending rates. SBI, the country’s largest bank, has raised base rate to 10 per cent and its PLR to 14.75 per cent while ICICI Bank too has raised its base rate to 10 per cent.

Industry sources said, in India passenger car market is dominated by small cars. Almost 75 per cent of the passenger car market is under control of three majors – Maruti, Hundai and Tata Motors which manufacturer small cars too. With the growing pressure on fuel price and auto loan, the middle class who mainly opt for small cars has restrained themselves which jolted the small car manufacturers.

Apart from these three majors, the overall sales have increased for others. Automobile industry sources opine, these car sales are not much in volume with respect to Maruti-Hundai-Tata putting together. Some of them have entered into India very recently and thus their sales are so minimum to count. Apart from this, some companies are purely into commercial vehicle manufacturing.

Though overall car sales during the last one year has gone down, Maruti claims the sales of two more admired cars Swift and Dzire have gone down because of some other reason. Maruti was gearing up for the revamped model of Swift and so, it has discontinued the production of old Swift while its Manesar plant in Gurgaon where Dzire used to get produced was locked out due to labour problem. Similarly, General Motors has also suffered due to labour problem at its Halol plant in Gujarat.

Maruti’s decision to upgrade its best-selling model can be seen as its attempt to retain and expand its stronghold on the small car segment which has off-late seen a slew of launches by global and home-grown automobile giants.

Meanwhile, General Motors India has announced, it planned to increase production capacities at both its Halol and Talegaon units, investing $500 million over two years. The production capacity at its Halol plant in Gujarat is being expanded from its present 85,000 units to 110,000 units. Production capacity at its Talegaon plan would also be increased. The company has launched its Chevrolet Beat Diesel and eyes a sale of 4,500 units per month despite the sluggish market.

Industry experts believe that the Indian automobile market to remain sluggish. Inflation is rising and the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the apex bank in India, is expected to hike its repo and reverse repo rates, which will push up interest rates. Much of auto sales are loans-driven and an interest rate hike will affect the market. “We don’t expect the market to take-off before the festival season which starts sometime in late September,” the expert concluded.

[This article has been authored by Abhijit MUKHOPADHYAY, CEO, IDSTPR (http://www.idstonline.com)]

Agencies, AUGUST 15, 2011 – Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG) and Motorola Mobility Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: MMI) today announced that they have entered into a definitive agreement under which Google will acquire Motorola Mobility for $40.00 per share in cash, or a total of about $12.5 billion, a premium of 63% to the closing price of Motorola Mobility shares on Friday, August 12, 2011. The transaction was unanimously approved by the boards of directors of both companies.

The acquisition of Motorola Mobility, a dedicated Android partner, will enable Google to supercharge the Android ecosystem and will enhance competition in mobile computing. Motorola Mobility will remain a licensee of Android and Android will remain open. Google will run Motorola Mobility as a separate business.

Larry Page, CEO of Google, said, “Motorola Mobility’s total commitment to Android has created a natural fit for our two companies. Together, we will create amazing user experiences that supercharge the entire Android ecosystem for the benefit of consumers, partners and developers. I look forward to welcoming Motorolans to our family of Googlers.”

Sanjay Jha, CEO of Motorola Mobility, said, “This transaction offers significant value for Motorola Mobility’s stockholders and provides compelling new opportunities for our employees, customers, and partners around the world. We have shared a productive partnership with Google to advance the Android platform, and now through this combination we will be able to do even more to innovate and deliver outstanding mobility solutions across our mobile devices and home businesses.”

Andy Rubin, Senior Vice President of Mobile at Google, said, “We expect that this combination will enable us to break new ground for the Android ecosystem. However, our vision for Android is unchanged and Google remains firmly committed to Android as an open platform and a vibrant open source community. We will continue to work with all of our valued Android partners to develop and distribute innovative Android-powered devices.”

The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including the receipt of regulatory approvals in the US, the European Union and other jurisdictions, and the approval of Motorola Mobility’s stockholders. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2011 or early 2012.

About Google Inc.

Google’s innovative search technologies connect millions of people around the world with information every day. Founded in 1998 by Stanford Ph.D. students Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google today is a top web property in all major global markets. Google’s targeted advertising program provides businesses of all sizes with measurable results, while enhancing the overall web experience for users. Google is headquartered in Silicon Valley with offices throughout the Americas, Europe and Asia. For more information, visit www.google.com.

About Motorola Mobility

Motorola Mobility Holdings, Inc. fuses innovative technology with human insights to create experiences that simplify, connect and enrich people’s lives. Our portfolio includes converged mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets; wireless accessories; end-to-end video and data delivery; and management solutions, including set-tops and data-access devices. For more information, visit motorola.com/mobility.

The new smartphone from Android will run on Android 2.2 (Froyo). It`s 3.2 inch touchscreen is a jump from 2.8 inch in A60. However, the resistive screen still persists which is a big turn off.

In contrast to Andro A60, Micromax A70 comes with a much better 5MP camera. In terms of connectivity, the phone supports 3G, WiFi, GPRS and Bluetooth. For satisying the music lovers, the phone is said to have a multi-format music player along with FM Radio. Apart from Android being its OS, the phone also comes with a Java support.

The device is powered by a 1450mAh battery and provides around 4 hours of talk-time and around 200 hours of standby time. Other details of the phone are not known yet.

Features:

• Android 2.2 (Froyo)
• 5 MP Camera
• 8.1cms Full touch capacitive screen
• 3G Enabled
• 32GB Expandable Memory
• GPS
• MiFi (Pocket wireless internet)

Creative Agency: Lowe Lintas, India

A brand’s successfulness is not largely dependent on logo but on its people and products, but brand’s acceptance and popularity is dependent on its logo, tagline.

The responses on Airtel new logo is such we can barely say ‘mixed response’. Fonearena’s poll of 1300 people, where only 35% liked it and whooping 51% disliked new logo.

Large number of people on Twitter found the logo non appealing, missed the old connect feeling with brand. On Twitter you find some very strong discontent and very funny rant on the logo.

Airtel explained this new logo as part of launching a global campaign that would re-brand its operations across the world. Airtel said logo represents dynamism and the warm and friendly appeal of Airtel.

So here are few questions which likely to pop in every one’s mind?

1. Why this logo and re-brand exercise?

2. How this logo represents the global re-branding of Airtel?

Before getting in much detail on these questions, let’s have quick facts on Airtel.

·  India’s No.1 cellular service Provider Company

·  Reached 200 million customers across globe

·   Acquired Zain Telecom and pacing in Africa Operations,

higher priority for Africa Operations as the market So lets find difference between two Airtel logos.

This logo has ‘Airtel’ written in specifically designed type face. And how you identify this

logo without ‘Airtel’ text is its color code “Red, White and Black”.

New Logo:

This logo has a symbol of something which all are trying to decipher. (I have contacted Robert Langdon to give more details on the same J)

Here also there is specifically designed type face for ‘Airtel’ text. But n this logo if I remove the text, I still identify the logo from its ‘symbol’.

Quick summary:

Can we say new logo will helpful to re-brand Airtel?

I think, YES. Countries in which Airtel is expanding its operations, the old logo with ‘Airtel’ in English typeface can be a barrier for the brand recognition.

And a new logo, which is based on symbol, will certainly be more recognizable globally.

It is always preferable to create brand logos Language independent, and independent of intellectual. [ In my CAPTCHA research if the puzzles have shapes instead of English Characters, humans are comfortable to solve it and don't feel annoyed on CAPTCHA puzzles]

In a nutshell, a brand logo should be something ‘Ishaan Awasthi’ can understand, ‘John Dalton’ can identify at any time.

Concluding with few questions:

Which technology company’s logo is by far most favorite of all? [My personal  favorite brand ..! ]

And which popular logo brings naughty smile to your face? [I see lot of gray market t-shirts with this logo.]

Both companies don’t use any type face in their logo, and that is a powerful brand logo, language independent, intellectual level independent and universal.

Old Airtel logo and tune has strong branding and bonding with people. New logo and tune is facing bad critics.! Will this re-branding ultimately be un-branding for Indian customers ? Share your thoughts.

Finally,  Popular brands make logos popular not vice versa!!

Article contributor :  Arpan Desai, http://dndcaptcha.blogspot.com