The new ad world order

WITH THE OMNICOM-IPG DEAL MARKING AN END TO MARQUEE CREATIVE BRANDS, INDIA'S ADVERTISING INDUSTRY IS GRAPPLING WITH NEW UNCERTAINTIES

- CHRISTINA MONIZ

OMNICOM'S MUCH-TALKED ABOUT global takeover of the Interpublic Group (IPG) was expected to create upheaval in the advertising business, making the holding company the world’s largest advertising network by revenue.

But, in its wake, the network has decided to relegate three iconic advertising agency brands to the history books — DDB, MullenLowe and FCB.

In India, these brands join the ranks of other agency names that defined the country’s advertising character in the 1980s and 1990s such as Lintas, Mudra and Ulka, all of which were absorbed by global networks in past decades. While FCB Ulka and DDB Mudra have been retired by Omnicom, Lintas has been given a new lease of life. The deal has revived the brand alongside TBWA, rebranded as TBWA/Lintas.

However, industry leaders are sceptical. Says Ashish Bhasin, founder, The Bhasin Consulting Group, & former APAC CEO for Dentsu, “The sad consequence of these consolidations is for brands like Lintas, which is huge in a market like ours. Currently, the new structure makes it TBWA/Lintas but we know that eventually the Lintas brand will probably be retired. It is unfortunate that advertising firms that are best known for their brand building abilities somehow don't seem to be able to sustain their own brands.”