Programmatic ad-spend to grow 19% in 2019, reaching $84 billion: Report

65% of the digital media spends in 2019 will be traded programmatically, according to Zenith’s Programmatic Marketing Forecasts. Advertisers will spend $84 billion programmatically next year, up from $70 billion this year, which represents 62% of digital media expenditure. In 2020 it is predicted based on Zenith's research that advertisers will spend US$98bn on programmatic advertising, representing 68% of their expenditure on digital media advertising.

Growth in programmatic advertising is slowing down as it has established itself the most important method of digital trading. Zenith estimates that programmatic adspend will have 17% growth in 2020.

Homegrown apps like TakaTak, Moj & Josh make early gains

Short-video players ShareChat’s Moj, MX Player-owned TakaTak, and DailyHunt’s Josh have seen early gains on the back of the ban of TikTok in India. In terms of time spent per user, TakaTak leads the charts with 23 minutes, followed by 10 minutes for Moj, and 7.4 minutes for Josh.

State Bank of India joins JPMorgan’s blockchain-based payment network

The tie up is expected to reduce SBI customers’ transaction costs and time taken for payments, sources said. Time taken to resolve cross-border payments-related inquiries can be reduced to a few hours from up to a fortnight, they said. This will help cross-border payments reach beneficiaries faster and using limited steps. “We have undergone significant digital transformation in recent years and continue to add new technologies to create real value to daily operations,” said Venkat Nageswar, deputy MD – international banking group, SBI. “We are excited to be the first bank in India to go live on the network and look forward to closer partnership with JP Morgan on implementation and exploring applications as part of the network to better serve our clients.”A spokesperson said JPMorgan said it will expand its blockchain presence in India. The global bank’s blockchain technology — Liink — is meant for a peer-to-peer network, with financial institutions, corporates and fintech companies subscribing to it internationally. This enables users to make secure as well as peer-to-peer data transfers with greater speed and control. It also mitigates risks involved in cross-border transactions.SBI has integrated Liink into its operations to exchange payments-related information with other financial institutions.

https://bfsi.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/banking/state-bank-of-india-joins-jpmorgans-blockchain-based-payment-network/81164151

Theek Thaak: A home-grown social media app that’s making waves

When the TikTok app was banned last year, Saina Sodhi (a 17-year old UK school student) was further inspired to produce a homegrown version that can take its place and provide Indian youth with the kind of quality content they were missing. Accordingly, she founded her company, Saina Corporation, which launched its first product , the Theek Thaak app recently. Theek Thaak aims to be a destination for short form mobile videos. It wants to promote Indian regional artists, to allow them a chance to showcase their creative expression  ..The main features of the app include video editing and uploading tools, live streaming, reactions, social sharing, sounds, geo- location, Theek code scanner, etc, to be accessible to people across the country and overseas. Theek Thaak is available on every phone type, and it can be found on Apple and Android play stores.In addition to that, Theek Thaak comes in multiple languages. The application is currently available for use in eight different dialects, but Sodhi wants to further expand its reach, and intends to introduce 12 more regional languages with an app update that is now imminent. She believes that doing so will help her reach more of her target audience.

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/magazines/panache/theek-thaak-a-homegrown-social-media-app-thats-making-waves/articleshow/81220864.cms?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=PANACHE&type=panache&ncode=88e8d8ef83ca9d5f07679a90d20d0e5e

Netflix rolls out ‘Downloads For You’

Streaming giant Netflix has rolled out a new feature that will automatically download movies and TV shows. The new ‘Downloads for You’ feature will help users in situations where they find themselves stuck without Internet access or in a long commute. According to Mashable, previously, the Smart Downloads feature on Netflix would automatically delete the episodes a user has watched and would download the next episode of the said TV series. However, this left Netflix movies without an automatic download feature.Now, the new ‘Downloads For You’ feature will allow users to automatically download Netflix episodes and movies in order to watch later. This feature is only available for Netflix Android app for now and it is not known when iOS or iPadOS users will get the new feature. The ‘Downloads For You’ feature is an opt-in feature that can be turned on inside the Netflix app.

https://brandequity.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/digital/netflix-rolls-out-downloads-for-you/81187473

App spending to reach $270bn annually by 2025

Global consumer spending on premium apps, in-app purchases, and subscriptions across Apple’s App Store and Google Play will reach $270 billion annually by 2025, nearly 2.5 times what consumers spent in 2020 as Covid-19 accelerated mobile trends. According to data provided by app analytics firm Sensor Tower, Covid-19 supercharged global consumer spending in mobile apps during 2020, which climbed 30 per cent year-over-year to $111 billion.While year over year growth in spending will return to pre-pandemic levels over the next five years, gross revenue on both app stores will continue to climb each year with a 19.5 percent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) to reach $270 billion in 2025.The App Store will see a CAGR of 21 per cent through 2025, reaching $185 billion annually. Consumer spending on Google Play is projected to experience a 17 per cent CAGR, hitting $85 billion annually within the next five years. First-time downloads achieved their highest growth since at least 2016 in 2020, surging 24 per cent y/y to 143 billion. Although the pace of installs will slow as markets begin recovering from the pandemic, both the App Store and Google Play will continue experiencing stable y/y growth.By 2025, non-game apps will widen their lead even more, reaching $107 billion while mobile games will reach $78 billion.

https://telecom.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/app-spending-to-reach-270bn-annually-by-2025/81258424

Apple to launch India webstore next week

Apple Inc will roll out its own online shop in India, taking advantage of a 2019 legislation that significantly eased norms for single-brand retailers to sell directly to Indian consumers through physical and online channels.With this, the maker of iPhones and iPads will become the first foreign company to open its webstore in the country prior to rolling out any company-owned physical outlet, which was a precondition to sell online before the August 2019 relaxations of rules.India will be the 37th country where Apple will have its own ecommerce site.

https://cio.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/corporate-news/apple-to-launch-india-webstore-next-week-first-foreign-company-to-sell-online-before-offline/78179476

Online sales accelerate despite lockdown ending

India’s leading fast moving consumer goods companies such as Nestle, HUL, Parle Products, Amul, Reckitt Benckiser and Marico reported their highest ever online sales in the September quarter, as consumers continued to shop for grocery online despite lockdowns ending. Hindustan Unilever, the barometer for grocery demand in the country, said share of e-commerce to its total sales volume is close to 6% now compared to 3% in 2019, while the country’s largest packaged foods maker Nestle said its ecommerce channels grew by 97% and contributed 4% to its domestic sales. Consumers who began switching to online grocery shopping in peak lockdown months are unlikely to revert to supermarkets anytime soon, because of convenience and continued concerns about going to physical stores. Secondly, there is an entirely new set of consumers and categories which are fuelling online grocery sales.

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/industry/cons-products/fmcg/convenience-virus-fear-accelerate-online-sales-despite-lockdown-ending/articleshow/78982924.cms?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Morning-Dispatch&ncode=88e8d8ef83ca9d5fd7c4971ee955dfc1

Microsoft + NSDC to train 1 lakh Indian women in digital skills

Microsoft said it has collaborated with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) to impart digital skills to more than one lakh underserved women in India over the next 10 months. As part of the collaboration, more than 70 hours of course content will be made available free of cost, covering topics such as digital literacy, enhancing employability, nano entrepreneurship, and communication skills. This initiative is an extension of Microsoft’s partnership with NSDC to provide digital skills to over 1 lakh youth in the country. The (latest) partnership is focused on enhancing women’s workforce participation by equipping underserved young women from rural communities with the skills required to thrive in a digital economy.

https://cio.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/corporate-news/microsoft-nsdc-collaborate-to-empower-1-lakh-women-in-india-with-digital-skills/78924170

Tinder rolls out video calling feature in India

The popular dating App has rolled out a new feature to its users in India that will enable them to video call, when both parties have ‘liked’ each other on the App. “Just like matching, we want to make sure you’re on the same page with video: so Face to Face is enabled on a match-by-match basis. Once the conversation is flowing and you’re ready to show you’re interested in a Face to Face, tap the video icon,” said the company in a press statement. The feature won’t be enabled until both parties have opted in, specified the company. Further, it doesn’t notify either party when it is toggled on. It is said to come with an easy toggle off button as well.

https://www.gadgetsnow.com/tech-news/tinder-rolls-out-video-calling-feature-in-india/articleshow/78964269.cms?utm_source=newsletter&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=GN_daily_newsletter

Brands will opt for content over style in 2021

Talkwalker and HubSpot have jointly released a report titled ‘Social Media Trends 2021’. Stating how Covid-19 acted as a catalyst instead of an outcome, the report said that the mentions of the virus increased from nearly zero to around 1.2 billion in today’s time, which has in turn expedited issues, ideas and innovations for brands which may not have happened so soon had it not been for the crisis. Some of the trends are ‘brands will start to reposition themselves dramatically over the coming months, moving away from marketing methodologies, to more cause-driven messaging, The report said that 2021 is expected to be the year brands and social media channels focus on highlighting the truth, and silencing fake news. And empathy and advocacy will be elements that will be integrated within messages and purposes for creator campaigns.

https://brandequity.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/marketing/brands-are-expected-to-focus-on-content-over-style-in-2021-talkwalker-report/78928410

Microsoft & Eros Now to deliver internet to remote parts in India

Microsoft announced that it has successfully delivered the internet, in partnership with Eros Now as a pilot project, to the customers in the low-internet geographies in India. The month-long pilot project leveraged Microsoft Azure, content from Eros Now and commerce capabilities from Novopay, a digital transaction partner, to drive the reach in remote geographies, ensuring last-mile content delivery for browsing and downloading.

https://cio.economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/internet/microsoft-eros-now-deliver-internet-to-remote-parts-in-india/79033600