ASCI elects Rajiv Dube as chairman

ASCI elects Rajiv Dube as chairman

MUMBAI: The Advertising Standards Council of India (ASCI) has unanimously elected Aditya Birla Management Corporation director-group corporate services Rajiv Dube as chairman of the board. He replaces director - IBS and outgoing ASCI chairman Dhananjay Keskar.

Said Keskar, "During the year 2009-10, ASCI celebrated its silver jubilee. ASCI has grown in stature, membership strength and recognition. A sustained public relations campaign has ensured growing awareness of ASCI among the stakeholders and also among the general public. We upgraded our website and made it interactive for a visitor to the site. This feature and introduction of a toll free number has simplified the process of lodging a complaint about an advertisement with ASCI. I am happy about the support ASCI have been receiving from the Ministry of Information & Broadcasting. Our efforts are appreciated by the Word Federation of Advertisers who have agreed to fund ASCI for the next three years to increase awareness of ASCI and to carry out the required market research."
 
 
Added Rajiv Dube, "I feel privileged and thankful to the board of governors of the Advertising Standards Council of India for providing me this unique opportunity for leading the movement on self regulation in advertising in the country. It‘s a humbling experience to be at the forefront of a 25 year old strong and growing initiative which has come to be looked upon by society and the government alike as the guardian for responsible advertising communication."

Meanwhile, TV Today executive director and CEO G Krishnan has been named vice chairman while GroupM CEO Vikram Sakhuja has been was re-appointed as the honorary treasurer.
 
 
The other members of the new board of governors are:

Advertisers: Narendra Ambwani (Johnson & Johnson), Shantanu Khosla (Procter & Gamble Hygiene & Health Care), Gopal Vittal (Hindustan Unilever).

Media: Bhaskar Das (Bennett Coleman & Co. Ltd.), Vikram Kaushik (Tata Sky Ltd.) and I Venkat (Eenadu).
 
 
Advertising Agencies: Subhash Kamath (BBH Comms India), Arvind Sharma (Leo Burnett) and Srinivasan Swamy (RK Swamy BBDO).

Allied Professions: Dilip Cherian (Perfect Relations), Dhananjay Keskar (IBS), Pranesh Misra (Brandscapes Consultancy P. Ltd.) and Partha Rakshit (Partha Rakshit Associates).

During the year 2009-10, the consumer complaints council (CCC) met 12 times and deliberated on complaints against 159 advertisements, informs ASCI. Of these, 87 complaints were upheld, while 72 were not. In 71 cases, the ads have been withdrawn or modified appropriately as per the CCC‘s decisions resulting in an 82 per cent compliance rate, ASCI claims.