Mumbai : Media and advertising multinational Dentsu Aegis Network (DAN) is working towards integrating its two India operations — Dentsu India and Dentsu Aegis Media — into one company within the next six months to one year.
Ashish Bhasin, chairman and CEO, South Asia, at Dentsu Aegis Network, is expected to head the consolidated entity, top Dentsu officials said. Rohit Ohri, executive chairman at Dentsu India and CEO at Dentsu Asia Pacific (South), is likely to be shifted to Singapore, they said. DAN is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Dentsu Inc, formed after the Japanese advertising major acquired Britain’s Aegis Group in a $4.9-billion deal in 2012.
Nick Waters, CEO at DAN, Asia Pacific, declined to comment on this. “We do want to make further progress in bringing the business together in India as one Dentsu Aegis Network, as we have done around the world, and will continue to evolve our plans and discussions. These plans will evolve over time in such a way as to ensure the optimal outcome for our clients, people and our business,” Waters said.
Ohri also denied it. “The Dentsu Aegis restructuring was announced in end of 2013. No new restructuring is being done. I continue as CEO Dentsu APAC (South) and Chairman Dentsu India,” Ohri said.
Globally, Dentsu Network and Aegis Media combined to form Dentsu Aegis Network in January 2014. Ohri, then executive chairman of Dentsu India Group, was given additional responsibilities of CEO, Dentsu APAC South.
Bhasin, who was designated as chairman, India and CEO, Southeast Asia at Aegis Group, was appointed as chief executive officer of Dentsu Aegis Network South Asia.
“While Rohit Ohri is the face of the creative business, it is Ashish Bhasin who is responsible for the overall profit and loss of the network in India — both creative and media,” said a top Dentsu official.
Together, Dentsu India and Dentsu Aegis Media clock over Rs 2,000 crore of revenues. While Dentsu India is the creative arm of the network with agencies like Taproot India and Web Chutney in its bouquet, Dentsu Aegis Media is its media buying and planning division. It has got agencies like Carat, PS Live, Vizeum, iProspect, Isobaar and Posterscope under it.
