Microsoft Advertising appoints Ybrant Digital to handle sales

Microsoft Advertising expands presence in cities outside Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, and Bengaluru.

Microsoft Corporation India has roped in Ybrant Digital, the digital marketing solutions company, as its sales agency. As part of the partnership, Ybrant Digital will handle the sales for the premium media properties owned by Microsoft for cities outside Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, and Bengaluru.

AIDEM Ventures, meanwhile, will continue to drive sales in Delhi-NCR, Mumbai, and Bengaluru.

Suresh Reddy, chairman and CEO of Ybrant Digital, says, "Ybrant will provide businesses with an option to advertise with premium media properties owned by Microsoft. We will ensure maximum RoI (Return on Investment) on the advertising rupee spent by our advertisers across the region."

Neville Taraporewalla, country director, advertising and online, Microsoft India, notes that the exponential growth of the internet is enabling digital lifestyles at a pace never seen before, and as a result today, an average Indian lives in an era of consumption on the go and increasing online conversations.

"Interestingly, Tier 2 cities are emerging as huge growth drivers, and this presents an opportunity for us to enable businesses to engage with their audiences in an effective and interactive manner like never before. Our tie-up with Ybrant Digital is well positioned to help us in this direction, and we are excited about the opportunities ahead," he says.

According to the ZenithOptimedia July 2011 study, the digital advertising market has grown by leaps and bounds in recent years crossing the $166 million mark in 2011, and is expected to reach $273 million by 2013. This growth is not just limited to metros, but has gone beyond and increasingly internet is being consumed in smaller towns and cities. In fact, of India's total internet population of 112 million, non-metro cities account for approximately 68 per cent (Source: IAMAI, I-Cube, 2011).

Founded in 2000 and headquartered in India, Ybrant Digital holds 20 offices worldwide, including in the US, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Uruguay, Mexico, the UK, France, Germany, Sweden, Ukraine, Serbia, Israel, China, India, and Australia, and with representatives or partners in Spain, Greece, and The Netherlands.

Ybrant Digital services leading brands including SAP, Porsche, Ford, UPS, Swissair, Chevrolet, 3M, Jeep, US Army, LaSalle and Lufthansa.

Besides proprietary media such as Lycos, Gamesville, getMedia in Latin America, and several travel websites in Australia, Ybrant Digital partners with global publishers such as Facebook, Google, MSN, Yahoo!, and Viacom, and assists over 140 top ad agencies including OMD, Carat, MediaCom, Group M, Quasar, Razorfish, Mindshare, Maxus, OmniCom and Oglivy, spread across Europe, the Americas, and Asia.