Fast moving consumer goods firm (FMCG) Hindustan Uniliver has been planning to set up a media lab in the country in an as yet undecided location, sources aware of the development told Deccan Herald.
It is understood that the blueprint for the media lab project was prepared, but later put on hold for some reason.
A HUL spokesperson did not confirm or deny plans for the media lab and why the project has been put on hold.
In an emailed reply, the spokesperson said, “As a policy, we do not comment on market speculation.”
Unilever had inaugurated its global Enterprise Support and Information Technology (IT) Innovation Centre in Bangalore last month which will provide technical and logistical support to its various product marketing divisions, both domestic and global.
“Unilever is streamlining operational processes and leveraging technology to win in the market – through a better connection with consumers and customers driving cost-efficient business operations, enabling employees to work in an agile & collaborative manner and reducing its environmental impact,” the company said of its IT Innovation Centre.
The Centre will be the largest operating facility for Unilever and will support HUL as well as global Unilever business. In the e-commerce space, the company has tied up with a team, though no progress has been recorded yet, sources said.
In a bid to widen its market share, HLL has been flagging a plethora of new market penetration initiatives for its products across the gamut of detergents, toilet soaps and shampoos, supported by technological platforms like SMS-based marketing.
HUL recently carried out a campaign based on the "missed call" concept for its flagship shampoo product and detergent, sources said.
A customer buying a product would have to give a missed call to a number mentioned on the pack and receive talktime worth Rs 10 on her cellphone.
The company received over 15 million missed calls from 1.5 million unique customers; around 80 per cent of them listened to the entire pre-recorded message. Sources indicated that the campaign was well received in Uttar Pradesh.