October 31, 2010

Biz Quizzard 344

Presenting the current affairs quiz for the week October 25 - 30. Hope you enjoy it.

1. The Economic Times last week released the 2010 India’s Most Valuable Brands list. Which company has emerged as the most valuable corporate brand in the country?

2. Varun Berry will take over as the CEO of the foods division in India for which MNC?

3. The children of which international celebrity have made their modeling debut as the faces of Gucci’s new children line?

4. Which company has launched ‘Microchef’, a pressure cooker specifically designed for microwave ovens?

5. Manu Chanda will replace Sanjeev Chadha as the chairman and CEO of the Indian operations of which MNC?

6. The latest edition of ET 500, the ranking of India’s top companies by revenue, was published by The Economic Times last week. Which company has topped the list?

7. The India division of which MNC last week stormed into the Limca Book of Records for the first ever dominoes display of its kind in the country?

8. I have covered this earlier. The shipments of which iconic brand were officially stopped last week after three decades and more than 220 million units?

9. Which entity has agreed to takeover Australia’s ASX to create Asia’s fourth largest stock exchange?

10. Which company is all set to become the first Indian firm to own an English Premier League (EPL) club by acquiring Blackburn Rovers for 46 million pounds?

11. Geneva-based watchmaker Altanus has launched a watch called Patch. What is its claim to fame?

12. Which well known MNC last week said hedge fund manager Todd Combs would join it, generating speculations on succession planning?

13. Harbhajan Singh and Sreesanth are fighting again, this time for the advertisements/ promotions for a brand. Which one?

14. Which car brand in India is claiming to be the first car in its category to clock the fastest-ever sales of one lakh units since its launch?

15. Which automobile brand is being advertised with the baseline ‘Born of luxury’?

16. Which MNC last week celebrated its centennial anniversary by organizing ‘People Flow Day’ across 20 countries?

17. Which business personality has been named the Philanthropist of the Year by the Asian Awards?

18. Which company last week forayed into footwear retailing by opening a specialty footwear chain called 'TASHI’?

19. The Times Television Network is launching a high-definition English movies channel. What has it been branded as?

20. The Bugatti Veyron 16.4 Grand Sport was launched in India last week. What is special about this car?

21. Which cricketer has been roped in to endorse Spencer Retail’s international apparel brand Beverly Hills Polo Club?

22. Which MNC automaker last week announced plans to enter the two-wheeler market in India with its Motorrad priced at Rs 18 lakh onwards?

23. Which construction equipment maker last week forayed into footwear segment?

24. M Narendra has been appointed chairman and managing director of which bank effective November 1?

25. Former NTPC CMD Sharma has joined which company as its managing director?

26. Cannon announced its entry into retail segment by opening its first store in Noida last week. What has it been branded as?

27. Samsung Electronics launched its first tablet device last week. What has it been branded as?

28. Which MNC last week said its chief executive Robert Benmosche has cancer and has an unclear prognosis, casting another shadow on the company as it undergoes a comprehensive restructuring?

29. Which international celebrity is to open a chain of gyms around the world, called the Hard Candy Fitness Centers, which will merge fitness with entertainment?

30. Which product from India took this year's top prize in The Wall Street Journal's Asian Innovation Awards?

31. Which US buyout firm will buy telecommunications services company Syniverse Technologies Inc (SVR.N) for $2.6 billion?

32. Actor Riteish Deshmukh can be seen in the television commercials for which telecom brand?

Please mail your answers on or before next Sunday to rajeevkondapalli@gmail.com with Biz Quizzard 344 as the subject.

Happy learning!
rajeev kondapalli

October 24, 2010

Biz Quizzard 343

Presenting the current affairs quiz for the week October 18 - 23. Hope you enjoy it.

1. Sudhir Vasudeva will be the next chief executive of which public sector entity?

2. Which Bangalore-based firm is all set to acquire US-based, Nasdaq-listed Cardiac Science Corporation for $85 million in an all cash deal?

3. Which company last week forayed into Argentina by taking over BPO company Actionline?

4. Which MNC last week announced the purchase of Lincoln Industrial, a US-based engineered lubrication systems maker, for $1 billion?

5. Bharti Airtel-owned phone manufacturer Beetel and which DTH company have entered into a promotional alliance for the forthcoming festival season?

6. Which company last week signed a share purchase agreement to acquire 100% stake in South African company Grown Energy?

7. Dheeraj G Hinduja was last week appointed chairman of which company?

8. Which Hyderabad-based provider of mobile technology has acquired UK-based WIN, a mobile content and services company, for $26 million?

9. Which company last week launched ‘Modu T’, a 3.5G touch mobile phone?

10. This is as innovative and maybe as bizarre a brand ambassador choice can get. Professional hacker Ankit Fadia has replaced Abhishek Bachchan as the brand ambassador for which brand?

11. Bob Guccione died last week in Texas, US, at the age of 79. He is the founder of which well known magazine?

12. Which footwear retailer has appointed celebrity pair Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor as brand ambassadors?

13. Which business group last week announced the setting up of a university in Madhya Pradesh?

14. Which international celebrity has signed up a deal with nail polish company OPL to open a chain of nail salons?

15. Which hotel chain has unveiled a campaign for its signature 'Heavenly Bed' in India?

16. Which media company has promoted Anil Uniyal as CEO of business channels?

17. Which company has ventured into the fairly new baked snacks category, launching a baked wheat snack called Time Pass targeted at the youth?

18. The 'Wave' on the packaging symbolises 'Activity' and 'Sfoorti' and the milk and wheat visual establishes it as the Great Family Nourisher. The blue and orange colours have been a part of the brand over many years and are a dominant part of the base packaging. Which brand?

19. The new edition of which automobile brand is being advertised with the baseline ‘NOW THAT’S FAB’?

20. Which MNC last week unveiled Slate 500, its first product for the fast-growing tablet market?

Please mail your answers on or before next Sunday to rajeevkondapalli@gmail.com with Biz Quizzard 343 as the subject.

Happy learning!
rajeev kondapalli

October 17, 2010

Biz Quizzard 342

Presenting the current affairs quiz for the week October 11 - 16. Hope you enjoy it.

1. Which FMCG company has signed on Bhojpuri film star Ravi Kishan exclusively for localized promotional activities (only BTL), particularly in Bihar and Uttar Pradesh?

2. Which company will bring in global brands – Missoni and Vivienne Westwood – to India to strengthen its presence in women’s category?

3. Yuvraj Singh and Sameera Reddy will appear in a television commercial to jointly promote a consumer offering by Reebok and which other brand?

4. Which Indian company has agreed to buy units of Hong Kong-based Quality Healthcare Asia Ltd. for HK $1.5 billion ($193 million)?

5. According to a report last week, which MNC has appointed creative hotspot Taproot India to manage its campaign for the world cup, ending its exclusive arrangement with JWT India for the first time in 20 years?

6. Which automobile brand is being advertised with the baseline ‘A new breed’?

7. Who has won this year’s ‘Finance Minister of the Year for Asia’ award?

8. Which MNC has agreed to buy King Pharmaceuticals for $3.6 billion in cash?

9. Which iconic fashion brand last week aborted a new logo after consumer criticism and will revert to the old logo that has been featured in its marketing for more than 20 years?

10. Which brand has been named the ‘Gadget of the Year’ award at the technology grant equivalent of the Oscars?

11. Titan last week launched a new range under its Raga platform. What has the collection been branded as?

12. Hyundai Motor India Limited last week launched its much awaited SUV. Name the brand?

13. Mrignayanee, the Madhya Pradesh Government Emporium, recently released print ads for the Commonwealth Games. What did it contribute?

14. Who has been appointed brand ambassador by Toyota for its India-specific car Etios?

15. Which business group has gifted $50 million to Harvard Business School, the largest gift received by the institute from an international donor in its 102-year-old history?

Please mail your answers on or before next Sunday to rajeevkondapalli@gmail.com with Biz Quizzard 342 as the subject.

Happy learning!
rajeev kondapalli

October 10, 2010

Biz Quizzard 341

Presenting the current affairs quiz for the week October 04 - 09. Hope you enjoy it.

1. International model Miriam Ilora can be seen in this television commercial (currently on air) with the positioning ‘YOUR MOMENT is WAITING’. Name the advertiser?

2. Which MNC will soon unleash a new campaign that will feature the traditional art form of the Warli tribe in Maharashtra?

3. Which company, according to a report last week, is set to acquire Sri Lanka’s second largest land-based telephone company, Suntel?

4. Which business personality is offering a $10 million grant to the humanities center at Harvard University?

5. Which company last week ousted its CEO Suresh Gurumani?

6. Which company last week said it had acquired a 80% stake in Trilix Srl, an Italian design and engineering firm for euro 1.85 million (Rs 11.29 crore)?

7. The market research division of the Union Ministry of Tourism last week released data on Indians traveling within India. Which state in the number one domestic travel destination for Indians?

8. Which MNC last week launched its tablet PC, Streak, in India?

9. The Economic Times Awards for Corporate Excellence 2009-10 were announced last week. Who is the Business Leader of the year?

10. Which MNC last week appointed H Suzuki as the new CEO and MD of its Indian subsidiary?

11. Which Indian digital media network company has acquired UK-based ethnic marketing firm Indoor Media?

12. The board of which soccer club last week agreed to sell it to John W Henry’s Boston Red Sox for 300 million pounds?

13. Which MNC is acquiring energy infrastructure company Dresser in a deal worth $3 billion?

14. Which company has launched Diamantine, a new stone that “behaves” like a diamond and will be available at a fraction of the cost?

15. Which MNC has named Leo Apotheker, the former head of German software company SAP, as its new chief executive?

16. Dick Costolo will be the new chief executive of which well known social networking firm?

17. Which company has named Tony Bates, a top executive at Cisco Systems as its next chief executive?

18. Which media company in India has appointed Virad Kaul as its CEO?

19. Which company last week launched its social networking-oriented mobile phone, the C3?

20. Surprisingly, this is apparently the very first time this organization is advertising via an ad film on TV. Created by Ogilvy Delhi, the release of the campaign coincided with the opening day of the ongoing Commonwealth Games (CWG). Which organization?

21. Which men’s wear brand has roped in actor Siddharth (of Rang De Basanti and Striker fame) as its brand ambassador?

22. Mahindra Two Wheelers seems to be on a signing spree. After bringing Aamir Khan on board to endorse its motorcycles, which celebrity has it signed on as the brand ambassador for its entire range of PowerScooters?

Please mail your answers on or before next Sunday to rajeevkondapalli@gmail.com with Biz Quizzard 341 as the subject.

Happy learning!
rajeev kondapalli

October 3, 2010

Biz Quizzard 340

Presenting the current affairs quiz for the week September 27 - October 02. Hope you enjoy it.

1. ‘Baush and Lomb’ has adapted a new brand identity. What will it be now known as?

2. Which apparel maker has bundled four of its brands under one roof with a format called Club America?

3. Which private equity and buyout firm has bought Norway software company Visma for an enterprise value of 1.2 billion euros ($1.88 bn) from private equity firm Hg Capital?

4. Which MNC will buy US hair and skin care company Alberto Culver for $37 billion?

5. Which Pune-based IT consulting and process engineering company has acquired US-based CPG Solutions for Rs 60 crore?

6. Corus has been rebranded. What will be the new name for the steel maker?

7. Which bank has agreed to acquire Royal Bank of Scotland’s Chilean wholesale banking operations?

8. Which Indian business personality has, according to a report last week, committed to put aside well over 10% of his wealth for philanthropic ventures?

9. Which US cartoon television show completed 50 years last week?

10. Which auto brand is the coolest brand in Britain, according to the annual survey by the Centre for Brand Analysis?

11. Which FMCG major has roped in Bipasha Basu as a brand ambassador for its skincare and personal care segment?

12. A print ad by this brand was totally unexpected, at least by me. Which brand last week released a full page ad with the headline ‘fast.www’?

13. Which MNC last week announced the acquisition of web video syndication firm 5min Media?

14. Research in Motion (RIM), the maker of BlackBerry, last week unveiled a tablet computer aimed at its core business customers. What has it been branded as?

15. Boxing legend Evander Holyfield is getting his brand of gyms, boxing academies and clubs to India in association with which company?

16. Who has been named by Fortune magazine as the most powerful woman in corporate America?

17. Ranbir Singh Butola will head which public sector entity?

18. Killer has tied up with designer Narendra Kumar to launch his range of denims. What has it been branded as?

19. The pre-launch online campaign for which brand has started with an online game at builadreamcar.com?

20. Which motorcycle maker has roped in Aamir Khan as its brand Ambassador?

21. Which well know personality is rejoining Future Group as the chief executive of Future Value Retail?

22. Anup Sanker Bhattacharya has joined which bank as chairman and managing director?

23. Who has topped the list of 100 wealthiest Indians, released by Forbes magazine?

24. Not sure if I covered this earlier. Which MNC last week announced the signing of actor Priyanka Chopra as brand ambassador for home appliance categories?

25. Which celebrity, according to a news item last week, is entering the realty business along with 2 other partners, through a company called ADi?

26. Which fashion brand has signed Telugu actor Mahesh Babu as its new brand ambassador for Andhra Pradesh?

27. Ravi Kiran has quit as the CEO of which well known media agency after a 11 year stint?

28. Sanjay Aggarwal is the new CEO of which airline in India?

29. Which advertising agency has released a special font in the memory of Mahatma Gandhi on the occasion of Gandhi Jayanti?

30. One of my favorite models, the very beautiful Chitrangada Singh can be seen with Shah Rukh Khan in the television commercial (TVC currently on air) for which brand?

Please mail your answers on or before next Sunday to rajeevkondapalli@gmail.com with Biz Quizzard 340 as the subject.

Happy learning!
rajeev kondapalli