The TV news channel began operations last year. At India TV, Rao's mandate will primarily be to build the fledgling station's brand and profile.
"It's a young channel, and has done some good work. But the point is that it has to be sustainable," Rao said, adding that building on the distribution and content will be the key area of focus.
"It's a young channel, and has done some good work. But the point is that it has to be sustainable," Rao said, adding that building on the distribution and content will be the key area of focus.
India TV's gain has been Universal's loss: Rao departs the agency at a time when it faces a series of tough challenges in terms of client retention.
Recently, Universal lost the US$20 million TVS Motor account to Madison, while two other clients, General Motors and L'Oréal, are reviewing their partnership, albeit for reasons of global alignment and reviews.
Internationally, General Motors has aligned itself to Starcom in a $3.2 billion deal, while the Paris-based beauty products marketer is still in the middle of its consumer media pitch.
Universal McCann has yet to appoint a successor for Rao.
