Hindustan Times vs The Times of India

The early 1990s saw HT and ToI engaged in a bitter battle for supremacy in Delhi, which is perceived to be the most important market in India. In 1991, ToI had a circulation of around 70,000 in Delhi as against 0.35 million for HT.

In 1994, ToI slashed its price from Rs.2.30 to Rs.1.50. By 1998, the difference in circulation figures narrowed down to a few thousand copies. (Refer Table III). Since 1991, ToI's circulation has increased in percentage terms more than HT. Analysts felt that ToI increased its share largely by breaking into HT's readership. A fresh round of price-cuts began in 1999. On March 19, 1999, HT cut its price from Rs.1.50 to an all-time low of Re. 1 on all days except Sundays...

With revenues of Rs.4.05 billion during 2000-01, HT's share was roughly a third of ToI in revenue. (Refer Exhibit I) To strengthen its presence in Delhi as well as to expand nationally, Shobhana Bhartia initiated a major restructuring plan in 2000-01. (Refer Exhibit II) As a first step towards realization of the plan, in September 2000, Vir Sanghvi was appointed editor of HT.

Rajan Kohli, of Fujitsu-ICIM was brought in as the executive president to head a new team of 20, which redesigned the paper and made it more youthful. Five new supplements were introduced, and new editions were launched in nine cities in India. HT followed the ToI style of marketing blitzkrieg: events, promotions and ad campaigns...