Ad agency Bang In The Middle has pointed fingers at former client healthcare brand Medanta, for using a creative made by the agency that was earlier rejected by the company. The agency took to LinkedIn to share their displeasure, writing, "What do you do when you have a problem like Medanta?"
Sources from the agency told e4m that this idea was presented to the client last year, and it was rejected. The source said that when the association was ending, the agency provided the handover, wherein this creative wasn't mentioned. The agency wants to get compensated for this, and the company is not ready to acknowledge the same.
Sources told us that, "Someone from the company called the agency and said that you don't own this work, rejected or not rejected, we own the work.'"
The company has not responded formally to the agency's allegations. Bang In The Middle has since taken a legal route to settle the matter.
"We never wanted to take this legal or into public. But when we reached out to them to amicably settle this, they rudely told us to take a walk, and challenged us to do whatever we can, because they are a giant and we are but a pipsqueak," said the agency spokesperson.
e4m has reached out to both parties and us awaiting their response.
Another industry expert said: "This isn’t the first instance of a client bullying an agency. This is what the industry has come to. That can’t be good for anyone or anything. Tomorrow if a client joins an agency does he therefore lose his teeth, and if an agency person joins a client, does he/she gain new fangs?"