New Airtel Logo

Airtel 3G services aren't rolling yet, but Airtel has a new logo it unveiled couple of days ago. The new Airtel logo is part of a re-branding exercise that is estimated to cost Rs. 300 crore to Bharti Airtel. While we still await Airtel's 3G services to flag-off in India, the new Airtel logo will be advertised wherever Bharti Airtel operates in India and abroad.

But what does everyone think of the new Airtel logo? The old Airtel logo wasn't bad, but the new logo is supposed to give Airtel and the brand a more "youthful and international" look.

The verdict on Airtel's new logo has been mixed so far. While a lot of voices on Twitter have welcomed Airtel's new logo, a significant number have voiced their discontent, too. As I write this, fans of the old Airtel logo are bashing the new Airtel logo on Twitter as a crude inspiration of Videocon's new logo and Vodafone. From over 1000 responses on Fonearena's poll on Airtel's new logo, 50-percent voted against the new Airtel logo. For all the voices of discontent, I wonder if there could be a hue and cry as big as the recent GAP logo redesign. GAP changed its iconic decades-old logo to something less iconic and the new logo was slammed unabashedly by fans. The result? GAP reverted to the old logo within a week. Although, such a reaction to Airtel's new logo looks highly unlikely, one can never be 100-percent sure.
Of all the tweets for and against Airtel's new logo, one sentiment was loud and clear, summed up nicely by Gul Panag's tweet: Airtel shouldn't sit pretty and bask on its current glory, but work towards improving its service. And Airtel's 3G launch will be a good first step on that path.