Reuters Market Light is a subsidiary of Thomson Reuters India

Reuters

Reuters is a news agency headquartered in New York City. Until 2008 the Reuters news agency formed part of a British independent company, Reuters Group plc, which was also a provider of financial market data...

. RML was launched in the state of Maharashtra on October 1, 2007, by Sharad Pawar, the union minister of agriculture of India, and in October 2008 in the state of Punjab by Mr. Prakash Singh Badal, state’s chief minister. Amit Mehra, an MBA from London Business School

London Business School

London Business School is an international business school and a constituent college of the federal University of London, located in central London, beside Regent's Park...

, is the founder and Managing Director of the Reuters Market Light.

RML provides individual farmers with customised, localised and personalised weather forecasts, local crop prices, agricultural news and relevant information (i.e. crop advisory) – in the form of SMS messages sent to their mobile phones in their local language. This allows subscribing farmers to plan irrigation, application of fertilizers, and harvest – thus, managing some of their risks, as well as to decide when and where to sell their produce to maximise profit.

Currently, 1 Million Indian farmers from over 15,000+ villages have subscribed to RML. Through sharing, it is estimated to have been used by over two million farmers. The service is available in 13 states in India.
Farmers have reaped significant return on their investment achieving up to INR 200,000 ($ 4000) of additional profits, and savings of nearly INR 400,000 ($8000) on a service costing only INR 999 ($20) for one year

FT & Justmeans Social Innovation Award in 2010

Reuters Market Light won the FT & Justmeans Social Innovation Awards 2010 for "Best Base of the Pyramid Strategy" awarded on 25 March 2010
mBillionth Award South Asia 2010
Reuters Market Light has been recognized by the Grand Jury of the Mbillionth Award South Asia as an Award winner for the year 2010 for pioneering a mobile based information service for farming communities in villages across India

Coffey International Award

Reuters Market Light has won the Highly Commended, The Coffey International Award, supported by the Department for International Development, 2010

The UNDP accolade in 2008

RML was recognised by the UNDP and the UK government as one of the six initiatives that have a potential to contribute to the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)

World Business and Development Award

RML won the World Business and Development Award (WBDA) in 2010 in recognition of its efforts for improving the lives of India’s farming community.

ICRIER study in 2009

An independent study carried out by the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations (ICRIER), an Indian think-tank, in 2009 showed that all RML customers they interviewed had benefitted to the tune of 5% to 25% of their annual income (which is on an average approx $2800 p.a. for Maharashtra)

World Economic Forum in Cape Town in 2009

RML was showcased at the World Economic Forum in Cape Town in June 2009 as a video case study of businesses having a direct positive social impact.

London Business School case study in 2009

World leading strategy guru, Professor Costas Markides wrote a 20-page case study on Reuters Market Light as a strategic business model innovation. This case study is registered with the European Case Clearing House (ECCH) and is taught in Senior Executive Programs at London Business School

Cambridge University Business and Poverty Leadership Program

RML was used as a case study at the Cambridge University as part of the Business and Poverty Leadership Program in Dec 2008.

Mentions in Books

Mention in Nandan Nilekani's book 'Imagining India'
Nandan Nilekani

Nandan Nilekani

Nandan Nilekani born is an Indian entrepreneur. He currently serves as the Chairman of the new Unique Identification Authority of India , after a successful career at Infosys Technologies Ltd...

, former CEO and co-founder of Infosys, made reference to Reuters Market Light under the chapter on ICT of his book 'Imagining India' as a service that has begun to impact rural India.

Prof. C.K. Prahalad's book The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid

The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid

The Fortune at the Bottom of the Pyramid is a book by C. K. Prahalad that discusses new business models targeted at providing goods and services to the poorest people in the world. It makes a case for the fastest growing new markets and entrepreneurial opportunities being found among the billions...

carries four pages on Reuters Market Light (RML)