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Zika Tata

Tata mulls rebrand of new Zica car due to Zika virus similarity

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By Charlotte McEleny, Asia Editor

February 2, 2016 | 2 min read

Indian car marque Tata recently launched a model named Zica but is now considering a quick rebrand after the deadly virus Zika started spreading.

The business has recently launched a major marketing campaign featuring footballer Lionel Messi for the Zica model, which actually means ‘zippy’, but has said it’s now deciding whether it needs to rename and rebrand the model.

According to The Guardian, the growing attention and concern around the Zika virus, which causes problems at birth and neurological issues, has put Tata into the position where it may have to write off its previous branding.

The car was due to go on sale this month but, in an email to the newspaper, Tata’s head of corporate communications, Minari Shah, said the business didn’t know when this rename may occur.

“The decision to name our car happened many months back when we could not have foreseen any of the recent events. In view of the recent developments, we are now evaluating the situation. We do not currently have a timeframe about when we will announce the decision,” she said.

The mosquito-borne virus has hit the headlines as the World Health Organisation (WHO) released a warning that the Zika virus was spreading and estimated that up to 4 million people across the Americas would be infected with the virus in the next year.

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