Lions Festivals appoints new Managing Director

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Lions Festivals has appointed Jose Papa to the role of Managing Director. Jose is currently CEO of another business – WGSN – owned by Ascential, Lions Festivals parent company and was previously Corporate Strategy Executive Director at Estadão, Cannes Lions’ official representative in Brazil. In his new role, which will be effective as of September 1, 2016, he will head up and manage the Lions Festivals four annual global celebrations; Cannes Lions, Lion’s Health, Lions Innovation and Lions Entertainment, as well as regional events including; eurobest, Dubai Lynx, Spikes Asia and the Tangrams.
“Clearly this role attracted a lot of interest and I am delighted that Jose has agreed to join Lions Festivals,” says Philip Thomas, CEO, Ascential. “He has led WGSN to unprecedented success and with a deep understanding of our brand and huge international experience, he was the outstanding candidate for the role.”
Jose adds, “Lions Festival is the definitive global destination for creativity and inspiration. A legacy built by bringing together the world’s brightest minds and awarding the most innovative work. It is a privilege to carry on the heritage and further lead an exciting new phase of continued success.”

Channel 4 Radio launches new evening show

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UAE-based radio station Channel 4 has launched new evening show, Evenings In: Demand. The show will be aired weeknights from 7pm until 10pm on 104.8 fm and will be hosted by former Mid-Morning Show Presenter Jay Skye, alongside JJ Thompson, who joins the Channel 4 network from Capital FM in the UK. Evenings in: Demand can also be watched live online at www.channel4fm.com/onair/indemand.

“JJ is one of the rising stars of the radio industry, so I’m thrilled that he is now part of Channel 4 team,” says Thomas Ferguson, Programme Director, Channel 4. “He’s charismatic, passionate about music and has fallen in love with the UAE. Together with Jay, they will make this the new must-listen evening show for the region.”

Jay adds “It’s an exciting year so far to say the least, with the new show and a lot of other projects coming up, as well. Doing the Mid-Morning Show was so much fun and it’ll be weird doing a show after the sun sets now, but this new show is going to be great and JJ is so much fun to work with.”

Nominations open for Leaders in Food & Beverages Awards

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Catering News Middle East has opened nominations for the inaugural Leaders in Food & Beverages Awards. The awards will celebrate excellence and innovation in the region’s food and beverage industry across 18 categories, including nine for restaurants and nine for individuals. Winners will be announced at a ceremony which will take place on November 9, 2016 at the Westin Mina Seyahi, Dubai and will be sponsored by prominent suppliers on the market including; Horeca Trade, Ronai and Pulsar.
“The first annual Leaders in Food & Beverages Awards‎ is part of BNC Publishing’s ongoing commitment to highlighting exceptional industry players,” says Wissam Younane, CEO, BNC Publishing. “The Middle East’s culinary and catering community continues to surpass itself in terms of creativity, service excellence, and innovative conceptual development. We look forward to welcoming both established and upcoming food and beverages talent to the event.”

PGt Advertising and Grayling sign affiliation deal

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Iranian advertising and marketing solutions agency PGt Advertising has signed an affiliation agreement with Grayling to provide integrated communications, public affairs, design and market development services to businesses, non-profit organisations and government authorities in Iran. The agreement will see both agencies working together to provide a full range of communications services to current mutual clients, whilst extending PGt Advertising’s global network and allowing Grayling to offer their clients premium PR and communications services in Iran. PGt will also be granted access to Grayling’s global resources and specifically designed suite of proprietary tools, designed to help their clients build brand resilience on and offline.
“The signing of this affiliation agreement between PGt Advertising and Grayling is another step in the right direction for us and we are extraordinarily excited to be accepted into such a successful global communications network,” says Sam Cordier, Managing Director, PGt Advertising. “As Iran opens up its arms to the world, we are proud to be able to offer our clients a truly integrated international communications reach and quality of service.”
Jonathan Shillington, Managing Director, Middle East, Grayling, adds “We welcome PGt Advertising into the Grayling network as Iran is an increasingly important market for many of our internationally focussed clients. It is vital to have a partner that we can trust and PGt Advertising has a proven track record of delivering quality communications.”

Radio 1 and Radio 2 to return

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UAE-based radio stations Radio 1 and Radio 2 are set to return to the airwaves, after being closed by Gulf News Broadcasting on June 30, 2016. The stations will now be operated by Abu Dhabi Media Company – the licence holder for the stations – and will feature the same formats but with an updated look and feel.
“Abu Dhabi Media confirms that it will assume management of Radio 1 and Radio 2 at the end of July 2016,” says Abdul Rahman Awadh, Executive Director, Radio, Abu Dhabi Media. “The Radio stations were originally owned by Abu Dhabi Media and will continue to reflect Abu Dhabi Media’s ongoing commitment to providing diverse content that appeals to all aspects of society. Both radio stations will resume broadcast on the same frequencies, for which Abu Dhabi Media holds exclusive rights. We are currently investing in bringing new concepts and ideas to the content of Radio 1 and Radio 2.”