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FIPP MENA announces next month’s programme

FIPP MENA which will be taking place February 10 – 11, 2016, at the Habtoor Grand Beach Resort in Dubai has announced the programme as well as key speakers. The event’s programme brings together international, regional and local speakers from inside the magazine media and related industries, who will provide delegates with a view on key developments and trends globally and in the MENA region specifically.

The programme will include;

  • Media transformation and revitalisaion conducted by FIPP President and CEO Chris Llewellyn and includes leaders from Motivate Publishing, CNBC Africa/Forbes Africa and Hearst.
  • The most spectacular media innovations of the past year from FIPP and Innovation Media Consulting’s (IMC) FIPP Innovation in Media World Report will be presented by IMC’s Alvaro Triana.
  • Top trends for worldwide magazine media in 2016, including a masterclass presented by Dr. Samir Husni (aka “Mr. Magazine”) on How to make print work in a digital world.
  • Key developments in online and mobile media, including a presentation from Google on The future of mobile and content players’ place within this world.
  • Developing business opportunities, including a spectacular Time Inc. native advertising case, top tips from cvent and GN Publishing for developing and boosting your events business and insights into cross-border business and brand opportunities as a means for growth.
  • Deep consumer and B2B market insights, with sessions focused on emerging markets in general, the UAE and other Middle East markets and Africa from the likes of the India Today Group, Bloomberg Media and PwC.
  • Several practical case studies packed with hands-on tips, including print, digital and multi-platform developments presented by GN Publishing, Dubai Lynx, 7AWI, Nervora, Ringier Africa and Media24.

 

Bell Pottinger welcomes new Partner

Ehab Khairi has joined Bell Pottinger as a Partner in its Middle East business. Ehab joins the international PR agency from the National Bank of Abu Dhabi (NBAD), where he was Senior Manager of Media and PR – VP, Corporate Communications for eight years. In his new role, Ehab will be based in Bell Pottinger’s office in Dubai, supporting clients across the wider MENA region, including in Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Africa. He will also lead the agency’s team of 10 native Arabic speakers, based across its three offices in the Gulf.

“We are delighted that Ehab has joined our growing business in the Middle East,” says Tim Wilkinson, Chairman, Bell Pottinger Middle East. “He is a highly experienced and wise public relations practitioner, and he has a deep understanding of the Arabic language, local media landscape, as well as the regional business community. This senior hire illustrates our ongoing commitment to ensuring we offer a diverse range of senior PR consultants who can operate successfully in local and international environments.”

Ehab adds “Bell Pottinger already has a strong Arabic offer and my ambition is to keep developing it, in line with the needs of our diverse client base. I’m excited to be joining the team at an interesting time for companies and governments across the Middle East, and I look forward to using my experience to help make Bell Pottinger’s communications offering in the region an even more compelling one.”

Alshaya welcomes PR and Social Media Executive

Katie Weir has joined global retail franchise operator Alshaya as PR and Social Media Executive, American Eagle, Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Having worked in PR and Marketing for over six years, Katie was most recently PR and Marketing Manager for Tutti Rouge, UK.

As PR and Social Media Executive for American Eagle, MENA, Katie will be based in Kuwait and handling press release distribution, media relations, product/image call ins and social media strategy for the American Eagle brand across the region.

Increase in Ad revenue forecast for MENA in 2014

MAGNA GLOBAL, a strategic global media unit of IPG Mediabrands has released estimates for advertising revenues in 2014. The MENA region had experienced a slight drop in 2013, largely blamed on the instability in Egypt, but is due to bounce back with growth projected at over 6.3 per cent for the entire region encompassing the Middle East and Africa.

The overall global growth in advertising revenues in 2014 is expected to hit more than 6.5 per cent to reach $521.6bn, which records the strongest year-on-year growth since 2010, which had closely followed the recession. The projections show an increase from last year in global advertising revenue of 3.3 per cent, to reflect the acceleration of the global media economy in 2014. The football World Cup in Brazil, the Sochi Winter Olympics, and the US mid-term elections have been earmarked as the major non-recurring events that will contribute up to 7.5 per cent in the new year in comparison with a modest 1.8 per cent growth in 2013.

Another major contributor to rising global advertising revenue is the digital media spectrum, which has displayed the quickest growth in 2013 rising 16 per cent to $118bn. Within the sphere of digital media, mobile platforms (over 85 per cent) doubled in size to reach $16bn while social networking (over 58 per cent) generated almost $9bn in spending. Digital media also grew in programmatic trading avenues to reach $12bn globally. This mainly included real-time bidding as well as automated platforms for video and display inventory buying.

For more information, visit www.magnaglobal.com or follow @MAGNAGLOBAL