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Orient Planet and Irish Academy launch PR venture

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The Irish Academy of Public Relations is partnering with Dubai-based Orient Planet to create the first online PR and communications academy in the Middle East. Orient Planet Academy – www.opacademy.com – will provide the Irish Academy’s courses to students exclusively across the Middle East, Levant and North Africa regions.

Orient Planet Academy will facilitate internationally recognised certificate courses in public relations, journalism, event management and English grammar. Offering a wide degree of flexibility to its prospective students, Orient Planet Academy’s courses can be completed in a time span of 10 to 20 weeks. All courses offered by Orient Planet Academy have been designed by The Irish Academy of Public Relations and will be tutored by communications professionals in the Middle East.

“The Irish Academy has an ever-growing footprint across Europe, the United States, Latin America and Africa,” says Ellen Gunning, Director, The Irish Academy of Public Relations. “Over the years, we have seen the immense potential of the online education market in the Arab world, and we believe now is the ideal time to establish our presence in the rapidly expanding industry. We entered into a joint venture with Orient Planet to mark our expansion in the Middle East and serve a market of more than 314 million people through our comprehensive courses; Orient Planet Academy will be an added value to the growing industry. Initially, the courses will be taught in English, with a view of offering them in Arabic in the coming weeks.

Nidal Abou Zaki, Managing Director of Orient Planet adds, “Although the Arab region’s PR and communications industry has been continuously growing, we realised that there was no online platform in the region that provides professionals and students alike the chance to further develop their skills in PR, communications, marketing and social media. Orient Planet Academy not only aims to provide flexibility but it also offers employed individuals and young students an opportunity to earn an internationally recognised certificate. We have localised all courses to address the cultural requirements of the region, and will offer a modern educational platform for a new generation of communications experts, capable of meeting the needs of Arab and global markets.”

Ibrahim Ahmed joins Edelman

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Ibrahim Ahmed has joined Edelman UAE’s technology division as Account Manager. Having lived and worked in the UAE for five years, Ibrahim brings to his new role a solid understanding of the technology landscape in the region as he joins the Edelman team from DABO & CO, where he worked across a variety of B2B and B2C technology brands.

“I am thrilled to be joining the technology division at Edelman,” says Ibrahim. “My experience in PR so far includes working on tech brands such as Canon, Nokia and Linksys. Having previously worked on other sectors such as interiors, e-commerce, oil & gas and education, I am excited to see what my future holds at Edelman.”

NPI renews strategy focus for 2015

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Following a rebranding campaign in the summer of this year, npimedia (NPI) now plans to focus on the development of its concierge portfolio of magazines as of 2015. NPI currently has the largest single portfolio of audited titles in the UAE, with all five concierge editions – including concierge Arabic, Chinese and Russian – standing alone in the market as the only magazines in these languages with a guaranteed circulation. NPI will be further developing these titles, as well as enhancing its offering with a new and innovative digital platform, launching at the end of the year.

NPI’s strategy for 2015 will be centred around consolidating and developing its existing media brands, having decided to refocus efforts and move away from contract publishing works that are not directly aligned with long-term development objectives. In line with this, NPI has made the decision to cease publishing The Dubai Mall Magazine, produced on behalf of Emaar Malls Group.

“We have had a very successful collaboration with Emaar Malls Group over the last four years to establish a new title in the market that elevates The Dubai Mall brand,” says Rob Nicholas, Managing Director, NPI. “It is both well respected and well supported, and we leave the magazine in a fantastic position for 2015.”

MOJEH magazine to increase publishing frequency

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As of March 2015, MOJEH magazine will extend its publishing frequency to 10 editions throughout the year. Created in 2011, the luxury fashion title has recently progressed from bimonthly to monthly editions, and is soon to launch a standalone editorial platform – MOJEH.com – which will provide the same rich content as its print companion with dynamic exclusives, tailor-made for an online audience.

“We have a constant desire for improvement and a deep commitment to fashion and luxury,” says Mojeh Izadpanah, Founder and Editor-in-Chief, MOJEH. “So, we are delighted to announce that we will be publishing 10 editions of MOJEH per year from March, 2015.”

Laura-Jane Cooper promoted at ITP

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Laura-Jane Cooper has been promoted to Senior Sales Manager at Grazia Middle East. Formerly Sales Manager for the lifestyle publication, Laura-Jane has been with ITP Publishing since 2012, selling advertising, sponsorship, creative solutions, photo shoots and tailored bespoke packages for the fashion and beauty industry across the Grazia portfolio. In her new role, Laura-Jane will report to the Advertising Director and will continue to be responsible for managing an extensive client base, delivering top line revenue growth for Grazia Middle East.

Debonair magazine to launch online platform

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Following a successful launch last month, Debonair magazine has announced plans for the publication’s online platform – www.debonaironline.com –set to go live this coming November. Debonair is a Dubai-based print and online publication dedicated to men’s luxury lifestyle. The monthly publication strives to deliver independent, informative and visually impressive content, with features that celebrate the notion of timeless style rather than fleeting fashions. The new title circulates 16,400 copies across the UAE, offering a focus on arts & culture and showcasing the best in property, precision instruments and travel destinations.

The Debonair platform will include features that have run in the print publication, as well as online-only content, which is designed to create a more interactive experience. The website will feature, video, sound bites and a variety of images to offer a more comprehensive view of the stories and further the print offering. Significantly, the Debonair website will also host an online store for a soon-to-be-launched menswear brand that has been created by the Debonair team.

“Launching Debonair has been like filling a blank canvas with ideas for a new approach to men’s lifestyle journalism,” says Jihane Miller, Editor, Debonair. “We celebrate the enduring appeal of style as opposed to the fleeting nature of trends, and look to bring a more diverse offering in terms of subject ranges and cultural agenda. We’ve set out to produce a magazine that is confident, stylish and charming – the very definition of debonair.”

BPA Middle East releases semi-annual report

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BPA Middle East has released its semi-annual report. Included in this is the release of brand data across the region for the six-month period, which ended June 30, 2014. The brand data reports on figures for newspapers and magazines that have opted to be BPA-audited, and include the headline average qualified circulations and other channels such as web traffic “average unique browser”, social media and apps downloads from the most recent June 2014 – ending brand reports. The figures cover media with operations based in seven Middle Eastern countries: Bahrain, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Oman, Qatar and UAE.

The semi-annual report also shares which communication agencies BPA Middle East has been engaged with throughout 2014, as well as the activities they have been involved with, in a bid to educate the market-place about the importance of a third-party audit. These include Starcom Mediavest, OMD, Mindshare Media, Drive Dentsu, Magna, Carat, Dubai Healthcare City, Four Communication and Mediabourne.

BPA Middle East touches on moving towards greater transparency in its semi-annual report, stating the need for accurate data to allow advertisers and media buyers to make valid decisions based on well-calculated return on investment. Significantly, the report notes how few Arabic publications have taken the opportunity to follow the international best practice of opening their processes to independent audits. Of the 95 media brands in membership at BPA Middle East, only nine (9.5%) are ‘Arabic’ publications.

As of January this year, the BPA Middle East office has 105 members and applicants, broken down into the following representation:

Consumer magazines – 50%
Business publications – 19%
Events and expositions – 15%
Consumer applications – 9%
Newspapers – 7%
Events/expositions confidential – 1%
Newspaper applicants – 1%

To access the complete data, refer to the BPA Worldwide Reports Library at www.bpaww.com.

Naomi Chadderton joins Ahlan!

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Naomi Chadderton has joined Ahlan! as Acting Fashion and Beauty Editor. Prior to joining the team at ITP Publishing, Naomi was most recently Account Executive for M+M Management in London, and has extensive experience in the region, having also worked as Editor for The Dubai Mall Magazine, Fashion Editor for Concierge magazine and Junior Fashion & Beauty Editor at Grazia Middle East. Naomi will now be looking after all fashion and beauty content for the weekly lifestyle publication.

Entourage announces initial results of ETA ad campaign

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entourage marketing & events, in partnership with the Egypt Tourism Authority (ETA), is pleased to announce the initial results of their ETA ad campaign, “Masr Wahashtouna”, which has brought an increase of 40 percent in tourist numbers to the country from the Middle East. entourage has led the media strategy for this targeted tourism campaign by designing a strategic plan and media implementation of the campaign’s advertisement over print, TV, outdoor and a variety of digital outlets, resulting in Egypt being back up to the top five tourist destinations in the Middle East.  

“We are honoured to gain the trust of the Egypt Tourism Authority and to promote Egypt as a tourist destination in this critical time for Egypt and the region,” says Mohammed Tayem, Managing Director, entourage marketing & events. “Because of the timing for the launch of this campaign – right before the presidential elections of 2014 – our team was required to design the right strategy that not only reaches the target Arab region, but also entices their response. How we implemented this strategy was of upmost importance, given that Arabs make up a very large portion of tourists to Egypt.”

Harper’s Bazaar Design Awards unveils shortlist

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The inaugural Middle East Design Awards, hosted by Harper’s Bazaar Interiors, has today unveiled its shortlist of nominees. The Design Awards, which aims to recognise and showcase the huge pool of talent within the retail and design brands across the region, will take place on October 29, 2014, at the Oberoi Hotel, Dubai.

The shortlist includes highly recognised and creative brands, such as Pierre Frey for Best Textile Brand, PR Emirates for Best Furniture Story, Harlequin Group and Jo Malone for Most Innovative Brand and Lacroix Maison @ Galleries Lafayette and Armani Casa for Best Fashion to Furniture Brand.

“It was with great difficulty that the judging panel managed to narrow the shortlist down to the four brands we have chosen for each category, but we are very happy with the shortlist,” says Rue Kothari, Awards Spokesperson, Harper’s Bazaar Interiors Design Awards. “The calibre of the entries was very high and we would like to thank all those that entered. We look forward to announcing the winners next week alongside the Emerging Designer of the Year Award and making the Design Awards a staple in the Middle East’s events calendar.”

The awards event will form part of the schedule of events at Downtown Design 2014. To view the full list of nominees, visit www.harpersbazaarinteriorsawards.com.