Tag: Partnership

​Philippines — TM Wholesale, the wholesale arm of Telekom Malaysia (TM), has signed a collaborative agreement with Globe Telecom (Globe), for a nationwide rollout of Globe’s co-branded gaming solution called Globe Gamer Grounds powered by Ember in the Philippines.

The partnership will provide Globe with access to Swarmio’s plug-and-play Ember platform for gaming that will enhance Globe’s gaming and e-sports services and bring it closer to its millions of mobile and broadband end users. Leveraging TM’s established global network and infrastructure ecosystems, the platform enables Globe’s customers to enjoy ultra-low latency gaming experiences with faster download speeds.

As an established digital solutions provider in the Philippines and an enormous provider of telecommunications services, the Globe Group of companies also has a significant presence in various digital solutions businesses, leveraging its substantial customer base, distribution capabilities, and strategic partnerships to establish a footprint that spans numerous industry sectors including fintech, healthcare, entertainment, adtech, e-commerce, manpower, IT services, and venture capital.

Amar Huzaimi Md Deris, EVP of TM Wholesale, stated that they are thrilled to collaborate with Globe as the gaming and e-sports industry is now considered the world’s biggest entertainment industry, with ASEAN gamers dominating the market.

“As a regional operator, TM Wholesale takes pride in making superior gaming experiences accessible to the industry via our wholesale offerings which provide a seamless and high-quality digital experience to users. This collaboration also aligns with our vision to create a more vibrant digital ecosystem throughout the region,” Deris adds.

Meanwhile, Ralph Aligada, head of Globe Games and Esports, shared, “With Globe’s all-in-one gaming platform, the community of gamers will enjoy a seamless and high quality digital experience. We are hopeful that with this agreement, there will be more opportunities and innovative solutions that would benefit our gaming community and users in the country, perhaps even across the region.”

Previously, TM Wholesale and Swarmio Media, a Canada-based gaming and e-sports technology company established a partnership to provide accessible and high-quality digital gaming and e-sports services throughout ASEAN. This partnership with Globe marks a breakthrough in TM’s collaboration with Swarmio Media, enhancing e-sports gaming and levelling up digital experiences for the Philippines and across the region.

Singapore – Luxury hotel Fairmont Singapore has partnered with Razer, the global lifestyle brand for gamers, to launch its first gamer-centric suites, creating a premier experience that will appeal to all gamers from amateurs to pros.

The new offering transforms three luxury suites into true gaming havens decked out with Razer’s peripherals, and paired with hospitality touches and amenities, letting guests engage in a range of immersive game genres, as well as explore a host of pampering lifestyle treats within the surrounds of the hotel.

For the Razer Gamer and Streamer Suite, the gaming den is a LAN experience with widescreen monitors and luminescent green LED light strips that will let guests feel like an esports pro about to enter their first-ever tournament. It is fitted with Razer peripherals and hardware, allowing ten players to come together IRL to finesse their games or pit their skills against one another.

Moreover, streamers can take over the streaming booth where they can choose to display graphics on the wall-mounted TVs, or for gaming communities to watch on Twitch while they narrate and commentate on the streams. The booth will be armed with Razer’s latest broadcaster line-up for an optimised streaming experience. 

Meanwhile, in the Razer Console Lounge, gamers can enjoy into the plush sofa and bean bags, jazzed up with the latest Xbox and PlayStation 5 consoles, along with Razer Wolverine V2 Chroma controllers. It also consists of dining and mini bar menus, from a selection of pizzas, burgers, charcuterie, and cheese, as well as assorted snacks and drinks that will be served right to any of the suites to enjoy. Accommodating up to six players, the suite is also perfect for intimate, casual gaming sessions amongst friends and families.

For the Razer Mercury Suite, the room is illuminated with fun, customisable colour-changing light panels that add flair to the 3v3 gaming set-up. This suite is a gamer and streamer’s paradise fitted with the latest Razer technology.

Fairmont Singapore’s luxury gaming suites are available to book now, and will open to the public on 24 May 2022 and will be available until April 2023. Play times are from 9:00 am to 11:00 pm SGT daily.

Marcus Hanna, the managing director of Fairmont Singapore and Swissôtel The Stamford, shared that they are pleased to partner with Razer, one of the most recognised and notable gaming lifestyle brands in the world, to introduce the ultimate gamer-centric experience marrying Fairmont Singapore’s thoughtful hospitality and Razer’s gaming innovation. 

“Building on our success of hosting last year’s ONE Esports Dota 2 Singapore Major, the launch of our luxury gaming suites is set to capture the gaming niche and diverse communities of players in a time when gaming has permeated the mainstream and become a ubiquitous form of fun and entertainment. At the heart of it, it also reflects our continued focus and commitment towards bringing unique experiences that appeal to the different passions and ages,” said Hanna.

Meanwhile, Flo Gutierrez, Razer’s director of global esports, commented that they are thrilled to bring to life a new way for esports enthusiasts to enjoy their best games and build incredible memories with their friends in a unique location like Fairmont Singapore.

“Esports has grown tremendously in popularity, becoming a familiar fixture in mainstream entertainment. And so, we have been working hand in hand with Fairmont Singapore’s team to create three unique suites made to offer phenomenal experiences to whoever enters them for a casual, hardcore, or competitive gaming experience,” said Guttierrez.

Bangkok, Thailand – The Tourism Authority of Thailand (TAT) has joined hands with Thai AirAsia in launching the ‘Amazing New Chapter: Rediscover Thailand Get ready to go to Thailand’ campaign, a new campaign aimed at millennials and young couples from Singapore.

The project was announced in Singapore by Tanes Petsuwan, deputy governor for international marketing for TAT Asia and South Pacific, and Santisuk Klongchaiya, CEO of Thai AirAsia. They were also joined by TAT officials and Thai AirAsia executives. The event was presided over by H.E Chutintorn Gongsakdi, ambassador of Thailand to Singapore.

On the partnership, Petsuwan said, “With various factors supporting the return of tourism to Thailand, among them the relaxing of entry requirements to the kingdom, easing of travel restrictions in source markets worldwide and resumption of commercial flights, this is a great opportunity to stimulate travellers’ decision-making. This latest marketing campaign is expected to have a positive effect on the Thai tourism industry in the second half of this year.”

Singapore is a key visitor source market for Thailand, and the new campaign is among the various joint promotion marketing activities the TAT Singapore Office is working on. The campaign utilises Thai AirAsia’s Singapore-Don Mueang and Singapore-Phuket routes and is for travel from May to July 2022.

TAT Singapore Office also organised a media fam trip to Thailand recently, from May 12 to May 15, 2022, to promote the Singapore-Don Mueang route, new tourist attractions and activities, as well as tourism-related facilities and offers.

Meanwhile, Klongchaiya, commented, “Thai AirAsia has always received great support from the TAT, and we thank them very much for their cooperation. Thai AirAsia is ready to help stimulate tourism and travel to Thailand, and in addition to the existing Don Mueang and Phuket routes, we are considering adding a Singapore-Chiang Mai route.”

Sydney, Australia – London-headquartered global digital out-of-home (OOH) marketplace, VIOOH, has announced a new partnership with Australia’s largest health and wellbeing media network, Tonic Media Network, to give Tonic Media Network access to VIOOH’s market-leading Supply-Side Platform (SSP) which currently has 36 Demand-Side Platform (DSP) partners globally, including the likes of The TradeDesk, Amobee and MediaMath.

With health being a priority now, more than ever before, Tonic Media Network’s mission is to improve the health and wellbeing of all Australians, by delivering trusted and evidence-based information to consumers, at point of care – inside GP waiting rooms, Pharmacies and Aboriginal Medical Services. Tonic Media Network assets reach over 16 million people monthly, via a network of 3,500 digital screens that span the breadth of Australia, including all capital cities and regional and remote towns. 

Natalia Escribano, Chief Commercial Officer at VIOOH, shared, “I’m delighted to be announcing our strategic partnership with Tonic Media,” 

“Tonic Media’s inventory nicely complements the inventory of our existing supply in Australia and I look forward to seeing the exciting programmatic DOOH campaigns to come from this new partnership,” Escribano added.

Utilising VIOOH’s SSP, and with access to Tonic Media’s health and wellbeing OOH inventory, this partnership allows more advertisers to create high-impact, data-driven and efficient DOOH campaigns across Australia.

Richard Silverton, Tonic Media Network CEO, commented, “We are thrilled to be VIOOH’s first non-JCDecaux partner in Australia. As early adopters of programmatic DOOH, we know this partnership delivers VIOOH and their DSP partners specific, highly contextual, and relevant health environments, complementing broader DOOH campaigns running across the platform.”

Meanwhile, Michael Tobin, Tonic Media Network’s Partnerships & Programmatic Manager added, “One of the key benefits of this partnership will be to leverage the global experience and knowledge of VIOOH’s programmatic DOOH capabilities and utilise those learnings for advertisers here in the Australian market.” 

Punjab, Pakistan — The Bank of Punjab (BOP), a Pakistan-based financial institution, has signed an agreement with Mastercard, the leading tech company in the global payments industry. The collaboration will see the bank’s customers in the region and across the globe benefit from a new range of electronic payment products.

The agreement will see BOP issuing Mastercard debit and credit cards to its customers and enable point-of-sale and e-commerce acquiring, utilizing Mastercard’s industry-leading Mastercard Payment Gateway Services platform.

Representatives from both parties attended the ceremony, namely from BOP; Zahid Mustafa, group chief of consumer and digital banking, Asim Qureshi, head of cards, and Syed Shahzad Shahid, head of customers, among others. From Mastercard, a notable attendee was J.K. Khalil, country GM for MENA east of Mastercard.

Addressing the participants, Mustafa said, “Cards and payments are critical components of our digital banking strategy to provide ease and convenience to our customers. We have developed a strong value of proposition for our cards with the help of Mastercard as we seek to give value to our customers with our transactions.”

Mustafa added, “We are bringing learnings from international markets to Pakistan and partnership with Mastercard is playing a pivotal role in the digitization of retail, as well as government initiatives.”

Meanwhile, Khalil shared some insights of his own, saying, “Pakistan is fast embracing digital payments and the endless opportunities it presents to people and communities. We are delighted to deepen our long-standing partnership with The Bank of Punjab through this milestone launch.”

Thailand — All kinds of athletes need hydration to fuel concentration in competitive settings. That’s why Talon, a Southeast Asian esports organization, has announced GBeat, an energy drink for gamers in Thailand, as the official energy drink partner of its Arena of Valor (ROV) team.

The partnership will see Talon, the organization and its athletes, promote the new zero sugar brand designed specifically for gamers with co-created content across the team’s social media in Thailand.

Sean Zhang, CEO of Talon Esports, said, “Our players are amongst the best in the world at what they do. Whether it is match day or training during the week, the players require intense concentration and focus for hours on end.”

Zhang continued by saying, “We are delighted to have such an exciting new brand in GBeat fuel the team to ensure they’re at peak performance no matter the occasion. Equally important is being able to share with our fans the things we love. It’s a great tasting product that will enhance the gaming experience of any gamer – whether it’s gaming themselves or cheering on their favourite team or streamer.”

Talon is the current representative of Thailand’s ROV team, sending 5 players to Vietnam at the upcoming SEA Games this May. 

Singapore — HyperLive Entertainment, a Singapore-based tech-enabled creative media company, has announced a strategic cooperation with Nova Esports, a Hong Kong-based professional esports organisation managing various esports teams. The partnership will see HyperLive Entertainment pilot Nova’s esports program in the region.

The strategic cooperation with Nova will see HyperLive establish a Nova Southeast Asian headquarters in Singapore, which includes plans to build an esports academy in the island nation, produce captivating esports content on its OTT-licensed media platform, HyperLive.tv.

Additionally, the partnership will create an esports team that will compete with the best teams globally in esports tournaments. The intended team name is Nova SG, and Nova SG will be based in Singapore. Further, Nova Esports will offer its experience and expertise as well as provide coaches and training regimes for the academy and its players.

Sean Wong, CEO of HyperLive, said, “We are truly excited about the synergistic partnership with Nova Esports. We have identified esports as a key market that has massive potential for growth in the upcoming years, thus with Nova on board, we are extremely confident that we can achieve incredible breakthroughs in esports.”

Singapore has been a thriving hub for esports events recently and with the support of Nova, more opportunities will arise, creating greater positive impact in the industry. The stage is set for professional esports players with tournaments sprouting both locally and regionally.

There are also further plans in place to expand Nova’s operations regionally to countries such as Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand, where the gaming communities are growing exponentially. There is enormous potential for talent recruitment while at the same time, establishing Nova’s brand equity and market presence.

Australia – Optus owned-telecommunications provider, and one of Australia’s providers of SIM-only mobile phone plans, amaysim, has appointed digital creative agency Orchard to shape its digital communications and connected experiences moving forward. 

Through the partnership, Orchard will deliver more personalised and connected web experiences to amaysim’s customers across various digital channels, by initially re-platforming onto Adobe AEM and extending into Salesforce and martech integration as part of the broader ecosystem.

Orchard’s partnership with amaysim follows a series of business growth for the digital creative agency, having won Tourism Tasmania’s digital transformation account in February, hiring Michael Di Natale as its first Managing Partner in March, and welcoming Daniel Taylor as its inaugural Director of Data in April.

Eric Alkema, associate marketing director of amaysim, shared, “We are very excited to be working with such an experienced team at Orchard to enhance our digital capabilities and deliver more tailored digital experiences to our customers. We can’t wait to get started.”

Michael Di Natale, managing partner of Orchard, commented, “After only recently joining Orchard, I’m so impressed with the incredible work we’ve done, and continue to do, across the Adobe stack. It’s great to see the word now spreading across the market, to now have the opportunity to help amaysim create genuine connected experiences.”

Shah Alam, Malaysia — Razer Merchant Services (RMS), the B2B arm of Razer Fintech, has joined hands with Discover Global Network, the payment brand of Discover Financial Services, as the first acquirer to enable Discover Global Network card acceptance at online merchants in Malaysia.

Through this partnership, RMS is setting the stones for its future goal of enabling 2000 e-commerce merchants in Malaysia to accept Diners Club International, Discover, and other affiliate network cards for online transactions by next year -2023.

RMS is taking calculated steps to ensure a potential lead in the future, as according to a report; e-commerce payments in Malaysia is estimated to increase at a Compound Annual Growth Rate of 18.3% from RM28.5b, or $7.1b in 2021, to RM55.7b, or $13.8b in 2025.

By enabling the card scheme, local merchants would access a significant global customer segment with a diversified payment acceptance as the e-commerce industry continues to experience increased growth.

This collaboration offers a strategic advantage for RMS merchants to tap into the billion-dollar market with Discover Global Network and reach more than 280 million cardholders worldwide.

Lee Li Meng, CEO of Razer Fintech, said, “This partnership cements RMS’ continued leadership in enabling a plethora of comprehensive payment channels for our online merchants, thus, providing diverse payment options for their customers.”

Meng added, “RMS merchants can further expand their business reach by casting a wider net in the regional and global market as we look to replicate our offerings with Diners Club International and Discover across Southeast Asia.”

Meanwhile, Jonathon Gould, regional managing director for global acceptance of Discover APAC, shared, “This partnership between Razer Merchant Services and Discover is pivotal in expanding the Malaysian e-commerce market to our global partners. We are committed to continuously providing great benefits and convenience to our cardholders around the world by offering options to make online payments more seamless across borders.”

Mumbai India — With increased competition across dominant social platforms like Facebook, resulting in a higher cost per lead (CPL), automotive brand ŠKODA AUTO India tapped PHD – its media agency partner and part of the Omnicom Media Group network – to optimize campaign efficiencies and generate a higher number of average daily leads at reduced CPL from its Facebook campaigns.

ŠKODA AUTO hoped to reach a broader and more profiled set of audiences via Facebook – car owners, first-time car buyers and enthusiasts alike, to generate qualified leads that can be converted down the consumer journey. The automotive brand faced a challenge with its objective of optimizing performance in terms of cost per lead efficiently. Manoeuvring on Lifetime Budgets at CBO instead of Daily Budgets at ABO was a hurdle it was looking to overcome whilst optimizing daily lead count and maintaining scale.

To streamline efficiencies across campaigns, the two companies collaborated with Pixis – whose powerful AI infrastructure helps make marketing effortlessly intelligent, agile and scalable for brands. Pixis deployed its Governance AI system, which uses AI models trained with billions of data points to allocate the bid budget on a daily basis dynamically.

With its data-driven recommendations, Pixis’ AI supported PHD Media in delivering sharper results on ŠKODA AUTO’s KPIs – helping the auto brand make the leap in its performance marketing campaigns. Upon implementing the recommendations to optimize lead generation, ŠKODA AUTO India was able to reach the desired high-quality audiences at the right time.

The results outperformed the quality of leads coming into the system, increased savings in terms of prospects, increased the average daily leads by nearly 17% for ŠKODA Superb and improved the CPL by approximately 10%. Similarly, the campaign around ŠKODA’s avant-garde Octavia also gained a 28% increase in average daily leads with Pixis’ AI infrastructure helping scale the campaign by almost 25%.

Speaking of the collaboration, Bharat Khatri, chief digital officer for Omnicom Media Group APAC, said, “With innovation and creativity at its core, PHD Media believes that the key to a cookie-less future lies in leveraging the right technology stack and interpreting a combination of different approaches to support all the key tasks around audience selection, targeting, governance, personalization, and most importantly, measurement.”

Khatri added, “With Pixis’ AI, we were able to bring down our acquisition cost drastically while maintaining scale. Pixis’ easy-to-use AI plugin helped our team deploy advanced people-powered, supervised AI and ML models that improved our cost per lead by 10% and also increased average daily leads volume by 17%.”

Meanwhile, Tarun Jha, head of marketing for ŠKODA AUTO India, shared, “With an infinite number of customer touchpoints today, reaching out to the right people at the right time remains imperative. We’re pleased with the campaign results and look forward to exploring more such opportunities with Pixis, guided by the counsel of our partners – PHD Media.”

Speaking on the collaboration, Neel Pandya, CEO of Pixis for Europe APAC, said, “We’re extremely happy to see how PHD Media leveraged the Pixis AI infrastructure to garner incredible performance on ŠKODA AUTO’s latest marketing campaigns. It’s a moment of true excitement and honour to continue working with PHD to facilitate greater business growth for ŠKODA, and other clients, through our AI systems.”