Tag: Partnership

Australia – Marketing communications agency Clemenger BBDO in Melbourne has been appointed by the Victorian Government’s Department of Transport as its creative lead agency of record.

As part of the partnership, Clemenger BBDO Melbourne will be responsible for brands including Public Transport Victoria, VicRoads, and Regional Roads Victoria. Moreover, it will develop engaging communications to encourage commuters back onto all modes of public transport, manage road congestion and disruptions messaging, and promote safety for all Victorians when travelling by road or public transport.

Anne Stout, Department of Transport’s acting director of brand and marketing, said, “Throughout the pitch process, they demonstrated a clear understanding of the Department’s goal to provide simple, safe connected journeys that help people connect to life, and the creativity that will help us communicate that ambition.”

Meanwhile, Julian Bell, Clemenger BBDO Melbourne’s managing partner, said that the Department of Transport is more than the sum of its trains, trams, roads, and ports.

“The network is ultimately about the people who use it, and we’re thrilled to be able to apply deep human insight and creativity to both rebuild confidence in our public transport system and help shape the way we’ll travel into the future,” added Bell.

Shanghai, China – Global independent programmatic digital out-of-home (DOOH) adtech company, Hivestack, has partnered with SparkX Marketing, a Chinese cross-border martech company.

The partnership will see SparkX leveraging Hivestack’s DSP to bring global automation and performance measurement to its clients’ campaigns in DOOH for the first time. Through this, clients of SparkX will be able to access Hivestack’s full suite of tools within the Hivestack DSP, including the ability to build custom audiences, set up live geo-location targeting, plan, buy and deliver programmatic DOOH campaigns globally.

Aileen Ku, Hivestack’s general manager for China, shared that as enthusiasm builds for programmatic DOOH around the world, they are thrilled to partner with SparkX Marketing to continue to drive forward the adoption of the channel. 

“Our unique position as a global, independent ad tech company provides crucial opportunities for local advertisers to plan and deliver contextualised, targeted and measurable campaigns around the world via our global network of DOOH inventory,” said Ku.

Meanwhile, Jun Yuan, SparkX Marketing’s founder, commented that this is a very exciting partnership for their business and will allow their clients to scale their business via programmatic DOOH outside of China for the first time. 

“We look forward to collaborating with our new partner at Hivestack to leverage their market-leading programmatic technology and global network of DOOH inventory to offer our clients a way to precisely engage worldwide audiences outside of the home,” said Yuan.

Just recently, Hivestack has partnered with BlueFocus Media, to enable Chinese brands to plan, activate, and measure DOOH campaigns programmatically via the Hivestack demand-side platform (DSP) from within China to outside China and all over the world.

China – ONE Holdings’ esports media company ONE Esports has been appointed by video game company Electronic Arts (EA) as its official tournament organiser and lead agency for the EACC 2022, an inter-Asian esports tournament for EA SPORTS FIFA Online 4.

According to EA, there will be two EACCs held in the second quarter and third quarter of this year, EACC Spring 2022 and EACC Summer 2022, both featuring 12 teams across China, Korea, Thailand, and Vietnam. EACC Spring will take place from 18 to 24 April 2022, where teams will compete over a week of intense competition.

As part of the agreement, ONE Esports will be providing full event execution and live production with players and talent for both EACCs in English, Korean, Mandarin, Thai, and Vietnamese. ONE Esports will also collaborate with EA to produce exciting content and comprehensive coverage of the tournaments for fans. The content will be available in local languages and published on the ONE Esports website, oneesports.gg, and across its social media channels.

Jason Teo, ONE Esport’s vice president of business development, shared that they know that a significant portion of ONE Esports fans is passionate about the EA SPORTS FIFA franchise. 

“We are excited to execute and bring an action-packed series of tournaments to this passionate and engaged EA SPORTS FIFA Online 4 community across Asia, as well as tell and amplify the stories of their esports heroes,” said Teo.

Meanwhile, Piotr Pilich, the deputy commissioner of EA SPORTS FIFA Online, said that ONE Esports has a proven track record for celebrating esports heroes and enhancing the competitive gaming global experience for players and viewers. 

“We are thrilled to partner with ONE Esports as we enhance the love for football through EA SPORTS FIFA Online 4 competitive gaming entertainment,” said Pilich.

Singapore – Global web recommendation platform Outbrain has expanded its global partnership with tech giant Microsoft, to utilise cloud computing service Microsoft Azure and encompass business, technology, and services.

Outbrain has been a long-standing Microsoft partner, through technology and advertising integrations that span MSN, Microsoft 365, Xbox, gaming, and Microsoft Bing. The expansion of the partnership will entail a multi-year Azure engagement to further enable the fast-paced innovation of Outbrain’s media platform. 

Through this, Outbrain aims to leverage Azure to further its global expansion, accelerate development cycles, and improve connectivity between advertisers and publishers, particularly with Outbrain’s programmatic bidders. This will also continue to drive forward the partnership through continuous innovation, enhancing Outbrain’s extensive data estate with a rich set of tools and services, ultimately helping Outbrain’s customers improve their business outcomes.

David Kostman, Outbrain’s co-CEO, commented that they are excited to further expand their strategic partnership with Microsoft, as they both share the mission of supporting independent journalism and the open web.

“Over the course of the last decade, we have worked together to serve publishers and advertisers with high-quality solutions across the globe. Extending our partnership with Microsoft to include Microsoft Azure technology as part of our hybrid cloud platform will drive innovation and deepen the relationship between our companies,” said Kostman.

Meanwhile, Andrew Burke, Outbrain’s managing director for APAC and growth markets, namely India, China, and Brazil, said, “This partnership represents another significant milestone in our efforts to provide innovative solutions to publishers and advertisers in our local markets”

Tara Brady, Microsoft’s corporate vice president of strategic partnerships, said, “We are pleased to expand our established partnership and look forward to partnering with Outbrain’s technology teams as they leverage Microsoft Azure’s most advanced technologies to service their customers.”

Rob Wilk, Microsoft’s vice president of advertising, commented, “We’ve been impressed by Outbrain’s platform, scale, and technology and are pleased to see Outbrain embrace Microsoft Azure and look forward to how it will improve performance for advertisers in Microsoft’s growing advertising ecosystem and on the open web.”

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – Dentsu Malaysia’s digital-first end-to-end media agency iProspect has won the regional media mandate of hotel and flight booking platform Traveloka.

The remit, which will take effect in April 2022, will see iProspect as a key partner in Traveloka’s plan in becoming a lifestyle superapp. iProspect will also be responsible for all above the line media planning and buying across the platform’s key markets, which are Malaysia, Singapore and the Philippines. 

Moreover, iProspect will be setting up a regional media strategy hub based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, ensuring that the brand delivers a unified strategy with local nuances across the said SEA markets. 

Dheeraj Raina, the CEO of dentsu Media for Malaysia, shared that the travel industry has gone through very challenging times, to say the least, and so have the consumers. 

“As the world begins to open up, we want yearning travellers to pick Traveloka as their first choice, for fulfilling experiences and we believe the media has a strong role to play in building that trust and optimism,” said Raina.

Meanwhile, Shirley Lesmana, Traveloka’s CMO, noted that they have marked their presence in six countries across SEA, helping millions of people enrich their lives on a daily basis, as they are on an accelerated mission to fulfil the end-to-end lifestyle needs of consumers in the region. 

“In addition, we found synergy in the strategy crafted by iProspect in these markets, to deliver our brand promise,” said Lesmana.

New Zealand – State, the insurance company based in New Zealand, has launched a new campaign that collated a range of mistake-prone trends, aimed at helping Kiwis make fewer mistakes in 2022.

The campaign, which was developed in partnership with creative agency Colenso BBDO, has reviewed over four million data streams, including more than 210,000 car, home and contents insurance claims, as well as publicly available NZ Police, NZ Transport, Statistics NZ, and weather data.

Titled ‘The State Insurance Mistake Report’, the campaign has ventured beyond the most mistake-prone days of the week, such as garages are the most mistake-prone space in the house, people called ‘John’ make the most mistakes, and there is zero truth to the superstition that more things go wrong when there’s a full moon.

Moreover, State and Colenso BBDO have also produced ‘The Personalised Mistake Report’, an online tool that people can use to be more mindful about what types of common mistakes could be in their future, with the aim to offer a unique experience for Kiwis.

Gabrielle Markwick-Brown, State’s marketing manager, believes that highlighting Kiwis’ most mistake-prone moments in an engaging and relatable way will hopefully help people avoid making as many of them.

“We wanted to use this data to help better protect New Zealanders. While State will always be here to help Kiwis get back on their feet if they make a mistake, our customers tell us time and again that preventing mistakes from happening in the first place is always preferable to dealing with the aftermath,” she said 

Meanwhile, Maria Devereux, Colenso BBDO’s CIO, said, “What the ‘Mistake Report’ shows is that there is a huge amount of risk we actually can foresee. By predicting mistakes, State is in the unique position to show up for customers before they lodge a claim, and actually, help them avoid doing so in the first place.”

The ‘Mistake Report’ campaign was launched last 14 February with a 30“film, supported by digital and print campaigns directing New Zealand to the website.

New Zealand – Auckland-based DOOH provider LUMO Digital Outdoor has partnered with DOOH adtech startup Doohly to launch a new, independent solution that will help streamline the entire direct and programmatic DOOH buying experience, as innovation continues across the channel.

The partnership will be deploying a purpose-built content management system (CMS) that will manage the roadside DOOH network. It is a live, independent solution accessible to all CRM, ad servers, supply-side platforms, audience measurement, and DOOH verification technologies open to integration.

Moreover, LUMO will have greater control over how it manages its networks for the benefit of buyers, from ad scheduling and reporting through to programmatic delivery. Doohly’s CMS solution will also be built in tandem with LUMO’s custom CRM system to reduce the requirement for manual involvement once campaigns are approved.

Jack Plowright, LUMO’s general manager of programmatic, shared that this new system and partnership with Dooh.ly is allowing them to embrace innovations in the programmatic without the integration siloes that exist amongst players. 

“We’re taking more control and some of the key projects we are aiming to push forward will provide equal access to our inventory. Doohly is a key part of that with its ability to drill down to the integrations across the different platforms that we use,” said Plowright.

Lumo, having seen the potential in programmatic buying for the channel, has sorted a platform that could integrate directly with supply-side platforms without the need to reserve a spot in the loop for programmatic access. Ensuring that inventory remains fluid between direct and programmatic buy types, the integration will push all available inventory to SSPs but allow direct campaigns to be allocated to the ad play opportunity if not fulfilled by programmatic buyers.

The integration with SSP partners such as Hivestack and Vistar will allow clients to have open access to the LUMO network programmatically, regardless of what demand-side platform they wish to buy through. Soon, live programmatic inventory on the network will be available to help manage impression capacity and campaign delivery.

Meanwhile, the Doohly CMS solution is set up to ingest real-time audience measurement data via the LENS platform, as well third-party display verification platform, Seedooh, providing a fully integrated campaign delivery system built for the demands of advertisers using DOOH.

Sean Law, Doohly’s co-founder, commented, “We’re committed to helping build and support the DOOH industry globally, and this partnership with LUMO was a natural step forward for that goal. We’re incredibly excited to be working alongside LUMO for this new industry initiative.”

Phil Clemas, LUMO’s CEO and co-founder, noted that they are seeing a changing shift in attitudes towards programmatic buying, and the growing demand has created an opportunity for them to provide a better pDOOH solution, and the new software platform is innovative, purpose-built and unique to their market, giving them another way to meet growing expectations around the demand for flexibility of DOOH campaigns. 

“Ultimately we’re helping the market see the adaptability needed for the digital channel as we anticipate the future needs of our clients,” said Clemas.

Just recently, LUMO has also partnered with visual communications platform Canva to launch ‘Billboards For Good’, an initiative that supplies New Zealand-based charities with free outdoor campaign activation.

Singapore – Asia’s sports media property ONE Championship has announced a multi-year partnership with luxury travel and lifestyle brand TUMI. This move will see TUMI as the official premium luggage partner of ONE Championship. 

The partnership includes live broadcast integrations and the development of a bespoke travel case and sling exclusively designed for the prestigious ONE World Championship belt. They will also work together on various exclusive marketing and branding activations throughout the duration of the partnership.

The ONE World Championship belt case combines a tough exterior with contoured angles as a nod to the martial arts legacy contained within. Utilising TUMI’s signature FXT Ballistic Nylon, a custom form-fitted EVA interior with suede lining, and an integrated stand, this innovative travel solution provides full 360-degree protection while in transit. An illuminated TUMI logo is the final touch to this modern design.

Meanwhile, the ONE World Championship sling will allow them to carry and store the coveted ONE World Championship belt wherever they go. Featuring TUMI’s FXT Ballistic Nylon, elevated leather detailing and a quilted interior for total protection, the sling reflects the signature design language of the TUMI Alpha 3 collection.

Chatri Sityodtong, ONE Championship’s chairman and CEO, stated that the ONE World Championship belt represents the journey of the greatest martial artists who reach the pinnacle of their sports through an unparalleled passion and dedication to excellence. 

“Our partnership with TUMI celebrates this achievement by honouring and protecting their most prized possession. I am thrilled to team up with a brand of TUMI’s calibre to elevate this experience for our athletes and fans watching around the globe,” said Sityodtong.

Victor Sanz, TUMI’s creative director, said that the ONE World Championship belt is a symbol of the relentless drive and dedication that ONE Championship athletes display in the pursuit of their craft. 

“As a world leader in luxury travel accessories with a particular focus on performance, TUMI is honoured to support and elevate the journeys of these amazing athletes and partner with a like-minded organisation that defines excellence in martial arts,” added Sanz.

Singapore — Full-suite payments platform 2C2P has announced its regional collaboration with hoolah, Asian Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) provider. The partnership enables 2C2P to offer hoolah’s service to merchants in Singapore, Malaysia and Hong Kong, and extend to new markets through 2022.

Through 2C2P’s comprehensive payments platform, merchants can seamlessly provide hoolah’s BNPL payment option at checkout for consumers to split purchases into three monthly interest-free repayments. Jointly, 2C2P and hoolah will help merchants boost their order size and reach more millennial and Generation Z customers who favour BNPL payment methods.

Aung Kyaw Moe, CEO and founder of 2C2P, said, “This partnership with hoolah bolsters our continuous effort to build an integrated payment solution that will help businesses securely accept payments across all channels to reach different customer segments and capitalise on the e-commerce boom. Our goal at 2C2P is to ensure that we constantly innovate to meet evolving business and consumer needs.”

Simultaneously, Arvin Singh, CEO and co-founder of hoolah, commented, “With more consumers looking for a flexible, transparent, and highly personalised way of paying online, our partnership with 2C2P will empower merchants and enhance BNPL adoption in the region. 2C2P’s expertise in payments acceptance in Asia is a great complement to the hoolah ecosystem, and we’re excited to embark on this journey to support merchants and take their businesses to greater heights.”

hoolah was recently added as a BNPL payment option by Malaysia Airlines and parent Malaysia Aviation Group’s travel and lifestyle platform, Journify.

Lau Yin May, group chief marketing and customer experience officer of Malaysia Airlines, shared that they are committed to offering safe and seamless end-to-end travel experiences for their customers and paying for their trip is part of the experience.

“We are delighted to work with hoolah and 2C2P to offer flexible payment choices to our customers so they can continue to Fly Confidently and shop seamlessly at Journify while enjoying interest-free BNPL convenience,” May said.

According to an IDC report commissioned by 2C2P, BNPL will rise from 1 per cent to 5 per cent of the total e-commerce payments in Southeast Asia by 2025 and become a key payment method shaping the region’s digital commerce landscape.