Tag: Partnership

Singapore – The Competition and Consumer Commission of Singapore (CCCS) has granted conditional approval of the proposed commercial cooperation after accepting commitments from Singapore Airlines (SIA) and Garuda Indonesia. It is worth noting that the partnership was already in plan back in 2023 and an MoU back in 2021.

According to CCCS, the parties submitted that the proposed cooperation between SIA and Garuda will lead to enhanced air travel product for Singapore to Indonesia services, as well as expanded virtual networks of the airlines, thereby providing an increased number of service offerings to passengers;

Moreover, the partnership aims to promote more competitive fares; have significant benefits to corporate account customersm create benefits for members of both airlines’ Frequent Flyer Programme; as well as improved connectivity for both Singapore and Indonesia, with consequential benefits to both countries’ aviation industry and tourism.

Part of the approval process was how CCCS conducted a market testing exercise from 13 to 26 June to assess whether the proposed commitments would sufficiently address the competition concerns arising from the proposed cooperation. Most relevant stakeholders did not raise any concerns with the proposed commitments.

Alvin Koh, chief executive at CCCS said, “Airline alliances are an important part of the aviation industry bringing significant benefits to the Singapore economy as well as overseas markets. We look forward to working closely with our businesses and stakeholders to deliver positive, prompt and impactful outcomes that matter. Full cooperation from businesses throughout the process, providing complete, concise and relevant information will facilitate the timely completion of CCCS’s review.”

Australia – Amperity, an AI-powered Lakehouse customer data platform (CDP), and Microsoft Azure collaborate to help businesses change customer interactions via data-driven insights and personalisation. 

Retailers may use first-party data to develop loyalty, reduce turnover, and maximise lifetime value, while also shaping future omnichannel experiences and fostering pre- and post-purchase interaction and brand advocacy.

The innovative cooperation recently received recognition at the Microsoft Retail & Consumer Goods 2024 Microsoft Partner of the Year Award, where Amperity was named a finalist. The organisation was named to a global list of notable Microsoft partners for its achievements in designing and executing customer solutions using Microsoft technology.

The Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards honour Microsoft partners who, during the course of the previous year, have excelled in the creation and delivery of Microsoft Cloud apps, services, hardware, and artificial intelligence advancements. These are multi-category awards, and the winners are chosen from more than 4,700 nominations that come from more than 100 different countries.

Speaking about the partnership, Curt Lockton, SVP of strategic partnerships at Amperity, said, “The synergy between Amperity and Microsoft is pushing the boundaries of AI-driven customer experiences, and empowering brands to harness the full potential of their data to understand their customers, deliver personalised experiences and drive revenue. We are incredibly honoured and grateful to be named a finalist for the Retail & Consumer Goods Partner of the Year by Microsoft. This award is a reflection of the transformative impact our partnership has had on our mutual customers.” 

Meanwhile, Nicole Dezen, chief partner officer and corporate vice president at Microsoft, said, “Congratulations to the winners and finalists of the 2024 Microsoft Partner of the Year Awards! The momentum generated by numerous AI & Copilot announcements this year fueled innovation from our partners, enabling groundbreaking services and solutions to customers. I am inspired by the capability and creativity in our partner ecosystem and this year’s winners beautifully demonstrate the best of what’s possible with AI and the Microsoft Cloud.” 

Singapore – CXM agency Merkle Singapore, has been reappointed as the exclusive digital marketing agency for Royal Brunei Airlines, following a competitive pitch.

As the incumbent for the past decade, Merkle Singapore will now continue the remit for another three years.

Through the remit, Merkle Singapore will bring its expertise across a full suite of digital marketing services across email and customer relationship management (CRM), media, search engine optimisation (SEO), app store optimisation (ASO), and data and strategy consultation to support Royal Brunei Airlines in using digital to meet the post-pandemic travel demand and boost its digital revenue.

Previously, Merkle Singapore has been responsible for developing Royal Brunei Airlines’ first integrated email platform and integrated analytics platform. Despite global travel halts during the pandemic, Merkle Singapore continued to be a close consultation partner focusing on future-proofing Royal Brunei Airlines’ go-to-market customer strategy for post-pandemic travel surge.

Post-pandemic, Merkle Singapore has been prioritising a refreshed digital strategy to spur bookings on the back of increased regional and global travel demands.

Talking about the remit, Sanchit Mendiratta, managing director, CXM, dentsu Singapore, and chief growth officer, Merkle Southeast Asia, said, “We’re grateful for the trust and partnership of Royal Brunei Airlines as our longest-standing client. Having helped them to build solid data foundations over the past years, this has paved the way for us now to be able to drive data-driven decision-making to optimise their digital marketing effort and move towards hyper-personalisation.”

Meanwhile, Sabirin Hj Abdul Hamid, chief executive officer, Royal Brunei Airlines, commented, “It is always essential for Royal Brunei Airlines to team up with a partner with whom we can jointly shape the future to serve our digital-savvy guests better and maintain a leading position in the highly competitive market environment in which we operate. We trust that Merkle Singapore will take us to new heights by leveraging the power of digital marketing across several aspects with their advanced digital solutions, coupled with their understanding of our business.”

Singapore – food and grocery delivery platform foodpanda has expanded its collaboration with beer brand Carlsberg Asia to make Carlsberg’s extensive variety of beverages more accessible to consumers especially during relevant drinking occasions.

The partnership will bring exciting campaigns from both brands, designed to make Carlsberg beers more appealing to consumers.

Carlsberg will also deepen its use of foodpanda’s extensive network of cloud grocery stores through pandamart and its strong ties with retailers via foodpanda shops to make Carlsberg beers easier to access; as part of consumers’ enjoyable memorable moments.

Going into detail, the partnership will be featuring a video campaign with the Liverpool Football Club, exclusive gifts-with-purchase (GwP), such as chilled boxes and colour-changing cups, special promotions and bundles on pandamart and 7-Eleven Singapore, and a responsible drinking campaign to promote safe consumption of alcohol.

Talking about this collaboration, Raphael Zennou, vice president of quick commerce at foodpanda, said, “We know that our consumers love their beer, so we are thrilled to strengthen our partnership with Carlsberg to make sure everyone can enjoy their favourite drinks in the freshest and most satisfying ways possible.”

“Together, we are not only meeting our consumers’ demand for high-quality beer but also enhancing the overall shopping experience with quick and reliable delivery within an hour. In the spirit of Carlsberg, this is Probably The Best Partnership In The World!”, he added.

Meanwhile, Arindam Varanasi, vice president, commercial at Carlsberg Asia, commented, “By leveraging foodpanda’s insight into consumer purchasing habits, innovative logistics and technology solutions, we can ensure our consumers enjoy Carlsberg’s refreshing and high-quality beers with unparalleled convenience.”

“This partnership is a testament to our commitment to meeting the evolving needs of our consumers by providing them with a seamless beer purchasing and drinking experience, no matter where they are. Together with foodpanda, we will roll out exciting campaigns and initiatives that will make Carlsberg beers even more accessible and appealing to beer lovers across Asia,” he mentioned.

Sydney, Australia – Full-service digital marketing agency, The Pistol, has announced that it will bring its digital media expertise to some of Australia’s most beloved retail brands, in a new partnership with the Brandbank Group.

Under the new remit, The Pistol will be managing paid media for the Brandbank Group’s multiple fashion, lifestyle, and beauty labels, helping to boost sales and brand awareness across the group.

The Pistol secured the Brandbank Group account following a competitive pitch process. In winning the account, the company was impressed with The Pistol’s integrated marketing strategies.

A key part of The Pistol’s paid media strategy will focus on quantifying the impact of long-term brand building while delivering sustainable and profitable revenue streams, all centred around exceptional omnichannel experiences.

Talking about the partnership, Natalie Motta-Reeves, GM of marketing and e-commerce at Brandbank Group, said, “Brandbank Group is excited to announce our partnership with The Pistol, who brings an innovative perspective to our digital media strategy. We are impressed by their expertise at the intersection of creative, media and technology. We’re confident this partnership will lead to incrementality and profitable business growth.”

Meanwhile, Jaime Nosworthy, CEO of The Pistol, commented, “Brandbank Group has a deep understanding of brand-building as a long-term investment, and we look forward to being part of that plan for growth. Working with some of Australia’s most popular fashion, skincare, and lifestyle brands, this new partnership is a chance to bring our marketing and media expertise to Brandbank’s retail offering.”

New York, USA – OpenAI has announced a multi-year partnership with global media company TIME to bring TIME’s journalism to OpenAI’s products, including ChatGPT. The new partnership furthers TIME’s commitment to expanding global access to accurate and trusted information. 

Through this collaboration, OpenAI will gain access to current and historic content from TIME’s extensive archives from the last 101 years to enhance its products and display in response to user inquiries—featuring a citation and link back to the original source on Time.com.

The partnership will also enable TIME to gain access to OpenAI’s technology to develop new products for its audiences, along with the opportunity to provide vital feedback and share practical applications to refine and enhance the delivery of journalism in ChatGPT and other OpenAI products and shape the future of news experiences.

Mark Howard, chief operating officer at TIME, said, “Throughout our 101-year history, TIME has embraced innovation to ensure that the delivery of our trusted journalism evolves alongside technology. This partnership with OpenAI advances our mission to expand access to trusted information globally as we continue to embrace innovative new ways of bringing TIME’s journalism to audiences globally.”

Meanwhile, Brad Lightcap, chief operating officer of OpenAI, commented, “We’re partnering with TIME to make it easier for people to access news content through our AI tools, and to support reputable journalism by providing proper attribution to original sources.”

This partnership follows a slew of partnerships OpenAI had including with the Financial Times, Reddit, News Corp, and more recently with Grab.

Singapore – MiQ, a programmatic media partner to brands and agencies, has partnered with Hoppr, a connected TV (CTV) platform, to enhance customers’ access to ultra-premium inventory with a first-in-market guaranteed view in Singapore. 

MiQ’s mission is to develop the most comprehensive advanced TV (ATV) solution on the market. Through this partnership, MiQ will leverage Hoppr’s patented platform, which utilises audience behaviour and insights to ensure a guaranteed view of ads on the largest screens in the home.

MiQ is Hoppr’s preferred managed service activation partner in Singapore. Together, they will deliver solutions aimed at addressing one of the TV industry’s most significant challenges: fragmentation, which reduces advertising reach across diverse audience segments.

Through this partnership, MiQ and Hoppr will empower brands to target their desired audiences by enabling advertisers to plan and purchase inventory that guarantees ad viewership. This level of precision ensures that advertising messages reach the most relevant household audiences, maximising the impact and effectiveness of each campaign.

Both parties are also assessing opportunities to expand their partnership to include the future launch of enhanced advanced TV capabilities for Singapore across linear, streaming, and YouTube. 

MiQ and Hoppr share a vision for the future of advanced TV, where data-driven video integrates across linear and digital platforms. This partnership follows MiQ’s recent global TV intelligence expansion to the UK and Australia, reinforcing their commitment to enhancing TV consumption and audience engagement.

James Parker, SEA managing director at MiQ, said, “This partnership is an exciting step forward in bringing powerful advanced TV advertising solutions to the APAC market. MiQ and Hoppr have a shared vision of advanced TV—one of data-driven video convergence across linear and streaming that brings together the reach of TV with the targeting and performance of programmatic.” 

Joe Prusz, CEO of Hoppr, added, “The combination of MiQ’s managed service CTV and programmatic trading expertise and Hoppr’s unique platform will bring Advanced TV to life. We can deliver a guaranteed view of an ad that will be consumed by an audience in its entirety. We help advertisers reach the hard-to-reach audience that isn’t watching linear TV. We share MiQ’s view of the future of advanced TV advertising and know that advertisers need a new way for their message to cut through to the consumer. This is only possible with Hoppr’s guaranteed view.” 

Melbourne, Australia – Melbourne-based global martech news provider The Martech Weekly (TMW), has today officially announced its partnership with Alium, a New York-headquartered buyer intelligence platform.

This new joint venture aims to provide reassuringly transparent market intelligence that prioritises providing honest customer reviews to those charged with making high-stakes purchasing decisions.

Spearheading this initiative will be Juan Mendoza, CEO & editor at The Martech Weekly, as well as Jonathan Sherry, CEO & founder of Alium.

Both Mendoza and Sherry have concluded that the $50 billion technology research industry is ripe for disruption. Both have runs on the board, so it would be risky for complacent incumbents to assume they have little to fear. With negotiations finalised, Mendoza and Sherry will be pushing forward with their plans on this new joint venture.

Alium, a new entrant into the buyer intelligence space, will be interviewing experts with first-hand experience purchasing, implementing, and using marketing technology. Alium compiles this data to provide unparalleled insights into the strengths, weaknesses and opportunities of various marketing technologies from practitioners.

On the other hand, TMW will be keeping busy marketing technology leaders ahead of the industry with their Wednesday Martech briefing and in-depth Sunday essays. Additionally, TMW aims to identify the most promising and innovative marketing technologies each year with the ‘TMW 100’, ranking the 100 most innovative marketing technologies globally from 1st to 100th place, decided by the marketing technology community and a panel of nine global experts.

From July 1, Alium and TMW will join forces to bring greater clarity to how marketing technology is being used, bought and sold, giving marketing-industry executives an unprecedented, long-overdue understanding of which Martech tools are worth the outlay.

Speaking on their stance on this initiative, Mendoza said, “Until relatively recently, businesses were spending ever more on Martech but then failing to make much use of it. Inevitably, companies have now reacted by reducing their spend on Martech. That’s understandable, but short-sighted.”

Meanwhile, Sherry also commented, “Like Juan, I’ve long had issues with the established players. They clip the ticket at various points, taking money from both tech buyers and sellers. This leads to conflicting incentives, which degrades the quality of the analysis they provide.”

Kuching, Malaysia – The Sarawak Tourism Board (STB) and Malaysia Aviation Group (MAG) inked a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), starting off a three-year partnership aimed at promoting tourism in Sarawak. 

STB and MAG intend to work together on projects that will strengthen collaboration and boost the country’s tourism industry, especially by drawing in foreign visitors. The Memorandum of Understanding also restated the state government’s commitment to promoting Sarawak as a top vacation destination worldwide. 

Sharzede Salleh Askor, the chief executive officer of STB, signed on behalf of the company, while Ahmad Luqman Mohd Azmi, the CEO of MAG Airlines, represented the company. 

According to Dato Sri Abdu Karim, the combined efforts aim to strengthen and cooperate with both parties’ existing tourism marketing initiatives, with the goal of drawing more than 35.6 million tourists to Malaysia by 2026.

Speaking about the partnership, Dato Sebastian Ting, Deputy Tourism, Creative Industry and Performing Arts minister, said, “This MoU addresses a key area in our pursuit to promote tourism in Sarawak. It aims to jointly explore and implement activities using services by MAG for mutual benefit.” 

Meanwhile, Dato Sri Abdul Karim, Creative Industry and Performing Arts minister, stated, “This partnership aligns seamlessly with our ambitious goal for Visit Malaysia Year 2026. With this MoU, we are embarking on a journey to explore and implement various activities designed to promote tourism to Sarawak. Using the services and reach of Malaysia Airlines, we will develop and execute these initiatives on an annual basis, ensuring they are continually reviewed and refined. This partnership represents a strategic and forward-thinking approach to achieving our tourism objectives, enhancing our global appeal, and firmly positioning Sarawak as a top destination for travellers worldwide.” 

Furthermore, Sharzede Salleh Askor, said, “We also have trade fairs and consumer shows that we are working with as well as collaboration with airlines to bring in key opinion leaders (KOLs), familiarisation trips and so forth. Our domestic sales are still in good numbers, but we are very happy that the reach is further this year where we will also have visitors from all 10 Asean member countries including Laos, Cambodia and Indonesia. The numbers are picking up and we are confident of a very good show with a good number of turnouts at RWMF 2024.”

Manila, Philippines – The Asian Development Bank (ADB) and Mastercard have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to promote financial inclusion and digital transformation across Asia-Pacific. The agreement reflects both organisations’ common objective of improving financial inclusion by supporting micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) and women-owned businesses. It seeks to use digital innovation to promote equitable growth and the adoption of climate-friendly behaviours. 

ADB and Mastercard have committed to working together on projects that will increase financial accessibility, encourage the use of digital payments, and improve digital literacy in marginalised populations. Their main goals include encouraging inclusive economic development and closing the digital divide. To make sure that their cooperative efforts are in line with the main goal of creating a safe and sustainable digital economy, the parties have set guiding principles.

ADB recently granted a US$300m loan to help the Philippines’ financial inclusion aspirations. The loan aims to increase Filipinos’ access to financial services, particularly among underprivileged parts of the community, while simultaneously encouraging economic growth. 

The strategic partnership is a step toward a more inclusive and resilient digital economy in the Asia-Pacific region. ADB and Mastercard aim to create new opportunities, promote long-term growth, and have a lasting impact on future generations by working closely together.

Speaking about the partnership, Simon Calasanz, country manager, Philippines, Mastercard, said, “Mastercard has an extensive history of supporting MSMEs, and is committed to further collaborating with ADB in the Philippines to drive greater financial inclusion, broaden credit access, and ensure a safe and secure digital ecosystem for the evolving landscape.” 

Meanwhile, Suzanne Gaboury, director general of ADB’s private sector operations department, stated, “Financial inclusion is at the heart of ADB’s mission to promote sustainable development. Through this partnership with Mastercard, we are increasing our efforts to expand access to financial services and unlock opportunities for marginalised communities in the Philippines, and across the region.”