Tag: Technology

Indonesia – Netcore Cloud is set to expand its operations in Indonesia, marking a decade in the market by reinforcing its local presence with a new data centre and an expanded in-country team.

The move underscores Netcore’s ongoing investment in the market, aligning with its broader APAC growth strategy. The company aims to support faster deployments, ensure regulatory compliance, and deliver personalised customer engagement at scale.

Netcore’s Indonesia operations, which began in 2015, serve a growing roster of local clients, including INDODAX, Bobobox, Smartfren, Erajaya, Home Credit, Fasset, Domino’s Indonesia, and Danone Indonesia. These partnerships reflect Netcore’s role in enhancing customer engagement and operational efficiency through its suite of solutions—including Email API, Personalisation Engine, Product Discovery, and Web-based Personalisation—powered by Google Cloud.

“Netcore Cloud’s partnership with Google Cloud will help brands deliver more impactful hyper-personalised experiences that boost customer retention and revenue growth,” said Abithab Bhaskar, CEO of international business at Netcore Cloud. 

“Google Cloud’s expertise in data analytics and generative AI, combined with Netcore’s deep experience across sectors like ecommerce, banking, finance, securities, insurance, and travel, enables us to create solutions that ensure every brand touchpoint delivers maximum value and enhances the overall customer experience,” he added. 

To deepen market engagement, Netcore also established a team of growth consultants and domain experts in Jakarta. The team is focused on understanding local business challenges and tailoring solutions for both digital-first enterprises and traditional businesses undergoing digital transformation.

Two key product offerings are central to this push: the Unbxd platform and Co-Marketer.

Unbxd enhances e-commerce performance by personalising the shopper journey with AI-powered search, real-time recommendations, merchandising tools, and product information management.

Co-Marketer, meanwhile, is an AI assistant designed to help Indonesian marketers generate content for push notifications using natural language prompts—streamlining campaign workflows and improving engagement.

Earlier this year, in May 2024, Netcore launched a local data centre to address the needs of businesses operating in Indonesia. The facility is intended to reduce latency and offer localised data management capabilities for both startups and multinational companies.

Triton Dsouza, senior vice president for Southeast Asia, shared, “Indonesia represents a high-growth market where brands need cutting-edge, scalable, and AI-driven MarTech solutions to stay ahead. Our enhanced presence in Jakarta allows us to provide businesses with greater local support, unlocking new opportunities for personalised engagement and business growth.”

Loyalty in retail is well established and continues to evolve, it has seen and continues to see a lot of innovation, but what about loyalty in other industries? Airlines are well known for loyalty programs, so are hotels. What’s the difference?

While retail has steamed ahead in terms of its adoption and innovation in loyalty, other industries are lagging behind their true potential in this area. This article will explore challenges in maturity with loyalty programs across three industries: airlines, fuel and convenience, and quick service restaurants. 

Airlines: Legacy Tech Stalls Loyalty Take Off

One might think of airlines when considering industries where loyalty seems to play a big part, and they’d be right. Loyalty has become a well-known aspect of air travel. 

Whether you’re a member of Singapore Airlines’ KrisFlyer or earning Lotusmiles with Vietnam Airlines, the basic model is that customers collect points that can be redeemed for reward flights or flight discounts. 

There are however challenges in the airline loyalty space that are limiting its true potential. The first issue is delayed rewards due to legacy technology systems. It is very common for flight miles across airlines to be awarded days or even weeks after travel. Suspected to be the result of legacy technology, these delays create gaps in customer engagement and reduce the perceived immediacy of rewards.

Research suggests that real-time loyalty rewards are associated with higher customer satisfaction. In contrast, the lag in mile crediting has been linked to frustration and reduced program participation. 

As noted in a recent publication by Deloitte, the airline technology infrastructure was built decades ago. There is pressure to modernise systems, but there are also many challenges tied to such major transformations.

Airlines that modernise core infrastructure will be better placed to add innovation to their loyalty programs, unlocking a path to greater engagement, real-time issuance and even AI-powered personalisation.

Fuel, Convenience and Integration Fails

Unfortunately, many fuel and convenience businesses’ loyalty programs suffer from rather limited earn-and-burn models. In these cases, loyalty points are accrued in one system and often redeemed via third-party partners.

For example, in some cases points are only redeemable for fuel discounts, which limits their versatility within the brand. Even more concerning is if points are only redeemable with a third partner, like a supermarket or an airline. The customers earn points in one ecosystem but must leave that ecosystem to find meaningful redemption value.   

In these scenarios the fuel station essentially becomes just a points collection mechanism rather than building deeper engagement within their own brand environment. 

A lack of integration combined with non-intuitive reward systems will lead to low participation rates. More sophisticated programs would offer diverse internal redemption.

It can be done, as one provider from New Zealand has recently demonstrated. New Zealand fuel and convenience chain Z Energy recently overhauled its loyalty program so that it now rewards customers for almost all spending, not just fuel, and points are issued in real time. 

The technology backend of the Z Rewards program was built with the help of Eagle Eye, which powers the instant point transactions with cloud adjudication. The loyalty system is embedded in the digital Z App, which sets the stage for even more loyalty features to come.

Quick Service Restaurants: Speed vs. Sophistication

The quick service restaurant (QSR) industry faces an interesting challenge with loyalty programs. While QSRs serve millions of customers daily and have obvious opportunities for repeat business, many operators remain hesitant to implement advanced loyalty systems.

The primary concern is operational efficiency. QSR businesses are built on speed; customers expect fast service, and any system that might slow down the checkout process faces immediate resistance. This creates tension between building customer loyalty and maintaining rapid service delivery.

The QSR market is also fragmented, particularly in Southeast Asia. Each brand often develops its own loyalty system, resulting in inconsistent customer experiences and limiting the ability to scale technological innovations across the industry. Customers might have multiple QSR apps on their phones, each with different interfaces, earning structures, and redemption processes.

Simplicity and efficiency should be at the heart of loyalty initiatives in this industry. This means easy slick and easy-to-use digital apps, high-speed real-time adjudication and point resolution, and straightforward offers. 

Turning Tech Limitations Into Opportunities

While loyalty programs in the above-mentioned industries face distinct challenges, they do demonstrate potential. 

Airlines struggling with legacy systems, fuel and convenience stores limited by basic earn-and-burn models, and QSRs concerned about operational efficiency all share common ground; they need modern technology that addresses their specific constraints whilst opening new possibilities.

These are the pain points that Eagle Eye, as a provider of a cloud-native, AI-powered, highly scalable platform for loyalty and customer engagement, is designed to address. 

Real-time processing eliminates the delays that frustrate customers, flexible architecture enables diverse redemption options, and streamlined integration ensures operational efficiency isn’t compromised. This modern approach creates opportunities for businesses to build sophisticated loyalty programs that deliver genuine value.

The retail sector’s progress with loyalty programs demonstrates what’s possible when technology evolves alongside customer expectations. As other industries embrace modern loyalty platforms, they can move beyond basic point collection to create meaningful, real-time customer relationships that drive both satisfaction and business growth.

This thought leadership piece is written by Aaron Crowe, Regional Director, Eagle Eye, Asia

Philippines – The Philippines is rapidly emerging as a pivotal force in Southeast Asia’s digital economy, with its retail and e-commerce sectors undergoing significant transformation. Consumers are increasingly seeking personalised experiences, seamless payment options, and omnichannel convenience. To meet these evolving demands, businesses must harness the power of automation, predictive analytics, and partnership marketing.

In response to this dynamic landscape, MARKETECH APAC, in collaboration with its sister publication UpTech Media, is thrilled to present the ‘Retail & E-Commerce Innovation Marketing & Tech Summit: Philippines 2025.’ Happening on 14 August 2025, at Shangri-La The Fort, Manila, this summit aims to redefine the future of e-commerce in the Philippines. The event will bring together industry leaders, marketing experts, and tech innovators to explore the latest trends, strategies, and technologies driving the evolution of e-commerce.

Building on the success of ‘E-Commerce Marketing Philippines 2024,’ this year’s summit promises to be bigger and better, offering attendees valuable insights, cutting-edge ideas, and ample opportunities for learning, networking, and inspiration.

The conference will feature top-notch keynote presentations, dynamic panel discussions, engaging fireside chats, and curated networking sessions, each designed to elevate retail and e-commerce strategies.

Leading the conversation will be top industry leaders and experts, including:

  • Emmanuel Cruz, Omnichannel Director at Avon Cosmetics Inc.
  • Sriharsha Vavilala, Director of Revenue & Strategy at edamama
  • Nancy Almasco, Marketing Director at FlowerStore.ph
  • Marx Benedict So, Associate Director, Digital & Commercial Insights at Mega Prime Foods Inc.
  • Tiffany Batungbacal, Assistant Vice President at Primer Group of Companies
  • Neelam Gopwani, President at Vision Express Philippines
  • …and more to be announced!

Joven Barceñas, founder at MARKETECH APAC, said, “This summit isn’t just about trends—it’s about enabling the tech backbone of retail and e-commerce in the Philippines. From AI to marketing automation, we’re here to facilitate the conversations and collaborations that will define the future of commerce.”

The Retail & E-Commerce Innovation 2025 Series is also set to expand to Malaysia, with an event scheduled for 17 July 2025.

To learn how to be part of this summit, click HERE for further details.

For sponsorship opportunities, please contact Joven Barceñas at [email protected].

For speaking opportunities, contact Kathleen Murata at [email protected]; and for registrations, reach out to Rosalie Cruz at [email protected].

Singapore – Creative innovation company R/GA has launched its AI search optimisation platform to help brands track their visibility. Through AI-powered search, R/GA’s tool aims to reshape how consumers discover brands.

Through the AI search optimisation platform, R/GA allows brands to perform real-time search health checks, providing them deep visibility. It helps brands understand and influence AI search results while allowing them to track, measure, and optimise their presence.

R/GA’s platform features include benchmarking across tools such as Gemini, Perplexity, ChatGPT, Claude, and Deepseek. It also performs sentiment analysis and provides actionable recommendations to improve AI search performance.

The shift to AI-generated search necessitates tailored strategies for brands to avoid losing their visibility. Through the platform, R/GA is helping brands retool their content and visibility strategy.

Nick Coronges, Global CTO at R/GA, said, “As part of our Innovation Fund, we’re investing in creating new products and solutions for our global clients that address emerging needs. The R/GA AI Search Optimization Platform is the first in a suite of AI tools we are developing to accelerate value creation for our clients. With this product, we can provide instant insights and ongoing services in a fraction of the time, with the technology itself powered by AI-enabled analytics agents and Large Language Models (LLMs) under the hood.”

“R/GA’s AI Search Optimization Platform provides us with actionable insights as we partner with brands to optimise and refine their visibility across emerging AI search tools. We now have continuous monitoring across sectors, brand-specific benchmarking, and can detect changes in real-time,” Marc Williamson, director of marketing sciences at R/GA, said.

Australia – Customer data cloud Amperity has launched its ‘Identity Resolution Agent,’ an AI-powered tool that unifies customer profiles. The solution helps enterprise brands consolidate fragmented customer data more quickly, instead of taking months.

Leveraging Amperity’s machine learning capabilities, the ‘Identity Resolution Agent’ allows teams to prepare accurate customer data fast and intuitively. Streamlining the process from data ingestion to quality assurance, users can conveniently deploy strategies for business growth.

Besides eliminating complex coding, it incorporates matching strategies to meet needs and enables seamless integration with other data environments, including Databricks and Snowflake.

Through the launch, enterprise brands can unveil deeper insights and trustworthy data for more personalised and meaningful interactions.

The AI agent launch aims to address businesses’ need to unlock AI-driven results, with 78% of global companies feeling unprepared to deploy natural language tools, according to a recent MIT Technology Review Insights study.

With the launch, Amperity is solidifying its position as the foundation for AI-powered customer experiences, enabling brands to be successful in their AI efforts.

“AI is only as good as the data that fuels it. Our new agent gives data teams the power to rapidly transform fragmented customer records into a single source of truth. It turns structured, unstructured, and synthetic data into a strategic asset, accelerating the path to real business outcomes from AI,” Tony Owens, chief executive officer of Amperity, said.

Amperity recently appointed former drugstore.com CEO Dawn G. Lepore as the chairman of its board of directors. The appointment aims to unlock meaningful customer relationships among brands working with the company.

Singapore – Technology platform Yahoo DSP has launched the ‘Conversion API’ (Yahoo CAPI) solution to enhance measurement, attribution, and optimisation of campaigns. It allows advertisers to integrate their conversions to Yahoo DSP to ensure accurate campaign performance insights.

Yahoo CAPI unifies online and offline conversion tracking, redefining how commerce media networks measure and attribute. Through real-time insights across channels, Yahoo DSP empowers advertisers to optimise campaigns in a single workflow.

Using first-party identifiers, advertisers can also transmit data directly on the platform or through LiveRamp’s data collaboration platform. LiveRamp is Yahoo CAPI’s initial integration partner.

“Through this solution, advertisers can easily upload their LiveRamp offline conversions on Yahoo DSP and close the loop on measurement, gaining a clearer understanding of how our online advertising efforts are driving offline sales,” Travis Clinger, chief connectivity & ecosystem officer at LiveRamp, said. 

Clinger added, “Amidst increasing pressures on advertisers’ budgets, using a CAPI enables increased campaign effectiveness – and better insights into returns – helping advertisers to make the best use of their investments and to highlight the critical role they play.”

“Yahoo DSP is committed to helping advertisers navigate the evolving digital landscape with solutions that prioritise both accuracy and privacy,” Giovanni Gardelli, VP of ads data products at Yahoo, said.

“With the launch of Yahoo CAPI, advertisers gain more control and flexibility in how they share conversion data, ensuring optimal measurement and performance. For example, with Yahoo CAPI, a technology advertiser saw 3x more attributed  conversions across different channels and devices that would have been harder to measure due to lack of cookies or advertising IDs,” Gardelli added.

Singapore – Singapore Airlines has forged a partnership with OpenAI to develop GenAI solutions enhancing its operations and customer experience. The partnership aims to streamline the airline’s processes and improve staff productivity.

Through the partnership, SIA will have new tools augmenting its customer servicing capabilities, able to interpret text, audio, diagrams, and videos.

Building on SIA’s current AI features on its website, OpenAI will help improve its virtual assistant. The enhanced AI assistant will offer more intuitive experiences for customers planning their trips.

The virtual assistant is set to deliver personalised support for booking and managing destinations and travel processes by expanding self-service capabilities. It aims to provide a more cohesive experience for customers to boost engagement with SIA.

Meanwhile, SIA’s staff will also benefit from the automation of operational tasks. Through the OpenAI tool, the staff can access and process information more quickly, enabling better decision-making and problem-solving.

Additionally, SIA will be integrating OpenAI’s model with its existing tools to assist in flight crew scheduling, considering regulations and manpower availability.

George Wang, senior vice president information technology at Singapore Airlines, said, “This collaboration with OpenAI exemplifies Singapore Airlines’ commitment to digital innovation and leadership in the airline industry. By harnessing cutting-edge AI solutions, we will enhance operational efficiency and staff productivity, and elevate the end-to-end customer experience, helping the SIA Group retain its industry-leadership position.”

“Singapore Airlines has long been known for its leadership in innovation and service. We are excited to work with SIA and explore how advanced AI can enhance the travel experience, empower employees, and optimise complex operations,” Oliver Jay, managing director, international at OpenAI, said.

Singapore – Global adtech company Nexxen has announced the launch of ‘nexAI’, a suite of artificial intelligence (AI)-powered tools integrated across its core platform. ‘nexAI’ is designed to support various stages of the advertising process, including planning, activation, optimization, and monetization, with a focus on transparency and ongoing improvement.

Nexxen’s platform combines a demand-side platform (DSP), supply-side platform (SSP), the Nexxen Data Platform, and an in-house creative studio, Nexxen Studio, to enable communication across its components. The addition of nexAI incorporates machine learning and generative AI technologies to enhance capabilities for advertisers, agencies, and publishers throughout the campaign process.

‘nexAI’ uses Nexxen’s proprietary data to introduce improvements across four main areas. In planning, AI-powered tools support audience planning, forecasting, and strategic recommendations to provide clearer insights. 

For activation, AI-driven automation is used to simplify campaign setup and management. In the optimization phase, nexAI applies machine learning to monitor and adjust campaigns in real time, aiming to enhance performance and return on investment through algorithms that evolve and improve over time. 

Meanwhile, for monetisation, publishers are supported through AI-based yield optimization and increased transparency to help maximize revenue. The first generative AI feature, an in-platform assistant integrated into the Nexxen DSP, is intended to streamline workflows and enhance campaign performance while maintaining transparency and user control. Initially, the nexAI DSP assistant will offer users easier access to campaign insights, helping advertisers save time and resources. 

Future updates are expected to expand the assistant’s capabilities, including direct optimisation recommendations aimed at improving return on ad spend, with additional developments planned throughout the year.

Karim Rayes, chief product officer at Nexxen, said, “Our clients are continuing to lean into data and technology to navigate the fragmented media landscape, and nexAI meets this evolving need. By integrating AI across our unified platform – and leveraging our existing data to inform these capabilities – we’re not just adding features; we’re fundamentally transforming the way campaigns are run and inventory is monetised.”

Meanwhile, Jamie Snider, director of digital strategy at Assembly Global, commented, “Sifting through campaign data to uncover meaningful insights can take hours, but nexAI puts that power at our fingertips in an instant. By streamlining reporting and optimisation, it lets us spend less time digging and more time driving real results for clients.”

Lastly, Brian Binder, senior innovation and growth director, TV, audio & display at Tinuiti, stated, “By automating data and insight collection, nexAI will streamline our team’s workflow, allowing us to shift focus to higher-value strategic initiatives and discovering new growth opportunities for our clients.”

Southeast Asia – Dentsu has forged a partnership with Flipkart Commerce Cloud (FCC), the technology solutions arm of e-commerce marketplace Flipkart. The collaboration aims to revolutionise retail media networks for digital and omnichannel retailers in Southeast Asia and Hong Kong.

The partnership will see Dentsu incorporating Flipkart’s retail technology solutions into its integrated media, data, and creatives. It aims to help retailers enhance their retail media network strategies across seven markets.

FCC’s Retail Media Solution is available for retailers through their digital sites and app assets. Its suite of tech tools allows retailers and advertisers to create manage, and optimise ad campaigns.

The user-friendly, self-serve platform offers various advertising formats, retail-centric reporting, intuitive campaign creation, and measurement tools among others.

Praveen SNSS, senior director, Flipkart Commerce Cloud, said, “Our collaboration with dentsu marks a significant step in strengthening FCC’s Retail Media Solutions. As a strategic partner, dentsu brings deep expertise in media, data, and advertising, which aligns seamlessly with our mission to empower retailers with cutting-edge monetization capabilities. With FCC’s robust commerce technology and dentsu’s strategic vision and global reach, we aim to help retailers unlock new revenue streams, enhance shopper engagement, and drive measurable business outcomes.”

“Our unique partnership with FCC, the only joint offering of its kind in the region, marries the best in Retail Media Network with dentsu’s world-class integrated capabilities to offer a differentiated data- and tech-based solution that will truly drive scalable and connected growth for retailers in Southeast Asia and Hong Kong. As one of the leading e-commerce providers in India, FCC is our trusted partner to bring this never-before offering together to this region,” Prakash Kamdar, CEO, client & solutions, SEA, dentsu, and CEO, Singapore, dentsu, commented.

Paris, France – Media holding company Havas has appointed new executives to lead its global data and technology strategy. Dan Hagen and Jamie Seltzer are the new global chief data and technology officers for Havas and Havas Media Network, respectively.

In his promotion, Hagen is responsible for developing Havas’ AI-powered Converged strategy across the global holding company. The operating system aims to empower the group’s employees to work efficiently to deliver integrated solutions to its clients.

Additionally, he is set to spearhead Havas’ data, tech, governance, investments, and operational strategies across the company’s global units.

Prior to his appointment, Hagen held the same role at Havas Media Network. His experience spans 25 years in data and tech, including serving as the chief strategy officer at iProspect and Carat UK.

Seltzer succeeds Hagen, now responsible for developing the Converged media product for the growth of the network’s data capabilities. She is still overseeing CSA & Media Experience Analytics, which she most recently served as global executive vice president.

In her over two decades of experience, she has held roles at WPP and Publicis Groupe.

“Data and technology are the cornerstone of our Converged global strategy – giving our people the tools, insights, and means of collaboration to supercharge our positive impact for clients. With his experience developing the Media Network’s award-winning audience planning platform, and his collaborative work with partners to develop industry-leading data and insight capabilities, Dan is ideally suited to chart a powerful data and tech future that delivers for our people and clients,” Yannick Bolloré, CEO and chairman at Havas, said.

“Clients are demanding future-forward agency partners who are data-led and outcome-driven; Jamie has been critical to ensuring Havas Media Network is positioned to deliver on that promise. We look forward to seeing Dan and Jamie’s continued collaboration across the entire Havas ecosystem to accelerate the group’s broader Converged strategy and data and tech ambitions,” Peter Mears, global CEO at Havas Media Network, said.