Reverse charges
It was one Edward Bellamy (1850-1898),
American novelist, economist and social reformer
who, in his seminal book on utopianism, hit on
the idea of using a card for purchases.
It was Bellamy, in fact, who coined the term
‘credit card’ back in 1887.
The then radical concept, however, did not really take off
until the 1920s. Why then you may ask? Well, according to
Wikipedia they were i
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 6:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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Limitless-
ville in KSA
Dubai World development
arm Limitless is to build a
$12 billion urban community
in Saudi Arabia.
Al Wasl is the first of
several projects planned by
Limitless in KSA. It will cover
14.1 million sqm of land
north of Riyadh. The project
is expected to break ground in
mid-2008, with phased-in
construction over seven years.
“Riyadh’s population is
growing by 150,000 – or 3%
– every
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 8:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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Hydra gets real with new TV show
Abu Dhabi-based global real
estate company Hydra
Properties is going to air a
business-focused reality TV
series with Showtime Arabia
and Infinity TV.
The Hydra Executives will
see 16 entrepreneurs—eight
each from the US and the
UK—compete in a 15-week
‘Trump-style’ contest shot in
Abu Dhabi. Hydra Properties
CEO Dr Sulaiman Al Fahim is
the show’s founder and host.
Participants
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 8:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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Nakheel builds global vision
Dubai-based developer
Nakheel has reviewed its
marketing strategy and agency
alignments as it moves to
‘evolve’ its brand promise.
The company has jettisoned
its previous policy of ad hoc,
tactical-led communications
per project, opting now for
a roster of retained specialist
lead agencies by marketing
function. The move is designed
to further Nakheel’s vision of
becoming a global
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 8:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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Agile move
for TSC
Kuwaiti logistics firm Agility
has is furthered its expansion
in Oman with a second major
deal in as many months.
The company has been
appointed by The Sultan
Centre (TSC) to supply the
TSC Discount Centre with
warehousing, inventory
management, transportation
and other value-added services
across the Sultanate.
A leading grocery retailer in
the Sultanate, TSC has ambitious
exp
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 10:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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Jotun’s inspiration spreads in KSA
Jotun is planning to open 25
Inspiration Centres in Saudi
Arabia by 2010, with seven
scheduled to open by the end
of this year.
With the first one opening
in Bahrain this August, there
are now 6 of the branded
stores across the GCC. The
company also has a presence
in UAE, Kuwait and Qatar.
(Please see Retail Analysis.)
News comes as Jotun Paints
recently reported a 12%
increase i
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 10:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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Middle East sales playing
catch-up, says Miller Heiman
The Middle East sales market
is playing catch-up – rather
than being behind – according
to US firm Miller Heiman,
which has launched in Dubai.
Oussama Mansour, MD,
Atrazius, the ME representative
for Miller Heiman, said: “Sales
in the Middle East is more
catching up, rather than being
behind. It’s having that mind-
shift from transactional sales
to relationship and solution-
led sa
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 10:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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December launch slated for UGC-led TV
Maktoob TV is scheduled to
launch officially next month
Paul Tydeman, project director
of the new channel has
revealed to GMR.
The UGC-orientated Arabic
language platform will be an
interactive, satellite TV
channel broadcast from Dubai
via Nilesat.
An international version is
also under consideration.
According to Tydeman the
channel offers complete
community integration wi
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 12:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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Almulla checks-in Sharia brands
Almulla has launched a Sharia-
compliant hotel brand portfolio.
It comprises three brands:
Cliftonwood, Adham and the
Wing hotels.
Abdulla M Almulla,
chairman, Almulla Hospitality,
said: “There are plenty of
individual Sharia compliant
hotels throughout the world.
“However, their positioning is
usually dictated by the owner,
either as an independent hotel,
one within a chain
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 12:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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Batelco dials
up $58.3m
Valued at $13.3 million,
Batelco’s 3.5G broadband
mobile network is expected
to launch by year-end,
according to chief executive
Peter Kaliaropoulos.
The initiative is part of
the company’s $58.3 million
investment into Next
Generation Network (NGN)
that Batelco hopes will put
the Kingdom on par with
mature markets in Europe,
Asia and the Americas.
The company has been
stepping
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 14:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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Gillette cuts-through with
word-of-mouth Fusion launch
The era of relying solely on
traditional TV advertising to
reach consumers is over,
according to a Procter &
Gamble AP marketing chief.
Speaking at the Middle East
launch of the Gillette Fusion
razor series in Dubai, Prakash
Nedungadi, Gillette marketing
director AP, said the company
is focussing more on 360
degree marketing.
He told GMR: “I think we all
now agree that the age o
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 14:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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PPG reinforces quality campaign
The Printing and Publishing
Group (PPG) has prepared
a series of initiatives for
improving quality standards of
the printing and publishing
industry in the GCC.
The group works under
the umbrella of the Dubai
Chamber of Commerce and
Industry (DCCI).
The move is based on
research, which showed that
the UAE printing sector would
enjoy 12% growth during
the next three years due t
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 14:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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Himalaya niche brand to scale new
heights in the Gulf following sales peak
Himalaya Herbals has launched
a year-long English language
TV campaign for its skin cream.
The TVC creative theme is
that water equals life.
A dry leaf therefore follows
a protagonist which has used
the cream to make her skin
come ‘back to life’.
Other dry leaves eventually
follow the woman also in
order to ‘come back to life’.
The ads were created by
Amber Communications.
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 16:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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Gulf talent searches on Facebook
Online recruitment firm
GulfTalent.com has launched
its online job search
application on the Facebook
Platform, making it the first
Middle East-based business
to do so.
More than 42 million
Facebook users worldwide can
now view, search, recommend
and apply for job placements
across the Middle East.
“Despite concerns in parts
of the Middle East about sites
such as Facebook, we b
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 16:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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GEMAS: deadline time
The deadline for entries for the
GMR Effectiveness in Marketing
Awards – GEMAS – 2008 is set
for Thursday 6th December.
Launched in 2004, the
GEMAS applaud marketing
excellence and are structured
to recognise the depth and
breadth of the marketing
function with categories that
apply to all companies
operating in the GCC.
There are 11 categories
including Best New Brand and
Best
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 18:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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Ignition for Arab search engine
Orascom Telecom has
launched ‘Onkosh’, its bi-
lingual search engine.
It has been running in Beta
format for one year and has
been developed to address the
needs of Arab internet users.
Khaled Bichara, holding
board member, said: “This
project was one of the most
exciting and challenging tasks
our team undertook.
Engineering a search engine
is no easy task in itself, and
if we
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 18:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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UAE: $1.15bn
online spend
More than half (51.2%) of
UAE internet users reported
purchasing products and
services online and through
mobile devices over the past
year, according to the latest
Arab Advisors Group survey.
It also estimates e-commerce
in the UAE will exceed the 1.16
million consumers that spent
over $1.15 billion last year.
“The booming economy of the
UAE, the population and wide
adoption of
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 18:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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First W hotel
for ME
W Hotels is to open its first
Middle East venture in Doha.
The luxury hotel brand
should open its Doha doors by
mid-2008 and will be based in
the West Bay area.
Ross Klein, president, W
Hotels, said: “W is about
escaping from the routine
and becoming part of all that
is ‘Now’. Everyone and
everything at the W Doha will
be geared towards making
sure that guests have a
fantastic s
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 23:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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Al Ain buys into Ice Crystal
Agthia – Emirates Foodstuff &
Mineral Water Company has
signed an MOU to acquire Abu
Dhabi-based 5-gallon water
brand Ice Crystal.
The deal will see Al Ain
Mineral Water Company, a
subsidiary of Agthia, manage
the production and
distribution of Ice Crystal in
Abu Dhabi and eventually
across the UAE.
The move is said to be
a strategic move to gain
access to the sizeable and
fas
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 23:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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NDTV Arabia serves up
Asian infotainment
New Delhi TV (NDTV) has
launched its first foray in the
MENA region, NDTV Arabia.
The 24-hour FTA channel is
‘infotainment-based’ and claims
to be the first local, mostly
English channel in the region
targeting the “international
Asian” community, and is
expected to reach up to 100
million regional homes.
NDTV Arabia content will
be primarily driven by news,
current affairs, tal
- Thu, 11 Nov 2007 23:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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Taking the LEED in sustainability
TECOM has announced it has
the largest number of ‘green’
projects in the region.
The news comes in response
to the directive to comply with
green building standards,
outlined in Dubai by HH
Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid
Al Maktoum, Vice President
and Prime Minister of the UAE
and Ruler of Dubai, which was
issued recently.
A sustainable energy
and environment division
was developed
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 1:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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Spicy account for Leo Burnett
Leo Burnett Kuwait has won
the account for Nando’s,
chicken restaurant, which is to
open in The Avenues Mall.
The agency will developing
the launch campaign and
undertake brand building
comms for the chicken
restaurant. This will include
a viral marketing campaign,
which they claim is a first
for Kuwait.
Jad Hindy, GM, Leo Burnett
Kuwait, said: “Not only is the
industry increasin
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 1:04:00 Central Daylight Time
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Experts line up for Gulf Marketing Forum
Dr Erich Joachimsthaler,
founder and CEO, Vivaldi
Partners, New York and Colin
Turner, president, Futuremedia
plc UK, are among the expert
marketers speaking at the Gulf
Marketing Forum 2008.
Dr Joachimsthaler is also
author of this season’s top
selling marketing book: Hidden
in Plain Sight: How to Find
and Execute Your Company’s
Next Growth Strategy.
The two-day event,
organised
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 2:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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MARKETING MOVES
Middle East Communication
Networks – MCN – has
promoted Tom Roychoudhury
to chief innovations officer.
Roychoudhury moved to Dubai
from Canada to join the group
five years ago and will now
work with the MCN agencies
in four main areas of
innovations and new-age
management thinking: digital,
internal communications,
external communications
and management.
Grey Middle East Network
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 2:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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Samsung pokes at Facebook
Samsung has launched its
‘Club Queue Jump’ Facebook
application to promote the
G600 model.
Its launch is part of a
competition to win a mobile
and photoshoot with a
European modelling agency.
The application itself is an
‘experiential platform’ for
consumer interaction with
the brand.
Susan Land, head of
marketing, Samsung Mobile
UK, said: “Leading edge
design and advanced
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 4:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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Pre-ad testing breaks in Thai market
An ad-testing service has been
introduced by Ipsos in
Thailand.
While Thai ads are usually
well-received by viewers, they
often fail to deliver key
messages or raise brand
awareness, said the company.
Jerome Hervio, MD, Ipsos
Thaliand, said: “If you ask
executives of many companies,
they can tell you that they
have lost a lot of money on
unsuccessful ads.”
Ad testing, he said,
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 4:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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TEAMS Kenya
to go online
Kenya is likely to award its
first undersea internet cable to
Alcatel-Lucent. The fibre-optic
cable is its first submarine
link to the rest of the world,
which has been designed to
cut costs and provide high-
speed access.
The contract – known as
The East African Marine
Systems (TEAMS) – was due
to be signed at the end of
October, according to the
Kenyan Information Ministry.
I
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 6:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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Interactivity debut for MySpaceTV
MySpaceTV has launched its
first interactive web series,
combining TV viewing with
the benefits of the internet.
Roommates follows four
female graduates in their 20s,
living in Los Angeles. It debuted
in October and runs until mid-
December for 45 episodes in
three-minute increments.
The idea is to encourage
viewers to engage with the
characters online and even
influence the plo
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 6:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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UK online spend highest ever
Online now accounts for 6% of
marketing spend – the highest
yet recorded in the UK.
According to the IPA’s Q3
Bellwether Report, online spend
continued to grow above
average, with one in five
companies allocating 10% or
more of total spend. At least
5% is also allocated by a
further 40% of companies.
A small percentage - 13% -
reported no internet marketing
at all and 12% repor
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 6:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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Prospecting
on DIFX
Mining company Unigold
becomes the first North
American company to be listed
on the Dubai’s DIFX.
Unigold is already listed on
the TSX Venture exchange,
Toronto, and its largest
shareholder is the KSA
company, Shairco.
The company is exploring
for gold on its 226 square kmd
concession in the Dominican
Republic and has a
reconnaissance license to
explore for minerals in KSA.
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 10:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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A grade Apple is top of class
Apple has emerged as a
favourite brand among
students, according to an
Anderson Analytics study.
It was ranked number two
overall best brand by 17% of
students, number one and two
for most anticipated products
iPhone and iPod upgrades
number one and two in product
recommendations, iPod then
Apple products and sixth in
most popular commercials.
Tom Anderson, managing
partner,
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 10:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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Firefox’s Mozilla goes into mobile
FOC web browser
creator of Firefox – has
said it will move into the
mobile market.
The tech company has
already developed one
browser for the Nokia N800
and Firefox is currently part
of Ubuntu Mobile (the Intel
Internet Project).
Mike Schroepfer, VP
engineering, Mozilla, said:
“A large proportion of the
world acccesses the internet
from mobile devices, and
this will become
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 10:04:00 Central Daylight Time
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Motorola Inc. lands Taiwan’s
largest WiMAX contracts
Motorola, Inc. has secured two
contracts for WiMAX network
infrastructure from Taiwan’s
Far EasTone Telecom (FET) as
part of the operator’s role in
the national M-Taiwan project.
FET is one of Taiwan’s
largest 2G/3G telecoms
operators with more than 6.4
million subscribers, about
33% of the local wireless
mobile market.
The operator has also
become a major player in the
M-Taiwa
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 12:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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Synovate expanded
via Spanish acquisition
Aegis-owned market research
firm Synovate has acquired
Metra Seis, the largest
independent full-service market
research company in Spain.
With offices in Madrid and
Barcelona, Metra Seis offers
particular expertise for
automotive and FMCG clients
said Synovate Iberia MD,
Enrique Domingo who will
lead the new Spanish business.
Current Metra Seis MD, Julio
Vidosa becomes deputy MD
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 12:05:00 Central Daylight Time
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Zain connected
to 22 countries
A subsidiary of Zain, formerly
MTC Group, Celtel International
is planning to acquire 75% of
Western Telesystems Ltd
(Westel) from the Ghana
government for $120 million,
subject to approval.
The government retains
25% of Westel through the
Ghana National Petroleum
Corporation.
Westel is the second
national operator in Ghana
and is licensed for fixed and
mobile (GSM) teleco serv
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 12:07:00 Central Daylight Time
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USA - High scoring advergaming
continues to climb rankings
Advergaming spend is
growing, according to an IAB
gaming paper.
It is the first in a series of
papers outlining different
gaming platforms: further
reports are likely to examine
audience demographics,
behaviour and best practice in
the advergaming industry.
Parks Associates has
estimated that general game-
related ad spend is likely to
grow from $370 million (2006)
to more than
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 14:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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Collaborative
Caribbean
A new regional brand has been
created for a new Caribbean
islands’ tourism campaign.
The word ‘Caribbean’
appears in a rainbow of colours,
complementing the tourism
site’s multicoloured scheme.
Allen Chastanet, chairman,
Caribbean Trade Organization
(CTO), said the new campaign
was designed to the reverse
tourism decline in the region
during the last ten years.
“Whether we li
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 14:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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Nike extends global footprint
with Umbro acquisition
Nike has bought-out Umbro for
approximately $585 million.
UK company Umbro are the
makers of England’s football
strip as well as six English
premier league clubs –
including Everton – and
brand ambassadors include
footballer Michael Owen.
Steve Makin, CEO, Umbro,
said: “We will be a stronger
and better business as part
of Nike and this deal will
allow us to accelerate our
exist
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 17:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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It’s a Blast for WPP’s Wunderman
WPP has bought Blast Radius –
a Canadian interactive digital
media agency originally set-up
by seven students – for an
undisclosed sum.
Launched ten years ago,
Blast Radius will now become
part of the WPP Wunderman
network, after being set-up
with just $5,000.
Gurval Caer, CEO, Blast
Radius, said it was a “nice
little pat on the back” for the
company, established with
capita
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 17:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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Saying halo to
Halal products
Halal food is lacking in Europe,
despite increasing demand from
continent’s Muslim population.
The news came from Dewi
Hartaty Suratty, head, Halal
Certification Strategic Unit,
Majlis Ungara Islam Singapura
(MUIS) while speaking at a
recent Halal food symposium.
Worldwide, the Halal food
market is worth more than
$560 billion she said, adding
that one in four of the world’s
1.3
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 17:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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Google search
for new data
Google has formed a strategic
partnership with AC Nielsen
for its demographic data.
The online search engine
will have access to the data, to
be integrated into existing set-
top TV operator figures (from
the Google TV Ads network).
Satellite company EchoStar
and a digital cable operator in
San Francisco currently license
TV set-top data as performance
metrics for Google TV Ads.
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 18:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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CA launches in Hyderabad
Software manufacturer CA has
opened a new $30 million ITC
facility in Hyderabad, India.
The facility is a part of
a strategy to staff the ITC R&D
development operations and
sales departments.
Total staff numbers for the
CA operation in India now
exceed 1,600.
John Swainson, president
and CEO, CA, commented that:
“The ITC underscores CA’s
commitment to India, both
as a source
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 18:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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Struggling Xbox drops price in Asia
Microsoft is cutting the
Japanese price of its Xbox 360
games console by 13% as it
struggles to match sales of
rivals Nintendo Wii and Sony
PlayStation 3 (PS3) according
to bbc.co.uk.
Following similar price cuts
earlier this year in the US and
Europe, the standard model
will now sell for $304.
Sony has also cut the cost
of the PlayStation in the USA
market and has introduced a
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 18:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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Anti-social behaviour
In a new report independent
market analyst Datamonitor
expects global active
memberships in social
networking sites to reach 230
million at the end of 2007.
Notwithstanding the fact that
many users have multiple
memberships, representing an
extraordinary cultural trend.
The report, The Future of
Social Networking: understanding
market strategic and technological
developments, sa
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 20:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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Remote access
This year’s Global Services
Location Index reinforces the
message that corporations
making global location decisions
should focus less on short-term
cost considerations, and more
on long-term projections of
talent supply and operating
conditions.
This is the key finding the
index from AT Kearney which is
based on full year data for 2006
and has more than 40 metrics
comparing the pe
- Fri, 11 Nov 2007 23:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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Implications for global
location decisions
“The clear message is that short-
term cost advantage should not
be the primary driver of location
decisions,” added Ziegler.
“Currency appreciation and
demand growth in key areas
will gradually erode their cost
advantage.
At the same time, continued
improvements in infrastructure
and policy-making in emerging
markets will slowly erode the
business-environment
competitive advant
- Sat, 11 Nov 2007 0:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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Energy sapping IT
Over one-third of IT executives -
42% - say their firm does not
monitor its IT-related energy
spending and a further - 9% -
don’t even know if their firm
monitors this. Yet, of those that
do monitor it, about one in four -
24% - have seen their energy
consumption increase over the
past two years.
This is according to IT and the
environment: a new item on the
CIO’s agenda?, a new rep
- Sat, 11 Nov 2007 0:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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Invasion of privacy
Companies in KSA were put on
alert last month, after the CITC
(Communications and IT
Commission) warned that
penalties would be imposed for
sending unsolicited SMS ‘spam’.
Penalties for sending
unsolicited text mail will be up
to $1.3 million or even the
cancellation of business licenses.
Consequent impacts of unrest
in this field could lead to
significant brand damage, with
con
- Sat, 11 Nov 2007 3:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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Remote control
Enterprise mobility is pushing
mobile device management to the
top of IT departments’ priorities
according to a four-country study
conducted by Dun & Bradstreet
for Nokia MEA.
Out of the 150 companies
surveyed in Saudi Arabia, South
Africa, the UAE and Egypt nearly
two-thirds said that mobile device
management was ‘very important’
to their organisations’ operations.
A substantial
- Sat, 11 Nov 2007 4:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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As-Pac HNWIs hit $8.4 trn
Spurred by strong GDP and
market capitalisation growth,
Asia-Pacific’s High Net Worth
Individual (HNWI) population
grew to 2.6 million last year, up
8.6%, according to the latest Asia-
Pacific Wealth Report, by Merrill
Lynch and Capgemini.
Asia-Pacific accounts for
27.1% of the global HNWI
population with wealth totalling
$8.4 trillion in 2006, up 10.5%
over 2005. Wealth was
concen
- Sat, 11 Nov 2007 7:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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Plastic not so fantastic?
The decision to ban credit card
payments at Eppco, Enoc and
Emarat petrol stations has been
met with mixed, but mainly,
negative reactions according to
press reports in the UAE.
Some consumers, that don't
own credit cards, have said it
doesn't affect them, while others
– who only carry cards – are
angry that their rights as a
consumer are being
compromised. Card transaction
fees ha
- Sat, 11 Nov 2007 8:03:00 Central Daylight Time
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Boxing clever
Just for the record, what is your
official designation?
Marketing and product
management director for GCC
and Yemen, Tetra Pak Arabia.
How far removed is it from your
former role within Tetra Pak?
It is the evolution of the same role,
as my predecessor had moved to
another market company and I
advanced from marketing
management to the current
position that offers a wider profile
and m
- Sat, 11 Nov 2007 12:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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A fruitful venture
Simon Ford is the Ideas Man.
Really…That’s the designation on
his business card. Really.
Granted the title is beside the
more familiar ‘managing director’
post in parenthesis but the more
prominent and quirky title is apt
for the 32-year old British national
who started high-octane, gift
experience company Blue Banana.
The company’s core offering is
in individual experience
packa
- Sat, 11 Nov 2007 14:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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Conflicts of interest
Still a young country, having
gained independence in 1962
after a brutal civil war, Algeria
casts its eyes north towards the
Mediterranean, and the European
markets beyond.
Behind, the desert wastes of
the Sahara that cover two-thirds
of this vast country conceal the
mineral wealth driving the
country’s economic aspirations.
Algiers reflects Algeria’s
French colonial history. Ele
- Sat, 11 Nov 2007 20:02:00 Central Daylight Time
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Jotun Inspiration Centre, Dubai
Contemporary consumers
expect much more than just the
product when they go shopping;
‘experience’ is the now the latest
mantra in retail circles.
Today’s highly competitive
retail environment and
overwhelming IT wave that is
engulfing peoples’ lives means
that now, more than ever,
retailers are needing to look for
that special component to deliver
a true experience.
For the pain
- Sun, 11 Nov 2007 0:01:00 Central Daylight Time
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A long way to go
How to achieve excellence
in Customer Management
Customer Management (CM) is at
a crucial point in its development.
It is emerging into, potentially, a
management tool of great strategic
importance.
The future development of CM
depends not simply on more IT
investment, but on understanding
how CM really works; building
transferable knowledge and
turning it into effective practice.
- Sun, 11 Nov 2007 3:01:00 Central Standard Time
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The GMR interview
Didier Trassaert, senior director, branded products
EMEA, Western Digital
For the uninitiated, Western Digital doesn’t
exactly spring to mind as one of the world’s
most popular consumer brands. And that’s
exactly why Didier Trassaert is on a mission
of change.
From now on, the US data storage and hard
drive company—WD to the tech-savvy—
wants to talk directly to its end users and the
senior director for branded products in EMEA
is tasked with sizing up the M
- Sun, 11 Nov 2007 8:01:00 Central Standard Time
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Smart mob rule
Are you ready to handle a crisis
unfolding online? We cannot
afford to sit back as a crisis
unfolds. There’s a digital
explosion in the region and unless
digital media is embraced and
online conversations monitored at
best you’ll be left behind at worst
gain a damaged brand/reputation
and decreasing sales.
Before the internet, companies
had the relative luxury of
managing crises in
- Sun, 11 Nov 2007 13:02:00 Central Standard Time
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Spoilt for choice?
The challenge facing marketing
professionals is about placing
brands at the forefront of social
change and gauging the human
motivations responsible for it
Someone recently sent me a
series of Dove advertisements,
which were a part of the popular
soap product’s ‘Campaign for
real beauty’. The ads in
themselves are really well made.
They address a range of issues
relating to women’s
- Sun, 11 Nov 2007 14:01:00 Central Standard Time
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The balanced stick
We, in the Gulf, always pride
ourselves for having a quality and
not price-driven market at least
for certain sectors. Yet a quick
look at what should typically be
quality- driven sectors, you’ll see
that many lack any sort of
differentiation. Not to bore you
with the reasons behind that, but
let’s just say if some of the
resources directed towards brand
image and advertising were
dire
- Sun, 11 Nov 2007 16:01:00 Central Standard Time
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Oiling the wheels
These days there are success
stories in the Kingdom of Saudi
Arabia, which give hope that in
time The Kingdom and its people
will develop their countries’
economy, into a vibrant one
which does not depend solely on
oil revenues.
These days it is hard to find
brands which have their origins
in the Kingdom. Having said this,
there is one brand, in particular,
within the retail sector
- Sun, 11 Nov 2007 18:01:00 Central Standard Time
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Right here, right now
“It looks like you need an escape
and Blue can take you there”
says an American Express ad to
Tom Cruise’s character on the run
in Minority Report.
The world of location-based
service (LBS) as portrayed in the
film in which billboard ads are
personalised to the actor’s
character as he walks past stores
in the Washington DC of 2054, is
getting closer to reality.
Indeed, according
- Sun, 11 Nov 2007 20:01:00 Central Standard Time
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PR in the C-Suite
From Egypt to the Dubai, a new
breed of PR is emerging in
response to the changing
demands of our clients. While the
industry has been growing in this
region for far more than a
decade, and many major names
have put down roots in the sand,
client turnover has become a
problem for both PR agencies and
clients alike. Many companies
routinely jump from one PR firm
to another, searching fo
- Sun, 11 Nov 2007 22:01:00 Central Standard Time
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The creative view
Alisdair Miller, creative
director, Grey
Worldwide Dubai
Print/outdoor to me is a
sales tool that needs to
invite and persuade a
reader into purchasing
something. That tool
needs to be sharp and simple, in other words
use a sniper rifle rather than a shotgun. Good
art direction, copy if done right will build the
brand’s emotional equity. Especially if done
with consistency across al
- Mon, 11 Nov 2007 0:02:00 Central Standard Time
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Telling it like it is
The Middle East is the world’s second
fastest growing region for market
research, but it is not without its own
unique challenges. Mark Atkinson
reports back.
In its 2007 annual report, ESOMAR, considered
by many to be the market research (MR)
industry’s leading trade association, shows a
giant leap in what has historically been a largely
overlooked area in the region.
The Middle East
- Mon, 11 Nov 2007 2:01:00 Central Standard Time
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