The Media Online’s weekly round up of moves in media. Burson Cohn & Wolfe appoints Europe & Africa market leaders. Altron founder steps down from board. Sunday Independent acting editor leaves. Times Select now for subscribers only. SuperSport goes full HD. New survey to track and analyse key trends and issues affecting South African IT channel. GHFM makes teen dreams come true. eSport Africa Summit 13-14 August 2018. Writers Write writing courses in August 2018. Social Media Masterclass coming right up
People moves
Burson Cohn & Wolfe appoints Europe & Africa market leaders
Burson Cohn & Wolfe (BCW), a top-three, full-service, global communications agency, has announced the appointment of market leaders responsible for growth and innovation in the Europe & Africa (E&A) region.
“Announcing market leadership is an important milestone as we continue to accelerate our BCW integration in Europe and Africa,” said Scott Wilson, president, E&A, BCW. “We have a hugely impressive lineup in place, drawn from some of the best talent from both legacy agencies, and I am confident we are well placed and on track to deliver on our ambitions.
“Our plans for our teams to work together in the same office location are well advanced, and we are already reaping the benefits of pooling our resources to provide even greater value to our clients and to our teams.”
Robyn de Villiers becomes Market Leader, Africa, BCW. De Villiers previously led the market for Burson-Marsteller.
“BCW Africa is one of the jewels in our Europe and Africa region and in Robyn (de Villiers), we have a hugely talented and experienced leader. I had the pleasure of working with Robyn ahead of the BCW merger so have first-hand experience of the capabilities of Robyn and her team. Looking forward, our strength across Africa means we are able to extend the depth and breadth of talents and capabilities we are able to offer our clients,” adds Wilson.
Altron founder steps down from board
JSE-listed Allied Electronics Corporation Limited (Altron) has announced that Dr Bill Venter, founder of the Altron Group, took the decision to retire as non-executive director from the Altron Board with effect from 31 July 2018.
Dr Venter said, “I have the utmost confidence in the board and the executive leadership team, who have successfully repositioned Altron on a new path of growth as an ICT company.”
Altron opened for business 53 years ago when Bill Venter, a then 33-year old telecoms engineer, and several colleagues founded United Electric (Pty) Ltd, which was renamed Allied Electric (Pty) Ltd later in the same year. Since that time the company has grown from a designer and manufacturer of semi-conductor rectifier equipment, battery chargers, inverters, variable speed drives, DC motor controls, DC power supplies, electronic signal equipment and transformers into one of the leading ICT solutions providers on the continent.
In short
Acting editor of Sunday Independent leaves
In a tweet, Sunday Independent editor, Lebogant Seale, announed he was leaving the company. “It’s been an amazing journey, starting as a reporter at The Star, senior journalist, news editor and then as assistant editor at Saturday Star and Sunday Independent, and more recently, as acting editor at Sunday Independent. Thank you all,” he wrote.
Business moves
SuperSport goes full HD
SuperSport’s entire channel offering for South Africa will soon be available in High Definition (HD) with SS9 and Maximo, the remaining channels still available in Standard Definition (SD), set for an upgrade.
“Being able to offer all our customers the full complement of our channels in full HD is a momentous occasion for us. This feat helps position SuperSport as a company at the forefront of cutting-edge technology and will greatly enhance the viewing experience of our customers,” remarked Gideon Khobane, CEO of SuperSport.
SuperSport 9, soon to be the home of Italian Serie A football, will switch to HD on Wednesday, 15 August, in time for the start of the Serie A season on Saturday, 18 August.
Maximo, which is available in Portuguese and offers mainly football, makes the switch a week earlier (on 8 August) in time for the start of the new Premier League season.
Times Select now for subscribers only
Since its launch in February this year, Times Select’s eclectic mix of stories, analysis and opinion in an easy-to-read format – and free to read until now – has attracted a loyal readership.
But now Tiso Blackstar is taking the next step to “ensure we can keep delivering on our promise of high-quality essential journalism”. As of
Wednesday, Times Select will be available to subscribers only — along with a brand-new mobile app that is now available in the Google Play store and the Apple App Store.
Sunday Times subscribers, however, will still have free access.
New survey to track and analyse key trends and issues affecting South African IT channel
The first definitive annual survey to track and analyse the key trends and issues affecting the local IT vendor, distributor and reseller channel is being conducted by The Margin magazine and ITWeb, in association with Axiz, Dell EMC and Microsoft.
The South African IT channel operates in a highly competitive market and The Margin’s channel survey will examine the current state of the channel sector, as well as identify which players are excelling and who has some work to do.
The analytical research, based on surveying leading IT channel players, will provide a unique perspective on how the local IT channel is dealing with major global technology trends, and how the successful companies are positioning themselves for the future.
“There are a number of trends coming together and the players who don’t adapt will be left behind,” says Adrian Hinchcliffe, editor of The Margin magazine. “Things need to change in the local channel and this research will identify where the evolutions must take place.”
ITWeb has almost two decades of experience in conducting industry surveys. Once the research has been compiled and analysed, ITWeb and The Margin will publish a comprehensive report, available to all participants.
The findings will also be revealed at a prestigious banquet in August. One lucky participant, selected at random during the banquet, will also win one of the latest Dell notebooks.
To participate in this survey, click on this link: https://www.itweb.co.za/surveys/JAPero3qZBqQb6mG/about
GHFM makes teen dreams come true
Thirty matric boys and thirty matric girls will be donning dream outfits to their matric farewell this year, compliments of Good Hope FM’s annual ‘Teen Dream’ competition, in partnership with TFG and supported by the SABC Foundation.
Teens are invited to enter the competition simply by sending their personal motivation to Good Hope FM, including reasons why their application should be successful. Winners get the opportunity to light up the dance floor in an outfit of their choice from Markham (boys) or Foschini (girls).
“Your Matric Farewell is a night you’ll remember for a long time and we wanted to be a part of this special experience. It’s great to partner with TFG for a third time, to make teen dreams become a reality,” says Brendan Ficks, Good Hope FM Station Manager.
The boys were up first, with the handover of their outfits taking place at Markham store at Canal Walk, earlier this week. Now it’s the girls’ turn. Girls can enter to win their dream dress until midnight on 8 August 2018. Email entries to: competition@goodhopefm.co.za
Gear4 choose Cape Town as backdrop for photoshoot
Gear4, a phone case brand from the UK, recently embarked on a trip to Cape Town, the Cannes of Africa, to position the city as the backdrop for its latest product photoshoot.
According to Alison Cook, head of marketing at Gear4, “Cape Town was the ideal location for the shoot as the city has excellent weather, incredible depth of technical skill, a diverse talent pool, and most importantly, an endless option of attractive locations that can almost double as anywhere in the world.”
The team roamed the streets of Cape Town, strolled the beaches, hiked up mountains and visited forests for inspiration. The five day shoot presented endless landscapes and photo opportunities and the team fell in love with the city they describe as “the world in one country.”
Gear4 cases are designed using the most impact resistant materials specifically to provide the best protection for smartphones. The key ingredient, D3O, is the thinnest most advanced impact protection material in the world.
Diary
eSport Africa Summit 13-14 August 2018
With fans being spoilt for choice, eSports is rapidly becoming the favoured millennial sport worldwide. With tickets to watch live games selling out seats in stadiums faster than other competitive sports, online streams of tournaments gaining hundreds of millions of viewers (some say that viewership of eSports will match viewership of the FIFA World Cup in the near future) and game developers awarding massive cash prizes to the winners, it is easy to see why.
Rights holders, broadcasters and corporate stakeholders need to be on top of their game, now more than ever.
While these developments might come as no surprise to those in Asia, America and Europe, where does this leave Africa? Eventus International has identified a considerable gap in this emerging international phenomenon, and therefore will be hosting the first ever eSports Africa Summit at Emperor’s Palace from 13-14 August 2018
For more information on the event and to view the speakers, click here.
TRACE Southern Africa presents the mother of all block parties, #TRACEFest
The party will bring together all the elements that make street culture on our continent so lit – live music, art, fashion, lifestyle and street food. You can also expect to see dancers and izikhothane led by Material Don Dada to light up the stage along with exciting digital interpretations of the streets of Africa.
EDGE has come on board as the official #TRACEFest sponsor and looks forward to sharing the EDGE experience at a curated EDGE garden.
Says EDGE Global Brand Development Manager, Vithesh Ramklown: ‘’We are excited to be part of this vibrant celebration that showcases who we are and look forward to ensuring everyone at our garden has the most exciting time in sharing the Satisfaction of Beer and the Refreshment of Cider…which is EDGE!’’
#TRACEFest also boasts an impresisve lineup with a little bit of everything from hip hop by AKA, Nasty C and Rouge to house by Mobi Dixon and Malumz on Decks to alternative music by Mx Blouse and Darkie Fiction. We haven’t left out acts that are ‘Bout to Blow such as Manu Worldstar and DJ Banze and our decks will speak to all lovers of the culture with DJ Sliqe and Muptee.
Writers Write writing courses in August 2018
Mail news@writerswrite.co.za for information. Please include the name of the course you are interested in attending.
Social Media Masterclass coming right up
Social media is no longer a nice-to-have, it’s a must have. Navigating through the seemingly complex landscape of likes, followers, shares, organic growth and myriad of other terms even the most connected of millennials will have a hard time to understand, is not as daunting as it seems… if you have the right roadmap. This course provides insight into the effective use of social media channels for marketing and demystifies the world of social media. We’ll show you how to create qualified sales leads with social media marketing, measure the success of your efforts and build your brand up to international standards.
A social media marketing specialist and a people’s person by nature, Irma Karsten has over 20 years of work experience behind her. She is currently the Managing Director of LINK et al, part of the Et Al Group. In this role, she serves as an avid trainer and facilitator for all things social media marketing related.
15 – 17 August – Emperors Palace – Johannesburg R 7 999 Exc VAT (Course Only)
For details: SMMStassy
