angela mackay
Future of Media in Asia - blogosphere reacts
Thanks to the blogosphere, we have a full audio recording and blog reactions to last week’s sold out lunch on the Future of Media in Asia.
Audio blogger Matthew Driskill recorded a full version of the event on his blog, The View from Here
Why Newspapers can start Online TV
The event started with Felix Soh, director of the Singapore Straits Times’ Razor TV project, giving the first-ever public overview of soon-to-be-launched service.
Blogger Rebecca MacKinnon asked Felix Soh why it was that his newspaper, the Straits Times, is launching an online TV station rather than a Singapore TV station.
Mike Savage of Asia Media Journal blogged the response given by Ivy Wong, COO of tvb.com, the website of Hong Kong television giant TVB:
It’s easier for a publisher to jump into online TV, Wong explained, because there’s little danger of cannibalizing existing revenues. For a TV company, the shift is a little trickier – something that TVB for instance, as a dominant TV player, is still trying to figure out.
The challenge faced by existing media players as they adapt to the digital world was a theme that resonated throughout the lunch.
Financial Times’ “Third Way” for online charging
Angela Mackay, executive director of the Financial Times’ Asia operations who also sits on the FT board, spoke about the “third way” approach that the newspaper has taken with their website.
Instead of charging upfront, the ft.com incrementally asks for information once users start using the site regularly. If you are an FT addict, they will start to charge you.
Advertising’s Digital Divide
Any media company’s hopes for digital ad spend immediately making up for offline losses were dashed by Torie Henderson, Hong Kong Managing Director of OMD International. Torie said that while digital budgets are increasing, many advertising clients remain reluctant to commit huge portions of their budgets to online video and other innovative platforms.
Future Search Trends
Anna Chan, the head of search for Asia Pacific at Universal McCann, spoke about how search will be getting more all-encompassing, with images, text and video all mixed together. She also said that search-related advertising has been growing fast.
Many thanks to the Society of Publisher in Asia, Asia Digital Marketing Association and Foreign Correspondents’ Club of Hong Kong for co-sponsoring this event.
Update: Matt Eaton wrote in Marketing wrote about the FT.com’s “third way” between offering a free website and charging.
Future of Media in Asia Lunch in Hong Kong
UPDATE: Change of speaker.
I have organized a luncheon gathering on the future of media in Asia timed to coincide with The Society of Publishers in Asia 2008 Awards for Editorial Excellence dinner in Hong Kong. Reserve soon if you want to attend this luncheon, as space is extremely limited.
In addition to those in town from across Asia, the distinguished panelists include:
Anna Chan - Head of Search, Asia Pacific, Universal McCann who oversees the development and effectiveness of Universal McCann search activities for clients such as Microsoft, Xbox, Nortel, MasterCard, UPS, and Tiffany.
Torie Henderson – Hong Kong-based Managing Director of OMD International, who will speak about Asia’s latest advertising trends, developments and innovations.
Angela Mackay – Hong Kong-based Executive Director of FT who leads the Asia commercial operations and sits on the FT management board, will share her insights on the future trends in traditional print and online business in the face of new media era.
Felix Soh – Singapore-based Director of the Straits Times’ RazorTV will give the first public demonstration of paper’s soon-to-be-launched live interactive Internet TV.
Wednesday, June 4, 2008
12:30pm for 12:45 pm – Lunch
1:10pm – Talk
The Foreign Correspondents’ Club, Hong Kong
1st Floor, North Block, 2 Lower Albert Road, Central, Hong Kong
$400 per person
Co-sponsored by The Society of Publishers in Asia, the Asia Digital Marketing Association and the Foreign Correspondents Club of Hong Kong, the luncheon will take place at The Foreign Correspondents’ Club.
Sincerely,
Thomas Crampton
Event organizer and convenor
David Ketchum
Chair, ADMA
Alan Lammin
Chair, SOPA
Ø SOPA and ADMA members should reserve via their organizations.
Ø FCC members contact (852) 2521 1511 or email concierge @ fcchk. org.
Ø Confirmation will be sent once booking is accepted. If you do not receive a confirmation within two working days, please contact FCC Reception at: (852) 2521-1511 or email to: concierge @ fcchk. org.
Ø Please advise if any vegetarian meal is required.
Angela Mackay
Angela Mackay is a former journalist who describes her journey into business operations as a voyage “to the dark side” from which she has never looked back.
“I feel like I’ve come out of a convent,” Angela Mackay told the IFRA’s Publish Asia 2008 conference. “Working in a sheltered world where you comment on things is very different from doing things.”
One such effort she cited in the speech was creation of a specialized unit within the Hong Kong sales team that make advertisements for the web. “We built this team to deal with two to three clients per week in order not to lose out on a revenue stream.”
Mackay was appointed executive director of the Financial Times for Asia Pacific in May 2007. Prior to that role, she managed advertising sales revenues for both the print and online FT in the Asia Pacific region. Mackay joined the business side of the Financial Times in 2003 as Asia investment editor.
In her journalism career, Mackay was the Asia editor for the Financial Times’ Sunday Business. She also wrote for The Economist, CNBC, The Times newspaper in London and the Australian Financial Review in Sydney.
Angela Mackay on ftchinese.com reaching one million users
Angela Mackay, executive director of the Financial Times Asia Pacific, announced today that the Chinese-language ftchinese.com, which was launched in mid-2005, has now reached one million registered users. Users are not charged for using the website, but in the below video she hints at how the company plans to make money from the site.
Other things of note in her speech to IFRA’s Publish Asia conference in Macau:
* The average Financial Times subscription has lasted for 13 years. (Shows incredible loyalty and the importance of not alienating longtime readers)
* The FT cover price was raised twice in the last year, but circulation still increased.
* FT has an interesting take on whether to charge for site usage: Free up to 30 articles, then you must subscribe.
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