CReATION: OgilvyInteractive, NetX form JV media consultancy for Asia

<p>OgilvyInteractive and Australian-based interactive agency NetX have </p><p>formed a joint venture media consultancy to service clients in the Asia </p><p>region, outside of Australia. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The new operation, called NetX OgilvyInteractive, will open its first </p><p>operation in Singapore and Greater China this month, with plans for </p><p>expansion into other Asian markets over the next few months. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>The JV will combine OgilvyInteractive's regional network and blue chip </p><p>client list with NetX's innovative approach to interactive media to </p><p>provide clients with new media services in the region. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>These will include planning of interactive media campaigns, post-buy </p><p>analytics of campaign effectiveness and a variety of consultancy </p><p>services for clients wishing to conduct affiliate programmes, </p><p>interactive media sponsorships and content deals. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>NetX OgilvyInteractive will also provide services for both fixed line </p><p>and wireless telecommunications devices. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>OgilvyInteractive Asia chief executive officer Kent Wertime said that </p><p>NetX - which won five of six categories at the 1999 Australian Internet </p><p>Advertising Awards, including 'Best of Show' - was a valuable partner </p><p>because it has more experience in online campaigns, having been </p><p>established in Australia more than three years ago. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>"Asian companies are now more centrally focused on themselves; they ask </p><p>questions like 'how do we start a website?' compared with in Australia </p><p>where they ask more sophisticated questions like 'how will our website </p><p>make a point of differentiation for our brand?'," he told CReATION. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Mr Craig Wilson, chairman of NetX and CEO of the JV unit added: "We've </p><p>been through the learning curve when it comes to bringing clients online </p><p>and, depending on individual situations and scenarios, we generally know </p><p>what works for which client." </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>In the rush to provide interactive solutions for clients, most agencies </p><p>- big and small - spend most of their time and energy on banner ads. </p><p>However, Mr Wertime said that this was a mistake. "The new world of </p><p>media is not old media simply grafted onto new media," he explained. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Clients, he noted, were increasingly asking for new and innovative </p><p>solutions for their 'Net ventures and that was more about content, </p><p>affiliate programmes and sponsorships, in addition to advertising. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Mr Nic Burrows, NetX media services director who will head up the </p><p>Singapore JV operation, added, "We will even think about ebusiness </p><p>strategy all the way to execution and right up to pulling out the data </p><p>during and after a campaign to learn where we could have done things </p><p>better." </p><p><BR><BR> </p>