TAIPEI - United Airlines (UA) has chosen MSLGroup as its PR retainer agency in Taiwan, with a focus on raising brand awareness for the airline's Taipei to San Francisco direct flight launching on 31 March.
SICHUAN - Sichuan Changhong Electric has called a creative agency pitch, with a number of 4A and local agencies attending the presentation this week.
ASIA-PACIFIC - Rose Leng, Asia-Pacific head of marketing and planning for HSBC, is leaving the bank after more than eight years for a career change.
HONG KONG - Eschewing the hard-sell, Emperor Bullion has launched a new branding campaign by Dentsu HK featuring a stylish, action-film execution starring the brand's ambassador, actor Cheung Ka Fai (張家輝).
BEIJING - Starcom MediaVest Group (SMG) China has promoted Silvia Goh from managing director to chief content officer of its branded entertainment division, LiquidThread China, while also bolstering its digital leadership with two young talents, Donna Sharp and Carl Tsai.
REGIONAL - Ogilvy has announced the appointment of Australian industry veteran Pete Smith as regional innovations and creative director for its healthcare division, a first-of-its kind appointment in the region, according to the agency.
SHANGHAI - GroupM China has promoted its own 15-year veteran Sara Si (斯甜), currently vice-president of GroupM China, to president, media management, GroupM Trading.
BEIJING - Hong Kong-listed China internet giant Tencent has called a creative pitch for its new Online Media Group, with Ogilvy, JWT and Grey among those pitching for the business in presentations taking place today, according to industry sources.
It's an annual tradition of ours: The 'Separated at birth?' column in the year-end issue. So without further ado, here's our selections for this year: some eerie, some admittedly a bit of a stretch. The December/January issue, stuffed with more fun year-end content (and even some serious year-end content), will be out right around New Year's.
ASIA-PACIFIC – The region has a reputation for practicality, reserve and a tendency towards seriousness. Frivolity often gets frowned upon. But this collection of Guinness Records, which brands in Asia broke in 2013, may make you re-think that reticent repute.
SHANGHAI - Lisa Thompson has been promoted to the newly created managing partner, business development role at OMD China, with immediate effect.
SHANGHAI - PPLIve, one of China largest online video interactive entertainment companies, has called a media agency pitch.
SHANGHAI - Y&R China has confirmed that Stephen Drummond, its chief strategic officer of over three years, has resigned and will depart the agency at the end of April.
SHANGHAI - OMD China has confirmed that it has won the media pitch for Pepsi China’s bottle manufacturer's media account, beating several local media agencies to the business.
ASIA-PACIFIC - British Telecom (BT) has promoted Ruth Rowan, most recently director of UK marketing for BT Global Services, to the new head of BT Asia-Pacific marketing.
BEIJING - China Mobile, Nokia and Nike have topped the rankings as China's 50 most engaging brands, reveals an ongoing study by marketing consultancy R3.
HONG KONG - Unilever has today launched a 360-degree advertising campaign for its Lynx deodorant product launch.
HONG KONG - DDB and OMD were the big winners at the MTR Advertising The Best of the Best Awards 2010 held at the Grand Hyatt Hong Kong last night, taking Creative and Media Agency of the Year, respectively.
HONG KONG - POAD, a Hong Kong-based OOH advertising agency has won the exclusive marketing rights for the parking meters in Hong Kong.
HONG KONG - OMD Hong Kong has appointed Dennis Ma as business director and Derek Yip as head of media buying.
BEIJING - Weber Shandwick has appointed Alice Lee as account director and Zoe Wu as account manager for its China consumer marketing team.
HONG KONG - The Council of Public Relations Firms of Hong Kong (CPRFHK) has announced the results of its latest benchmark study, which show a recovery in professional fees from the pre-recession 2008 survey level, with the median fee level rising by about one-third.
TAIPEI – PHD is tipped to have picked up HTC’s media planning and buying in selected Asian markets.
HONG KONG - Leo Burnett Hong Kong has appointed Anna Chan as its chief digital officer.
REGIONAL - BBC Worldwide Channels has promoted Michael Rees to regional director for Greater China and Korea. He will be based in Hong Kong and commences work today (15 March).
TAIPEI - Taipei-listed Taiwan Sakura Cooperation, a leading water heater and kitchen furniture brand in Taiwan, has appointed JWT Taiwan to its estimated US$3 million creative account.
BEIJING - Linus Heilpern has rejoined Mindshare China from Euro RSCG as general manager for its Beijing office.
HONG KONG - Financial services provider AXA has rolled out an extensive new integrated advertising campaign. The TVC debuted on TVB Jade last night, focusing on the hopes and desires of Hong Kong people in relation to finance and their future.
HONG KONG - Janelle Carrigan, culture editor of the South China Morning Post (SCMP) resigned on 25 July, making her the 4th senior editor to have left the newspaper in recent months.
SHANGHAI - Barry Colman, EVP and group business director for the L’Oreal China portfolio at McCann Worldgroup has confirmed his departure from the agency at the end of the month.
SHANGHAI - EmporioAsia Leo Burnett has announced three new business wins for July: Langham Hotels, GCL Group in the green energies sector, and Masan Group in Vietnam.
SHANGHAI - MPG China has been appointed as the media partner for US nutritional brand Nature’s Bounty (NBTY) without a pitch.
HONG KONG - Landor Associates, a brand consulting and design firm, has appointed Henry Chan as president, Greater China.
SHANGHAI - Maxus China has brought two media veterans on board: Robert Lai in the newly-created role of national head of digital; and Leon Chen as managing director of Maxus Shanghai.
SHANGHAI - British luxury car brand Bentley has chosen Initiative China as its first media agency partner after a lengthy, three-way pitch with undisclosed agencies.
HONG KONG - Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) is launching a number of new advertising formats to cater to the increasing demand from luxury brands targeting affluent travellers from Mainland China.
SHANGHAI - German sports fashion giant Puma has signed Proximity China as its digital creative agency-of-record, after a competitive pitch with a number of undisclosed digital shops in April.
HONG KONG - Rosa Chan, previously marketing director of Reckitt Benckiser Hong Kong, joined Hong Kong-based Chinese herbal company Nurtigreen as general manager last month.
BEIJING - Aegis Media China and Nasdaq-listed Chinese media agency Charm Communications have announced the formation of a joint digital media trading platform, commencing today.
HONG KONG - IBM has appointed Tony Tai as the new general manager for its Hong Kong office, succeeding Dominic Tong who has moved into a VP role.
ASIA-PACIFIC - Stefani Chinn, who joined The Economist as regional marketing manager for Asia Pacific in January, is leaving the company.
SHANGHAI - Saatchi & Saatchi Shanghai has become Chinese internet TV provider PPTV's creative retainer agency partner, after a competitive pitch with undisclosed agencies earlier this year.
BEIJING - Viveca Chan, chairman and CEO of the WE Marketing Group, has announced that the agency has formed a newly digital team for Greater China, with a specialised focus on social media and Weibo.
HONG KONG - On 4 June, Li Na became the first Chinese tennis player to win The French Open. Campaign asked a number of local industry figures whether she has the same star quality as popular sporting brand ambassadors Yao Ming and Liu Xiang.
SHANGHAI - Online Media Partners, a local full-service digital agency in China, has engaged Axis Business Consulting — led by advertising industry veterans Alan Rutherford and Louise Au — to advise on strategic development and regional expansion.
TAIPEI - Taiwan Association of Advertising Business (Taiwan 4A) has elected Eddy Fu, CEO of BBDO Taiwan, as its new chairman, replacing Shirley Chou of STW Advertising.
SHANGHAI - OMD China has sealed the media account for renowned century-old pen manufacturer Parker.
SHANGHAI - Lowe China has injected new blood into its creative department with two hires - Bear Han as senior creative director and Betty Jiang as creative director.
GUANGZHOU - Shenzhen-based audio video (AV) equipment manufacturer OWA has appointed McCann Erickson Guangzhou as its first creative agency to handle overall branding in China.
HONG KONG - Twohundred has created a heart-warming new branding TVC for its new client Tao Heung Restaurants Group. The campaign aims to reinforce the group's heritage and connection with Hong Kong since its establishment there 20 years ago.
Cathay Pacific (CX) launched an extensive ad campaign in Asia, the Southwest Pacific and North America on 4 April.
SHANGHAI - Iconic American jeans brand Lee has partnered with Ogilvy & Mather Shanghai to bring the creativity, passion and spirit of New York’s Brooklyn borough to Chinese consumers.
SHANGHAI - Momentum China has appointed John J. Steere as managing director and Korey Yu as business director. Steere will report to Momentum Worldwide chairman and CEO Chris Weil and Yu will report to Steere.
HONG KONG - Unilever has appointed Cecilia Teng as the new marketing director for its home and personal care (H&PC) division, covering Hong Kong and Taiwan.
SHANGHAI - MediaCom looks at the app usage habits of high-end male consumers across China in its latest research report.
HONG KONG - Levi’s ‘Soundwash – remixing brand engagement for higher payback’ campaign was top of the pops at the eighth Hong Kong Effie Awards, hosted by the HK4As at the JW Marriott Hotel last night. The campaign scooped the Grand Effie and three gold awards.
SHANGHAI - Pfizer China has called a media pitch for its subsidiaries Pfizer Nutrition (PN) and Consumer Healthcare (PCH), scheduled for July.
GREATER CHINA - Justin Billingsley has been promoted to chairman and regional CEO for Saatchi & Saatchi Greater China, marking the first time China is separated from the Asia-Pacific division to report to the worldwide office directly.
SHANGHAI – Interpublic Group’s Mediabrands Ventures has confirmed that its China CEO Jimmy Poon resigned in May, less than one year after his appointment in July last year.
BEIJING - Kerry Kiyohara has been appointed vice-president of the newly created global business practice at Beijing Dentsu, effective today.
ASIA-PACIFIC - Sony has called a regional media pitch for all its products, inviting six 4A media agencies to present at the end of June.
HONG KONG - Hong Kong-based Deluxewords founder Daniel Jeffreys has been chosen to write 'The making of the Paris Peninsula' book for the Peninsula Hotels Group. It will be published in 2013 to coincide with the opening of the new Peninsula Hotel in Paris.
BEIJING - UM Beijing has strengthened its senior media planning team by hiring veteran Vingo Yang as its new media planning director.
The success of Y&R China’s innovative ‘Dead man walking’ pilot road safety campaign has been adopted as a long term measure to curb the number of pedestrian deaths in the Tongzhou District in Beijing.
SHANGHAI - Wwwins Isobar has become the first digital agency-of-record in China for Johnson & Johnson subsidiary Xian Janssen Pharmaceutical, after a three-way pitch in February against Tribal DDB and Neo Ogilvy.
HONG KONG & GUANGZHOU - Ruder Finn has promoted Sharon Liao to senior vice-president and general manager of both its Hong Kong and South China operations.
SHANGHAI - Swire Properties has named McCann Erickson Shanghai as the branding and promotion agency-of-record for its Sanlitun Village in Beijing.
GUANGZHOU - ZenithOptimedia Guangzhou has confirmed it has won Danish beer giant Carlsberg’s media account in China.
SHANGHAI - Johnson & Johnson has appointed healthcare-focused PR agency Links Health as its PR partner for the Carto 3 cardiac electrophysiology system in China.
SHANGHAI - Lowe China has won the creative duties for Alipay, the online payment system under the Alibaba Group, and local menswear brand K-Boxing, which has an annual turnover of US$1.23 billion.
HONG KONG - Foodie magazine, by Fluid Publishing, is celebrating its second anniversary in June. It has announced an upcoming website facelift and plans to expand in to London and Singapore.
SHANGHAI - Mindshare China has promoted Gordon Domlija to managing director of key international accounts and Sarah Yi to managing director of team Yili, effective immediately.
ASIA PACIFIC - Komli Media has announced the acquisition of digital media company Aktiv Digital. The two parties signed the contract on 1 June.
SHANGHAI - McCann Erickson Shanghai has reported another new business win from Swire Properties and Sino-Ocean Land for their yet-to-be-named retail development in downtown Chengdu.
SHANGHAI - Sharon Dong, former publisher of the Grazia China, the weekly Italian women's lifestyle magazine, has rejoined Hachette China as deputy general manager and publisher for its 'Psychologies' magazine.
SHANGHAI - Thoughtful Media China is producing a series of online video programmes focused on the business of the media and ad industries in China. Independent PR agency Red Bridge Communications' managing partner, Nicky Wang, has made her media hosting debut on the weekly talk show.
TAIPEI - Leo Burnett Taiwan has won the China Airlines (CAL), creative account, ending a decade-long relationship between the leading Tawain airline and incumbent agency David Advertising.
BEIJING - Esquire China edition is splashing out to celebrate its 15th anniversary by issuing special editions with different covers in September, including a special 3-dimensional magazine cover by Mercedes-Benz, highlighting its Smart brand.
GLOBAL - Australian telco giant Telstra International has named Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide as its new global PR agency partner. The media budget account is estimated to 6-figure US dollars.
HORQIN - Timberland's Earthkeepers 2011 programme kicks off today in Horqin, inner Mongolia. A team of 140 will plant 1,600 trees in a two-day exercise across areas of China that have suffered severe desertification, due to excessive farming.
SHANGHAI - Starcom MediaVest Group, MediaCom and MEC have been invited to participate Coca-Cola’s in China media pitch. The media agency review meetings will take place in early August at the Coca-Cola Company office in Shanghai.
HONG KONG - Maxus is moving its Shangri-La Hotels and Resorts business from Singapore to its Hong Kong office, adding a new account team leader, Carol Yim, and digital planner Nestor Yeung to the team. Both came on board last week.
HONG KONG - Margaret Mok, long-serving business director of Starcom Hong Kong, has left to join Mindshare Hong Kong.
BEIJING - WE Marketing Beijing has won Chinese group buying site Lashou.com’s creative account, following a five-way pitch last week.
HONG KONG - Pernod Ricard has handed its Hong Kong media business previously held by OMD to Carat, without a pitch.
HONG KONG - MTR Corporation has appointed JCDecaux Transport to handle the advertising business for its in-train TV channel, which has been newly rebranded as ‘AEX Motion’, on the Airport Express train service.
BEIJING - The Partners International (TPI) has acquired two new clients in China, the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA) and home-grown sports apparel brand Qiao Dan.
SHANGHAI - Ogilvy & Mather Advertising Shanghai has appointed Yuan Yong as its new managing director, replacing Joyce Chang who resigned last month after being with Ogilvy for 15 years. Yuan came on board on Monday, 20 June.
TAIPEI - Ogilvy & Mather Advertising Taipei has kicked off a new digital advertising campaign to launch Vedan's sports drink brand 'Do More Exercise', looking to inspire office workers in Taiwan be more active.
SHANGHAI - Thierry Vandewalle, the newly appointed MD of Publicis Modem Asia-Pacific, will be adding MD of Publicis Modem China to his job title, and relocating to Shanghai in July.
GUANGZHOU - Amway China has passed its Nutrilite creative business from Leo Burnett to Publicis Guangzhou, following an agency credential review held in May. which Saatchi & Saatchi Guangzhou has also attended.
CHINA - Saatchi & Saatchi China is running a competitive ‘Apprentice’-inspired internship programme to seek out the best new blood for the agency, in which the eventual winner will also get to spend a day in the seat of one of the company's biggest executives.
MACAU & HONG KONG - Groupon Hong Kong and Macau.com, a tourism portal for the special administrative region, has announced a new partnership that will give both locals and travelers access to local deals in Macau.
ASIA-PACIFIC - James Ross, ITV Studios Global Entertainment’s former regional director for Asia, has announced the formation of a new company, Lightning International, to provide international content owners with a launch platform into Asia.
HONG KONG - According to admanGo, the total adspend in Hong Kong in May was US$371 million (HK$2.89 billion), moving up 13 per cent as compared to May 2010, and 3 per cent compared to April this year. A big marketing battle among the hotels in Macau may account for much of the change.
HONG KONG - Swire Properties has handed its media AOR account to Mediabrands Hong Kong, after a competitive pitch with several undisclosed agencies last month.
SHANGHAI - Y&R China has looked to strengthen its planning capabilities and consumer knowledge with two new senior appointments: Kaiyu Li as national planning director, and David Xiao as associate planning director.
SHANGHAI - TBWA Shanghai has added to its below-the-line duties for Pernod Ricard China’s Ballantine’s whisky brand.
HONG KONG - TVB will allow TV audiences to have a say in the 2011 Miss Hong Kong pageant, with a new mobile voting app.
SHANGHAI - Zenith Media Shanghai has won the media account for Dianping.com, covering comment sites, location-based services and group buying. It went through a process of agency selections and presented its media strategies to the client in March.