Newly elected MEF EMEA Board represents mobile ecosystem diversity and growth markets

MEF, the global community for mobile content and commerce, has announced the results of its 2012 EMEA board elections with Colin Yeh, Head of Group Product Development QTel Group (Qatar) elected as EMEA Chairman. Ben Carter, Head of Mobile Services Atos (UK) and Emma Kaye, Director, Mira Networks (South Africa) were also voted in by the membership as co-Vice Chairs.

The Elections took place at MWC 2012 directly after the EMEA AGM, where members received an update on all of MEF’s regional and global activities. The audience heard from outgoing chair Lee Epting, Vodafone and Vice Chair Colin Yeh of QTel Group who gave an overview of the significant achievements of the EMEA chapter over the last two years. Andrew Bud, MEF Global Board Chair outlined MEF’s vision and goals for 2012 while Rimma Perelmuter and Vildan Hasanbegovic, MEF Executive Director and Deputy Director, discussed the latest member benefits and provided an update on MEF’s Initiatives and Analytics programmes.

For the full details, hit the link below

MEF Connects MWC 2012 – Celebrating 10 Years

600 mobile leaders from 50 countries attended our 10th annual MEF Connects MWC, held in association with TimWe at the beautiful Museu Picasso. As many of our members have expressed, the 10th Annual celebration set the bar ever higher as the quality networking event of the Congress, attended by a broad variety of our global members and invited guests from across the mobile value chain including representatives from American Express, Apple, AT&T, Facebook, HSBC, Nokia, Orange, QTel Group, RIM, Samsung, Telefonica, Coca-Cola, Turner Broadcasting and Yahoo and many more.

Check out a selection of the photos from the party below.



Sponsor TIMWE said of the party: “For TIMWE, as a multinational mobile solutions company with 26 offices around the world and operating in more than 75 markets, “MEF Connects MWC 2012” represented a unique opportunity to offer an exclusive experience to our key clients and partners, with great networking and many surprises throughout the night.”

Party-goer Paul Mcnea, Director of Biz Dev for BUCK said “One of the events I was looking forward to most was the MEF networking party at the Picasso Museum and I wasn't disappointed. The MEF networking event reflected the building and was a stylish and engaging evening, a great mix of catching up with some old contacts while making some new ones all in a relaxed and engaging atmosphere. I'll definitely be back in 2013.”

Were you at MEF Connects MWC 2012? Share your impressions of the night in the comments.

Global Strategies for Mobile VAS Compliance - MEF in Jakarta

Last month MEF co-hosted a one day programme in Jakarta to address the key issues facing the VAS industry in the region. Co-hosted with Indosat, Global Strategies for Mobile VAS Compliance saw more than 120 people in attendance, including 19 affected MEF members spanning the region, consisting of content providers, record labels, Indonesian industry associations and network operators among others.

While it was clear the industry is suffering badly and businesses have been destroyed due to the actions of a few rogue companies, the mood of the one day programme was positive. MEF’s objective is to provide support to it's members and the industry as a whole and assist the regulator to develop best practise for the industry. MEF’s global expertise in the area of regulation and its position as the global trade body for the mobile content and commerce industry, representing the entire value chain, enables it to effectively support collaboration and discussion between BRTI and the industry to actively address and resolve the problems and create a viable framework for the delivery of compliant services and industry best practice.

For more information on the background and causes of the situation in Jakarta, click here. To read more about the one day event, hit the link below.

MEF publishes 2nd Content & Commerce Survey defining the mobile value chain in the Middle East

Back in October, MEF invited companies active in the Middle East to share their insights on the region’s market performance in the previous quarter and outline their expectations for the future. Now the results have been published of this, the second dedicated Middle East mobile content and commerce surveys, conducted in partnership with the global firm of auditors & MEF member KPMG. The survey found that the overall level of confidence in the future of the Middle Eastern mobile market remains high, with growth opportunities in particular identified for games, apps and ad-funded mobile entertainment.

The full findings of the 2nd Middle East Content & Commerce Survey are now exclusively available to MEF members in English and Arabic, with an executive summary available for all.

To read more about the survey, hit the link below..

Attend MEF’s roundtable session on Privacy & Mobile Apps at MWC

In response to the current media focus on privacy and industry concern, MEF will be hosting a roundtable next week at MWC in Barcelona on ‘Privacy & Mobile Apps’ on February 28th.

MEF Chair Andrew Bud said “Trust between mobile consumers and the apps that they use is inevitably sensitive but absolutely vital to the development of the industry. Sustaining consumer trust is a task not just for the app store but for the whole ecosystem. We have essential work to do as an industry to make that practical.”

Open to members and invited VIP guests, the session brings together companies across the value chain to tackle this timely issue.

MEF Roundtable: Privacy & Mobile Apps
Date: Tuesday, 28th February 2012
Time: 3PM – 4PM
Venue: Gild International

The open door session is supported by SNR Denton in association with the Mobile Fringe, and is being held at Barcelona’s exciting new member's club, Gild International.

MEF, as the global community for content and commerce, is holding this session to drive thought leadership and plan next steps on this vital issue. If you are interested in participating or attending the roundtable please contact initiatives@mefmobile.org, but be quick as space is limited! For more information on MEF’s activities in Privacy & Security please contact MEF Deputy Director, Vildan Hasanbegović.

Member Event: Join Nielsen at MWC for an Uncommon Sense of the Consumer

MEF member Nielsen will be hosting a full day of panel sessions at this year's MWC in Barcelona, and you're invited. With a packed schedule on Tuesday 28th, attendees can expect powerful insights and networking firmly focused on today’s digital consumer and how best to seize the enormous opportunities.

Sign up now to get access to all of the sessions throughout the day.

Nielsen presents: An Uncommon Sense of the Consumer - Tuesday February 28th, FIRA Hall 2, Mezzanine Level, Theatre D

10:00-11:00 - The Mobile Media Revolution

13:00-14:00 - The Mobile Mynd: Nielsen NeuroFocus Live Demonstration Event
15:00-16:00 - When Mobile Meets Retail
17:00-18:00 - Strong Signals: Best Practices for Mobile Operators and Device Manufacturers

To sign up and leave any questions for the panels, hop over to the Nielsen website to log your details - of course you need to be registered for MWC..

Candidates announced for MEF EMEA Board Elections 2012 at MWC

MEF has announced the first round of candidates for the MEF EMEA Board Elections, to be held at the end of the month at MWC in Barcelona.

Full MEF members are eligible to vote and stand as a candidate, and will be instrumental in creating thought leadership, sharing knowledge and addressing the critical issues facing the mobile commerce and content industry today and in the future.

The current standing is as follows:

• Diane Alphonse, Head of Marketing, Communications & PR, Barwa Bank
• Ben Tatton-Brown, Co-Founder & Regional SVP, EMEA, Amobee
• Emma Kaye, Board Director, Mira Networks
• Volker Hirsch, Head of Business Development, Games, RIM
• Daryn Wobur, Managing Director, Global Business Development, Perform Group
• Daniel Prieskel, Co-Founder, Prieskel & Co.
 
Rimma Perelmuter, executive director MEF, said: “We are delighted to announce such an exciting line-up of candidates for the MEF EMEA board elections which reflects both the diversity of mobile content and commerce as well as MEF’s active regional breadth across Europe, Middle East and Africa.”

Board members for MEF EMEA have a crucial role in defining the mobile agenda for the Europe Africa and the Middle East, and help to shape & define the mobile content and commerce market. Meanwhile, the MEF EMEA AGM presents an opportunity for all members to hear the latest on MEF's activities and initiatives in the region and worldwide, contribute to planning and priority-setting while connecting with other members. 
 
You can check out the candidate biographies in full on the MEF Website

A final list of confirmed candidates will be announced prior to the AGM, and submitted profiles will be posted on the MEF website and distributed at the meeting. There are absentee/proxy ballots available for any full members who cannot attend in person - check the election rules for details.

MEF EMEA AGM and Board Elections: Monday, February 27, 2012 6pm

Museu Picasso
c/ Montcada, 15-23
08003 Barcelona
MAP

To register your attendance at the EMEA AGM & Board Elections - visit the MEF website and fill in a short form, or you can contact MEF Events Coordinator Georgia Aarons for further information on how to run.

Indonesian VAS Update – Join us in Jakarta, February 16th

MEF has announced a special one-day event co-hosted by Indosat on February 16th in Jakarta as a follow-up to on-going regulatory action to discuss the future of the Indonesian VAS market.

As you may recall, following concerns of widespread consumer harm in October last year all VAS subscription billing services were shut down on the direction of the Indonesian Ministry of Telecoms. As a global regulatory champion and independent intermediary, MEF has been proactively supporting collaboration between the local regulator BRTI and the industry ever since to actively resolve the situation and attempt to rebuild confidence in the VAS market. Indonesia is one of the world’s largest mobile markets with more than 250 million subscribers.

A detailed response to the draft regulations governing the Indonesian VAS market has been prepared with input from MEF members, and will be used to frame a discussion with BRTI on how new regulation might better protect consumers while allowing responsible businesses to thrive.

To this end, MEF is also co-hosting a one-day event in Jakarta with Indosat to clarify the BRTI rules around VAS and to discuss with other affected members best practises in ensuring compliance.


Global Strategies for Content Compliance

Date:     Thursday 16th February, 2012
Time:     9.30am to 4.00pm
Venue:   Indosat Office Building 4th Floor,
              Jl.Medan Merdeka Barat no 21,
              Jakarta, 10110,
              Indonesia

All global members interested in participating in this important forum are invited to join us in Jakarta and take advantage of MEF’s valuable global perspective. It promises to be a significant step in securing the long term future of the VAS market in the SEA region.

You can see the details on the MEF website, to confirm your attendance contact MEF Asia GM Linda Ruck.

Quick Poll! The most significant advancement for mobile content & commerce in the last 10 years was...?

So this month MEF will be at MWC for our 10th amazing year, and we're asking the question, in that whole time, what was the most significant advancement for mobile content & commerce? It's a mighty long time in the mobile world, so we've boiled our favourites down to five suggestions (we didn't include the iPhone, sorry) - let us know what you think! And if you're coming along to Barcelona this year, be sure to sign up for the party!

MEF TV: Tom Daly, Coca Cola at MEF Americas 2011

Next up in our series of video interviews from MEF Americas 2011, Rob of UNTETHER .tv speaks to Tom Daly, Director of Mobile and Search, Global Connections for Coca Cola. In this short but sweet chat, Tom describes how mobile has essentially been a part of Coca Cola's philosophy since the 20's and how he sees it only becoming increasingly central in the near future. A fascinating perspective on how this super brand  is leveraging mobile to not only engage with customers but also within their own B2B value chain.

Let's watch..