Interview: Rafael Pellon, MEF LatAm GM

Mobiletime.com - the Brazilian mobile news digest site has posted an extensive interview with MEF LatAm Geneal Manager, Rafael Pellon. In the far ranging discussion Pellon speaks on MEF, the Code of conduct for subscription services in Brazil and the challenges in implementing it, as well as the future of m-commerce in the region and globally. He also talks about the topic of privacy for mobile devices, a key issue for MEF, and discusses the unique perspective facing the South American market.  

Checkout the full interview (in Portuguese) on MobileTime.com.

Record level of entrants for 2012 Meffys as finalists announced

This week, the finalists for the 2012 Meffys were revealed, with MEF noting that that entries were from 35 countries with 25% of them coming from start up companies.

Amongst the lucky finalists, shortlisted by an international panel of over 30 journalists, academics, analysts and VCs, are entrants in six new categories including Consumer Trust and Social Responsibility & Development Awards. Other new categories this year include Publisher on Mobile, Life Tools App, Discovery and Engagement and Social Entertainment App.

The winners of the 2012 Meffys are set to be announced on 12th September 2012 at the Park Lane Hotel in Mayfair at the annual Meffys Gala Awards Dinner, which last year boasted sell out attendance and was hosted by international comedienne Ruby Wax. This year's presenter remains a closely guarded secret, but with tickets selling fast be sure to book yours now.

Rimma Perelmuter, Executive Director at MEF said: “Congratulations to all the companies that have made the shortlist and thank you to everyone participated in Meffys 2012. This year it’s really exciting to see the democratisation of the mobile ecosystem with companies from start-ups, digital agencies, brands and established mobile giants sharing the limelight. We are also delighted to celebrate the pioneering services committed to building consumer transparency as well as sustainability in growth markets with the introduction of new award categories that mark key focus areas for MEF initiatives in 2012.”

For the first time this year, nominees in the four Innovation categories will be given the opportunity to pitch to the C-level executives at the MEF CEO Summit to be held at City Hall, on the day before the Meffys. Guest speakers include executives from companies including Mozilla and Kaspersky as well as the EU Commission. The assembled international CEOs will then vote to determine the most innovative mobile product or service and reward the winner with the CEO Summit Award for Innovation.

Hit the break for the full list of 2012 finalists in the 13 categories, congratulation to all of them, we're looking forward to seeing you in London!

MEF Announces Star line-up for 2012 CEO Summit

MEF has announced the VIP speaker line-up for its 3rd annual MEF CEO Summit, a key event lining up next to the 2012 Global AGM & Board Elections and the Meffys gala awards ceremony this September as part of two days of industry insights, networking and celebration.

Date: 2.30pm, September 11, 2012
Location: London, City Hall

On September 11 City Hall will welcome leading visionaries from across the mobile landscape and beyond to share their unique industry insights around the summit's central theme Navigating Complexity in Times of Change.

The MEF CEO Summit is a free to attend member-only event, strictly limited to one C-level participant per member and uniquely offers attendees the rare chance to meet with fellow industry peers behind closed doors for completely open, non-attributable debate. The guest speakers provide stimulus presentations to kick-off round-table discussions on:

• Disruption to the mobile "old world" 
• Consumer Trust: the biggest game changer?

The Summit will end with a confidential report on the Future of the Mobile Landscape, given by Richard Kramer from equity specialists Arete Research and is followed by a pitching session from the shortlisted winners of the Meffys innovation categories.

MEF member company CEO's have received personal, exclusive invitations to attend. Please ensure your chosen representative has RSVP’d to ceosummit@mefmobile.org.

To see the full line up of speakers, continue reading below.

Perform Global Sports Media Consumption Report 2012 - MEF Members save 15%

Our friends at Perform Group have released their annual Global Sports Media Consumption Report for 2012 - a fascinating study of sports media content consumption and preferences across 10 international markets.

The in depth report attempts to shed light on how sports fans are using the ever-increasing number of media platforms to consume and interact with their favourite sports content. This is essential reading for brands looking to forge deeper relationships with digital sports fans.

MEF members are entitled to an exclusive 15% saving on the full report

This, the second edition of the report provides insight and analysis into how fan engagement with sports coverage is changing, and in particular how attitudes towards new media consumption are developing.

The report, this year expanded to look at more international markets, is a collaboration between Kantar Sport, TV Sports Markets and Perform and examines how sport is consumed via different devices and platforms, how that has changed in the last 12 months and how fans see their consumption patterns changing. Plus new for this year, the report looks into fans attitudes towards brands that sponsor or advertise around sports.
 
The extensive executive summary is available for MEF members to take a look at right now, while the full report is available from Perform - MEF members are entitled to a 15% discount on the cost of the report, head over to their website via our exclusive link now.

Meffys 2012 - Just 4 days to enter!

The deadline for entries to this year's Meffys awards is fast approaching, but there is still time to get your entry to us. In case you need some last minute inspiration, check out MEFTV's interview with one of the head judges, mobile guru Helen Keegan, who shares some great do's and don'ts that may prove invaluable when putting your entry together.

Get your entries to us before the 6pm deadline this Thursday the 19th to be in with a chance to be a part of the mobile industry's most coveted award celebrations.

 

Sign up for our next webinar - Monday 16th July

Hot on the heels of the recent webinar from MEF LatAm on the Code of Conduct for VAS in Brazil, MEF Middle East is set to host another on line thought leadership session on the charged topic of the challenges facing network carriers in the face of OTT content and services.

We have some fantastic guest speakers from both camps, listed below, including representatives from the Qtel Group and Telefonica discussing the advances by network operators to roll out Rich Communication Services (RCS) strategies, and from OTT service providers Nimbuzz and Vopium who will be sharing their market experiences.

Moderated by Eden Zoller, principal analyst of consumer telecoms at Ovum, the webinar promises to encourage some lively debate on whether a mutually beneficial partnership is feasible, or if direct competition is inevitable.

Sign up for the free webinar

Date: Monday, 16th July 2012
Time: 11am GMT, 2pm GST

Moderator

• Eden Zoller, Principal Analyst Consumer Telecoms, Ovum

Speakers

• Rouzbeh Pasha- Qtel Group
• Benjamin Keyser, Product Manager and Head of Global OTT Products - Telefonica
• Jigar Budhdev, General Manager, MENA - Nimbuzz!
• Tanveer Sharif, CEO – Vopium

 Check out the MEF Website for more details

Meffys 2012 - Just 2 weeks to go to enter!

With less than two weeks to go to submit entries for the 9th annual Meffys awards, MEFTV took to the streets of London to find out what consumers are doing with their phones, and what they think is best in mobile content and commerce.

How will these views compare with those of the Meffys’ international panel of journalists, analysts and other independent industry experts? Will it be your company everyone is talking about on September 12th at the Meffys Gala Awards Dinner?

Find out more about the 2012 Meffys Award Categories and how to enter today - Deadline for entries is Monday the 9th of July - Good Luck!

MEF Mobile Content and Commerce Village announced at Apps World

Apps World today announced the Mobile Content and Commerce Village supported by MEF. The focal point will be one of four key areas within the Apps World exhibition. Designed to showcase companies specialising in products and services across the mobile value chain including mobile content and payment providers, aggregators and platform providers, the village will support those looking to curate, create, promote and monetise content within the mobile space.

Apps World is taking place on 2-3 October at Earl’s Court 2, and will be hosting a free to attend exhibition alongside 10 different niche workshop tracks covering the entire mobile app ecosystem. We have some great exclusive benefits for MEF members, including 25% discount on conference passes and special exhibition packages - download the pack from the MEF website.


MEF will be hosting a half day Summit at Apps World as part of the programme presenting its latest analytics and initiatives activities and engaging in lively debate on business critical issues facing the mobile industry with a particular emphasis on Consumer Trust. The MEF Mobile Content and Commerce Village will be adjacent to the MEF members-only lounge, creating a unique networking environment within the event for visitors meet MEF members to discuss key content, monetization, privacy, VAS and emerging commerce models.

Meffys 2012 now open for entries!

The mobile industry's most coveted awards are back! MEF has officially opened submissions for this year's Meffys, with a host of new categories to reflect the ever expanding mobile ecosystem, and indeed its own work and priorities, with categories for 2012 including the Consumer Trust and Social Responsibility & Development Awards.

Other new categories include Publisher on Mobile, Life Tools App and Brand on Mobile.. head over to the Meffys website to see all of the categories.

Judged by an independent and uniquely international panel of journalists, academics, analysts and VCs, the Meffys are the global benchmark for measuring success and rewarding innovation in mobile content and commerce. Last year, more than 350 industry leaders from over 30 countries gathered in London to attend the Meffys, and it was quite a show.

From 29th May, companies are invited to submit entries in 13 categories until the deadline of July 9th. The 2012 winners will be announced at a gala dinner on 12th September 2012 at the prestigious Park Lane Hotel in Mayfair - so you'll need to get your submissions together and complete the on line entry form quick-smart.

Rimma Perelmuter, MEF Executive Director commented: “Now in their 9th year, the Meffys enjoy an unrivalled heritage as the global awards for mobile content and commerce. MEF reviews the categories on an annual basis to reflect the industry’s evolution and this year, we are recognising the profound impact of mobile on key verticals and consumers around the world. The new Meffys Consumer Trust Award will also honour those companies at the forefront of creating best practise in privacy and security, key to creating a sustainable ecosystem in 2012 and beyond.”

In addition to the new awards, all nominees in each of the four innovation categories will be given the opportunity to pitch to the C-level executives at the MEF CEO Summit to be held at City Hall, on the evening preceding the Meffys. The CEOs will then vote to determine the most innovative mobile product or service and the winner of this “CEO Summit Award for Innovation” will be honoured at the Meffys Gala Awards Dinner.

Opportunities for sponsorships are still available - If you want to showcase your brand to the most influential audience in mobile media, contact us today!

Guest Blog - Privacy vs. Data & Building Consumer - Gary Schwartz



MEF North America
Chairman Gary Schwartz



MEF North America Chair Gary Schwartz talks privacy..


The way we define the term privacy is subjective. In the US, we police privacy based on a very broad definition under Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act that prohibits “unfair or deceptive acts or practices in or affecting commerce.” The devil is in the policy details.

If the news headlines over the past few months are any indication, we are mighty confused with what to call private and what to call public, what to sanction and what not to sanction. How can we start to solve small-screen privacy when we have not solved our digital angst on the desktop?

Jules Polonetsky, Director of the Future of Privacy Forum says that when the browser invariably crashes it pops up a commiserating dialogue box asking you permission to send the diagnostic report to the browser company anonymously to help them fix bugs and build a better browser.

Faced with this privacy brief only three per cent of users click “yes”.