14th Malaysian Media Conference boasts buzz worthy speakers set to lead discourse on the industry’s recovery strategy, registration open now.
The Malaysian Media Conference (MMC) is back for its 14th year! Registrations officially started rolling in last week as soon as the page went live; unsurprising for an industry that has been deprived of physical gatherings for almost half a year.
The annual MMC is a proven landmark event for all media and marketing professionals to get everyone on the same page one day in the year. There has never been a year as important as 2020 for stakeholders in our industry to come together and assist each other to bounce back from the unparalleled challenges we’ve been smacked in the face with.
“As we enter a unique window of opportunity to shape the recovery of our industries, MMC 2020 will offer insights from experts to help inspire the media and marketing industries to determine the future state of Malaysia’s communication landscape,” said the organising committee of MMC 2020.
The committee added that by hosting a grand industry gathering, MMC 2020 is officially initiating The Great Comeback.
This year, MMC is bringing bright minds together, to give talks that are focused on inspiring the individuals who make up Malaysia’s media landscape, foster learning, inspiration and wonder – inevitably provoking conversations that matter for our industry. The line-up of expert speakers include media owners, advertisers, marketers and agency individuals.
Regional Director of Marketing from McDonald’s Malaysia, Eugene Lee is one of the speakers and will be discussing the idea ‘If you don’t get it, don’t get into it’, to emphasise the importance of understanding what you’re marketing, beforehand. Karen Chan, CEO of Asean’s fastest growing travel platform, AirAsia.com will also be part of the conference as a guest speaker. Visit the official conference website for the full list of speakers and panelists.
“One of the goals for this year’s conference is to trigger an open discourse on the “knots” faced by three symbiotic industries and the potential synergies that could be activated by addressing these challenges,” said the chairman of the organising committee, Harmandar Singh. “While COVID-19 has exposed our flaws and vulnerabilities as an industry, it has created the opportunity for us to have more raw and uncensored discussions on what’s wrong and how to fix it and it’s time for our industry to have that conversation, led by a line-up of speakers and panelists who are experts in their own field.”
When asked why a boomerang was used as the official conference logo, the organising committee explained that when they conceptualised the idea that led them to this year’s conference theme, they realised that the marketing, media and advertising industry needs a unique weapon to achieve a remarkable recovery.
“A boomerang is a rare example of a non-ballistic weapon,” a representative from the organising committee added. “When used correctly, boomerangs fly roughly parallel to the ground and as long as they maintain sufficient speed and rotation, they can resist the force of gravity.”
Similarly, the goal of MMC 2020 is to inspire Malaysia’s media landscape to follow the trends on the ground while remaining one step ahead and to be flexible as they keep moving forward towards The Great Comeback.
Drawing from the vision and vast expertise of each stakeholder, MMC 2020, in its 14th year, is designed to provide an unparalleled platform for creating, shaping and delivering collaborative solutions for the upcoming decade.
Beijing (AFP) – Wang Li’s guesthouse sits a stone’s throw from the Great Wall, an idyllic setting for a weekend getaway. But in these uncertain times of the new coronavirus, Wang and her family are the only occupants.The 35-year-old woman now spends her days disinfecting Yingfangyuan Farmhouse and its empty restaurant near Beijing, as millions of people across the country stay home, either under government orders or out of caution.As the virus claims more lives and infects thousands of people every day, it is also taking a toll on the country’s small businesses that rely on spending from China… (more…)
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NEW DELHI – India’s southern state of Kerala has been hit by the worst floods in nearly a century. Now that the floodwaters are receding, a peculiar debate has emerged over whether India should accept foreign aid to support reconstruction.
At the peak of the floods, the Indian government allocated money from the National Disaster Response Fund for immediate relief. But it was the public that really stepped up, with an outpouring of contributions to the Kerala government’s disaster relief fund that amounted to more than twice the funds so far provided by the national authorities.
In fact, the total additional assistance the government has provided – $90 million (with promises of an unspecified additional amount) – amounts to less than half of what the state government was requesting for immediate relief. It does not even begin to cover long-term reconstruction costs, estimated at over 50 times that figure.
The floods, which displaced a million people, left Kerala with 39 collapsed bridges, some 6,000 miles of ruined roads, significant agricultural losses, and more than 50,000 homes either damaged or destroyed. Rebuilding all that infrastructure, which took decades to construct the first time around, will be a herculean task.
Despite all of this, India’s government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), have refused to accept outside help. That stance first became apparent as the crisis was unfolding, when the United Arab Emirates – which is home to some two million Keralites – reportedly offered assistance totaling $100 million.
Modi thanked the UAE’s leader, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, on Twitter. Then his government – via BJP spokesmen, rather than government officials – let the media know that it would not be taking the UAE grant.
On August 21, Thailand’s ambassador to India tweeted: “Informally informed with regret that [the] Government of India is not accepting overseas donations for Kerala flood relief.” Offers from Qatar and the Maldives of $5 million and $50,000, respectively, are thus also likely to be rejected. Indian missions abroad have been instructed to turn down offers of assistance.
BJP leaders insisted that this stance is based on the 2004 decision of then-Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s United Progressive Alliance government not to accept foreign aid following the Indian Ocean tsunami. But the tsunami had done far less damage than the Kerala floods have, and national resources could fully cover the estimated costs of rebuilding.
Moreover, any precedent established by that 2004 decision was superseded by the National Disaster Management Plan, issued by Modi’s own government in 2016. Paragraph 9.2 of the plan states that the government does not issue any appeal for foreign assistance in the wake of a disaster, but can accept such assistance, if another national government offers it voluntarily, “as a goodwill gesture in solidarity with the disaster victims.” This means that it would have been entirely permissible for the government to accept the UAE’s help.
So why did the BJP reject the offer? After announcing the decision to reject the UAE’s offer, the party’s spokesmen lost no time in invoking national pride: India, now a net donor of aid to poor countries, could take care of its own.
If Modi’s government believes that it has adequate funds to meet Kerala’s needs, it owes the state’s people an explanation to as to why such a small amount has been allocated. But there is little reason to expect any such thing of the cash-strapped Modi government. When Cyclone Ockhi struck coastal areas of Kerala last December, the central government provided just 2% of the aid the state government requested.
The rejection of foreign assistance is not even a fundamental BJP policy. After the 2001 Bhuj Earthquake in Gujarat – where Modi himself was Chief Minister – the BJP-led central government accepted international assistance. The total funds raised by United Nations bodies – such as the UN Development Programme, the World Health Organization, UNICEF, the International Labour Organization, and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs – exceeded $42 million. A total of $1.7 billion was then pledged at a reconstruction conference, and Bhuj was rebuilt.
One could ask whether aid from international organizations should be regarded as “foreign” by a UN member in good standing. But even aid from other countries is an entirely normal feature of international relations, especially when major disasters strike and an “all for one, one for all” spirit takes hold.
India has voluntarily provided help when its neighbors have been similarly afflicted, such as after earthquakes in Nepal, Pakistan, and Iran, and floods in Bangladesh and Myanmar. Even the United States accepted foreign aid after Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in August 2005, with India providing $5 million. Why shouldn’t others similarly extend a helping hand to Indians in distress?
India is a proud country that prefers to rely on its own resources. But when our resources are nowhere near sufficient to meet the needs of our people – who are suffering in the wake of a devastating disaster – it is both churlish and irresponsible to reject aid from those who can and want to provide it. No policy of national pride can justify callousness towards our own distressed citizens.
By all means, do not go abroad with a begging bowl. But when your friendly neighbor knocks on your door and offers you the cup of sugar you need to finish a recipe, you don’t turn him away. There is no shame in accepting aid from friends whom we would help if the tables were turned. For the sake of the people of Kerala, the BJP government must recognize this and revise its disaster-aid policy.
Royal Selangor has launched a special edition Malaysia Baru medallion in conjunction with Merdeka and Malaysia Day celebrations.
According to Tien Yue Chen, the Executive Director at Royal Selangor, the idea for this medallion came about after witnessing the historic day of GE14. It was such a big change for the country and so many people felt that they were involved in this process of change.
“We felt that we should come up with something to commemorate this event – this Malaysia Baru sense of ‘people power’. Royal Selangor has always been apolitical and we didn’t want to make it about one coalition or one party against another. We thought about it and it is really quite a big occasion, so it would be nice to have something to mark what had happened. So we said, let’s celebrate Malaysian people getting together, being heard and making a change. Let’s make something and now the question was what should we make?”
The design for the medallion was chosen after a few options were proposed by their team of in-house designers. “Some of the staff at Royal Selangor especially the younger ones were not very sure at first what a medallion was,” Chen says. “We’ve never done anything like a medallion in years, so this is quite unique and retro.”
One side of the 2.5″ medallion conveys national pride and unity, with key iconic scenes of Malaysian flags waving in front of the Sultan Abdul Samad building and the birth date of Malaysia Baru, while the other side features hands joining forces symbolising the power of the people and democracy. The show of unity is in line with this year’s Merdeka theme, “Sayangi Malaysiaku”.
“The medallion has some sort of weight to it. It feels solid in your hand, and it is something that you can keep and remember what had happened on 9th May 2018,” Chen explained.
This special edition medallion, which retails for RM 125, will be available for a limited time only and 20% of the sales of the medallion will be donated to Tabung Harapan. The Malaysia Baru medallions have been flying off the shelves already and many Royal Selangor stores are out of stock currently.
“So far, the response has been really good with people coming to our stores and spreading the word to their friends. In fact, we have a bit of a supply issue right now because we have trouble shipping out with the great demand. I suggest if people want to get it, to just give us a call, quickly order it and we’ll try to get the piece to them as soon as possible when supplies come in.”
Chen further explained that they were selling until the end of September. The quantities to be made depends on what the demand is going to be. They hope to sell at least 5000 pieces because that will help raise at least RM100,000 for Tabung Harapan.
When asked why Royal Selangor is donating 20% of the sales from the Malaysia Baru medallion to Tabung Harapan, Chen replied, “I think Tabung Harapan is a way for people to feel that they can be part of the whole change. Of course, in terms of amount, it’s a relative thing whether people feel it will be a meaningful amount that’s to be raised by Tabung Harapan. But it gives everyone a chance to be part of the process. Everyone can be involved in this new Malaysia. And that’s why we thought having the medallion proceeds go to Tabung Harapan would be giving people a chance to contribute to this change.”
You can order your medallion at royalselangor.com and at all Royal Selangor retail stores in Malaysia. If you’re overseas and want to get this medallion, we suggest that you order it online. There’s a minimum spend for free delivery, so depending on your location, you can buy 3 or 4 medallions for your family and friends and have it delivered to you for free.
What’s Next, Malaysia’s premiere digital meets brick-and-mortar conference, where Tan Sri Tony Fernandez famously declared in 2015 that AirAsia was in fact an Internet company, is back for the fourth year on August 30, 2018 at Le Meridien Kuala Lumpur.
In an exciting addition to the lineup of brick and mortar leaders talking about how they are dealing with digital disruption, EY is bringing its world class Digital Roadshow experience to Malaysia and only at What’s Next 2018.
EY experts from around Asia will be showcasing various digital solutions that are today helping brick and mortar businesses take advantage of digital instead of being disrupted by digital.
At the same time come listen to Henry Tan, chief corporate and consumer office of Astro holdings Malaysia Berhad share key lesson has learnt about facing disruption and come listen to the global condom king, MK Goh of Karex Berhad, the world’s largest condom manufacture talk about how his brick and mortar business is facing digital disruption.
Not forgetting Khailee Ng managing partner of 500 Startups who will talk about the coming disruption and opportunities from Deep Tech.
Henry Tan, Group Chief Content & Consumer Officer, Astro Malaysia Holdings Bhd
MK Goh, Chief Managing Director of Karex Bhd
Khailee Ng, Managing Partner, 500 Startups
And many more exciting speakers. All only at What’s Next 2018.
The design for the medallion was chosen after a few options were proposed by their team of in-house designers. 
