Hot Stuff & Gadgets
Posted on 27. Aug, 2010 by Graham in Hot Stuff Gadget Review
BlackBerry Torch 9800
Torchbearer
Rtba (due late 2010)
BlackBerry has been rightly criticised for its browsers and its early attempts at touchscreen phones. But the little Canadian company that can, has quietly been working away at its new supermodel to resolve both of these issues. The Torch might be their most significant handset yet. It combines a touchscreen (with greater accuracy than either of the failed Storms) with a completely rebuilt operating system called BlackBerry 6 and a slide-out Qwerty keypad below the 3.2in/8cm touchscreen. It’s slick, it’s fast, it works and it’s awesome. The entire BlackBerry user experience is much improved, with a 5MP camera, built-in GPS and Wi-Fi thrown in. Can you say “iPhone killer”?
| Sony NEX-5 The world’s smallest lens-swapper from R7 500 Is it just us or is everything getting smaller? Back in the day Easter eggs were the size of a cat’s head, a Bar One was more like a brown brick than a chocolate bar, and don’t even get us started on Monster Munch. It seems the same is now happening to our cameras. The NEX-5 is Sony’s attempt at a slimmed down, Micro Four Thirds-style, interchangeable-lens snapper. It ditches the traditional SLR prism, but adopts a 14.2MP APS-C sensor, 3in/7.6cm LCD, 1080i video shooting and an awesome Sweep Panorama mode to create super-wide images. |
 |
| Nintendo 3DS 3D is in your hands Rtba (due 2011) If you had to put on a fake nose and a welder’s mask every time you wanted to play on your Xbox, you’d quickly find something else to do – something that didn’t require any dressing up. Ninty knows that wearing glasses to see 3D is off-putting, so its new multi-dimensional handheld doesn’t require any. Instead it uses a lenticular lens on its 3.5in/8.8cm top screen to make games jump out, plus two cameras on the back to take 3D pics. Throw in motion sensors and a catalogue of games that includes Mario Kart, DJ Hero and Metal Gear Solid and you’re holding the next gaming revolution. |
 |
| Xbox 360 Slim The next-gen console Xbox 4GB R2 400 (Kinect Bundle R3 700) You can’t get everything right first time. Microsoft learned that the hard way. With its lack of Wi-Fi, meagre hard drive and dreaded Red Ring of Death, the path of the Xbox 360 never has run smooth. But things have changed. The new Xbox has a slimmer look, built-in Wi-Fi, a quieter engine and 4GB of flash storage, with a 250GB also available. This is the Xbox 360 as it should have been from the start: capacious, quiet and connected. And considering it became the console of choice for hardcore gamers in its previous “flawed” form, this Kinect-ready console should have the PS3 petrified. |
 |
| MB&F HM4 Thunderbolt JETPACK-SHAPED TIME TRACKER R1 150 000 (import only) First, rename yourself Blizzard or Thumper, then slap on some Ray-Bans and say things like, “There’s a bogey on your six!” Only then will you be pilot-y enough to strap on the unashamedly aviation-influenced Thunderbolt watch. The size and shape are a result of a unique movement that the designers amusingly call the engine. It comprises 311 parts, has taken three years to design and looks not unlike a pair of jet turbofans, with the titanium case housing a standard dial on the right and a power reserve on the left. We feel the need… the need for shorter sleeves to show off our ridiculous watch. And a cap with gold braid. |
 |
Cooking up an Advertising storm – Brandon Faber
Posted on 27. Aug, 2010 by Graham in Brandon Faber
I’d like to create a television show called “Does it AD up?”
What we would do is take features, benefits etc. advertised and put it to the test. Sort of like MythBusters, only with more boozing involved.
I do of course realise that it would be nearly impossible to get any broadcaster to boldly go where no show has gone before, purely because it has the potential to name and shame advertisers who are talking absolute nonsense. Hence I will have to take this idea to the internet, with funding coming from the IDC or, more likely, my mother’s cookie jar.
Don’t you think it would be fun to see if you really could wash a zillion white plates with a bottle of Sunlight liquid, or if eating Bar One does turn you into a burning-house storming super-hero? Wouldn’t it be cool to prove that you can really sculpt perfect abs from the safety of your couch or that THAT herbal cream with extracts from a plant that can only be found in the shadows of Tibetan temples can increase the size of your breasts with daily application?
Personally I think that show (featuring the cream) would beat the opening game of the Soccer World Cup in terms of viewer ratings . . . or, at the very least, make a meal of South African Idols. By the way and pardon my digressing, but is it just me or does it seem that this Season has borrowed just about everything it can from the American version?
“I’m the next South African Idol!” yells one group of largely talentless cretins. “No! I’m the next South African Idol” yells another. That is straight from the pens of enlightened script writers at Fox studios and that is also not the only example.
Last year’s host is also back, although in a lesser role it seems.
Who else thinks that this Liezel lady must be the daughter of someone really important? Who else thinks that the only reason she is there again is because getting rid of her would be an admission of guilt from our friends at Multichoice? Who else thinks that we should have used one host only and, then, a comedian like John Vlismas, or that other Trevor dude – although I see he already has his own talk show and is the CEO (Customer Experience Officer) at Cell C?
I’m just saying that combining someone with a brain with a relatively brainless show should do wonders for a franchise that is in need of something, or someone, with a lot more flair.
Perhaps I could perform an experiment on a special edition of my proposed new show where we measure the average time it takes for a human being of decent intelligence, falling into the almighty LSM categories of 7 and above, to pick up their DSTV remote and change over from Idols Extra to watch Jamie Oliver boil an egg and cook a duck?
I bet it does not take long at all.
Anyway back to my show and the wonders it could prove, or disprove. Ten bucks say if I make a roast chicken for lunch (somehow managing to smear the walls and ceiling in the process) Mr. Muscle will not appear out of nowhere to clean my kitchen for me.
Hundred bucks say that Caltex’s “Techron” has no significant impact on my car’s engine.
Thousand bucks say I’d have to dip my hand in that cookie jar if this show’s ever to see the light of day.
Industry Profile – Donald Kau
Posted on 27. Aug, 2010 by Graham in Personality Profiles
Shimi Donald Kau
Director, Meropa Communications
Donald is a Communications Strategist with an extensive background in Corporate Communications and Media Relations. Having started his career within a communications and PR agency, his experience includes 9 years with the Transnet Group serving as Public Affairs Manager for Transnet Corporate Social Investment, Communications Manager at Marine Data Systems and National Spokesperson and Stakeholder Relations Manager at the National Ports Authority of South Africa (NPA). He has extensive experience working with government at a senior level to drive issues in the fields of media, advertising and sponsorship as well as reputation management. His academic qualifications include a diploma in Public Relations from Witwatersrand Technikon, Graphic Design from the AAA School of Advertising as well as further studies in Media Management and Project Management. He has also successfully completed the Transnet Executive Development Programme from the Gordon Institute of Business Science and University of Pretoria.
What’s a typical workday for you?
I get into the office around 07h30 and do newspaper reading and scanning for client news. Most of the day is keeping in touch with consultancy teams where I have oversight on specific clients. It’s all about making sure we’re on strategy and that our clients are getting good value from us.
I’m also responsible for tracking and chasing prospects as well as leading new business pitch teams. That’s time to network, attend briefings and preparing submissions.
I’m ready to leave the office around 18h00.
What do you enjoy most about your portfolio?
I love strategizing with the teams I work with. The teamwork can be fun but also stressful at times. I have broad responsibilities so I can enjoy several peaks on any given day from doing different things.
How do you handle work stresses?
I’m learning to pace myself since I stress easily. Also as I’ve grown and succeeded, I’m also trying not to take it all too seriously and personally. Laughter helps too, alternatively I just jump into my car and listen to a good cd.
What has been your biggest professional challenge?
Leadership is proving to be about constant learning, trust and self-confidence in the face of trying circumstances. The economic downturn has put survival skills at the fore and I’ve been tested more than I thought possible. I’m up for bigger challenges but right now I’m taking stock.
What is your No 1 industry peeve?
Badly written briefs!!!
What are the favorite brands that you cannot live without?
Exclusive Books and the Blue Bulls.
How do you relax?
I read a lot, and watch a lot of sports on TV. I also keep two dogs who are hugely entertaining when I can get to spend time with them.
What’s your chosen way to communicate with family and friends, (mobile, social networking pages like Facebook, Skype, emails, fixed lined telephone)?
I phone my family a lot. The rest is left to Facebook and weekend get-togethers mostly at the same places.
What’s a favorite local holiday destination?
I love driving through Mpumalanga so every year I’m up there at the end of winter.
What’s your idea of a relaxing Sunday morning?
I wish there would be a Sunday morning without newspapers. Alternatively, lying in the grass over a breakfast is ultimate.
Which are your favorite must-have printed media titles?
I love international GQ and Vanity Fair…they have some great interviews. I hardly ever miss Fortune magazine and the Mail and Guardian. The rest is car magazines.
Do you have a favorite online site?
Springwise.com is a must for new business ideas and inspiration, You-Tube for all the music I can watch.
What’s your best dining out venue?
Bhukhara in Sandton Square is an indulgence I’m up for any day.
Sowetan Live
Posted on 28. Jul, 2010 by Graham in Headlines and Opinions
LAUNCH OF SOWETAN LIVE SEES SITE MOVE FORWARD WITH ITS READERS
After the successful relaunch of the Sowetan newspaper a year ago, Avusa Media LIVE launched the revamp of its digital home Sowetan LIVE, www.sowetanlive.co.za on July 21. This follows extensive research among its fast-moving and rapidly evolving users. A 76% year-on-year growth of the news site, according to Nielsen’s June 2010 rankings, indicates that the contemporary black community are very hungry for news, insights and advice that further empower them to be in the know and on the move.
Over and above research feedback, Avusa Media LIVE made key changes based on local and international trends in news sites and from learnings on sister sites such as Times LIVE. Key changes include a fresher and cleaner look and feel allowing users to find information more quickly and easily. The site facilitates more interactivity with users who can now comment on articles and share their favourite stories via Facebook and Twitter. There is also better multimedia integration with all relevant videos and audio clips and photo slideshows integrated into each article.
“The Sowetan news site is Avusa Media LIVE’s second biggest news site after Times LIVE. Its audience has grown from 247,236 unique users in June 2009 to 436,354 unique users in June this year, according to Nielsen’s latest figures,” says Elan Lohmann, general manager of Avusa Media LIVE.
“This is an audience that has arrived and is no longer limited by the past. They know what they want and where they are going and they are highly engaged online. It’s now time for Sowetan LIVE to move forward with its users as a trusted companion that empowers them with knowledge, shares their successes and connects them to their community.”
Reader research shows that the overall favourite content is breaking news, sport, community news, celebrity gossip including the Shwashwi column, weddings and engagement pages and columnists. An indication of how engaged this audience is with the site and the community driven spirit that the site engenders is the success of the weddings and engagements blogs. The blogs are purely showcases of readers’ babies and weddings and the influx of user contributions for both has been phenomenal. There are plans to further enhance the community driven elements of the site post-launch.
Sowetan’s online users also confirmed that breaking news is the main reason for them visiting the site but they want it to be easier to browse. Sowetan LIVE’s home page, section pages and articles now have more space and are less cluttered so it is easier to read the content. Navigation tabs have also been cleaned up and reduced with information logically grouped under the sections.
Users also want a more exciting look and feel with more visuals. This has resulted in updated colours, font styles and a new logo. The logo and branding has been updated to include the LIVE digital brand extension of the Avusa Media LIVE stable.
“The launch of Sowetan LIVE forms part of Avusa Media LIVE’s strategy to continue to advance and innovate in the digital space. This is why the Sowetan news site is our second site to migrate to the Escenic web content management system, used by other major international publications including The Telegraph, Aftonbladet, The Schibsted group and The Sun. The LIVE digital brands will all incorporate international design standards and bring front-end design up to the user,” points out Lohmann.
Stories on Sowetan LIVE now carry more pictures and rich media is integrated into the articles. As interactivity is key, users are also able to comment on the site and be a part of regular polls on issues of the day.
“Sowetan LIVE is very consumer focused and our consumer advice and information is unique in the online space and incredibly valuable to our readers. Our new Help Line section contains all our consumer advice columns from the paper including Consumer Line, spearheaded by our consumer editor and champion Thuli Zungu, Dear Dudu who offers relationship advice, Mama Angel who carries out good deeds for those in need and Motoring Q&A which focuses on car advice,” says Juliette Saunders, editor of Sowetan LIVE.
The majority of readers on the Sowetan news site are black males between the ages of 25 to 34, who speak English at home and earn a combined personal income per household per month of between R12 000 to R15 999. They are based in Johannesburg, have a university degree, are qualified employees or experts such as teachers and nurses. The majority of the users access the internet at work via ADSL.
To view the new world-class site visit www.sowetanlive.co.za or m.sowetanlive on your cellphone.
Make everyday Mandela day
Posted on 28. Jul, 2010 by Graham in Avusa Media News, Headlines and Opinions
Avusa Media have published two supplements for one of the greatest leaders of all time. Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela turned 92 on 18 July 1918. It is befitting that he attended the final of the 2010 World Cup, celebrating the end of an event so successfully hosted by South Africa, and one which he helped secure. On 11 July, we published Play the Game for Nelson Mandela, a supplement which was distributed to schools as well as through The Sunday Times and the Sowetan. It gives readers a brief history of Mandela’s life as an activist, a leader, a prisoner, family man and statesman. It also gives a story book to every child who is able to get a copy of the supplement and promotes the development of a culture of reading and learning, something very dear to Nelson Mandela.
The Nelson Mandela: A Living Legacy published in the Sunday Times on 18 July and in Sowetan on 19 July gives an account of the life of Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela. It briefly examines his role during the struggle for freedom and how this influenced events in the country and internationally. It examines his achievements in building a nation and promoting democracy, equality and freedom as the first president of a democratic South Africa and beyond. This includes how in 1995 he embraced the South African rugby team to drive unity among South Africans, part of his effort to build a rainbow nation, and how these efforts have been replicated by others in 2010; it will include his strides in promoting quality education, in fighting HIV/Aids and poverty. This is a tribute to Nelson Mandela, and to those who have fought with him, but also to those who take forward the lessons they have learnt from him.
Keep Flying
Posted on 28. Jul, 2010 by Graham in Uncategorized
Click here to visit the Keep Flying website
It is here. Let’s go
Posted on 24. Jun, 2010 by admin in Headlines and Opinions
It is here.
And Let’s Go 2010 definitely helped keep the 2010 Soccer World Cup uppermost in the minds of South Africans, way before the fact. Now we have outdone ourselves again, moving from a weekly edition to a daily rendition of all the Soccer World Cup action played to the drone of vuvuzelas. Let’s Go 2010 is so large, you can see it everywhere. Splashed across the Cape Town airport domestic departure lounge, the visual would be rather hard to miss, and at OR Tambo, a massive soccer ball newspaper stand invites you to take your copy – and it’s free.
Branding could not get better for this excellent publication, as the outdoor advertising campaign is right on the money with billboards placed so strategically at Cape Town airport and in Rivonia Road.
And it moves – what with metered taxis driving the message all around Cape Town and home, and single-deck busses doing the same in Johannesburg. Impressively featured on a downtown Johannesburg building wrapped by The Sunday Times, the outdoor branding is complemented by a radio campaign of tactical shows on Kaya and Metro. All media will be up for the duration of the World Cup, after which it will be rebranded to fall in line with marketing objectives for the specific brand owners.
And then of course, there are the soccer ball water taxis at the Victoria & Alfred Waterfront in Cape Town, which, though not specific to Let’s Go 2010, advertise its carriers, The Times and The Sunday Times, Sowetan and Sunday World. Let’s Go 2010 is certainly here.
 |
 |
Did you know these interesting World Cup facts?
Posted on 24. Jun, 2010 by admin in Did you Know
• More than 11 million South African television viewers watched the Soccer World Cup opening match between South Africa and Mexico on Friday 11 June 2010.
| • 42-year-old Roger Milla in 1994 became the oldest goal scorer and the oldest player in World Cup history. He is also famous for being the first footballer to celebrate a goal by dancing: sparking a whole trend that has seen some very strange on-field gyrations. |  |
| • Sir Viv Richards is the only person to have played both World Cup Football and World Cup Cricket. |  |
| • Sri Lanka was the first country to withdraw from the World Cup due to the inability to pay the entrance fee for the 1978 World Cup. |  |
| • Shirt swapping was once officially prohibited in 1986 because FIFA did not want players to ‘bare their chests’ on the field. |  |
| • No European team has won a World Cup played outside of Europe. Sorry Netherlands and Spain. |  |
| • Yugoslavia’s Rajko Mitic failed to make the kick-off of their 1950 match against hosts Brazil in Rio because he had run into an iron girder in the players’ tunnel. He emerged 20 minutes later, his head bandaged, with his team already a goal down. |  |
| • The Japanese squad list goes from 3 to 5 as the number 4 is considered unlucky in the country. Four is pronounced “shi” which is the same as “death.” |  |
| • A bag snatcher who stole Eva Standmann’s handbag before the Brazil-Australia game in Munich four years ago found her ticket inside and decided to attend the game with her ticket. Unfortunately, he sat in Eva’s seat right next to her husband Berndt, who had him arrested. Talk about the “hot” seat!” |  |
| • The Socceroos’ nickname was coined by Sydney Daily Mirror editor Tony Horstead in 1967. These days Australians now want to ditch it and reclaim the name ‘football’. Meanwhile, Australia’s U-17 team is known as The Joeys. |  |
| • During Germany’s 2009 Wembley friendly with England, Germany’s team coach Joachim Loew was caught on camera vigorously rubbing his armpit and then sniffing his hand. He was also spotted picking his nose and then chewing the bogey during the qualifier against Wales. Eek! |  |
| • Shunsuke Nakamura, Japan’s midfielder has an asteroid, “Asteroid 29986 Shunsuke”, named after him. |  |
Avusa Media Announces New Editors For Eastern Cape
Posted on 24. Jun, 2010 by admin in Avusa Media News
Avusa Media has appointed new editors in the Eastern Cape, a region in which the group leads the market with its newspaper titles. Jeremy McCabe, currently acting editor-in-chief of The Herald and Weekend Post, has been appointed editor of the Saturday title, the Weekend Post. McCabe will also assume editorship of Avusa Media’s community newspapers in the Eastern Cape.
In addition to these responsibilities, McCabe will be responsible for running a newly created production hub, which serves all Avusa Media’s Eastern Cape titles, including the Daily Dispatch and Saturday Dispatch in East London. He will also spearhead the creation of an Avusa-wide production hub located in Port Elizabeth.
Sunday Times deputy editor Heather Robertson will take over the editorship of The Herald. Robertson, who has been with the Sunday Times for over ten years, has served in various capacities including senior writer, Kwa-Zulu Natal bureau chief and national news editor. In her capacity as deputy editor she oversaw the launch of the Sunday Times Zimbabwe edition which has seen the Sunday Times’s circulation soar in that country in the past four months.
Current acting editor of The Herald Charmain Naidoo will move to Johannesburg to run the newly created Avusa Media News Service. As editor, Naidoo will be responsible for running an integrated news operation for Avusa Media titles, aimed at building a strong national footprint for the newspapers.
All three editors will report to Avusa Media editor-in-chief Mondli Makhanya. “These appointments are aimed at cementing Avusa Media’s position as a superior provider of quality content and agenda-setting news in South Africa,” he says.
Global Shifts
Posted on 28. Jan, 2010 by admin in Trends
Fifty percent of the world’s population live in cities and by the year 2050,
6.4 billion people will be urbanites.
In 2009 we felt the impact of globalization as economies crashed driving home our inter-connectedness. Digitally united, technologically driven, our world and its weather are changing rapidly!
Heightened 3D Augmented More Real Reality
2010 is the year for applications that allow one to interface faster, more efficiently and creatively with the world (= reality)! Digital convergence has changed how people interact, meet, buy, sell, communicate, relax, LIVE. Augmented and extended reality applications and devices, track and report applications, user-friendly hardware and software is the BOOMING market. Brands, marketers, companies, hell… countries will need radical paradigm shifts to encompass and meet the needs of techno-savvy consumers who need immediate feedback, instant gratification and constant nurturing.
Luxury is time to smell the roses
In a world of things, things and more things, the definition of luxury has been transformed. The big spending consumer is a sophisticated urbanite with everything but time. Increasingly in a world where mink coats are cruel and passé, bling is bad, ostentatious displays of wealth are OTT, luxury is about less style and more life – time to smell the roses, to reflect and connect with you, family, friends, and the environment. That is not to say that Louis Vuitton is out of business, but that people are grappling with materialism and a new age mentality of restraint.
Finding the ME in Big Mac Land
Mass media, mass culture, mass production has sapped the soul of the individual. More people are searching for unique personalized products, experiences and places that treat them as individuals. It is a direct backlash against brands that have reduced everything to crude and basic demographics. Companies that cater to that need are on the up and up. From personal banking consultants, to made for you perfumes, to trawling outdoor markets for the handmade, one off or commissioned product that says “I am no number!” Marketers will do well to heed the need for personal, individualised and niche promotions.
Brands Adapt or Die
Consumer habits and needs are changing moment to moment as they respond to the latest gadget, technological innovation and fad. Brands needs to be respond quickly to these surges by anticipating and catering to the ever increasing/changing consumer behavior.
Collaborate to Relate
Passive consumerism is out. The collapse of 2009 has resulted in a loss of faith – in institutions, politicians and brand promises. The rise of social media means that we are creating communities who are constantly in contact, sharing information, networks and knowledge. Across a spectrum of social media sites; like minds have come together; to create tight communities that maybe divided by continents, but are united through their world views. In the chaos of undifferentiated brands, those that involve consumers and stakeholders from step one will prevail. Brands that engage intelligently with consumers via social media not only are able to defuse negative reviewing but are using it to collaborate on the creation of new products engendering loyalty from step one.
Green is still Hot
Despite the Copenhagen fiasco/farce, eco-friendly living has become the mainstream. 2010 will see companies that greenwash, named and shamed. Consumers are tired of empty promises, double speak and a willful distortion of the facts. But it’s hard for the ordinary consumer to make environmentally friendly lifestyle choices with the plethora of more harmful but cheaper products. Companies that offer consumers MORE green products and services at better prices are going to steal the march on their competitors. 2010 is going to be a year when governments start legislating to ensure a safer, sustainable environment.