Vodacom’s Head of Mobile Advertising Helps to Kick Start Local Council

Johannesburg, November 10, 2008 – The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) (www.mmaglobal.com) today announced the establishment of a South Africa Council to lead the creation of guidelines and best practices and educate and evangelize on the mobile channel in South Africa. The Council will initially be chaired by Rick Joubert, Vodacom’s Head of Mobile Advertising, and initially brings together 16 MMA member companies. The South Africa Local Council joins the recently launched India and UK Council and other local European bodies in Spain, Ireland, Germany and Austria.

‘My experiences at Vodacom have firmly convinced me that mobile is a medium to rival traditional media. South Africa has seen a lot of innovation in the field of mobile marketing, and as an active participant in the new local MMA Council I look forward to helping the industry to thrive’, said Rick Joubert

The founding members of the local council have agreed the immediate priorities and initiatives in South Africa are as follows:

• Ensuring implementation of existing MMA creative and technical standards and recommending adaptation for local market conditions where appropriate
• Measurement/tracking: including the publisher landscape, quantifying available inventory volume and value, tracking brand and category investment
• Escalation in the evangelism and promotion of mobile as an important marketing medium for South African brand managers and advertising agencies

According to the Direct Marketing Association of South Africa (DMASA), the mobile channel now represents almost 50% of all spend on direct marketing in South Africa, and with over 35 million mobile subscribers - 5 million more than television subscribers - the region represents a clear opportunity for the mobile marketing industry.

‘The MMA considers local programmes such as this to be fundamental to maintaining mobile marketing momentum in regional markets; establishing a range of diverse initiatives that will help grow the mobile opportunity for everyone involved,’ said Laura Marriott, MMA President.

The South Africa Local Council founding member companies are:

• AdMob Inc.
• Brandsh Media cc
• Capital Supreme (Pty) Ltd t/a Multimedia Solutions
• Celerity Systems (Pty) Ltd t/a Bulk SMS
• Cellsmart Technologies
• Clickatell
• Google Inc.
• GroupM
• Habari Group Media Direct
• Microsoft (MSN and Windows Live)
• Mobiclicks
• OgilvyOne Worldwide
• One Digital Media
• RingCo
• SilverstoneCIS
• Vodacom Pty. Ltd.

For information on how to participate in the Local Council in South Africa, please contact the MMA membership team at [email protected]


About the Mobile Marketing Association (MMA)
The Mobile Marketing Association (MMA) is the premier global non-profit trade association established to lead the growth of mobile marketing and its associated technologies. The MMA is an action-oriented organization designed to clear obstacles to market development, establish mobile media guidelines and best practices for sustainable growth, and evangelize the use of the mobile channel. The more than 700 member companies, representing over forty countries around the globe, include all members of the mobile media ecosystem. The Mobile Marketing Association’s global headquarters are located in the United States and it has regional chapters including North America (NA), Europe (EUR), Latin America (LATAM), Middle East & Africa (MEA) and Asia Pacific (APAC) branches. For more information, please visit www.mmaglobal.com.