8th February 2007, Bahrain: It’s shaping up to be a record quarter for Flip Media Bahrain, as the Middle East’s largest independent interactive agency celebrates continued success at the beginning of 2007.

The last year has been very successful with a number of new account wins, including Sakana Bank, Gulf Holdings, Villamar, Al Areen and Akhbar Al Khaleej, as well as the ongoing relationship with Bahrain International Circuit, a Flip client since 2004.

According to Paul Poulose, Business Development Manager “We are very excited that in our very first year we have garnered the top accounts and have also won 3 awards at the Bahrain Web Awards all of which have let us raise the bar in the local market. The quality of work, innovation and depth of capabilities has made us the natural first choice among the leading organizations in the country and a complete portfolio of our work can be viewed at our website www.flip.bh”

With the latest enhancements in the core products such as Chameleon Flip Media’s content management solution and e-Commerce server platform, clients will be able to more easily integrate content, media, online shopping and user participation into their websites.

Additionally, the latest version of Brand Central, Flip Media’s proprietary ad-serving and tracking tool, allows regional advertisers to have unrivalled access to every aspect of their online campaign, in real time.

In order to support the growth of the local client base and gearing up for further expansion in the region, Flip Media has been strengthening the local teams. The latest appointment to the team sees Srusti Ranjan, who has won awards at the local Bahrain Web Awards and at the World Summit Awards, to oversee the various accounts locally.

Flip’s CEO Martin Diessner says “Bahrain is an important pillar for our organization and the expansion adds value to our regional clients who will benefit from the extended service offer. 2007 will see a growing focus on the development of e-Commerce enabled websites as well as an increase in the usage of online media as an integrated part of the marketing mix.”

Flip Media is also sponsoring the Global Leaders event with Ken Blanchard live in Bahrain on 21st March 2007 as interactive media partner. Dr Blanchard is one of the most insightful, powerful, and compassionate individuals in business today. He is most widely known for his phenomenal best-selling book, ’The One Minute Manager’, co-authored with Spencer Johnson, has sold more than 12 million copies and remains on best-seller lists.

For further information about Flip Media Bahrain visit www.flip.bh

5th February 2007, Dubai (UAE): Award-winning regional interactive agency Flip Media has beaten off strong competition from many top worldwide interactive agencies following a competitive pitch to redevelop Qatar Airways’ website.

The scope of work sees Flip Media retained to completely redesign the airline’s website www.qatarairways.com and developing templates for use in the back end content management system. The updated website will feature additional functionality designed to enrich the user experience and have a fresh and contemporary look and feel. Additional enhancements will see a wealth of new features to the website over the coming months.

Work commences immediately and the remit extends to include Qatar Airways’ online marketing communications and promotional campaign sites.

Qatar Airways said that the revamped website would be more vibrant in line with the Five Star service which the airline is renowned for worldwide. The airline said that Flip Media would support its e-commerce objectives.

Martin Diessner, CEO, Flip Media added “We are delighted to be appointed by Qatar Airways and are very excited to be working on this project. Our team has extensive experience and understanding of the aviation industry, having worked for several well-known airlines over the last three years. This stands us in good stead to deliver a truly world class interactive solution for Qatar Airways.”

Qatar Airways currently operates a fleet of 52 aircraft to more than 70 online destinations across Europe, Middle East, Africa, Far East and Indian subcontinent from Doha, the airline’s hub and capital of the State of Qatar.

Qatar Airways is one of only four airlines in the world with a Five Star ranking for service excellence awarded by Skytrax, the independent aviation industry monitoring agency.

28th December 2006, Dubai (UAE): Flip Media has announced that HSBC Private Equity Middle East Limited has acquired a significant equity stake in Flip Media Investments Ltd.

Flip Media Investments Ltd. is the holding group of Flip Media FZ-LLC, the region’s leading, independent interactive marketing agency, Neo Digital FZ-LLC one of the region’s leading online media agencies, Flip Media Pvt. Ltd. India, and other subsidiaries.

Martin Diessner, CEO, Flip Media stated, ‘The involvement of HSBC increases our range of opportunities as we now have the support and involvement of one of the world’s leading financial institutions as a major shareholder who has extensive experience in the region and is committed to helping us develop further’.

David Price, Managing Director of HSBC Private Equity Middle East added, ‘We are very pleased to be investing in Flip Media. It is one of the most recognized digital agencies in the region and it has a proven track record across the Middle East and beyond. Our investment is intended to provide a strong institutional platform for the company’s further regional growth. Investing in Flip Media is very much in line with our policy of backing profitable and well managed businesses.’

For further information about Flip Media please visit: www.flipholding.com

About HSBC
HSBC Private Equity Middle East Limited is the private equity arm of the HSBC group in the region and is dedicated to private equity opportunities in the GCC and the Middle East.

About Flip Media
Flip Media was founded in 2002 and has offices in Dubai, Bahrain, India and Germany. A wholly owned subsidiary of Flip Holding Ltd. Flip Media is the largest, independent, interactive media consultancy in the Middle East, providing award winning creative work to regional and international accounts. Flip Media also develops unique interactive media products and technologies, such as streaming broadband services, 3rd party verified and online media tracking services for advertising and media agencies in conjunction with technology partners and affiliates. Flip Media Investments Ltd. is a privately owned company registered in the British Virgin Islands (BVI).

EMUG - Emirates Mac User group. A lovely group really cares so much for Apple products. It was a wonderful experience meeting them in Abu Dhabi.

I found about this group through Magnus who is real person behind EMUG. He posted a comment for my macbook post from which I came to know about the site emiratesmac.com.

I meet some cool guys out there and who are real addict to mac and iPods. You wont believe me I meet one guy who goes by the name Appleholic who owns 15 iPods :-D.

I learned something new about my macbook that it has motion sensors. Which is really cool and I installed some amazing softwares and having real fun with it.

Just wandering around next on xcode

While everyone was busy preparing contact lists and designing greeting cards for the season wishes, Flip developed an integrated campaign to raise charity funds for MSF as part of their belief in their social responsibility role as a corporate and as individuals.

Make a wish

10th December 2006, Dubai (UAE): Panasonic Marketing Middle East is the latest addition to Flip Media’s burgeoning roster of international and regional powerhouse brands and clients. Tasked to launch dedicated bilingual Arabic and English websites to support Panasonic’s recently launched Lumix digital cameras and Viera television products, Flip Media will additionally develop a powerful Press Room application to quickly and easily disseminate news and corporate communications to consumers and media alike.

The Lumix site aims to promote Panasonic’s range of Lumix digital cameras and will encourage users to interact with the brand through interactive features, user tips and competitions. A complete guide to the Lumix products and information on the technologies that makes them superior to their competitors will be readily available online.

Detailed product information on the entire range of Panasonic’s Viera high definition flat panel LCD and Plasma televisions will also be presented interactively and users will benefit from unique creative elements that bring the Viera televisions and their technologies to life.

The Press Room aims to become the premiere point of reference for Panasonic Marketing Middle East and will enable both customers and the media to keep abreast of the latest news, product and technology launches, information and events. Key attributes of the site include a user friendly interface and customized password protected areas for media and channel members who will be able to obtain proprietary content as well as download high resolution images and access other resources.

According to Ajit Nair, Panasonic Marketing Middle East “We appreciate that having an online presence plays a critical part in communicating with customers when they are researching and comparing products, and especially new technologies. Often consumers will have carried out their research on the Internet and decided which brand or product to purchase before they step into a retail store. By enhancing our online communication, this allows Panasonic Middle East to connect with consumers directly at a much earlier stage and provide an informative and interactive experience.”

“It’s refreshing to see more brands taking a proactive approach to integrating their marketing communications efforts for the benefit of consumers. We are delighted that Panasonic Marketing Middle East has chosen to come on board with us and we’re looking forward to doing some outstanding work for their brands.” added Yousef Tuqan Tuqan, Account Director, Flip Media.

The websites can be visited at www.panasonic-news.ae and www.panasonic.ae/lumix