The Accredited Association of Advertising Agents (4As) officially announced the re-launch of the International Advertising Association (IAA) Singapore Chapter, the local presentation of the IAA global body with the function of providing members with direct connections to the international partnership network of advertising, marketing and media professionals.

At the same time, and to commemorate the launch, the trade association opened for the first time its doors to individuals from the advertising, media and marketing communications industry through a dual membership offer. All who sign up for the IAA Singapore Chapter will also become a 4As individual member during the same period. As a result, members will receive a well-rounded offering of both 4As' depth of connectivity in the local market and IAA's global network and intelligence.

"We are happy to partner with the International Advertising Association to 'rebirth' the Singapore Chapter and provide a direct connection for our members to widen their horizons and link with the global advertising community through IAA's broad international network," said Ted Choo, President of 4As, continuing, "Over the past 60 years, the industry has evolved a lot. With new thinking and new technologies, the playing field is rapidly changing for advertisers, agencies and media owners. An individual today can be a client advertiser, marketer, media owner, target customer and sometimes, even an agency. As the market is changing to more 'contract and transient' work with more individual professional operators in Singapore, 4As aims to be more inclusive by adding an individual membership level. This is a natural next step towards creating a more deeply connected community ecosystem."

The 4As is the only professional trade association that represents the full spectrum of advertising, media and marketing communications industry in Singapore. Set up in 1948, it was formerly exclusive to corporate members largely from advertising, media, creative agencies and affiliates including media owners, service providers relevant to the industry and government institutions. 4As' membership base currently contains some 110 corporate members.

"We are very excited to collaborate with IAA for the 'rebirth' of the Singapore Chapter. As a first world marketplace, there's now a greater appreciation of global standards and best business practices. For some, it's also the need for international connectivity as we venture beyond our sunny shores to regional markets like China, India and the rest of the world," added Anthony Kang, President of the IAA Singapore Chapter. "Through this established international network body, we are confident that our local industry players will have much to gain from both its connectivity reach, wealth of intelligence resources, and global opportunities," he concluded.

The current Executive Council of the IAA Singapore Chapter is headed by eight senior professionals from the advertising marketing and media industry:

• Chapter President, Anthony Kang, President, Dentsu Singapore
• Chapter Vice-President, Vincent Hoe, Group Managing Director, AG Advertising
• Chapter Secretary, Lily Tay, Executive Director, Singapore Advertisers, Association
• Chapter Treasurer, Phyllis Chua, Executive Director, City Life Advertising
• Chairman Communications (Internal & External), Andrew Thomas, Regional Director Southeast Asia & Managing Director Singapore, Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide
• Chairman Events & Programs, Thomas Ang, Vice President OOH Media, MediaCorp
• Chairman Professional Development (Training & Education), Theodore Choo, Chief Executive Officer, Gosh Advertising
• Chairman Membership Development, Bernard Chan, Chief Executive Officer, 4As
• Chairman Insights, Publication & Research, Allein Godfrey Moore, Publisher/Editor, AdAsia Media.

By MediaBUZZ