In this weekly segment, ExchangeWire sum up key industry updates on ad tech from around the Asia-Pacific region – and in this edition: MasterCard: Asian consumers want brands to give back; Dentsu in damage control amid overcharging scandal; WPP goes Agile in ANZ; Singapore startup buys 49% of Rolling Stone mag; and IAB AU appoints digital news head.

MasterCard: Asian consumers want brands to give back

Consumers in the region increasingly want to know how brands are impacting their communities, which highlights the need for emotive, but 'authentic', ads to better engage with audiences.

But, while this state of nationalism was driving several countries, such as Australia and China, businesses also needed to ensure their marketing efforts were contributing to the bottom line, said MasterCard CMO Sam Ahmed.

At the same time, consumers also continued to seek out information about the best offers, at the right time. This underscored the importance of tapping real-time data insights to support marketing initiatives, noted Ahmed, who was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the recent Spikes Asia conference in Singapore.

He was joined by Bollywood actor Anil Kapoor, who worked with MasterCard on a campaign targeted at India's Independence Day, also the country's largest annual e-commerce event. Alongside partner HDFC Bank, the payments company launched a campaign that focused on people who had helped build India's community.

Emphasising the need for content that reflected authenticity in order to better engage the audience, Kapoor said: "The story has to be as real as possible. Overselling, overhyping…everything that's 'over-' has a very temporary effect. Everything needs to be done in a structured way, but also sincerely."

Anil Kapoor (left) with MasterCard's Sam Ahmed

To ensure it was pushing relevant ad content, Admed pointed to the need for the right technology tools, processes, and creativity. He said MasterCard used an array of ad tech technology, including optimisation and social media listening tools, to identify what was working and what needed further tweaking.

The payments company also runs its own trading desk and e-commerce engine.

Because it was able to extract real-time insights and reporting, it could refine its marketing and campaign strategies on a daily basis to better fit consumers' response, Ahmed said.

The Independence Day campaign reached more than 17 million people and a video content, featuring Kapoor, was viewed 1.8 million times. It drove 1.2 million clicks for MasterCard's merchant partners, with a 200% lift in sales for key merchants, and pushed its revenue or GDV (Gross Dollar Value) up 15% year-on-year.

Dentsu in damage control amid overcharging scandal

Japanese ad agency group Dentsu have issued a public apology after admitting they fudged the performance of their ads and overcharged more than 100 clients in Japan.

"Types of irregularities involving inappropriate operations we have detected to date include discrepancies in advertising placement periods, either made consciously or by human error, failure of placement, and false reporting regarding performance results or achievements", they said in a statement. "Additionally, it has been detected that there were incidents where our invoices did not reflect actual results, resulting in unjust overcharged billing."

Dentsu said they identified 633 suspicious transactions involving 111 advertisers, all of which had been informed of the matter. The inappropriate operations had resulted in an estimated ¥230m (£1.76m) in overcharged bills, including fees that were charged when no ad placement had been made.

It added that internal investigations began in mid-August and were ongoing. The agency said the issue was unlikely to have any material impact on its business results, and added that only customers in Japan were affected.

WPP goes Agile in ANZ

The agency group have introduced a new specialist production unit to provide content services for their clients in Australia and New Zealand.

Agile Content Productions have their own team of content specialists and are headed by CEO Justin Ricketts. They would collaborate with others within the agency group to produce video content.

Ricketts said: "This is a new type of proposition that fits well with an increased client demand for quality, audience-first video content as the landscape evolves and brands need to find new ways to reach and engage consumers.

"Video is the most effective channel inside digital; and we believe brands can play a larger role in inspiring all forms of audience-first content, including TV", he said.

Prior to joining Agile, Rickett was CEO and founder of Ensemble Australia and is a 25-year industry veteran.

Singapore startup buys 49% of Rolling Stone mag

BandLab Technologies have bought a 49% stake in the US publication in a move deemed to broaden Rolling Stone's revenue model beyond print ads.

No financial details were revealed, but the deal would not include ownership in the magazine's parent company, Wenner Media.

A Singapore-based social music startup, BandLab would not be involved in Rolling Stone's editorial direction, focusing instead on expansion plans into new markets as well as Asia. It also would drive opportunities in live events, merchandising, and hospitality.

The deal would see a new global subsidiary, called Rolling Stone International, established and based out of Singapore.

Launched last year, BandLab offers apps that allow users to create and share music online.

IAB Australia's Nicole Sheffield

IAB AU appoints new chair

The Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB) Australia have named Nicole Sheffield the new chair of their board, effective immediately.

The managing director of News Digital Networks Australia, Sheffield replaced her predecessor Yahoo7 CEO Ed Harrison, who completed his two-year tenure in the role.

"The next two years will be significant for the fast-growing and dynamic digital industry", Sheffield said. "The importance of digital daily ratings and evolution of measurement will be key to success, solidifying the opportunities that digital offers marketers and becoming essential in their daily lives and campaigns."

The executive is a law graduate from Macquarie University and also is on the board of Chief Executive Women.