Perhaps the most significant lesson from last year’s One Club-launched inaugural Creative Week New York City was the need to reach out beyond one’s sphere. That was the assessment from Kevin Swanepoel, president of The One Club, when asked what was learned and has since been applied to the upcoming second annual Creative Week NYC, slated for May 10-16.
“That first year’s event was driven by ourselves and by close partners of The One Club right out of the gate,” related Swanepoel. “While that helped the event get established, we soon realized that to widen its reach and make it more relevant we had to embrace the other nonprofit organizations like us that work with creatives. We established an advisory board, tapping into people throughout the creative community to help us do just that. This event is not meant to be about The One Club. This event is not about making money. Its spirit is to celebrate creativity in New York in all its forms. The only way to do that is to bring more groups on board.”
While The One Show Festival brings a cross-section of creatives and artisans to New York during Creative Week NYC, expanding the drawing power are other varied attractions such as the New York Photo Festival, the Brooklyn Art Project, walking tours of Manhattan offering historical perspectives, tours of NYC advertising and design agencies, special museum and art gallery exhibits, a Mad Men presentation screening at The Paley Center for Media in which the series creators and stars reflect on the show, a screening of The One Club-commissioned documentary Art & Copy (directed by Doug Pray of Oil Factory) chronicling the contributions of ad industry pioneers (also held at The Paley Center), the first annual Copywriters Poetry Smackdown at the Bowery Poetry Club, and live musical performances.
Also on tap is SHOOT‘s 8th annual New Directors Showcase Event at the DGA Theatre in New York on Tuesday, May 11. As part of Creative Week, SHOOT had been asked to consider moving its evening Showcase event from its traditional late May date up a few weeks to coincide with Creative Week. SHOOT publisher, Roberta Griefer, agreed to hold the event during Creative Week and was invited to join the Creative Week advisory committee. SHOOT has added a daytime agenda this year, called the SHOOT Directors Symposium that will take place before the evening New Directors Showcase Event, which will feature notable directors, cinematographers, agency creatives, industry executives and other artisans discussing issues of the day, new technologies, mentoring and education of talent, and varied forms of advertising/ entertainment content that are emerging.
Swanepoel referred to the SHOOT events as being of particular appeal to The One Club’s constituents, including the creative directors and art directors who are involved in commercials, film and other content forms. “There’s a definite interest in the New Directors Showcase and a lot of traction created by that event and the Symposium for our constituents during Creative Week,” he related.
Key in the growth for the overall weeklong event next month and in the years to come is the recent proclamation from NYC Mayor Michael Bloomberg formally recognizing Creative Week NYC. “Going forward into year three, this will mean a lot in terms of gaining more involvement from the creative community, museums and the arts throughout the city,” said Swanepoel. “This will lead to other organizations and partners going forward. We’re even now seeing people holding their own events to plug into Creative Week, It’s taking on a life of its own.”
Swanepoel added that this year’s Creative Week could draw upwards of 12,000 to 13,000 people, roughly double the attendance in ’09. “And our plans are to step up our organizing efforts for next year and beyond,” said Swanepoel. “For this year, we started to organize back in October or November of 2009. Once this year’s event is wrapped, we will begin organizing in June for Creative Week in 2011.”
Apple and Google Face UK Investigation Into Mobile Browser Dominance
Apple and Google aren't giving consumers a genuine choice of mobile web browsers, a British watchdog said Friday in a report that recommends they face an investigation under new U.K. digital rules taking effect next year.
The Competition and Markets Authority took aim at Apple, saying the iPhone maker's tactics hold back innovation by stopping rivals from giving users new features like faster webpage loading. Apple does this by restricting progressive web apps, which don't need to be downloaded from an app store and aren't subject to app store commissions, the report said.
"This technology is not able to fully take off on iOS devices," the watchdog said in a provisional report on its investigation into mobile browsers that it opened after an initial study concluded that Apple and Google effectively have a chokehold on "mobile ecosystems."
The CMA's report also found that Apple and Google manipulate the choices given to mobile phone users to make their own browsers "the clearest or easiest option."
And it said that the a revenue-sharing deal between the two U.S. Big Tech companies "significantly reduces their financial incentives" to compete in mobile browsers on Apple's iOS operating system for iPhones.
Both companies said they will "engage constructively" with the CMA.
Apple said it disagreed with the findings and said it was concerned that the recommendations would undermine user privacy and security.
Google said the openness of its Android mobile operating system "has helped to expand choice, reduce prices and democratize access to smartphones and apps" and that it's "committed to open platforms that empower consumers."
It's the latest move by regulators on both sides of the Atlantic to crack down on the... Read More