Campaign Asia-Pacific ready with best insight and ideas

What struck me as we began working on this final issue, is how the more things change, the more they stay the same.

One of the first issues of Media I worked on 10 years ago featured a front-page story in which industry practitioners were being urged to reinvent the business - a call that resonates with even greater urgency today. That year, media and creative agencies were being asked to practice what they preached to their clients about differentiating rather than commoditising; calls were out to stamp out 'suicidal discounting'; the dangers of complacency as the industry matures were being heralded; and everyone was asking where the passion for advertising had gone. Media could conceivably republish many of the same stories and opinions, and they would still resonate with poignant relevance today. Indeed, a decade later the industry seems to be locked in many of the same debates - as it had been 10 years before 2000, no doubt.

Yet Media's 37 years have also coincided with a stunning transformation of the region and its media and marketing community. It's all too easy to forget that when the magazine's first issue was published, several of the region's markets had only one newspaper and one broadcaster, and most were state-controlled monopolies. The TV viewing line up came exclusively from government broadcasters, carrying mostly imported programming. China was in the throes of a revolution, and Singapore in the youth of its independence.

A lot has changed, and the evolution of Media - and the needs of our readers - comfortably bears this statement out. Yes, our readers still need fast, accurate and reliable news - news they can trust. This we will continue to deliver online - unquestionably the best medium for the speedy and widespread distribution of news. But faced with an explosion of information and information sources, what readers also need is analysis, insight, explanation and ideas. You know what's happened, but what you really need to know is what it means, and why it matters to you and your business.

It is our intention, using our new print format and monthly frequency, to explain, analyse, and showcase the best ideas, thinking and work across all the disciplines. Throughout all these changes, we have one aim: to make Campaign Asia-Pacific the one trusted brand you can turn to - whether online, in print or at our many events - that gives you unrivalled news, information, insight and ideas. Look out for the first issue of Campaign Asia-Pacific at Spikes Asia.