MANILA – November 20, 2013 – Following a three-way pitch, Indonesia won the bid to host AdAsia 2017, the 29th Asian Advertising Congress.
Apart from Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines presented their pitches to the AdAsia 2013 congress.
“The AFAA committee and all members were in agreement that Indonesia’s bid was well thought through and enticing. By way of winning majority of the votes, Indonesia won the bid to host the forum in 2017,” Pradeep Guha, Chairman, Asian Federation of Advertising Associations (AFAA), was quoted in a report by Digital Market Asia.
AFAA hosts the forum, which takes place every odd year. AdAsia 2013 was held in Vietnam, and will be held in Taiwan from November 9 to 13 in 2015.
Ricky Alegre, head of the Philippine delegation team, said, "We will respect the decision of the council and we congratulate Indonesia for AdAsia 2017."
Alegre told adobo that he believed the Philippine delegation had a good chance overall. "We were approached after that (the pitch) by people saying they would love to go to Manila," he said, adding that they were told the vote was close.
Alegre said the smaller delegation may have been a factor in the loss, as the Philippines had five members compared to around 50 from Indonesia. He added that the unfortunate incident of Yolanda may have also affected the Philippines’ chances. "The representatives there also expressed an outpouring of support. Although we were saying that it would also help us if they consider the Philippines, knowing we are on the path to rehabilitation," he said.
He recalled that in 2009, the Philippines did not bid because of Ondoy. "This year we decided to pursue the bid because we felt the resilience of the FilipinoS to overcome all the challenges of the storm, and that to express our interest still to host should be relayed," he said.
Included in the bidding team from the Philippines were: Faith Abaño, AdBoard’s PR & Information Officer; Ron Delos Reyes, AdBoard Director, Jones Campos, AdBoard Executive Director and Cherie Mijares of DDB Phils./ Lava Communications Inc.
The AdAsia 2017 pitch was supported by DDB/Lava Communications and Starworks.
The Philippines hosted AdAsia in 1978 and 1997. Alegre said the next chance to bid to host AdAsia is in 2015, but it will have to be an industry decision.
