Malaysian Advertisers Association conference shelved over Covid-19

KUALA LUMPUR: Council members of the Malaysian Advertisers Association (MAA) have postponed the MAA Marketer Conference 2020, which was scheduled for March 27.

MAA president Mohamad Kadri Mohamed Taib said the decision was made after deliberation over the health and safety of the conference’s participants and speakers – especially delegates travelling from overseas – as well as the general public.

He said the conference, to be held in the capital, will be postponed until June.

“We have had close exchanges with authorities monitoring the situation in Malaysia as well as the region and found that supporting a worldwide epidemic prevention effort is key.

“We believe deferring the conference to a later date in June is the correct decision at this juncture to mitigate all risks and special challenges that arise from this critical period of the virus outbreak.

“The council members had discussed the evolving situation and reviewed all progressive information extensively, and found that it is our utmost priority to ensure the safety and well-being of our members and business partners at our events,” he said in a statement.

Mohamed Kadri also thanked MAA members for their consistent support and apologised for inconveniences caused by the postponement.

“Our thoughts are with those affected by the Covid-19 outbreak all around the world.

“We also applaud the dedicated efforts of all medical personnel fighting the outbreak at the frontline to contain further spread of the virus,” he added.

This year’s conference would have brought together professionals from the marketing, advertising and commercial communications fields, as well as media owners, to discuss matters such as digital transformations within the corporate world, with the theme, “Taking On The Digital Dichotomy: Make Disruption Work!”

Tickets are still on sale at RM600 per person for MAA members, while non-members are charged RM700 per person.

For more information on the conference, contact Kandesh at kandesh@macomm.com.my.