IPG Mediabrands Aligns With plano

IPG Mediabrands has announced a regional pro bono collaboration with plano.
The young health-tech company launched late last year with a mission to save sight and empower lives. plano was founded by Australian-born Dr Mo Dirani and will launch in Australia later this year.
Following extensive scientific research plano have developed an empowering app to help manage excessive and inappropriate devise usage by children and mitigate the associated onset of myopia (short-sightedness), with as many as 80-90 per cent of young adults in major Asian cities now suffering from the disorder.
The number of people with myopia is expected to increase to 5 billion by the year 2050 (half the world’s population), if adjustments are not made to current lifestyle trends.
IPG Mediabrands CEO APAC Leigh Terry commented: “As a part of an industry that delivers marketing messages for brands in an increasingly digital world, we support the uptake of emerging technology, however we also undertake to acknowledge the wider impact and responsibility of doing so.”
Terry continued: “plano flips the problem into the solution using innovative technology to help mitigate the public health, societal and economic issues posed by these growing global trends.
“It teaches our children how to avoid the pitfalls of excessive device usage and establish a healthy relationship with emerging technology.”
At a network level IPG Mediabrands APAC have aligned to support plano, on a pro-bono basis protracting their growth and development into markets across the Asia-Pacific region and beyond, through a combination of strategic partnerships, media, expertise, and awareness driving CSR initiatives.
IPG Mediabrands APAC head of marketing and communications Naomi Michael commented: “As a part of our ‘work that matters’ program, and via a variety of initiatives rolled out over the next 12 months this partnership will unite our 3000 people across the APAC region with opportunity to directly contribute to a positive societal shift that can be tangibly felt and will have a lasting impact.”
The increase in smart device usage and myopia is not isolated to one country, but rather it’s becoming a global public health and economic problem.
In Singapore alone, the direct cost of treating/managing myopia was estimated at USD$755 million a year, with estimated global costs reaching approximately USD$328 billion per year.
Device dependency, gaming addiction, cyber bullying, diabetes and lack of outdoor activity are all growing global public health epidemics linked to excessive or inappropriate device usage by children worldwide.
Dr. Mo Dirani, founder and managing director of plano commented: “It is critical that we intervene early to reduce the risk of children developing sight-threatening myopia, as well as a host of other adverse outcomes resulting from inappropriate device usage behaviour.”
Dirani continues, “The collaboration and support we are receiving from IPG Mediabrands in association with the APAC Media Lab has been incredible.
“We must work together with important stakeholders, including the government and industry to tackle this growing problem that will critically worsen in the next 10 years if left unaddressed.”
The innovative plano app developed to proactively prevent and correct these issues works in the background of phones and tablets.
It is the first of its kind to provide a suite of child safety functions, while using science-based features to help modify behaviour in children to reduce myopia related risk factors and encourage healthier device usage.
Carefully developed smart features empower its users to manage their children’s time spent on devices, correct face-to-screen-distance, good eye care habits, and a points generated reward system to empower device-free outdoor activity (distance viewing and UV light exposure are protective against the development of myopia).
plano first launched in Singapore in late 2017, where they have already generated over 60,000 downloads, established broad industry collaborations and partnered with Singapore’s Health Promotion Board, to drive awareness and education to over 320,000 Singaporean children in the next 12 months.
plano entered the India market last month to an overwhelming response, generating thousands of downloads by parents in the first few days alone.
Dr Mo Dirani commented “India now has more smartphone users than the U.S. has people, the growth rate for smartphone penetration is the highest in the world.
“A study conducted on 10,000 urban school children in Delhi established a high incidence of myopia progression being linked to time spent in front of screens.
“With the help and support of IPG Mediabrands we hope to modify this trend more quickly than we thought possible.”
Latest News

ARN Finalises Sale Of Brisbane Radio Station 4KQ
Meanwhile, we're saying goodbye to the city of Brisbane as a whole as we emotionally prepare for State of Origin III.

Three Customer Retention Strategies That Can Help Australian Businesses Build Long-Term Loyalty
In this opinion piece, Patrick Sim, senior vice president for the APAC and MEA regions at Epsilon (pictured above), talks about ways companies can go about building lasting relationships with their clients. If there’s one thing that companies have learnt from the pandemic is the importance of keeping customers happy and having them continuously come […]

Meta Says There Are ‘Serious Times Ahead’ For Its Workers
Everyone's CFO says the exact same thing after he finally finishes shredding tax documents.

“Call Me Bruh!” Kanye West Threatens Legal Action Against Aussie Burger Joint
The temptation to make a gold digger joke here is strong, but thankfully we aren't witty enough to think of one.

Your Wish Is Our Command! More Time To Enter Best Of The Best Presented By Finecast
Think your better then everyone? But, it's awkward to bring up in meetings! We have the outlet for you.

The Growth Activists Help Bassike Reach B Corp Status
In exchange for helping bassike reach B Corp, TGA expects free invites to the inevitable party celebrating the status.

Enero Announces Two Key Acquisitions In ROI DNA And GetIT
It's very challenging to take Enero group seriously when their ASX tag is literally just 'EGG'.

Seven Moves To Terminate Broadcasting Partnership With Cricket Australia
Imagine not wanting to show a full season of cricket where each game can easily go on for around four hours!

New Study From Redcat And Impact Data Finds Customer Marketing Sweet Spot
The study makes no mention of how many times you can drunk dial a customer before they start blocking your number.

Thursday TV Wrap: Leigh Sales Farewells 7.30 With 572,000 Eyeballs Watching
With Sales signing off, Tracey Grimshaw might now be the offical Queen of blazers and looking slightly concerned.

Charlie Short Appointed As Head of Growth At Revolut Australia
Revolut appears to have gotten most of the way through revolution and then given up right at the conclusion.

Transforming C-Suite Leaders into Empathy Officers Can Deliver Unmatched Business Success
If your management style is modelled after Cruella de Vil. You can keep your coats, but you should try being nicer.

News Corp Australia Increases Its Investment In Medium Rare Content Agency
Much like betting on horses, News Corp realises that since they're in for eighty, they may as well be in for a hundred.

“Bittersweet!” Nelson Aspen Hands In His Two Week Notice To Sunrise
Aspen now calling in sick, stealing office pens and finally telling the cash cow what he really thinks of him.

Non-Alcoholic Brand Lyre’s Goes Live With ‘Make It A Lyre’s’ Campaign Via The Kinetic Agency
Non-alcoholic is a term guaranteed to cause moans in the B&T team, but the animals in the ad are cute, so this one's ok.

Social Motive Gives Tangle Teezer Australia A Fresh New Do On Social Media
Social Motive could have been the name for a new branch of the climate change awareness movement. Missed opportunity.

InMobi Integrates Mobile Supply With Yahoo’s Demand-Side Platform For Direct Advertiser Access
It seems like the good people at InMobi have finally decided to go all Yahoo on us.

From “Little Things” Big Change Happens; NSW Government’s Multi-Partner Media Campaign Via UM
Here at B&T we like our medical advice from our footy stars and our spiritual advice from our reality stars.

“Very Proud!” Neighbours’ EP Jason Herbison On Saying Goodbye To Ramsay St
Neighbours will be there for one another! Until someone makes a noise complaint then Grimshaw gets a call.

First-Ever D&AD Shift With Google In Sydney Ends With Showcase By Google, Adidas And Kua
We can only assume the Sick Bay mural is more Banksy inspired than Pepper Pig. Though the pig has more cache than Banksy

It’s Not Too Late To Apply For The Shopping Category At The Australian Impact Awards Powered By Wavia!
Think you've missed your chance at fame, glory and Linkedin bragging rights. Think again.

Dynata’s Latest Economic Crossroads Report Shows Consumer Trends From Around The Globe
Across the world, rising costs are causing anxiety and financial struggles for consumers. The worldwide impact of inflation is affecting their outlook and behaviour. More than half of consumers globally are struggling financially because of inflation and the increasing price of fuel, housing and everyday goods. Russia’s war on Ukraine intensifies their concerns around supply-chain […]

InMoment Bring Major Updates To Their XI Platform For Greater Customer Experiences
Making people's lives easier one update at a time. Because nowadays it's all about accessibility, right?

US FCC Commissioner Wants Apple And Google To Take Down TikTok From Their Stores
Anyone who wants to ban TikTok clearly doesn't understand how cool Anna Paul is.

Fullbright Scholar Teams Up With CQUniversity For New Opportunities In Queensland
It's nice to know the Sunshine State might finally be using said sunshine for something productive.

“Talk About Soft!” Mark Levy Blasts The Project Over Interview With Climate Change Activist
The world is actually burning, but sure let's be mad at the protestors.

Best Of The Best Judge, Ben Pellow Nabs Group Sales Director Role At Forbes Australia
Here at B&T, we love to remind you about all the fancy friends we have. Mainly because they never cop to it in public.

Visit Victoria And Endemol Shine Australia Announce New Partnership
The new series will allow Sydneysiders to appreciate Melbourne from their couches, just the way we like it.

Sydney Set To Host South By Southwest Festival For 2023
This comes as part of a wider plan to steal Texan culture, with Sydney set to take on plentiful Cowboy boots and rodeos.

Nine’s Big Dog Mike Sneesby Announces EOFY2022 Bonuses For Permanent Staff
Bonuses were decided after staff declined MAFS merch as a thank you.

Tony Armstrong Reveals The ABC’s Reaction To His OnlyFans Account
Armstrong proving that even a Logie can't save you from boring meetings with your bosses.

Wednesday TV Wrap: MasterChef Owns Demos But Nine Dines Out On The Night
Thank you MasterChef for normalising cooking while crying.

FutureBrand Australia Grows, Makes Two Senior Appointments
Bringing the "future" to Australia's business industry.

Sedona Lands Cinnamon Darvall As Executive Producer
If Sedona can acquire some Milk, Eggs and Flour as well, they'd be on their way to a nice crepe recipe in the C suite.

Jaywing And Frank Digital Nab Rai Campbell For Commercial Director Role
Campbell will be called to drive the Jaywing to success. That's not a phrase out of a sci-fi series by the way.

Are Media Launch Body Positivity Initiative ‘BODFest’ With OGX Haircare
Cause there's nothing that will make you feel better about yourself than seeing Em Rata on stage.