By The Malketeer What China’s Gender Gag Order Means for Marketing, Comedy & Cultural Dialogue In China, apparently, the answer is yes. A viral moment on iQiyi’s hit show The King of Stand-up Comedy featuring 50-year-old comedian Fan Chunli – stage name “Fangzhuren” – has sparked national debate, emotional applause,
By The Malketeer Let’s be honest: the term “purpose” has been overused, oversold, and underdelivered in marketing circles. For too many brands, it’s a feel-good paragraph buried in an ESG report or a campaign hashtag dusted off every Merdeka or Earth Day. But in 2025, the reality is this: Consumers
By The Malketeer In a move that has sparked equal parts surprise and intrigue, Coca-Cola has announced plans to roll out a new Coke sweetened with cane sugar in the United States—months after a personal push from President Donald Trump. While the company frames it as an expansion of consumer
By The Malketeer In the race to innovate, don’t forget who holds the data, who writes the story, and who it ultimately serves. In a move that signals both ambition and unease, the UK government has inked a headline-grabbing agreement with OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, to explore how artificial
By The Malketeer One Password. One Breach. One Brand Gone. In 2023, a 158-year-old UK logistics giant, KNP, crumbled overnight. The cause was just one employee’s weak password. The attackers – a ransomware gang called Akira – exploited that single flaw, encrypted the company’s systems, demanded millions, and vanished. The
By The Malketeer IDTG Asia’s latest survey reveals six emotional truths driving consumer loyalty in 2025. In a scroll-happy world where attention is fleeting, Malaysian consumers have become strikingly clear about what keeps them loyal—and it’s not just price or convenience. It’s emotion. Recognition. And relevance. That’s the core takeaway
By The Malketeer In an industry where agencies rise fast and fall faster, Friends Advertising has quietly achieved something extraordinary. It’s still here. Still creating. And still staying true to its name. Founded in the late 1990s by Dato’ Shahrein Zainal and Rashid Ahmad, Friends is one of Malaysia’s longest-surviving
By The Malketeer Authenticity, affiliate links, and TikTok Shops are reshaping brand-creator partnerships across Southeast Asia. According to a newly released joint study by impact.com and Cube, affiliate marketing has emerged as the driving force behind Southeast Asia’s next wave of influencer-led e-commerce. And if you’re a brand, creator, or
By The Malketeer A Landmark WhatsApp Win for Media Professionals In a watershed moment for digital-era contract law, veteran journalist Frankie D’Cruz has been awarded over RM200,000 in compensation after the Sessions Court ruled that a contract formed via WhatsApp was legally binding and enforceable. This judgment doesn’t just vindicate
By The Malketeer Malaysia’s Advertising Industry Finally Says No to Exploitative Pitches On July 15, 2025, the Media Specialists Association of Malaysia (MSA) launched its 2025 Media Pitch Guidelines—a landmark move to combat the long-standing exploitation of agencies during pitch processes. It’s more than a procedural update. It’s a turning
