Digital Mission Blog
The Digital Mission series is run by Chinwag to support UK-based digital companies expand into new markets and attract overseas investment.
Digital Mission on Tour: London Full
It's official, the final date on the Digital Mission UK Tour is completely full, sorry.
It promises to be an interesting evening, with a run-down of last year's Digital Mission trips to the US, experiences from previous mission attendees, info and insight from UK Trade & Investment. Not forgetting a word or two from the Sun Startup Essentials colourful-shirted, Stewart Townsend, one of the legendary Bootlaw-duo, Barry Vitou from Winston & Strawn, who are generously supporting this year's Digital Missions.
Apologies, if you didn't get a chance to register. The venue really will be packed to the rafters, so we it won't be possible to sneak in at the back. To make sure you're up-to-date with all the latest info for Digital Missions, why not sign-up for the newsletter, below.
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Digital Mission UK Tour '09 Slides
The Digital Mission team are back from their roadtrip around the UK for the Digital Mission UK Tour '09 - what a week it was!
The tour was a chance for those interested in applying or finding out more about the next series of missions, to come along and discuss participation and meet those who've already attended a mission to get their questions answered.
The next series of Digital Missions is kicking off in the Autumn and includes:
- Digital Mission to LA & San Francisco, in October '09
- Digital Mission to New York, in November '09
- Digital Mission to SXSWi, in March '10
The tour stopped at Belfast, Bristol, Birmingham, Manchester and Newcastle and will be hitting London next week on Thursday, 16th July.
For those who couldn't make it, here are the presentation slides from the seminar sessions:
Chinese Mobile Leaders Visit UK
An interesting invite popped through Chinwag's virtual letterbox this morning: an opportunity for a spot of networking with some of the top brass from China's mobile and ICT sectors.
The visit sees representatives from government agencies Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), China Academy of Telecom Research (CATR) and Hong Kong-based mobile value-added service provider, Mtel Ltd visiting London, Cambridge and Edinburgh on a trip organised by UK Trade & Investment as part of the Enabling Innovation Intiative to build stronger links between industry in the UK and China.
The three events are scheduled for:
- London (Science Museum), 7th July 2009
- Cambridge, 8th July 2009
- Edinburgh, 9th & 10th July 2009
Attendance is free and once RSVPed, there a handy online tool to schedule meetings in advance of the event itself. For more information and to reserve a place, contact vince [dot] chinye
ukti [dot] gsi [dot] gov [dot] uk (Vince Chinye) at UKTI on 020 7215 4813
Pic courtesy of drs2biz
Digital Mission UK Tour Dates Announced
PRESS RELEASE: London, UK, Wednesday 24th June 2009.
Following last year’s successful series of Digital Missions to New York and South by South West interactive (SXSWi), a series of workshops are planned across the UK to help digital companies understand the opportunities for export and expansion.
The free workshops organised by Chinwag and UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) are designed to help companies prepare for three exciting Digital Missions are planned to the United States for Autumn 2009 and Spring 2010.
The dates of the workshops are:
- Bristol - Mon, 29th June 2009
- Birmingham - Tue, 30th June 2009
- Manchester - Wed, 1st July 2009
- Newcastle - Thu, 2nd July 2009
- London - Thu, 16th July 2009
Each regional event on the UK tour will cover:
- Application and selection process
- Information about each upcoming Digital Mission
- Nuts and bolts of a Digital Mission (costs, activities)
- Other services available from UK Trade & Investment
- Case studies from previous Digital Mission attendees, talking about their experiences
- Frequently asked questions about the missions
- Q & A session
Each workshop will be followed by a networking session in conjunction with local digital organisations including eOffice, Bristol Media, DC10 Plus, South West Screen, iShed, Digital Birmingham, Screen West Midlands, Advantage West Midlands, Fazeley Studios, Manchester Digital, Manchester Digital Development Agency, Northern Startups 2.0, North West Development Agency, Codeworks and Hoults Yard.
Companies interested in attending can find out more information and sign up through the Digital Mission website:
http://digital-mission.org/regevents09
The Digital Mission UK Tour and the Digital Missions are organised by Chinwag and UKTI, with generous financial support from UKTI and international law firm, Winston & Strawn.
NOTES FOR EDITORS:
Digital Mission Series 2009/2010
Digital Mission to LA & San Francisco, Oct ‘09
http://chinwag.com/digitalmission/lasf09
Digital Misison to New York, Nov ‘09
http://chinwag.com/digitalmission/nyc09
Digital Mission to South by South West interactive (SXSWi), Mar ‘10
http://chinwag.com/digitalmission/sxsw10
Each Digital Mission has a range of activities planned with UKTI's network of consulates, sector experts and local contacts. More information including how to apply is now available at http://digital-mission.org.
About UKTI
UK Trade & Investment (UKTI) is the Government organisation supporting UK companies to internationalise and bringing high quality investment into the UK
Whether you are venturing into selling overseas for the first time, or are an experienced exporter trying to break into new markets, UK Trade & Investment advice, information and support will provide a significant advantage when doing business internationally.
UKTI offers three main areas of help for UK companies:
- Advice and support: Tailored, experienced, impartial advice and training to new and inexperienced exporters, maximising the chances of sustained success overseas
- Information and opportunities: Essential, unique and trusted information from experienced commercial staff overseas, helping companies make the most informed and profitable business decisions
- Making it happen: Provides practical assistance for overseas travel and the development of commercial relationships with customers, clients and partners. This is done prior to overseas market entry and also during in-country market development
About Chinwag
The Chinwag community is a focal point for digital media practitioners in the UK and beyond. Founded in 1996, it has grown into a community media company that publishes websites, discussion forums and blogs supporting the people and companies who work in the digital industry. In February 2007 the Chinwag Live events series launched, topical panel discussions that have also gone on tour to Manchester and the Internet World, ecommerce Expo and ad:tech conferences.
Since July 2008, Chinwag have worked closely with the UK Trade & Investment in organising the Digital Missions, which help UK digital SME’s to expand their businesses abroad, forge partnerships with US companies and seek investment from overseas. They also publish Chinwag Jobs, the leading recruitment website for digital marketing, media, technical and design positions.
http://chinwag.com
http://jobs.chinwag.com
South by South West Is Over
It's over. Well, the Digital Mission to South by South West Interactive is at least. The companies rounded out the week with the Great British Breakfast, at the exquisite Old Pecan Street Cafe in Austin. The venue was filled to capacity with British companies and US businesses invited during the week, all looking to connect.
The UK companies donned bowler hats, making themselves easy to find in the crowd. Around the room, the UK Trade and Investment team were on hand, together with representatives from the BBC, The Guardian and TechCrunch.
What of the last few days of "south by"? There was a surprise win for Six To Start at the SXSW Interactive Web Awards (mentioned on TechCrunch). Workhound launched twitter jobsearch and there was activity from the other companies too.
Yes, if felt like there were almost as many parties as panel sessions at SXSWi; Yes, there was some snark in the press, but for most people there, SXSWi was about building connections as much as receiving content.A number of the companies closed business out on the trip, and others built bridges with potential partners.
The British presence was definitely felt, with a number of US attendees commented on the strength of presence from the UK Digital Media companies, a Brit invasion indeed.The last days at Expo stand were busy, with lots of press questions from The Guardian, Times, TechRadar.com, Web 2.0 and others. You can hear the Tech Weekly podcast on the Guardian - featuring Dave Haynes from Soundcloud talking to Jemima Kiss and Aleks Krotoski, as well as Shawn O'Keefe, the SXSWi program director who dropped in to the Digital Mission master class. If you are more visually inclined, check out the TechFluffTV episodes.
For the mission companies, South by South West Interactive ended with the UKTI organised BritBash! evening at the British Music Embassy. It featured some great acts from the Webb Sisters through Post War Years to The Proclaimers, who had the crowd marching away. A final breakfast, and then the flights home.
People have already started to blog their thoughts from the event and there are still pictures and coverage from the mission being added to flickr and delicious. The companies might be back in the UK, but the work of following up contacts from the trip is just beginning.
