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 NYC '09: Companies Announced
It's Digital Mission time in the Big Apple and we're delighted to formally announce the 21 companies who'll be joining this year's Digital Mission to NYC.
Thank you to everyone who applied, we really appreciate your time and effort. Don't be downhearted, the applications for the Digital Mission to South by South West interactive open next week.
Congratulations to the companies selected for the Digital Mission to New York: BandCentral, Bizk.it, Box UK, Can Studios Limited, Cognitive Match, coull, Digital Clarity, ipadio, Ixaris Systems, KMP Digidata, LAMP Digital, learn2lingo, Martingale, Mobilized, Open, ShareMyPlaylists.com, Stylescape, SubHub, The Filter, Type 3 and Wolfstar.
This year is the second time the Digital Mission hits the US East coast digital scene with a hectic week of meetings, masterclass, roundtable, networking events and time at Web 2.0 Expo. The trip runs from 15-19th November 2009, and to keep tabs on what we're up check out the list of activities and naturally, we'll post the odd Tweet to @digitalmission.
The Digital Missions are organised by Chinwag in collaboration with UK Trade & Investment (UKTI). This trip is sponsored by leading law-firm, Winston & Strawn whose Bootlaw duo, Barry and Danvers will be accompanying us on the mission, as well as hosting a masterclass on 'Doing Business in the US' at their offices in Manhattan.
The 21 companies represent some of the top digital talent from the broad spectrum of the UK's vibrant digital sector. They range from more established firms operating for 10+ years through to startups, from agencies to startups with a diverse range of businesses, drawn from across the UK.
Startups represented range from payment tools through to fashion trend services, from subscription site publishers to artificial intelligence and filtering technologies, from online audio tools to online video ad platform to greeting cards, services for toy collectors and audio playlist tools. And more.
Professional services are well represented through with seven companies covering the gamut of professional services from design and build of interactive and marketing solutions, through to search, education, social media and PR.
For more detailed info and contact information:
// Digital Mission NYC '09 Companies
To keep up-to-date with the Digital Mission, why not subscribe to the newsletter, follow @digitalmission on Twitter. For the those liking their social media toys extra shiny, we've also created Twitter Lists for all of the Digital Mission.
UPDATE: Official press release now available.
Picture courtesy of wearehead. Some rights reserved.
Digital Mission to LA & San Francisco Companies Announced
PRESS RELEASE: London, UK, Wednesday 23rd September 2009.
The UK digital industry will once again get a boost when enterprise and expertise connect in the Digital Mission to Los Angeles and San Francisco, from 11th - 16th October 2009.
Organised by Chinwag and UK Trade and Investment (UKTI), the five day mission provides the perfect vehicle to make business connections, discover the logistics of setting up shop, build international profile and understand the US digital market.
14 UK-based companies have been selected to take part and they are:
- agency2
- Amaze
- Audioboo
- etv media group
- Great Fridays
- Ideonic Limited
- Littleloud
- MoviesThatRespond (Creative Works)
- NixonMcInnes Ltd
- Orangepanda Digital Media
- Plug-in Media Ltd
- Twofour
- Type3 Limited
- Videojuicer Ltd
Further information and contact details for each company is available on the Digital Mission website: http://digital-mission.org/lasf09-companies.
The selected companies will travel to California for key meetings, advice on working stateside, help with fact-finding, and investor meetings. They will be immersed in the West Coast digital industry through various networking events and attend two exclusive receptions at the British Consulates in Los Angeles and San Francisco.
Chinwag CEO Sam Michel said: "This is an exciting new addition to our Digital Mission schedule, providing a unique opportunity for interactive design and development companies to benefit from UK Trade & Investment's expertise and extensive network of contacts in California. The mission will cover Los Angeles, Silicon Valley and San Francisco with a packed schedule that will turbo-charge access to the US market for the companies attending."
Chinwag is acting as the UKTI's designated partner in organising the Digital Mission series to take small-to-medium-sized businesses in the digital sector to the US. Their aim is to assist the companies in forging new business contacts and showcasing British digital talent at some of the most prominent and well-respected global web events.
Following on from the success of last year, they will also be running Digital Mission trips to New York and South by South West interactive 2010. Chinwag will be working with ongoing sponsors; international law firm, Winston & Strawn, for both the New York and SXSW Interactive Digital Missions.
For more information, about this mission and others in the series, please visit:
http://digital-mission.org
Ends
NOTES FOR EDITORS:
Versions of this release are available in Word, PDF and Text versions at the bottom of this post. Our blog resources also include Digital Mission logos, photos and lists of the companies attending in HTML and plain text formats.
Digital Mission Series 2009/2010
- Digital Mission to LA & San Francisco, Oct '09
- Digital Misison to New York, Nov '09
- Digital Mission to South by South West interactive (SXSWi), Mar '10
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 that helps UK-based companies succeed in the global economy. We also help overseas companies bring their high quality investment to the UK's economy - acknowledged as Europe's best place from which to succeed in global business. UKTI offers expertise and contacts through its extensive network of specialists in the UK, and in British embassies and other diplomatic offices around the world. We provide companies with the tools they require to be competitive on the world stage.
For more information please visit www.uktradeinvest.gov.uk or telephone +44 (0)20 7215 8000. For latest press releases, visit the online newsroom at http://www.newsroom.uktradeinvest.gov.uk. More information on UKTI can be found at http://www.blog.ukti.gov.uk; http://www.youtube.com/UKTIWeb; http://www.flickr.com/photos/ukti; and http://twitter.com/ukti.
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
For further information, please contact:
Emily Fisher
Phone: +44 (0)20 7183 2923
Email: emily
chinwag [dot] com
Website: http://chinwag.com
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| LA SF Digital Mission 09 Press Release (Word) | 104.5 KB |
| LA SF Digital Mission 09 Press Release (PDF) | 151.07 KB |
| LA SF Digital Mission 09 Press Release (Text) | 5.48 KB |
Deadline Extended: Digital Mission to New York
Due to overwhelming demand, the deadline for Digital Mission to New York '09 has been
extended until Thursday, 24th September.
This gives a few precious extra days and the weekend, if you're a workaholic, to complete your application for the NYC Digital Mission.
Use the time wisely. The application form is very modest and shouldn't take more than a few minutes to fill out. The elevator pitch forms a crucial part of this (see I even wrote that in bold), it's the first thing that gets read and helps the advisory board figure out how well you'll be able to pitch.
The companies selected will have unrivalled access to the UK Trade & Investment's network of VC's and industry experts along with top-notch legal advice from international legal eagles Winston & Strawn.
Digital Mission will be in town the same week as the renowned Web 2.0 Expo, which brings with it a wealth of digital stars and press along with a truck load of networking events.
The mission is the perfect vehicle to launch stateside, make business connections, discover the logistics of setting up shop, build international profile and understand the US digital market. Those looking for investment will also have the opportunity to quiz top New York VC's and investors.
Picture courtesy of Benjamin Ellis. Some rights reserved.
Digital Mission NYC, Applications Close Friday
The deadline to apply for a place on the Digital Mission to New York is this Friday (18th Sept).
If you've been putting off filling in the application form - don't worry I procrastinate with the best - then dive right in. It's a very short form that shouldn't take more than a few minutes to fill out.
After all, we just need to know what your company is about, and what you'd like to get out of going on the Digital Mission. Things you're thinking about every day, right?
If you're not aware of the Digital Mission series, these trips are organised by Chinwag and UK Trade & Investment, the government department that helps UK-based companies expand their businesses abroad.
The New York Mission includes a whole host of activities designed to turbo-charge a company's efforts to break into the US market by connecting with business partners, investors and press.
A sample of activities include:
- 'Doing Business in the USA' masterclass
- Investor's breakfast briefing
- Exclusive reception at the British Consulate
- Networking events
- Attendance at Web 2.0 Expo Hall & Key Notes
with more being planned once the companies attending have been confirmed. Digital Mission companies also get the opportunity to feedback to the UKTI team in New York companies that they'd like to invite to the Consulate reception, a unique opportunity to target senior executives.
From the last two Digital Mission trips, one of the biggest benefits is the networking between the companies in the group. The opportunity to spend a week, away from the office with a dynamic, entrepreneurial group is a great way to expand your network, learn about other businesses and build connections that last way beyond the original trip.
But none of this'll happen unless you apply. There's only three days left, so get cracking, submit your application for the Digital Mission to New York now.
Picture courtesy of toodlepip. Some rights reserved.
Transatlantic Troubleshooting
The application deadline for
our NYC Digital Mission is fast approaching, September 18th to be precise, and here
at Chinwag Towers we thought we’d give you a flash back to one of our most
popular panel debates, Transatlantic
Troubleshooting held during our Digital Mission at SXSWi 2009.
It’s bound to get those of you who’re waiting until next week to get your details over to us to get a wriggle on.
Listen to Transatlantic Troubleshooting now:
We may pronounce a few words differently and have the odd spelling disagreement but it’s the way we conduct business in the US and the UK that’s really worlds apart. It’s a “whole different ball game" over there.
For companies interested in advertising their investment potential and for US companies after more information, Chinwag’s sponsored Transatlantic podcast is jammed full of tips for US investors and VCs planning on working with UK businesses. You’ll discover what it’s like to do business in the UK and Europe, find partners and stay gaffe-free (always a good thing). You’ll also get the gist on what it’s like in the UK media scene and have a few myths dispelled along the way.
The Trans-Atlantic panel boasts Aleks Krotoski acclaimed Guardian technology journalist and, in partnership with UKTI, she champions UK business abroad. Her time with UKTI has seen her gauging the needs of European, US and world markets while “match making” UK companies as solution providers.
Joining Aleks there’s Stewart Townsend of Sun Microsystems, an organisation that helps UK start ups with software and funding. Harvest Digital’s Mike Teasdale, Mike Butcher of Tech Crunch fame and Nigel Eccles from hubdub.com, a a site that lets users predict the outcome of news stories.
At multi-media and web 2.0 blog, broadstuff.com, Alan Patrick summed up the foreign interest in the British companies flying the flag at SXSWi 2009 as being all about expansion and enrichment. Personally, I think it had a lot to do with the full English breakfast on offer; if all else fails, tempt them with food.
Talking of Digital Missions, applications are now open for Digital Mission to New York, centered around the Web 2.0 Expo. This will be the second trip to New York where we’ll be building on our established relationships with New York-based entrepreneurs, VC’s, agencies and digital practitioners along with our now infamous line up of activities.
If you or your company are looking to take part in our next Digital Mission to NYC in November 2009 the deadline for applications is Friday September 18th.
