I’ve been struggling to find a way to best explain how mobile fits into Ramsay Media and what it can do for us. We’ve all heard the hype and I really don’t want to quote more stats and projected advertising revenues with numbers that look like actual cell phone numbers.

Cell phones have been compared to a lot of things; marketing and sales people see them as an electronic hand-held Eldorado - a mystical place with untold riches – and then there are the more cynical, who see them as prostitutes – the thin ones cost more.

But then I had a moment of clarity while watching Zoolander - a spoof on the male modelling industry – I realised that the comparisons between the admittedly thin story line and some of the issues faced by media publishers today are downright uncanny.

Web is like Derek Zoolander; he’s a legend, still cool, but a bit last season. Mobile is like Hansel; “He’s so hot right now!” And print... well I guess that would be their agent Maury Ballstein; he’s been around forever and knows everything about the industry. The journalists, editors and photographers are like Jacobim Mugatu; the creative genius that’s going to use both Derek and Hanzel to showcase his new range.

They have their ups and downs, view each other as a threat, but in the end they all work together to save the life of the Malaysian prime minister [Media Owners].

I guess what I’m trying to say is that if we work together we can achieve amazing things. And even though Hansel [mobile] is the new kid on the block – and we’ve heard all the hype about it being the next big thing – I think it’s time to realise it’s only ever going to be as good as the content. So in the words of JFK, “Don’t ask what mobile can do for you, but rather what you can do on mobile?”

Renato Balona
Mobile manager