A monthly snapshot of Trends in marketing, storytelling and digital culture locally and abroad.

1. Proudly brought to you by NATIVE VML
October 2016
THETRENDSREPORT

2. A MONTHLY SNAPSHOT OF TRENDS IN
MARKETING, STORYTELLING AND DIGITAL
CULTURE FOR AFRICA.

3. CREATIVITY
AND A NEW
REALITY

4. At NATIVE VML, we believe that the new frontier
of creativity is in the ability to orchestrate ideas
that live in people’s lives — not ideas that
interrupt them.
Without the necessary tools and a passion for
collaboration, we will continue to operate in silos
and in opposition to how the connected consumer
behaves and what she desires.
Collaboration breeds a
new reality

5. LighttheFuse—astartuppromisingtomake
collaborationbetweendesignersanddevelopers
easier.
Withoutcollaboration,itwouldbeimpossibleforpeopleto
worktogetherandeffectivelyharnesstheircollective
creativity.
A new startup, Fuse,offerstoolsthatrecentlybecame
availabletothepublic.Thesetoolsallowdeveloperstobuild
appssimilarlytohowdesignersworkinPhotoshop,Sketch
orAfterEffects.Itprovidesa‘what-you-see-is-what-you-get’
designexperienceandwillworkacrossavarietyof
platforms.
Source: http://venturebeat.com/2015/12/28/15-interesting-startups-to-watch-in-2016/
READ MORE

6. One of the benefits of evolving technology is that
we can tackle problems in new ways using
methods once thought impossible.
By way of example, we can now generate enough
electricity to power our homes by peddling a bike,
or we can potentially build solar energy-capturing
roofs at a lower cost than building a traditional
roof (thanks to favourite South African Elon
Musk).
Given the above, does micro-biotic technology
sound crazy?
Rethinking the bad

7. Designerbacteriainapilltotreatdisease.
“Syntheticbiologistsaredevelopinggeneticallymodified
bacteriathatyouswallow.”
Theseexperimentalpillscontainbacteriadesignedtotreat
araremetabolicdiseasebysoakinguplargeamountsof
ammoniainapatient’sstomach.
Testingwillbeginin2017,andalreadydesignerbacteria
startupslikeEarnestPharmaceuticalshaverevolutionary
plans,includingusingsalmonellatofightcancer.
Source: https://www.technologyreview.com/s/602724/companies-bet-on-designer-bacteria-as-new-
way-to-treat-disease/
READ MORE

8. INNOVATION
AND DISRUPTION

9. Human beings seem to have the odd propensity
to desire a reality beyond our own. Augmented
reality and, in particular, virtual reality has been
making massive waves for brands that want to
provide this ‘new’ reality.
More dimensions,
more experiences, more
realities

10. Remember Magic Leap? Well they’re still trying to
change everything.
Magic Leap, the startup we’ve covered previously that promises
a mixed reality experience beyond our wildest dreams, has
announced several product development milestones.
A total of $1.4 billion in funding demonstrates a good deal of
interest in their ‘lightfield’ technology, which will improve both AR
and VR experiences, but will also form the basis for “a new kind
of contextual computer”.
Can you imagine playing Pokemon Go in an augmented, mixed
reality world? This development might be the very thing to
reignite interest in our existing reality.
READ MORE
Source: http://futurism.com/a-sneak-peak-inside-magic-leap-remaking-the-world-around-us/
Image Source: http://vrsource.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/07/Leap.jpg

11. MEDIA
JUJITSU

12. Drone use has recently been on the rise, and as
consumers begin to find their wings, governments
are scrambling for ways to appropriately regulate
now easily-accessible airspace.
In the midst of this, brands are attempting to take
advantage of this emerging technology, as they
are wont to do, to advertise in new and innovative
ways.
Flying high

13. Uber uses drones to advertise to drivers stuck in
traffic.
Many of us have seen the witty Gautrain billboards that speak
directly to the frustration of motorists stuck in nauseating traffic.
Well Uber has taken this message to the next level. Using
drones, the taxi disruption company greeted motorists with signs
advertising UberPool; the carpooling service they launched
recently. Signs read, “The city would be for you, not 5,5 million
cars,” or, “Driving by yourself? This is why you can never see the
volcanoes.”
MIT Technology Review labeled the campaign as “heckling”
drivers, and Popular Science mused over whether this form of
advertising could soon emerge in the United States.
READ MORE
Source: http://www.theverge.com/2016/10/17/13308014/uber-drone-advertising-mexico-city-carpool-
dystopia
Image Source: https://www.technologyreview.com/s/602662/ubers-ad-toting-drones-are-heckling-
drivers-stuck-in-traffic/

14. CONNECTING THE
UNCONNECTED

15. South Africa has one of the highest data rates per
capita in not just Africa, but in the entire world.
When will data prices fall? When will the less
fortunate have greater access to information?
When will we close the digital divide?
With South Africa moving onto a single open
spectrum, we could start to see increased
competition drive prices down in what has been a
relatively monopolized mobile
telecommunications market.
#DataMustFall

16. A group of business leaders plans to launch 5G
in South Africa.
Paul Harris, Michael Jordaan and Ravi Naidoo
are planning to bring South Africa the first 5G
wireless data network.
This comes at an opportune time as
#DataMustFall demands gain momentum and
consumers tire of telecom giants charging
higher prices for data than those in other
developing countries.
The group plans to form a private company that
will utilize less expensive technology and avoid
complex billing systems to bring prices down.
READ MORE
Source: http://www.capetalk.co.za/articles/35456/affordable-5g-coming-to-south-africa-not-
only-its-richer-suburbs
Image Source: https://d.ibtimes.co.uk/en/full/1463123/5g-network.jpg?w=736

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