The ABU New Media Task Group, which was formed in 2016, was re-branded as the ABU Digital Media Working Group with members adopting the proposed changes in its latest meeting held online on Tuesday 22 June 2021. The rebranding comes as part of the efforts to further expand the roles and responsibilities of the Group to better serve ABU members navigate the shifts in the global digital media landscape.

Among the major changes proposed to the Task Group was the election of a Chairperson and two Vice Chairpersons to lead the Group and represent the members at ABU Programme Bureau meetings. Following discussions, members agreed to have elections for the leadership roles online in July 2021. The Secretariat has opened the nomination period until 7 July 2021 and the date for election will be circulated to the members via email once the nomination period closes.

Members also agreed to increase the frequency of the Group’s meetings to two per year, one occurring online and the other meeting to take place under the frame of #ABUdigital every year. The Task Group used to meet during the General Assembly and has shifted its meeting to take place as part of #ABUdigital since its launch in 2019. The increase in the meeting is to facilitate more encounters and open dialogues among members to discuss strategic challenges and opportunities to collaborate.  

The online meeting on 22 June was aimed to share experiences, update members on digital activities and initiatives from the past year, discuss challenges and share strategies and priority areas among members.

The ABU Digital Media Working Group will continue the mandates of its predecessor to explore strategies and opportunities to guide members create new digital contents and increase their reach to audiences, identify needs and propose new collaborative projects and discuss trends and current challenges that are shaping the media landscape in the Asia-Pacific region and beyond.

 This marks the Group’s first-ever online meeting since it’s last get-together in Kuala Lumpur in July 2019 on the side-lines of #ABUdigital. The next meeting of DMWG is scheduled to take place online in October 2021 ahead of the ABU General Assembly in late November.