Mobile Marketing Association's new blood announced

The new kids are on the block. Yes! The Mobile Marketing Association has just announced the formation of it’s new 2008 American Board of Directors.

And I want to know just how many of these names are sporting Motorola RAZRs as their primary handsets. Shouldn’t be allowed.

Here’s the break-down of your representatives:

The MMA North America Executive Committee members for 2008 include:

* Chairman: Tom Daly, Group Manager, Strategy & Planning, The Coca-Cola Company
* Vice-Chairman: Gene Keenan, Vice-President of Mobile Services, Isobar

* Treasurer: Michael Bayle, Senior Director, Global Mobile Monetization, Yahoo!
* Secretary: Maria Mandel, Executive Director of Digital Innovation, OgilvyInteractive
* Director at Large: Michael Becker, EVP, Business Development, iLoop Mobile, Inc.
* Laura Marriott, President, Mobile Marketing Association

I met Michael Becker from iLoop at the SDForum event the other week. Top chap. Kudos Michael.

Michael Bayle popped along to the Unlimited Drinks San Francisco event. He’s a nice guy too.

Neither of them are Motorola RAZR users. Good news.

Let’s move on to the full panel… (look out for the best title of the lot: ‘Chairman Emeritus’)

* Amanda Richman, SVP, Director of Digital Services, MediaVest USA
* Chirag Bakshi, Vice-President. Messaging, VeriSign Inc.
* Craig Kirkland, Director, Messaging & Voice Services, Alltel Wireless
* Cyriac Roeding, EVP, CBS Mobile, CBS Interactive, CBS Corp. & Chairman Emeritus (Global & NA), Mobile Marketing Association
* David Oberholzer, Vice-President, Corporate Development, Limbo Inc.
* Diana Pouilot, Director of Mobile Advertising, Google, Inc.
* Doug Busk, Vice-President, Industry Relations, SinglePoint
* Greg Clayman, EVP, Digital Distribution and Business Development, MTV Networks
* Jeffrey Glass, Partner, Bain Capital Ventures
* Jeremy Wright, Global Director, Mobile Brand Strategy, Nokia
* Jim Manis, President & CEO, 1024 Wireless Services
* John C. Burris, Vice President Wireless Data, Sprint Nextel
* Jordan Berman, Executive Director of Media Innovation, AT&T Mobility
* Louis Gump, Vice President, Mobile, The Weather Channel Interactive
* Matt Champagne, Director, Product Management, Microsoft (MSN & Windows Live)
* Mitch Feinman, SVP, Fox Mobile Entertainment
* Nick Macilveen, Director of Carrier Relations, OpenMarket Inc.
* Ryan Hughes, VP Digital Media Programming, Verizon
* Steve Livingston, Chief Marketing Officer, mBlox
* Venetia Espinoza, Group Manager, Mobile Applications and Partner Programs, T-Mobile USA
* Webster Lewin, Director of Mobile Marketing, R/GA

Right.

Well I haven’t met one of those people. Have you? It all sounds good to me. I would like to know how many of these people are actually proper mobile people. There’s nothing worse, you see, than meeting the Director of Global Mobile for [insert company name] and finding that he or she uses a piece of shit Nokia or Motorola because ‘they don’t get this mobile stuff’.

It’s actually phenomenally embarrassing when you’re someone like me. I like mobile, I use a lot of mobile things — applications, services, products. I’m not a journalist though. So I ask what appear to be stupid questions to executives. Questions like ‘So, what mobile services have you used so far this morning?’

You know it’s bad when the executive looks at you thinking that you’ve asked them a dickhead question. This happens to me far more often than you’d think.

In this situation I just have to do my best fake smile and give the impression that I’m apologetic for not asking about their ‘global mobile strategy’.

It’s telling though, when an executive doesn’t actually eat the sausages.

Here’s hoping the board listed above are amongst the world’s most voracious mobile service consumers. Am I wrong to be a bit doubtful?

Maybe Michael can wangle an invite one day so I can sit in on a mobile marketing association board meeting and check.

Or perhaps I should go along to the Mobile Marketing Forum on the 10th-11th of June in New York. That would be fun. Getting married on the 14th though. The last thing I need is some unplanned flight delay. I’ll think on it.

Or I could go to the London one in April. 1,495 EURO for non-members. I’m not a member.