Ogilvy PR Australia, which claims it’s the largest public relations firm in Australia, has signed affiliate agreements with two specialist PR firms in New Zealand to create its first Transtasman network.

Ad inventory value on both mobile app and mobile web has increased substantially, with CPMs on mobile app up 67% and on mobile web up 57% year-by-year, according to a new report out of PubMatic, a Californian company that supplies automation software to publishers.

Y&R’s Burger King McWhopper enjoyed a stunning Day 2 at D&AD in London overnight, picking up five of the NZ agency’s six Pencils. Also on the board, with one Pencil apiece, were Saatchi & Saatchi, Spark PHD, FCB and Colenso BBDO.

Sydney-based Australasian mobile commerce outfit Mobile Embrace (ASX: MBE) is rebranding its advertising arm 4th Screen to 1st Screen, reflecting the evolution of the mobile sector – as well as the company’s “commitment to being first” in the multi-billion dollar industry” in NZ and Australia.

NZ has 14 finalists through in the Asian Marketing Effectiveness & Strategy Awards in Singapore. Colenso BBDO has eight, Auckland indie Republik four, and Carat two. Australia has 31 finalists.

Global ad platform AdRoll has compressed its annual in-depth ANZ State of the Industry report – first published in NZ by M+AD in February – into a quick, easy-to-digest infographic.

NZ has three Pencil winners (the colour will be announced next month) from the first day of results from D&AD London. Australian agencies notched four.

Sydney-based Big Mobile ceo Graham Christie, a regular M+AD contributor, wraps up the latest mobile news from around the APAC region: