MRG Conference 2009: A look at the post-recession future

The Media Research Group’s One Day Conference in London started and finished on a high, with some interesting insight and recession-busting talk in between.

The key note speaker, Ben Page, chief executive of Ipsos MORI, set the tone for the day with his determination not to dwell on the difficulties facing the industry in 2009 but instead focus on the level of optimism surrounding 2010.

Page believes that television still generates the most conversation, that journalists – and The Daily Telegraph in particular – are now more trusted than politicians, and that the economy is the biggest issue facing the industry at the moment.

Looking forward to next year, however, Page says “there is light at the end of the tunnel” and predicts a return to GDP growth, despite also forecasting a Tory victory in May.

The rest of the day by-and-large followed Page’s lead and while there were mentions of the downturn, most presentations were centred around innovation, new methods and moving on from the recession in the new year.

As the joint chair, Neil Mortensen, summed up at the end of the day – “It’s a tough environment but there are good things going on”.

MRG also took the opportunity to announce that it is planning its 2010 conference in Malta.