An edited transcript of the speech of Dentsu President-CEO Tateo Mataki made at the 40th International Advertising Association World Congress in Dubai.

Today, our industry is in transition, and the old definition of "ad agency" no longer suffices. I would like to share with you a Japanese perspective on what it means to be an advertising agency at this time of rapid economic and technological change. I will [explain] how Dentsu has defined itself for generations and how our definition of ourselves is evolving. I [will] also share some ideas on where we are going as an industry and how we might frame the debate on the role of the advertising agency in today's economy.

Let me rephrase that. I mean the role of the advertising company in today's economy. You see, we no longer call ourselves an advertising agency. For some time now, we have been referring to ourselves as an advertising company.

Are we, indeed, in the "advertising business," as it is often narrowly defined? Or are we, in fact, in the "communications business"?

We attempt to influence perceptions and feelings and, ultimately, actions on behalf of our clients through words, images, and, most importantly, ideas. But what we used to do with a 60-second spot or a print ad might now be best accomplished with a "podcast" or by creating the content of an entire program.

On the other hand, we are still advertising professionals in the classic sense of the word; that has always meant that we are creative risk-takers. Our clients hire us for our creativity, to help them think beyond what they can imagine for themselves. But today, our creativity and strategic thinking must extend very much to the medium, not just the message.

"Full service." "One-stop-shopping." "Integration."

These buzzwords are now commonplace in our industry. We continually ask ourselves: are we delivering on the promises inherent in these words?

To continue to flourish now and into the future, we must deliver on these promises. And at Dentsu, our path to the future is founded on four key insights: client insight, media insight, consumer insight, and finally, insight into society itself.

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