Erlich Transcultural Consultants (ETC), a full service marketing and consumer research firm specializing in multiethnic and multilingual research and consulting, has added Cambodian and Hmong research to its growing list of capabilities. While many Cambodians have been in the U.S. since the late 1970's and early 1980's, they are, for the most part, an under-served market. Hmongs are a more recent immigrant group and, therefore, have received little attention. ETC provides a full spectrum of research studies including an unusually broad range of in-language, culturally sensitive qualitative and quantitative research studies. ETC has implemented strategic research projects involving the Hispanic, Asian (Chinese, Korean, Filipino, Japanese, Vietnamese, Cambodian and Hmong), African American and U.S. General Market populations. ETC's insights have resulted in record-breaking sales and award-winning advertising campaigns. Erlich Transcultural Consultants' experience spans a wide range of consumer and business-to-business categories including project assignments for a number of Fortune 500 companies and leading governmental agencies. ETC also provides custom-designed cultural competency training. Contact Andrew Erlich or Joan Lawton, 818-226-1333. E-mail: etcethnic@aol.com or visit www.etctranscultural.com.

KSCI-TV, founded in 1976, is the preeminent Asian language TV station in the US, providing news, sports, dramas and entertainment in 14 languages including Korean, Mandarin, Cantonese, Japanese, Vietnamese and Tagalog. The station delivers upscale Asian families for advertisers such as AT&T, Colgate-Palmolive, Toyota, McDonald's, Metropolitan Life and Disneyland. The station's numerous community awards, including the Organization of Chinese Americans' Image Award and the Korean American Coalition's Community Service Award, shows its commitment to viewers. KSCI-TV was the first Asian-language station in LA to win an Emmy for its series, "U.S. Citizenship: A Dream Come True." Call Fernando Acosta, V.P., Sales & Marketing, 310-442-2724.

TSG Capital Group, L.L.C., a private investment firm specializing in ethnic market investments closed its third and largest fund, TSG Capital Fund III, L.P., with $515 million of capital. With this new fund, TSG now manages $740 million in total capital. TSG believes that there are powerful long-term demographic trends that create attractive private equity investment opportunities in ethnic markets. TSG's market strategy is driven by the large size, relatively unmet consumer demand and growth potential of the major U.S. ethnic markets. TSG favors the industries of media, communications, specialty retail, automotive products, and consumer products and services. TSG typically invests between $10 million and $100 million of equity capital to fund growth and acquisitions. Select investments include: Z-Spanish Media Corp., a Spanish-language radio network; Vista Media Group, Inc., the nation's largest operator of billboards addressing the Hispanic and African-American markets; Urban Brands, Inc., four retail concepts addressing ethnic urban women and girls; Urban Children's Stores, a discount retailer with 63 stores in the East and Midwest. Contact Lauren Tyler, 203-406-1500, lauren@tsgcapital.com.

Our over-the-phone interpretation service helps you better serve your customers by bridging the language barrier. Our service allows you to communicate from English into 140 languages 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, anytime, anywhere, from any phone. Our interpreters are highly skilled, certified and experienced - millions of calls in areas such as insurance, finance, health, international trade, law enforcement, and others have been serviced to date. Interpreters are available on an average of 25 seconds. Call 1-800-752-0093 ext. 512 or visit our web site at http://www.att.com/languageline/ for more information.

International Channel Networks is the cable television industry's premier provider and marketer of global programming in the U.S. The company's basic cable television channel, International Channel, targets the rapidly growing U.S. ethnic communities as well as students and "global aficionados" interested in international news, culture and languages. International Channel, available to more than 8 million cable television households, provides programming from around the world in more than 20 Asian, European and Middle Eastern languages. The channel's program lineup consists of same-day news from around the globe weekday mornings and evenings. Drama and variety programming airs during the day. Weekends feature children's programming, sports and movies. A majority of the programming is Asian. In addition to the regularly scheduled lineup, International Channel airs specials in connection with various Asian holidays and in celebration of Asian Pacific American Heritage Month. This programming offers advertisers special sponsorship opportunities. Contact Paul Singman, Vice President, Ad Sales, 212-527-9917. www.i-channel.com.

As the race for market share continues in the highly competitive banking and insurance industries, Access Worldwide provides strategic consulting, research and teleservices capabilities that permit many companies to capture new revenue opportunities that lie in ethnic markets. A significant number of Hispanics, African-Americans and Asians are reluctant to enter the financial services category due to culture-related factors. However, many current studies indicate that these communities are interested in participating more actively, and are highly receptive to culture-sensitive advertising and servicing. Access Worldwide's consulting engagements have produced culturally-attuned business plans that include tailored communications strategies as well as organizational recommendations. Its research studies include awareness and usage research, branding and positioning studies as well as advertising effectiveness and tracking studies that have helped companies better understand ethnic markets. Banking and insurance companies have also found an ally in Access Worldwide's experienced team of multicultural marketing project planners. They have activated growth by developing and executing high-response customer acquisition, retention and consolidation campaigns as well as lead generation efforts. Call Gina Alvarez, Vice President of Market Development, 800-838-4312 or Jennifer Lynch, Director of Marketing and Sales, 800-671-9525, or visit the web site at www.accesscag.com.

The American Advertising Federation has announced that Robert Wehling, global marketing officer, Procter & Gamble Company; David Bell, chairman, True North Communications and Samuel Chisholm, chairman and CEO, The Chisholm-Mingo Group, will co-chair a committee to examine multicultural advertising practices. The AAF Business Practices Review Committee will look at factors influencing advertisers' investments in multicultural advertising, including understanding the size and buying power of the multicultural market; awareness of the media options available to reach this target market; principles and practices that affect targeting and media planning decisions and common values to promote an inclusive business culture. The AAF is responding to long-standing claims of practices that restrict business opportunities for ad agencies and media that target multicultural consumers. Call Heide Gardner, Vice President, National Multicultural Initiatives, 202-898-0089.

Talking a language is more than speaking a native tongue. It's speaking culturally. And that includes knowing the turf. Who's important, what's meaningful. Creating a picture of a group and what motivates them is what demographers have done for years. But a statistically correct picture may be just an outline. A Cultural Brand Message sm provides a detailed portrait of what motivates, inspires, attracts and excites our clients and their target markets. By combining demographics, psychographics, LifeStage marketing and cultural anthropology we're able to create a unique Cultural Brand Message sm for each of our clients products or services. We've created Cultural Brand Messages for clients that include GreenPoint Mortgage, Lamaze Institute for Family Education, Ahava Skin Care Products and Family Digest Publishing. As a full-service marketing communications agency, with an advertising agency under the same roof, we speak marketing to culturally-diverse groups, and we bring diversity products and services to mainstream targets. Call Amy Krakow, President, A.G. Krakow & Associates, Inc./AgitProp, Inc., 212-343-3626, www.rocketscientists.com.

For advertising that gets to the heart of the consumer without missing a beat. Contact Samuel J. Chisholm, President. The Chisholm-Mingo Group Inc. 228 East 45th Street, New York, NY 10017 Phone: 212-697-4515 Fax: 212-661-7729

What marketing strategies work best to target America's Hispanic, Asian and African-American consumers? How can a company take the second step to grow their message, maximize their budget and improve market communications? Find out by attending the "Multicultural Marketers Forum" sponsored by the Institute for International Research. A distinguished roster of speakers will address major issues within the scope of market research, communications planning, media opportunities and market implementation. Panelists include representatives from Kang & Lee, GTE, Schering Plough, BMG Latin Club, and Chase Manhattan Bank, to name a few. All attendees receive a free six-month subscription to Multicultural Marketing News newsletter. Conference fee, $895-$1995. Call IIR, 212-661-3500 ext 3111.

Niles Communications Group, Inc. (NCG) a New York City based graphic communications and multicultural marketing company expands its services to include New Media. As a provider of next generation marketing tools, NCG's New Media Division provides marketers with planning, custom design and development of interactive multimedia: brochures, catalogs, newsletters, biographies, demos, enhanced audio/video releases, media kits, event guides, websites, databases, presentations and much more. NCG also provides design of packaging, duplication and cross platform manufacturing onto video, CD-ROM, DVD or onto the DigiCard™ the hottest marketing tool that combines the illicit love affair of a well designed business card and the interactive multimedia capabilities of a CD-ROM. Visit www.nilescom.com or contact Christopher Mack, VP, Creative Director, 212-685-4033 or cmack@nilescom.com.

IDEEA Corporation specializes in Asian American advertising and marketing communications between companies and the Asian American markets. IDEEA's progressive analyses of the values of different cultures results in advertising campaigns tailored for maximum effectiveness. Because of the breadth and depth of their varied experiences, they are truly effective in addressing the unique needs of Asian Americans and, at the same time, incorporating Western fundamentals. Services include: Strategic planning and development, advertising campaign development, ethnic media planning/purchasing, voice over production, direct mail marketing and public relations. Clients include: Chicago Title, Long Distance International, ASATSU/BBDO, Puente Hills Mall. Contact Diane Chen, Principal/VP Marketing, 626-793-1795.

Kang & Lee Advertising, a Young & Rubicam company, has added full service marketing communications capabilities to reach the Russian and Polish communities in the U.S. Headed by Creative Director Yuri Makarov, the team of five people in Kang & Lee's new Diversified Markets Group will develop Russian and Polish advertising for clients including AT&T and the U.S. Census. The Russian-speaking population of the US., at more than one million, grew 254% since 1990. The majority live in 6 markets: New York, NY; LA-Long Beach; Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco and Boston/ Lawrence/Lowell/Brockton. Other key markets are Seattle, Northern New Jersey and Washington, DC. Nationally, more than 90 Russian publications, two 24-hour Russian-language TV stations, and 13 Russian language radio stations cater to the informational needs of this population. The Polish-speaking population of the US, at 900,000, grew 180% since 1990. The majority live in Chicago and New York. Other key markets include Bergen-Passaic, NJ, Newark, NJ and Hartford, CT. Approximately 30 Polish-language publications and 20 Polish radio stations serve this market. Contact Saul Gitlin VP, Strategic Mktg Svcs, 212-889-4509 X114.