With Zattoo, Beat Knecht offers a platform that will be part of the program not only for millions of TV users, but also for more and more advertisers.
Actually, he just wanted to solve a problem. In the Knecht family of entrepreneurs, it is customary for the next generation to be actively involved in the business. In his youth in Windisch, Beat Knecht "helped out a lot with cars" at Knecht Reisen. Later, the construction business and the affiliated Knecht Reisen and Eurobus, which Welti Furrer joined in 1990, faced a fundamental reorganization of the computer world. "Studying computer science" was therefore a career plan of the filius, which was well received by his parents. Because the subject at ETH Zurich was a "start up" that had just been introduced in 1986, the 19-year-old was able to convince his family that studying in the USA would lead to success "faster and more efficiently". In the hinterland of San Francisco, Silicon Valley was just becoming known. The valley, where the most creative mix of doctoral and diploma students in the world is still concentrated today, also became home for Beat Knecht for around 14 years. The best cell phones today come from Silicon Valley, the music industry developed its revolutionary iPod there and no longer in Japan. The best laptops now come from the Valley of Geniuses, as do the latest in nanotechnology, alternative energies and, soon, pharmaceuticals. "And even the latest technology for watching television now comes from Silicon Valley," Beat Knecht concludes his story of how, to everyone's surprise, a completely new idea for the television of the future was hatched from solving his parents' computer problems.
"Desperate Housewives" or watch the decisive break for Rafael Nadal anywhere there are computers, and a connection to the Internet: Zattoo has developed software that takes the distribution of television programs in a completely different direction. But even more revolutionary than its quality of constantly better-resolution images will be Zattoo as a future advertising platform.
The Swiss-American start-up Zattoo, which means "crowd" in Japanese, wants to conquer the world with live TV and individually linked advertising via the Internet. With calculations that are as convincing as they are precise in terms of technology and marketing - after all, Zattoo once got its initial impetus by chance in a mathematics lecture. It was there, at the University of California Berkeley, that the Indonesian Sugih Jamin and the Swiss Beat Knecht first came into contact with each other. Jamin, now a professor of computer science at the University of Michigan, has since twice confronted the temporary McKinsey consultant, vice president of marketing at Lunixcare in San Francisco or developer of xRPM at SAP with revolutionary ideas. Knecht had to pass on a new solution for online games and GPS for cell phones due to time constraints. For Zattoo, the tinkerer and the realizer - "that's an apt description" - have now come together for the first time.
Jamin and Knecht founded Zattoo together in San Francisco in 2005. Today, about 50 people work for the Swiss-American company. Sugih Jamin, as chairman as well as technical director of Zattoo, has his office and team in Ann Arbor, where he continues to teach at the University of Michigan. Beat Knecht, as president and CEO, is building the office in Oerlikon. "Switzerland is a test market for Zattoo. If something goes wrong, it won't attract much attention in the wider world," Knecht jokes. Because he knows: Zattoo has been able to defend its pole position without any problems so far.
"You will be copied quickly," he was told at the time. However, Zattoo is well prepared for this. "We build the best TV receiver software for PCs," says Beat Knecht with conviction. While conventional receivers for streaming have a development cycle of five years - from the programmers' idea to casting it into a chip to installing it in a box - Zattoo brings 20 improved generations to market in that time. Twenty programmers work diligently on updates, which are released four times a year. Zattoo keeps this rhythm in line with the American mentality of not waiting until an absolutely perfect solution is available. The user of Zattoo should already be able to profit in real time from all partial successes of the inventors. In the process, the technology already offers a TV picture that has earned Zattoo awards at the highest level as well as enthusiastic reports in trade media around the world. To quote figures that one in ten people in Switzerland is already subscribed to Zattoo hardly makes sense. The increase is exploding - because where else can you find free software through which you can receive all the major TV channels just as free of charge. Knecht describes the offer as a "gift". But who is going to pay for it?
At the moment, Zattoo is still living off the money of its first investors. But advertising is already making the cash registers ring. The content from the streamed TV programs attracts visitors to the platform. On this platform, Zattoo can interactively send back targeted advertising to its members. Not just any commercial for the general public, but information for people who have registered their explicit interest in cars or vacations in Turkey, for example. These ads are to be displayed for a few seconds whenever the user changes channels.
Beat Knecht earned his BA in computer science at the University of California and also an MBA at IMD in Lausanne. When it comes to advertising, he sees himself as a "career changer". But he already knows a lot about it. To this end, he can count on twelve specialists in Zurich alone and eight in Ann Arbor, who deal exclusively with selling advertising and developing new techniques and ideas around advertising on his platform.
Zattoo's expansion is legally complicated because the network television company has to negotiate separate license agreements with program providers for each country. Nevertheless, Beat Knecht says: "We can attract the stations with interesting benefits."
In these negotiations, Knecht benefits from the fact that he is also very familiar with developments in the stations' programming. "I have a very simple private life. Watching TV with my girlfriend is enough for me." She knows every broadcast slot and also knows about all the new formats. "Sitting in front of the TV with my partner is my daily education. That way, I can talk shop with the broadcasters and the female directors, of whom there are more and more, about what's currently on the program." Sometimes these directors are genuinely surprised when the engineer and manager can talk not only about the latest streaming technologies, but also about the latest secrets of "Desperate Housewives.

Andreas Panzeri

 There are more cell phone subscriptions in Switzerland than inhabitants. This was announced by Bakom at the annual media conference in Biel. The so-called market penetration reached 104.2 percent in October last year. However, this is still low compared to the rest of Europe. In the EU, the average market penetration is 8% higher than in Switzerland, says Philipp Metzger from the Federal Office of Communications. The European frontrunners are Italy, Luxembourg and the Baltic states with values between 140 and 150 percent. The reason for the increase in cell phone subscriptions is hardly surprising: according to Bakom spokesman Bernhard Bürki, business cell phones are responsible for this. Many people now have a private cell phone and a second one provided by the business. Although the number of cell phone subscriptions in Switzerland is increasing, tariffs are not falling. In Switzerland, a cell phone user pays 23 francs more than in the rest of Europe. The charge for a call to another mobile network is also around 5 francs higher in Switzerland than in Europe. The "stoic loyalty of consumers" to Swisscom is also typical of the Swiss mobile phone market. In October 2007, Swisscom still had a 60 percent market share. In the EU, the largest provider has an average of around 40 percent.

 
Direct marketing Pubeco wants to make mailbox advertising greener. Mailing Vert is green mailbox advertising. Both ideas come from France.  
As is well known, no household is protected from mailbox advertising. Despite stickers such as "Advertising not wanted," Swiss mailboxes are generously filled with brochures, flyers and advertising letters. In Germany, experts estimate that, in addition to normal letter mail, around 100 kilograms of "unsolicited mail" flutters into the house every year. In France, the figure is 40 kilograms. That's a lot of advertising and a lot of waste. The majority of mailbox advertising - various studies put the figure at over 80 percent - ends up in the trash can and is neither read nor briefly skimmed. A young company from the French town of Orchies now wants to improve this low usage and poor ecological balance. The idea is simple: instead of bombarding consumers with mailbox advertising every day, they offer the advertising in digital form on the Internet. The project is called Pubeco, a neologism of "publicité" and "écologique," and was launched by Yannick Lalleau and Romain Sarels. The main aim of Pubeco is to steer the flood of advertising in an orderly direction.
And this is how it works: A sticker on the mailbox informs the advertising supplier with the inscription: "No advertising. I am protecting my planet. I'm going to look at advertising on the Internet." On a website, the interested consumer can enter the zip code of his place of residence and within seconds is presented with those advertisements that should have been in his mailbox. The site is also a detailed sales promotion platform. In addition to the brochures, the user can also find out about store opening hours, store locations and promotions. The site also allows the user to rate products, companies and their promotional appearances.
The ecological centerpiece, however, is a clever partnership with an environmental organization. When consumers obtain information from Pubeco, they automatically support environmental projects by collecting points when they read the brochures. These points are then donated to the "Good Planet" organization. The companies that advertise are asked to pay.
"At the beginning, the companies were still skeptical," says Romain Sarels. But he says they have since been convinced of the idea because the Pubeco concept was born out of an ecological mindset. And apparently companies are paying attention to the idea. Forty retailers are currently working with the eco start-up. Even local authorities have discovered the platform to distribute newsletters and information.
The young project, which started in the spring, has not yet radically changed the habits of advertising companies. Marketing managers still believe that the majority of consumers prepare their purchases through the old mailbox advertising and not on the Internet. However, the sustainable idea is resonating with a rapidly growing number of French households. Many French people consider it chic to put the Pubeco message on their mailboxes. There are still only a few thousand of them. If the development continues like this, hopes co-founder Romain Sarels, the Pubeco community should grow to 100,000 households by the end of the year. But the declared goal is even more ambitious: Sarels and Lalleau expect that in a few years, 20 to 25 percent of all French households will be flying the eco-flag with the Pubeco sticker.
Advertising agency goes greenThe fact that France seems to be the epicenter of "green advertising" is expressed in yet another mailbox project. These days, the Paris-based direct marketing agency TBWA/Excel has added Mailing Vert to its offering. This is a sustainably produced advertising mailer. Together with various partners, such as distributors or printers, the agency wants to engage in clean direct marketing in the future that goes beyond the use of recycled paper.
The agency aims to integrate all members, from production to suppliers, into a greener and cleaner direct mail process. As the advertisers write, they want to improve the eco-balance of a mailing project by cleaning waste water, using raw materials from natural resources, minimizing waste and energy consumption, and optimizing the transport routes of the distributors. The service was created specifically for non-profit organizations because they want to demonstrate eco-openness in their communications due to their environmental activities. The first prominent customer of the new service is the "Frères des Hommes" organization.
Christian Lüscher

 The advertising giant WPP wants to take over the British market researcher Taylor Nelson Sofres (TNS). WPP is offering the equivalent of 2.19 billion Swiss francs for TNS, says WPP CEO Martin Sorrell. The offer was submitted directly to TNS shareholders after TNS management rejected three non-binding takeover bids as being too low. WPP is not the only company interested in TNS. The German market researcher GfK also wants to merge with TNS. According to the Financial Times, the Nuremberg-based market research company is already preparing a counter offer for TNS. The company did not wish to comment on the report. According to Martin Sorrell, the offer from WPP is a better alternative to the GfK offer for TNS, as WPP wants to protect the brand better.

 
Gemi The Goldbach Index (Gemi), the indexed development of the advertising pressure of various electronic media compared to the overall market, which is compiled by Media Focus, again shows an increase of 7 index points to 438 in May. TV grew by 6 index points to 465, radio by 5 index points to 255 and teletext even increased by 6 index points to 133. Internet grows by 15 index points to 285, although Media Focus points out that the result is only comparable with the previous figures to a limited extent due to changes in the recording methodology. In comparison to the increase in the GEMI index for electronic media, the total of all media recorded an increase of 3 index points to 202.The Gemi provides information on the indexed development of the various electronic media in comparison to the overall market since the introduction of the first advertising window in 1993 (Adscreen December 2004 by AIS, currently missing).
 
 

 
In July, Monika Urech will join the Zurich web agency Mitlinks as a junior consultant. In this role, she will support the project managers and management and gain her own experience in project management, according to a press release issued on Wednesday. Urech is moving from the Aargauer Zeitung to the agency on Limmatstrasse. There she worked in the subscription contact center and in reader marketing and was responsible for customer care and the development of advertising and customer loyalty campaigns. 

 
Theater For the fourth time in a row, TBS Identity designed the campaign for the Zürcher Theater Spektakel. The Zurich-based design and communications agency worked together with South African performer, artist and graphic designer Peet Pienaar. His striking illustrations visualize the central themes of this year's festival. TBS Identity staged these subjects across all media such as the program newspaper, posters, advertisements and e-board. The agency also put the website, which has been used to book tickets online for the past year, on a new technological footing and overhauled it in terms of design.

 
Catching our eye Anyone passing by a poster for the movie "Hancock" these days can't fail to notice it. Quite small, but strikingly animated, a non-stop movie trailer winks at us next to the printed advertising medium. The mini screen (5.3 x 4.7 centimeters) is built into the frame of the poster carrier. APG has been offering 18 such Citystar 200L Zurich Screen stations in the city of Zurich since the beginning of this month. Of course, no one can yet say how the new advertising medium will work. The only fact is that "Hancock" got off to a brilliant start in Swiss cinemas on its first weekend. 80,000 viewers means more than "Indiana Jones 4". The action-packed superhero parody also landed at number 1 in the cinema charts in the USA. (pan)

 
Packaging Product presentation at the point of sale is still one of the most important criteria for consumers' purchasing decisions. Self-adhesive labels offer fascinating opportunities to showcase the product. 
Self-adhesive labels are also gaining ground in the world of tubes. After all, it offers considerable advantages in warehousing and logistics, as only unprinted tubes are required and varieties and promotional goods can be flexibly differentiated by label. Pago AG, a specialist in labels and labeling technology, is constantly presenting new ideas for attractive label solutions. With sensational decorative effects such as relief-like raised decorative elements with integrated glitter pigments, shimmering surfaces with color tilt effects, high-gloss lacquer accents or the chic contrast of Pagometallex Top or Brush with reflective metal embossing, unique brand personalities can be created. Hologram structures, strikingly radiant luminous colors and the finest microstructure reliefs also lend the product a surface that vibrates with light reflections and challenge the sense of touch to reach for the goods. Foam, sand or other surface reliefs - integrated into corresponding designs - exert a special attraction. Design elements such as a kissing mouth, for example, stand out in a plastic, seductive way and lend the design a highly striking appearance.
Winning with on-pack promotionsNumerous studies have shown that promotional labels significantly increase awareness of products at the POS. Sweepstakes in particular generate remarkable success rates in the focus of the target group. For the younger, web and mobile-oriented generation in particular, SMS competitions offer enticing identification patterns with which broad consumer interest and top contact rates can be achieved. Pago has been presenting new ideas for creative on-pack promotions with multi-page Pagomedia labels for years. The spectrum ranges from cross-promotions to labels with integrated stickers, make-up colors, wobbly or magnetic pictures, 3D puzzles and much more.
At Interpack, Pago presented a live SMS competition, which is currently very much in vogue. A promotional label, which was distributed on an energy drink can as a promotional gift, contained a speed dial number and an individual prize code. Participants who sent this winning code by SMS to the number provided were entered into the daily iPod prize draw. An extra chance to win was created by the fact that one of the coveted iPod touches was raffled off among all participants after Interpack.
Participants were kept up to date during the campaign by text message and informed of the results. They received confirmation of their participation and the winner was also determined by text message. The combination of the target group's media preferences with attractive, trend-conscious prospects of winning creates a high activation potential. The automatically triggered response generates repeated brand presence on the customer's cell phone and strengthens customer loyalty by keeping their attention focused on the brand. Depending on the design of the campaign, further effects and customer contacts can follow in stages or even initiate a dialog with the customer.
Performance from a single sourceSleeved products are particularly attractive. The sleeve is a film tube that is pulled over the product. The full-body label also adapts to unusual container shapes. The plastic sleeve material compensates for asymmetrical cross-sections and curvatures of the product shapes in the shrinking process, where it lies crease-free on the surface and around the product. This means that the entire container is available for promotion and decoration. When pulled over the closure, the sleeve also offers the function of tamper-evident closure protection.
Pago shows that attractive sleeve decoration does not have to involve large investments. It offers a sleeving service for entry-level series. For small to medium batch sizes, Pago handles the entire decoration order. Nectaflor MyTea also benefited from this. Pago was available here as a partner from the project planning and creation of the initial samples, through sleeve production in the highest quality, to the application of the sleeves by the Pago labeling service. The complete service from a single source guarantees smooth and calculable implementation and thus provides the perfect basis for a fascinating, eye-catching sleeve design.
MyTea impressively demonstrates the overall decorative effect that shape-oriented packaging with sleeves makes possible. The bulbous shape of the container is both eye-catching and ergonomic. The attractively designed sleeves emphasize the shape effectively. During an initial on-site consultation, the customer's ideas and wishes regarding the product shape were analyzed and the possibilities - also with regard to an optimal shrinking process - were defined.
Customer-oriented adviceOnce the design was essentially finalized, Pago first samples made it possible to demonstrate the print image directly on original containers quickly and economically. It is also possible to clarify questions regarding the effect and functionality of sleeve decoration at an early stage. Practical features such as integrated closure protection are also tested in advance so that functionality is also taken into account during the shrinking process. With Nectaflor MyTea, the upper sleeve section can be separated and the container opened by means of an obvious tear-open T-perforation.
Additional incentives for consumers can be created with individualized sleeve products and special series. Pago also provides the necessary know-how and service for this. Fascinating material illusions can also be created with sleeves. For example, it is possible to create the effect of colored or frosted glass on glass containers. All-over ornaments or full-surface image motifs also attract attention and lend the products exclusivity.
 
Sabine Flaxman

 
Trade fair wrap-up To draw the attention of trade visitors to the Robatech trade fair stand, artist Pirmin Breu came up with an idea.  
Exhibiting at the world's largest international trade fairs is very important for a company like Robatech AG in Muri, which is active in 57 countries. However, the very large number of exhibitors and visitors that such world trade fairs attract does not make it easy for exhibiting companies to attract attention: Interpack 2008, for example, attracted 2,744 exhibitors and 179,000 visitors to Düsseldorf over seven days, and Drupa, which lasted two weeks, attracted 1971 exhibitors and as many as 391,000 visitors. "We have been exhibiting at these two world trade fairs in Düsseldorf for many years, and we know the conditions there. That's why we had Pirmin Breu design and realize our exhibition stand, as he did for the previous Interpack and Drupa. His work is something special and stands out positively even in such a confusing environment," says Ruedi Brun, Head of Marketing at Robatech AG. "After a discussion with Mr. Breu, we decided to focus on the terms durability, precision and Swiss quality, as these terms also stand for our adhesive application systems, which we produce at our headquarters in Muri and export all over the world. We gave Mr. Breu a free hand with the implementation, and the result not only impressed us, but also the trade fair visitors: a 6-metre-high and 8.5-metre-wide replica of the Matterhorn attracted attention," says Ruedi Brun, describing the two successful trade fair appearances in Düsseldorf.
But what exactly attracted visitors to the fair? Was it the size of the object or the fact that it was a replica of the most famous Swiss mountain? Pirmin Breu gives the answer: "The exhibition grounds in Düsseldorf are huge and the exhibition halls are very high. A large object is a prerequisite for being noticed at all, but that alone is not enough. The Matterhorn should therefore stand out above all due to its production technology: While such objects are normally printed by machine in photo quality, I drew the Matterhorn by hand, enlarged it with a projector, traced it again by hand and shaded it with colors from an airbrush gun and spray can. This gives the artwork a lively touch: in contrast to a photo print, it radiates vibrancy and naturalness. Even amateurs subconsciously notice the difference and are attracted to such works of art."
Pirmin Breu's work not only fascinates visitors to the trade fair in Düsseldorf and the staff at Robatech AG - many of the pictures hanging on the company's walls are also by him - but also famous personalities, including billionaire Gunther Sachs, who admires his art.
Irene Young
About Pirmin BreuPirmin Breu, born 1972,
discovered and developed his talent for using spray paint as an "illegal street artist". He also completed an apprenticeship as a sign and advertising painter, but continued to work as an artist in his spare time. He exhibited his works of art and was artistically inspired by numerous extended stays abroad, including in the USA and Central and South America. He has been successfully self-employed since 1997: One of his most interesting commissions was to help design the European tour of the world-famous band Pink Floyd with a spray can: He turned the band's mascot, a giant, inflatable plastic pig, into an eye-catcher with his graffiti art. He received the commission at very short notice: he was asked the evening before the concert in Zurich's Hallenstadion, discussed his wishes with Pink Floyd founder Roger Waters at around 12.00 noon on the day of the concert, grabbed his spray can two hours later and finished his work at 6.00 pm, just in time for the first concert guests to enter. In addition to his talent, this is his other great secret to success: Pirmin Breu can handle deadline pressure and meets fixed deadlines without any ifs or buts. "If I were unreliable," he says, "I probably wouldn't stand a chance with industrial customers like Robatech." www.pirminbreu.ch

 
Immobilien III Art & Work has incorporated generous thinking into a customer magazine for Implenia. 
Implenia Real Estate sends out a magazine to interested parties and customers twice a year. The publication is published in German and French and is entitled Vision. The magazine is intended to be an important image carrier and provide genuinely useful and journalistically prepared information about the world of construction. Each issue contains "up-to-the-minute interviews" with personalities who comment on topical issues. Vision has now been comprehensively redesigned by the Zurich agency Art & Work. The graphic redesign aims to "present valuable content with a high level of reader guidance and an appealing visual look", explains CD Carmen M. Schiltknecht at Art & Work. AD Marianne Kieser also sees the oversized A3 format and the generous design as an "expression of the company's cross-border mindset". The Vision magazine is distributed in a print run of 15,000 copies to customers, partners, planners and entrepreneurs.
Implenia is the most important construction services group in Switzerland. The Group is divided into Implenia Real Estate, Implenia Bau and Implenia Global Solutions.
 
Andreas Panzeri

 
Image Five advertisers show their Keystone favorites in Bestpicture magazine. 
Bestpicture is a visually stunning magazine. "We show the best pictures from Keystone. They convey emotions and facts on generous photo spreads of eight to ten pages, which makes Bestpicture a unique magazine in Switzerland," says Rainer Kupper, publisher of Bestpicture and Head of Marketing at Keystone Switzerland. Four times a year, Bestpicture presents the best and most emotionally moving snapshots from the worlds of politics, business, sport and culture. But what makes a good picture? When asked about the secret of his success, legendary war photographer Robert Capa says: "If your pictures aren't good enough, you weren't close enough."
Keystone claims to be on the ball enough. The many thousands of pictures in daily newspapers and magazines every day are proof of this. And the best pictures make it exclusively into Bestpicture magazine. The last five issues have featured powerful photos of Kofi Annan and Nelson Mandela. The magazine also climbed into the depths of the Neat, the longest tunnel in the world, crossed glaciers and deserts, surfed the highest waves and looked over the shoulders of divas and machos. Action-packed sports photo spreads from the world of football, ice hockey and Formula 1 show the dynamics of the moment.
The magazine also allows authors to have their say. "We look for an author with an affinity for the topic for each focus," explains Marc Bodmer, editor-in-chief of Bestpicture. The list of writers is impressive. Former Federal Councillor Adolf Ogi, ice hockey legend Renato Tosio, Middle East specialist Erich Gysling, football icon Karl Odermatt and sex consultant Eliane Schweitzer have all commented on unusual photo spreads.
In the current issue, five prominent advertisers were given carte blanche to put together the photo series of their choice. Pius Walker, Martin Spillmann, Markus Ruf, Markus Gut and Frank Bodin show the reader their personal best picture from the Keystone archive. According to Marc Bodmer, initial concerns that there might have been overlaps were refuted by the five creative minds. The five photo series and the ideas behind them turned out to be very different.
Markus Steiner