Swiss Printers is integrating Zürcher Druck + Verlag (ZDV) into its subsidiary NZZ Fretz. ZDV’s location in Rotkreuz will be closed. As a result, 23 of 57 full-time positions will be eliminated by August. Swiss Printers, a subsidiary of Ringier, NZZ, and the Edipresse Group, aims to optimize the group’s structure and adapt to market conditions through this merger. «The organizational and technical conditions in Rotkreuz would have left little room for further optimization, and new investments would not have been cost-effective due to increasing competitive pressure,» the company explained in a press release. Furthermore, more than half of the business volume comes from Swiss Printers or its affiliated companies. All ZDV customers will continue to be served by the same contact persons they are familiar with.
According to a press release, a social plan is in place for employees affected by the job cuts. Twenty-eight employees will be able to continue working at NZZ Fretz in Schlieren. The six apprentices employed at ZDV will be offered the opportunity to continue their apprenticeships at Swissprinters companies. The integration of the two companies is expected to be completed by August 2008.
Ringier acquired Zürcher Druck + Verlag, a family-owned company founded in 1862, in 1991. That same year, the company moved into its new facilities in Rotkreuz.

Airport Advertising In addition to the traditional interactive projects that Alex Schmid Direct has been carrying out for BP Switzerland for years, the agency was also commissioned to develop a design concept for a special poster at the airport. For the 22-meter-long and 1.6-meter-high space, the agency developed the idea of a poster that “runs” alongside people rushing by. The people on the poster are carrying Ultimate gas cans, the BP Plus Card, or Wild Bean coffee mugs. The photographed individuals are intended to interact directly with the passengers.

 
Ambush Marketing: Migros’ lead-up to the European Soccer Championship has already drawn 800,000 fans to their screens. 
Migros and Publicis wanted to put the fans—rather than the players—in the spotlight during the M’08 Fan Championship, held shortly before Euro 08. This rather bold idea, which fell under the umbrella of ambush marketing, was a success, as Jean Etienne Aebi, the Creative Director at Publicis who was in charge of the entire project, can attest. The «Fan Championships,» staged as long-form spots on Swiss television, drew an average of 800,000 viewers per episode. In terms of market share, this is certainly comparable to real entertainment shows, as a look at the figures from SF shows. Nevertheless, Jean Etienne Aebi is surprised that almost no advertisers have watched the M’08 games. ’We’re just more in the style of a parody of Endemol and perhaps less to the ADC’s taste,« says the distinguished top creative. Aebi is convinced, however, that the industry must continue to seek out such »gimmicks,« as the ongoing success of »Beck & Bondi« already proves.
In fact, the figures for M’08 are statistically compelling. The commercials have a market share of 33 percent. «These figures are clearly higher than those for regular commercial breaks,» says Publicis. By the quarterfinals, a cumulative total of 13 million viewers had watched the antics of fan contests such as «opening bottles,» «throwing TVs out the window,» «shouting »goal!«» or «organizing honking concerts.» The website www.M08.ch had recorded half a million visitors by the end of 2007. Thanks to media coverage in the press, an estimated 1.5 million francs in media value has flowed into Migros’s account for free so far. The song «Unhaltbar,» performed by Adrian Stern for the show, actually made it into the charts. More than 80 fan merchandise items are now flying off the shelves in Migros stores. “And the big wave is yet to come,” the marketing team is convinced.
For some advertisers, however, the question remains: With all these emotions packed into the ad—even without a ball—what message actually resonated with the audience?
Migros is perceived by 51 percent of Swiss people as the official sponsor of Euro 08, even though the «orange giant» is “merely” a free rider on Euro 08—or, to use the technical term, is engaging in ambush marketing. This is a situation that UEFA continues to view with little enthusiasm.
Migros, on the other hand, is proud of this «David versus Goliath»-style move. In a situation where the small bar in Zurich’s Seefeld district is forced to suddenly serve Coca-Cola and Heineken to its usual regulars—simply because the bar is located in the infamous fan zone— «it’s perfectly fine to question the money-making machine behind UEFA’s Euro 08,» say the creators of M’08.
The organizers of the Ambush Games therefore don’t want to leave their newly acquired fans «offside» in the future either. Success brings responsibility. And so, they’re currently exploring how Migros might set up its own zones—featuring “family-friendly options”—around the official UEFA fan zones for fans to watch the actual soccer matches.
The «unofficial» championship continues on Wednesday, January 30, at 7:50 p.m. following «Meteo» on SF1 with the second semifinal between Scotland and Turkey, after Portugal defeated the Netherlands earlier this Wednesday. The final will take place on February 20. It will go down in history as the longest «commercial» ever aired on Swiss—and likely international—television. The «broadcast» of the M«08 final will last six minutes before and five minutes after the »Tagesschau.’ In other words, this is advertising that, for once, is interrupted by an actual program—rather than the other way around. And that feeling alone should be worth a few of the millions to the creatives—money that has now been poured into this M’08 project rather than into UEFA’s coffers.
Andreas Panzeri

Cars An old Alfa leaving the Stalder & Moser classic car garage is perfectly restored and looks just like new. That’s the message the creative team at Publicis drives home in a current campaign. Aside from the photographed models and the logo, there’s nothing old-fashioned about the ads. Neither the current, signature Alfa layout nor the modern photographic style nor Calatrava’s futuristic buildings. As a result, after a rejuvenation at Stalder & Moser, these classic cars look so new that they appear to have just rolled off the production line.

Column
As if Sarkozy's interference in France's TV landscape weren't enough, he also wants to consolidate international programming. Switzerland faces the loss of its global TV platform. 
Even as he was holding his press conference—in which he reaffirmed the sincerity of his love for Carla Bruni and announced a «policy of civilization»—the stock prices of the struggling private broadcasters soared: TF1, Europe’s largest commercial TV broadcaster, and M6, the French Bertelsmann subsidiary, rose by about ten percent. The reason for the unexpected euphoria: the prospect that Nicolas Sarkozy might take advertising away from public broadcasters. The case of TF1 is particularly stark and dramatic. The network, owned by Sarkozy’s friend Martin Bouygues, had a market share of 40 percent until recently. Since the introduction of digital terrestrial television—which catapulted the number of channels from 6 to 20 even in households without cable or satellite—TF1 has been in decline. No one is challenging its top spot. But the 30 percent market share it currently holds is simply a pipe dream in the long run. The rough estimate is easy to make: public broadcasters are siphoning off nearly a billion in advertising revenue. However—that’s a calculation that doesn’t take the advertising industry into account, as it by no means assumes that it will invest these budgets exclusively with TF1 and its competitors.
A major upheaval is on the horizon in the media landscape. Even the bidding process for soccer broadcasting rights for the coming years—the deadline for bids is at the end of January—is already getting out of hand. Can France 2 even still bid? What are the rights worth now?
Is Sarkozy trying to do his friends—the owners of media conglomerates—a favor? Does he want to undermine public broadcasters and make them even more dependent on the state?
Until now, the left has dreamed of abolishing advertising. To achieve this, the right must now pursue a completely illiberal policy and seek out taxes that can compensate for the losses relatively painlessly. Telephone companies could be subject to additional taxes. Or the advertising revenues of private broadcasters. Or a fee of six euros could be charged for every new television set. Sarkozy’s abrupt proposal has sent shockwaves through the industry and sparked a broad debate. That’s the good thing about him. The market, however, has already given its answer: TF1 and M6 have long since lost their stock gains. After all, the weakening of public television would likely amount to the privatization of one of its channels—and that is precisely what Sarkozy’s friends, the media moguls, want least of all.
There is, however, no dispute over the merits of another reform that Sarkozy announced at the same press conference: the international programs are to be consolidated. These include Radio France International, France 24 (the new news channel «French CNN»), and the Francophone global broadcaster TV5. Better cooperation with AFP and among the individual newsrooms would be more than reasonable. In any case, TV5«s partner countries—especially France, Canada, and Switzerland—are fighting this tooth and nail. They refuse to place TV5 under a »France Monde” holding company—and they are fully within their rights to do so. Switzerland owns just under eight percent of TV5 and pays a few million each year. In return, the news program from French-Swiss television can be viewed all over the world. TV5 is our strongest voice on the planet, even if people in German-speaking Switzerland are reluctant to admit it. In an article in *Le Monde* and *Le Temps*, Micheline Calmy-Rey vehemently opposed Paris’s demands. According to insiders, Sarkozy took great, great offense at this. Yet at his press conference, he went back on his word. There, he very clearly called into question all the assurances made at a conference in Switzerland. His media expert from the Élysée Palace had also come. It’s all about visibility. TV5 has an excellent global distribution network, which France 24 is eyeing.
The conflict is escalating these days. The partner countries—and Switzerland—are threatening to withdraw entirely from TV5. In doing so, they would be giving up a unique platform. But without them, hardly anyone wants to hear the «Voice of France.» It’s Napoleon against the rest of the Francophonie. Yet only the Francophonie, in its polyphonic entirety, can serve as a counterweight to the Anglo-Saxon world. Now even the respected Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner is entering the fray. «We won’t do anything without you,» he writes in *Le Monde*. At the same time, however, he’s making bold statements that aren’t going over well in Brussels, Geneva, and Quebec: France, he writes in the headline, wants to take the initiative again in «telling the world’s story.».
Jürg Altwegg is a correspondent for the Frankfurter Allgemeine in Geneva.

 Sam Müller, the head of the news site Azonline.ch, is leaving the AZ Medien Group at the end of July. He is leaving at his own request to return to self-employment as a consultant, strategist, and project manager, according to a statement from the publisher. His successor has not yet been named and is expected to be appointed in the coming months. Müller has worked for the Aargau-based media company since 2000. He has headed Azonline.ch since 2003 and was a member of the extended executive management team. In addition, Müller is involved in various cross-media projects. The press release goes on to state that it is largely thanks to Müller that the group’s online activities have enjoyed increasing popularity and that cross-media projects have been successfully implemented.

 The French-speaking Swiss magazine L'Hebdo is announcing a relaunch and is strengthening its editorial team. Editor-in-chief Alain Jeannet will be joined by Olivier Toublan, in addition to his former deputy Mario Sasso. The latter was editor-in-chief of Bilan in French-speaking Switzerland before developing projects for the Edipresse publishing house in Asia. The planned relaunch is to take place during the first half of 2008, according to a press release from the Ringier title. The editorial team has already introduced the new "Finance" section. It comprises four pages and is headed by Geneviève Brunet.
According to the new Wemf figures, the weekly magazine L'Hebdo has a paid circulation of 48,451 copies and a readership of 226,000.

 
Health insurance company Futurecom has designed the visual identity for the Internet for the newly formed ÖKK. 
ÖKK has been presenting itself with a new image since January 7. Futurecom interactive developed the visual identity for the Internet. The redesign was carried out as part of the overall relaunch under the leadership of the Y&R Group. From the logo to the customer magazine to the website, everything at ÖKK now bears the same signature, with Futurecom designing the website in collaboration with the corporate identity developed in parallel by Advico Young & Rubicam. The website speaks a refreshing language in which imagery and information density are balanced and visitors can quickly find their way around. Because: ÖKK promises in its campaign to be a health insurance company that "doesn't make its customers ill".
This principle was also applied to technical matters: With ContentXXL, a business content management system was found that allows ÖKK to maintain the website independently.

Andreas Panzeri

 
The international advertising network Publicis Groupe and the Californian internet giant Google announced their plans for a cooperation at the beginning of the week. Google CEO Eric Schmidt and Publicis Groupe CEO Maurice Lévy appeared before the press in Paris. According to a report by Horizont.net, the two companies want to drive forward technological development with the common interest of making advertising more effective in the future. This includes the joint development of new products and tools as well as the temporary exchange of employees. Lévy is convinced that the joint activities will benefit customers as well as Google and Publicis. "We provide Google with our knowledge of communication, consumers and their wishes. Google provides us with experience of technology and the whole world of the web." Despite the agreement, both companies are open to further partnerships with similar companies.

 
Packaging Micro Mobility Systems AG has developed a beverage cap that comes with dental care. 
The mobile society prefers to eat on the go. This is why there is an ever-increasing demand for food and drinks that can be taken on the go. According to trend researchers, this trend will gain even more momentum in the future, but as convenient and popular as on-the-go consumption is, it has its pitfalls: For example, dental care, which should be a matter of course after eating and drinking, is neglected. This is why Wim Ouboter, founder of Micro Mobility Systems AG, has developed the patented Super Cap plastic closure. This has a separate, transparent chamber containing a dental care chewing gum.
Chewing gum to hand "With Super Cap, we are subtly drawing attention to the importance of dental care after drinking. This is because highly sugary and acidic drinks such as iced tea, cola and acidic fruit juices can damage teeth. According to dentists, chewing dental gum can significantly reduce the damage to teeth. Super Cap also encourages those who do not normally have chewing gum with them to clean their teeth after drinking. Because if the chewing gum is to hand, it is more likely to be chewed. "Dental care then takes place automatically, so to speak, and without the topic of the tooth-damaging effect of the drinks," says Wim Ouboter.
Numerous marketing benefitsIn addition to keeping teeth healthy, Super Cap also offers marketing benefits: The chewing gum is clearly visible in the transparent cap chamber and fulfills the same function as an on-pack promotion. "Drinks sealed with Super Cap stand out on the shelf from competitor products. The transparent cap and its contents stand out. And this differentiation is very important, because consumers decide within just 1.6 seconds at the point of sale whether or not to buy a product. As the purchase decision is made emotionally, small promotional extras, such as the chewing gum in the lid, tempt consumers to grab the product," explains Wim Ouboter.
Super Cap also makes it easy to implement other marketing ideas: For example, the cap can also be designed to contain additives that can be used to flavor water and enrich it with vitamins and minerals. Micro Mobility Systems' cooperation partner in this area is the Dutch company DSM, which produces high-quality food additives such as vitamins.
Suitable for all bottlesHowever, Super Cap not only fulfills the wishes of the marketing department in the best possible way, the cap has also been carefully designed with regard to the technical and rational requirements: its diameter and thread correspond to the common PCO 28 standard, which is why it fits all widely used beverage bottles. Other diameters are also available on request. Another advantage: Super Cap runs smoothly on state-of-the-art beverage filling and capping systems that operate at maximum output.
Sabine Flaxman
Micro Mobility Systems AGMicro Mobility Systems AG, based in Küsnacht, specializes in the manufacture and sale of innovative products tailored to the needs of mobile people. The micro® brand stands for innovation, top quality, safety and lifestyle. Micro Mobility Systems is regarded as an international trendsetter. Company founder Wim Ouboter is also the inventor of the Kickboard® and the Micro Scooter, a foldable scooter that has caused a worldwide sensation. Further information:

 The media union Comedia has issued a statement protesting against the job cuts resulting from the integration of Zürcher Druck + Verlag (ZDV) into NZZ Fretz. Both companies belong to Swiss Printers; the ZDV site in Rotkreuz will be closed. 23 of 57 full-time positions will be cut. Comedia assumes that a large part of the reduction will be achieved through redundancies. The job cuts are therefore mass redundancies. The union alleges that Swiss Printers' actions are unlawful: Swiss Printers has disregarded the relevant regulations and refused to engage in any dialog. The workforce and their representatives were informed of the liquidation far too late, so that the necessary negotiations could not be held.
Comedia is calling on the publishers involved in Swiss Printers to suspend the closure decisions and to enter into negotiations with the trade unions and the staff committee without delay.
Swiss Printers sees things differently: "We hear the accusation that we are acting unlawfully from the trade union every time we make a change," Managing Director Rudolf Lisibach told Werbewoche. The process was carried out in accordance with the legal provisions. In response to criticism that the staff were informed too late, he explained: "We provided full and direct information at the first possible moment. The trade union had been informed ahead of time on Wednesday. There could therefore be no question of a refusal to engage in dialog. In order to strengthen the Personnel Committee (PKO) in Rotkreuz, the experienced PKO President of the Zofingen site had been called in for the further process. The personnel committee will now be involved in the subsequent implementation work.
Lisibach commented on the union's call for the closure to be suspended as follows: "The fact that the process to date has been carried out in accordance with legal provisions rules out the possibility of a suspension. Also in view of the fact that the implementation that is now starting is being carried out with the involvement of and in close cooperation with the staff committee."

 The application period for the Corporate Design Award 2008 has been extended by one week. German-language launch or relaunch projects can still be submitted online until January 31. Entries may be submitted from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Graduates and students can apply for the Corporate Design University Prize, which is advertised separately.