If Christoph Blocher is not re-elected in the next Federal Council elections, the SVP wants to consolidate its opposition role with its own daily newspaper. "We are prepared in case Blocher is voted out of office," announced party president Ueli Maurer in an interview with Sonntagsblick. "If he is toppled on December 12, we will announce the launch of a daily newspaper the following day. The plans for this are already in the drawer." According to Maurer, the central element of the newspaper will be opposition politics. Blocher could use it to address the grievances in Bern. Maurer said he was certain that with the help of the newspaper, the SVP's voter share could be increased to 40 percent in four years.
 
The other parties were not particularly impressed by this announcement.
"With Weltwoche, the SVP already has its fighting paper. I seriously wonder how it intends to intensify its political style after Blocher is voted out", said Ruth Genner, President of the Green Party. FDP President Fulvio Pelli, on the other hand, welcomed the fact that the SVP is trying to remain in government for the time being and wants to take on responsibility there. The question is when it will go from being half an opposition party to a governing party. There are already too many newspapers today.
 
FDP National Councillor Filippo Leutenegger estimated the cost of a newspaper project of this kind at CHF 20 million per year. Money that, in the event of a change in the Federal Council, will probably come largely from Blocher's wallet.

 Blick and Sonntagsblick each apologized to Rieter pension fund administrator Jürg Maurer on half a front page this weekend. In doing so, the two newspapers are taking account of a ruling by the Arbon District Court. The court had ruled that both newspapers had committed serious violations of personality rights with their campaign against Maurer. The story broke just over a year ago in connection with the sale of Swissfirst shares by pension funds shortly before the merger of Swissfirst and Bellvue Bank.
 
Maurer accused the newspapers of personal injury and demanded that the profits generated by the campaign be transferred to the Red Cross. After he was fully vindicated in court, the Ringier newspapers have now done their part to make amends: "Sorry Jürg Maurer!" was the headline of the Sonntagsblick and apologized "in all form" to the portfolio manager. According to the newspaper, a payment "in the high five-figure range" was also made to the Swiss Red Cross. It has been a long time since a newspaper in this country has been forced to take such drastic rehabilitation measures.

Launched in 1998, the radio spot award has been honoring the best German-language radio spots for 10 years. This year, for the first time, the Golden Ear is opening up to a wider range of competition entries. In addition to radio spots, audio brandings, jingles, instrumental background music and other acoustic recognition features can also be submitted. The time window for competition entries from German-speaking countries is open until October 31, 2007. The jury of advertisers, radio producers, recording studio professionals and journalists from Germany, Austria, Switzerland and South Tyrol will meet in Zurich on November 9. The award ceremony will take place on November 15 at the Zurich Chamber Orchestra House.

The internet company Google announced new technologies to protect the privacy of internet users on Thursday. Google is looking at the advertising business on the internet with new eyes and is examining what can be changed to better protect the privacy of users, according to an SDA report.
Google uses data on user behavior on the Internet for targeted advertising. The company is currently trying to acquire the advertising company DoubleClick for around 1.3 billion dollars. This deal is still being examined by the competition authorities. Google apparently wants to dispel concerns that this takeover would give the company too much power in the online advertising business.

Trimarca Kommunikation Chur has been entrusted with new mandates from the International Convention for the Protection of the Alps, the Gianottis restaurant and the Graubünden University of Teacher Education. The International Convention for the Protection of the Alps (CIPRA), which has been campaigning for sustainable development in the European Alps for over 50 years, commissioned Trimarca with a new communications development.
The Gianottis, a so-called "dine-around-house" with café, restaurants, lounge and confectionery, which is being built in Pontresina, commissioned Trimarca as project developer for positioning, marketing and global design in collaboration with the architects.
The University of Teacher Education Graubünden wants to improve its communication profile in future with Trimarca Chur. After two workshops with the university management, Trimarca was commissioned to develop the communication measures and corporate design.

The French-speaking Swiss magazine L'Hebdo gets up close and personal with parliamentary candidates. Its journalists accompany the politicians in their everyday lives, spend the night in their homes and write about it on the "Blog&Breakfast" website. A new form of election reporting is born. Information in the context of election campaigns needs new impulses, writes the NZZ. This is where the French-speaking Swiss magazine L'Hebdo has recently made its mark. L'Hebdo already caused a stir last year when its journalists took it in turns to visit a Paris suburb rocked by unrest and also reported from there via the Internet. Now, since May, the magazine has been sending its reporters to the homes and apartments of Swiss parliamentary candidates, where the journalists also spend the night in order to get closer to the candidates and reveal their ambitions, talents, characters and doubts. Reports are published on a website called "Blog&Breakfast" (www.blogandbreakfast.ch).
The idea for this journalistic experiment initially provoked laughter among the staff, Titus Plattner, the editor responsible for "B&B", told the NZZ. However, a serious debate quickly developed about the limits of political journalism and most defended the idea as an original way of talking about politics and closing the gap between politicians and citizens. "Reporters and politicians are always close, we are just exposing this fact," said Plattner.
And so the journalists write several stories a day and, in addition to Google Maps, also place photos or videos in which the candidates explain their positions in one minute. The journalists accompany the candidates in their everyday lives, but still respect their privacy. Private matters are only published if they are of political importance. This is reportage in its purest form.
Plattner considers the possibility of spatially locating blog posts using maps and aerial photographs to be groundbreaking. As he told the NZZ, he is of the opinion that in future all news items will not only be provided with the place and date, but also with the time and GPS coordinates. This would improve the transparency of the information and make it easier to assign it to individuals. According to the NZZ, the "Blog&Breakfast" experiment is also an attempt to sound out the possibilities for the press in the online future. Many journalists are still unsure about the new technical equipment (usually a laptop with a wireless Internet connection, a photo and video camera, a cell phone and a tangle of cables and adapters). With a little practice, however, everyone was able to overcome these hurdles.

As of October 1, the previously salmon-colored advertising supplement Z'annonces express will take on a colorful new look. The Monday supplement also splits its name and becomes 24 express and Tribune express in order to create greater proximity to the respective readership.
With around 400,000 readers, the advertising supplement is already very popular in French-speaking Switzerland. According to a press release, Edipresse Verlag is now making a number of adjustments in order to achieve optimum clarity for the Monday supplement. The "Z'annonces express" will become two new brands: 24 Express in red for the newspaper 24 Heures and Tribune Express in blue for the Tribune de Genève. Although all advertisements appear in both supplements, they are visually tailored to the respective regional readership. The front page now features a table of contents with eight clearly differentiated color headings to make searching easier. From now on, color photos will also be shown in the supplement. These changes are not least due to the increasing importance of the Internet in recent years.

Cash Specials have a monothematic structure and focus on in-depth information on the topics of finance, innovation, business computing, education and family business, as Ringier Verlag writes in its communiqué. The showpiece of the specials is an agenda of the most important occasions and events on the current topic, with numerous links to further information. With the Cash Special magazine, the Cash Group is expanding its product range, which already includes Cash daily, Cash.ch, Cash mobile and podcasts. The Cash Group's multimedia approach will now also be reflected in the Cash Specials. With a total circulation of 110,000 copies, each magazine is published simultaneously as a live paper, supplemented with video and audio contributions and links.
This year, the following Cash Specials will be published: Innovation on 28.09.2007 and 23.11.2007, Business Computing on 02.11.2007 and 14.12.2007 and Private Equity on 16.11.2007. With this attractive special program, the Cash Group is strengthening its position among SMEs, where CASH daily is already the most widely distributed business newspaper.

The professional and trade association for marketing (SMC) has given itself a modern dress at the 52nd General Assembly last Saturday in Lausanne. New statutes mandate a delegates' assembly and organize cooperation between the 40 regional clubs and the national association, according to an SMC press release. "The delegates' assembly is a contemporary dress that fits our federation," sums up Uwe Tännler, president of Swiss Marketing (SMC). "The desire for change is not entirely new, so we are all the more pleased with the new structures, which allow us to navigate more purposefully." The General Assembly also elected two new members to the Central Board: Jean-Pierre Vonburg, Chatillon FR and Robert Combriat, Grolley FR complete the board, which already includes Dr. Peter Petrin, Oberengstringen, Benno Milz, Grub, André Mettler, Sursee, Brigitte Netzer, Lugano, Jon Turnes, Zurich. The office in Olten is now managed by the two heads of the association and auditing divisions.

 The decision has now been made: The Federal Communications Commission (ComCom) has awarded the nationwide license for mobile TV to Swisscom Broadcast. It is to offer the first TV broadcasts via cell phone in the host cities of Basel, Berne, Zurich and Geneva during the 2008 European Football Championship and thus launch this new TV platform as soon as possible. The two companies Mobile TV Schweiz and Swisscom Broadcast had applied for the nationwide concession for mobile TV. The two applications were subjected to a thorough examination as part of a criteria competition, according to a statement from ComCom. The Commission came to the conclusion that both applications were very good. However, Swisscom Broadcast submitted the better application and was therefore awarded the contract. Due to its existing locations and experience with TV distribution in Switzerland, Swisscom Broadcast can guarantee a rapid roll-out of this new technology better than its competitor. The aim is to be able to receive TV broadcasts on cell phones as early as Euro 08.
Of great importance to the Commission is the obligation that the licensee Swisscom Broadcast must offer all TV broadcasters and telecommunications service providers equal access to this distribution platform on reasonable and non-discriminatory terms. This obligation is laid down in the license. This ensures that all telecommunications service providers and TV broadcasters can benefit equally from this new platform, according to the press release.
Bruno Bucher, CEO of Mobile TV Switzerland, which lost out, is disappointed with ComCom's choice. He questions the decision-making process: when announcing the award of the license to Swisscom Broadcast, the Commission had attached great importance to the fact that the company could guarantee a rapid roll-out due to its existing locations and experience with TV broadcasting. "It was known from the outset that Swisscom Broadcast had the antennas - which the people had effectively given it as a gift. If this criterion is so decisive, there would have been no need for the tender," says the CEO of Mobile TV Switzerland.
However, ComCom explains in its press release that various factors - i.e. not just the antennas - were decisive. In a detailed evaluation, it assessed the quality of the two applications on the basis of various criteria. According to ComCom, Swisscom Broadcast achieved better marks for the criteria "coverage/rollout", "concept/implementation", "coherence and credibility of the application" and also for the "business and service plan". Mobile TV Switzerland came out on top in the "contribution to media diversity" criterion. Swisscom Broadcast therefore submitted the better application, ComCom continues.
Mobile TV Switzerland is now considering legal action: The options are an appeal against the decision, going to the Competition Commission or expropriation proceedings over Swisscom Broadcast's antennas. Whether and which path Bucher's crew wants to take is still open. "We'll first let the worst of the anger fade and then consider how to proceed," said Bucher.
Bucher also stated that Swisscom Broadcast had behaved anything but fairly. In particular, all requests had been delayed. As an antenna operator, Swisscom Broadcast must comply with the law and provide non-discriminatory access to the antennas - even if it is in a competitive situation. Bucher said that he could prove that his company had not been treated in the same way as an internal department of Swisscom.
Swisscom spokesman Carsten Roetz contradicts this: "We reject the accusations". Swisscom has been cooperating with competitor companies in the cell phone sector for years with regard to antennas. This has gone smoothly - the company has not behaved differently in the case of mobile TV.
When Mobile TV Switzerland's license application was announced, Bucher stated that his company would offer mobile TV regardless of the licensing decision. Now, however, the situation has become more difficult. "Our investors are now naturally asking questions," explained Bucher. He is still interested in working with Swisscom to make the Made-for-Mobile-TV channel a reality.

 Emmi Fondue is launching a new product for its Gerber brand this fall. Emmi has decided to work with the Neue Lgk agency for the launch. The national launch campaign will be shown from the end of October.

 Following the sale of the cultural magazine Du, several people have lost their jobs. The Comedia trade union is demanding that those affected receive recognition for their "years of commitment" over and above the legal minimum. However, according to the news agency SDA, the previous publisher Heer does not want to enter into talks with the unions: "We have been in the red for four years. Now it's the end of the fire."
Even the number of people affected is disputed: The trade union Comedia puts the number at eleven, publisher Heer speaks of seven people, including a man of AHV age and a self-employed graphic designer. According to Persönlich.com, they share 280 percent of their jobs.
Heer emphasized to SDA that all terminations were in accordance with the law. According to the new publisher Oliver Prange, it is not yet clear whether any of the current team will be taken on.
The art and culture magazine Du, which had belonged to the Zurich publishing house Tamedia until 2004, was sold by the Thurgau publishing house Niggli Verlag to Persönlich Verlag in Rapperswil at the end of August.