Advertising History Ten years ago, advertising executive Jean Etienne Aebi and the communications team at Mobiliar collaborated to create the campaign featuring damage reports on graph paper. A tribute.
It just keeps going and going and going—Mobiliar’s campaign featuring the damage sketches. Its launch in 1997 marked a radical break with the insurance company’s previous advertising strategies. «Mobiliar keeps people safe» was the slogan in the 1970s and 1980s. Back then, they relied heavily on testimonials, recalls Marco Fioroni, the long-time head of advertising, marketing, and communications at Mobiliar Insurance: «In the ads, we had customers talk about their positive claims experiences.» This helped distinguish the insurer—founded in 1823 and still organized as a cooperative today—whose portfolio includes home, auto, business, personal, and life insurance. But more and more companies were discovering the power of testimonials. Whether for laundry detergent, cat food, or beauty creams, advertising campaigns were increasingly filled with testimonials from enthusiastic customers—it was time for Mobiliar to come up with a new advertising concept.
The focus was now on prevention. «So you don’t end up sliding down the valley on a sled,» was the warning to skiers. The «brilliant tips on thunderstorms» followed the same line of thinking. Each ad featured a photo along with text offering sound advice. Mobiliar initially worked with the advertising agency Lintas, then with Lesch + Frei, but another change of direction with a new agency was in the air.
A Breakthrough with Star Copywriter Jean Etienne Aebi This time, the insurance company did not want to hold a competitive pitch; instead, in 1997, it approached the Aebi Strebel agency, which had earned acclaim for several campaigns led by creative director Jean Etienne Aebi and strategy director Diana Strebel.
During a workshop, participants pinned all the available European insurance advertising campaigns to display boards and looked for inspiration. Most of the campaigns featured beaming people who could just as easily have been promoting chocolate bars or a vacation destination.
But Mobiliar wanted a Unique Advertising Proposition (UAP)—a hook that would set it completely apart from its competitors. During brainstorming sessions with Aebi, the team came up with the idea of using customers« damage reports—often illustrated with sketches—which frequently provide unintentional humor: »My son bumped into a vase and broke it.« What started as a concept that was initially a bit hard to grasp quickly evolved into an original campaign that has now been running for ten years. The first ads were still photographed, but soon the company began consistently using the damage sketches, which can be utilized in print, in movie theaters, and on promotional items. Fioroni: »No matter what happens to our customers, we help them out of a bind promptly and without hassle—that’s our message.”
Checkered Paper as a Co-Brand The checkered paper on which the stick figures appear has become a sort of co-brand for Mobiliar. The Hamburg-based creative studio Little Green Bag creates the animations of the damage sketches on the computer.
The endless stream of ideas also has its pitfalls, admits the head of communications; ideas alone aren’t enough—they must involve potential insurance claims, so every topic must be approved by insurance experts. A dozen small and large-scale disasters are launched each year, and exceptionally good ideas are sometimes revived as «remakes» and posted on billboards once again.
The response has been overwhelming; hardly a day goes by without requests for posters, ads, or movie theater spots. Often, as in the campaign, they are addressed with «Dear Mobiliar.» Educators use the commercials for teaching purposes, and the cards are sent to friends as a joke or shared online. «We’re not using this to advertise products,» explains Fioroni. «The goal is to position Mobiliar as a likable insurance company that’s close to its customers in as many areas as possible.»
A nearly seamless transition to Wirz: The Aebi & Strebel agency was acquired by Publicis Farner in 1998, shortly after the campaign was created, and Etienne Aebi and Diana Strebel joined the executive board. The campaign continued successfully in the same style. Two years ago, Zurich Insurance’s advertising budget shifted to Publicis; Mobiliar did not want to be in the same advertising boat as its competitors and sought a new agency. Wirz was chosen. Jean Etienne Aebi stepped down from Publicis’s executive board and continues to work for Mobiliar as a consultant. «He was the guardian of the campaign,» says Fioroni. «He helped bring the new agency up to the desired standard. The project continued to develop very well, and everyone benefited.»
What appears simple is, for each individual design, the result of an intensive process. The drawings must not appear too perfect, nor too primitive; the goal is to distill the message down to its essence. The bar is set high; every design is judged against what has been shown so far. Wirz’s graphic design team, led by Matthias Freuler, develops two campaign sets each year. In addition, they create sketches related to events such as the Engadin Marathon, August 1, or the Street Parade. One of the strengths of this campaign is that it also offers the opportunity to capitalize on current events. Creating the sketches requires tact. Fioroni: «We avoid showing accidents involving seriously injured people just as much as we avoid sexist stories. We want a human touch, not biting satire.»
Countercyclical Media Planning: Mobiliar’s media planning is countercyclical; that is, campaigns begin in early January, when advertising pressure on the market is less intense and attention levels are higher. Mobiliar also runs ads in the summer, despite the common misconception that everyone in Switzerland is abroad—a notion that market research has long since disproved. During the vacation season, the insurance company advertises primarily with large F12-format posters at train stations.
The Mediafokus tool, which the insurance company developed in collaboration with McKinsey, tracks brands, key metrics, and drivers (MKT). The tool shows that Mobiliar is very well positioned in the market, that its advertising is effective, and that the financial investment is paying off. In an analysis by M&K Marketingmall, the campaign achieved very high scores, including the maximum score for the «Communication of Benefits» criterion and a top score in the «Interchangeability/Uniqueness» category.
One in three households in Switzerland is already a customer—and thus also a member of the cooperative. The campaign, which has been successful for a decade now, reinforces Mobiliar’s image as a friendly, competent, and helpful insurance company. When it comes to print media, the insurance company prefers Sunday newspapers—because they attract higher average readership—as well as selected consumer magazines.
However, the main medium is television during prime time. The campaign has already won two Lions at Cannes, as Mobiliar brings a sense of wonder and cheer to the big screen with its extremely minimalist black-and-white episodes. Wirz and Fraefel Productions are producing the filmed «Liebe Mobiliar» damage reports for television and the comparatively low-cost animated stick figures for the big screen.
«Also suitable for local Mobiliar agencies.» «This ad campaign has been so well received that we’re constantly getting positive feedback on the new ads,» explains Alfred Guggenbühl, who has headed the Mobiliar general agency in Liestal, Basel-Landschaft, for fifteen years. For seventy years, a member of the Guggenbühl family has run the agency—founded in 1928—in the capital of the canton of Basel-Landschaft. Guggenbühl still remembers the days when each agency did whatever it wanted when it came to advertising: «Back then, there were red, green, or orange ads as they saw fit—a free-for-all without the strong national impact we see today.» The approximately 70 general agencies and dozens of branch offices can also use the stick-figure designs for local advertising, but they must pay for them themselves. Events like Carnival or a trade show can serve as a hook for the Liestal general agency, but there’s no room for advertising excesses, as the parent company’s graphic guidelines are strict. «The goodwill generated by this advertising shows customers that we provide assistance in a friendly manner,» Guggenbühl notes, “but the advertising would ultimately be useless if we didn’t deliver on our promises.”
New Media and Cross-Media Are Gaining Importance. The budget for Mobiliar’s overall communications is «well under 10 million francs,» says Fioroni, head of advertising and marketing. This budget covers marketing communications, print advertising, posters, direct marketing, TV, movie theaters, and the Internet. New media and cross-media are becoming increasingly important, making the advertising agency’s job more challenging and complex. And the stick figures appear across all these channels as well. During meetings with the agency, the strategist is always present alongside the creative team. Also involved are direct marketing professionals, media agencies such as OMD, Media Schneider, and Mediaxis, as well as online agencies specializing in the internet and intranet.
The marketing department is increasingly involved in integrated projects that encompass market research, e-services, and multichannel capabilities. Today’s customers have a wide variety of channels through which to contact the company. The cartoons featuring sketches of damage can be ordered as postcards or shared with friends online—the same is true for the TV spots. The consistently positive response demonstrates the image-building power of this campaign. A German tourist recently sent an email to the headquarters in Bern, saying he enjoys visiting Switzerland for two reasons. First, it’s a beautiful vacation destination. And: «I always look forward to seeing the new line drawings from Mobiliar at the train stations.»

Werner Catrina

 To make Betty Bossi's new, multimedia world of indulgence appealing to users, the publisher turned to Maxomedia. The Bern-based cross-media agency created an interactive online advertising medium especially for a target group interested in culinary delights. The Bossi.ch website, weekly newsletters and a 60-page print magazine regularly provide food lovers with the latest ideas, recipes and tips on cooking, eating and hospitality. Such a diverse offering deserves a lot of attention, which is why a video-animated banner by Maxomedia in the style of the magazine invites Internet users to discover the benefits of Bossi on the spot. In a press release, the agency explains how it works: anyone who selects two ingredients in the banner that they currently have in the fridge will also receive a recipe. The advertising material also contains all the important information about Bossi and an integrated Tell-a-Friend module - all in a single banner.

Telecom The Bruno Bondi Show, one of the most successful Swiss podcasts ever, is constantly evolving. In the latest episode, the home-made online radio program has become a videocast, which this time is dedicated entirely to the domestic side. In it, the protagonist Bruno Bondi, who Swiss TV viewers know from the Contexta Swisscom Fixnet advertising sitcom "Beck & Bondi", shows, for example, how to build an insect trap in two steps. Or how to peel an egg in just one second. You can find more useful household tips and tricks in the latest episode at: www.brunobondishow.ch.

 Due to a super-provisional ruling by the Federal Office of Communications (OFCOM), the TV channel U1 is likely to remain on the air for the time being. For cable network operator Cablecom, the case is clear: U1 will be removed from the line-up at the end of August. In the meantime, Bakom is still considering a license application for a new Swiss sports television channel that wants to offer a platform for sports such as handball and volleyball in a program filter on U1 (
). As a result, U1 is to be declared a "must carry" station. A report in the Berner Zeitung quotes a Bakom spokeswoman who emphasizes that the decision is by no means trivial, as it is the first of its kind under the new law. Nevertheless, it should be clear by the end of next week at the latest whether Cablecom will be ordered to keep U1 in its basic offering thanks to a super-provisional measure. It will be some time before a definitive decision is made on whether the license will be granted.

Gratispresse II Tamedia wants to launch a second free newspaper. But its concept is (still) so vague that it hardly convinces media planners.
Tamedia, Espace Media and Basler Zeitung Medien want to launch a new, joint free newspaper in tabloid format, which is to be placed on newspaper boxes in Zurich, Basel and Berne before the end of this year. However, the new project, which is still at the planning stage, appears vague and contradictory. Here are just a few of the rumors: According to previous announcements, the content of the new paper will focus on news for quick readers, yet the texts will be longer than those of 20 Minuten, and it will contain fewer pictures. The three publishers hope to appeal to a "young, well-educated and affluent readership". However, the paper will only have a central editorial office, probably in Zurich. "There are no plans for actual regional editions. However, the editions for Basel, Bern and Zurich will be regionally adapted and will also highlight the most important stories in the three daily newspapers," says Tamedia spokesperson Christoph Zimmer. The paper will apparently have to do without its own primeurs. "Background information and commentary as well as information from the region will continue to be published exclusively in BaZ", according to the press release on www.baz.ch. It is doubtful whether this can be attractive from a journalistic and reader perspective.
It is not least such conceptual somersaults that cause media agencies to shake their heads. Sandro Prezzi, Managing Director of the media agency Mediaedge:cia, raises further questions: "Is it really enough to simply put another box next to the 20 Minuten box for the new paper?" And: "How should the newly found young readers be attracted to Tagi, BaZ or BZ? Just by touching on topics in the new newspaper and then referring to articles in the respective main paper? I don't think that would work," says Prezzi.
Stephan Küng from Initiative Media Western agrees with him: "The Tagi didn't even succeed in tying in teenagers and young adults with the youth supplement Ernst at the time," he recalls. He also sees the fact that the free paper is to be combined with the Metropool in terms of advertising as a further catch in the concept: "This only increases the price of the Metropool, which is already too expensive," he says. Furthermore, it makes no sense to enrich the Metropool with a young target group. "It would be better to focus on the existing readership of Tagi, BaZ and BZ and deepen it even further," he says.
Ueli Christen, Managing Director of mm&b, also points out that around 50 percent of 20 Minuten's readership already consists of 14 to 34-year-olds. "Tamedia and Espace Media, the owners of 20 Minuten, already reach the young target group, so they don't really need the new title," he says. His conclusion: "They are probably mainly interested in squeezing .ch out of the market." Most of the other respondents agree.
In many places, people are surprised that Tamedia is accepting the risk of cannibalizing 20 Minuten. "I was surprised to hear that Tamedia is attacking its own cash cow 20 Minuten, especially shortly before the planned increase in circulation there," says Dominique Schilling, media planner at Generation Media. Although she welcomes diversity, "I personally really wasn't waiting for another tabloid," she says. Schilling also points out that the free newspaper euphoria abroad is already on the wane. She continues: "The cut-throat competition in Switzerland is neither in the interests of the agencies nor the advertising customers. I would like to see more constructive approaches to new products," she says.
However, opinions within the agencies differ as to whether the local market can tolerate further free titles. Sandro Prezzi, for example, "does not want to deny in principle that there is also a chance for the new title, provided the new concept is adapted". Peter Hofstetter is more pessimistic. "Although there is a trend towards free content, I doubt that five free titles can exist side by side. At the latest when the economy takes a turn for the worse, one or the other will go out of business." Especially as the concepts would not actually differ greatly.
Ronny Schmid takes a completely different view. In his opinion, it is not so much the free titles that are at risk as the subscription titles. "Subscription dailies will find it increasingly difficult, they are the discontinued models. Ringier has already demonstrated this with Cash," he says. And he has also noticed this change of attitude in himself. "I'm a regular reader of a subscription newspaper. But I'm now quite prepared for a daily free newspaper, as long as it reports in more detail than, say, 20 Minuten," admits Schmid. In this respect, .ch or the new free paper from Tamedia, BaZ and BZ could certainly suit him, he says.
Markus Knöpfli

Online Tamedia wants to oust Blick and NZZ from the top of the news offerings on the Internet. Together with Espace Media and Basler Zeitung, the Zurich-based company is planning the largest news portal in German-speaking Switzerland.
When nothing else was clear, one thing seemed to be a done deal: the merger of the Tages-Anzeiger and Berner Zeitung Internet portals. This was announced by Tamedia CEO Martin Kall when it was announced at the end of May that the Zurich media house was taking over the Bern-based Espace Media Groupe. In the meantime, the online plans have taken on more concrete contours. Under the name Online News Network, a working group headed by Res Strehle, deputy editor-in-chief of the Tages-Anzeiger, is currently driving forward the project for a new news platform on the Internet. In addition to Tamedia, partners in the network include the Bern-based Espace Media Groupe and the Basler Zeitung, the three media companies that want to jointly launch a new commuter newspaper this year. The legal form in which the network will be organized is still open, according to Tamedia.regions in focusIn addition to the three daily newspapers from Bern, Basel and Zurich, the new online offering will also accompany the new free newspaper online. Exactly how and when this will take place, whether the platform will be launched under a uniform brand, how the individual newspaper titles will be represented - all of this is still unclear. "There are simply still too many decisions to be made by us and our partners," explains Tamedia spokesperson Christoph Zimmer. "What is clear, however, is that reporting from the regions will play a major role." The regional anchoring is so important because the news platform will serve as a joint advertising tool for Tages-Anzeiger, Berner Zeitung and Basler Zeitung. Together with the announced commuter newspaper, the news portal is intended to "attract young, educated readers to the three daily newspapers", according to the Tages-Anzeiger a week ago.
Without 20 MinutenIf one assumes that the planned news platform is able to attract at least as many users as tagi.ch, baz.ch and espace.ch combined today, then the new service would become number 1 in one fell swoop. According to the latest figures from Net Metrix, the three had a total of 1.38 million visitors in July. The current industry leaders NZZ online and blick.ch had 1.2 million and 1.17 million respectively. They are followed by another Tamedia website, 20min.ch. According to company spokesman Christoph Zimmer, however, the online offshoot of 20 Minuten is not to be integrated into the online news network. A collaboration is conceivable at best in the technological area.
The cooperation between Tamedia, Espace Media and Basler Zeitung in the Internet sector is nothing new. The three media companies have already been working together on the marketing of their websites for two years. Tamedia hopes that the planned editorial cooperation will provide a boost for the "Metropool online". "This offering for the advertising market can certainly be strengthened and expanded," says Tamedia spokesperson Zimmer. And the online advertising market is on the upswing. Although in absolute figures (52 million francs last year) it remains a wallflower next to print (2.1 billion francs), media managers are impressed by the rapid growth. Last year, spending on online advertising in Switzerland increased by 44%.
The magazine as a model? "We need to be much more daring here in future, we need to invest here."
By "here", Tamedia CEO Martin Kall meant the Internet. When he said this with a view to the future of the news portals of Tages-Anzeiger and the recently acquired Berner Zeitung, Tamedia had already taken some risks. And also invested. In mid-May, Das Magazin
The Tages-Anzeiger has relaunched its website with a new look and completely revamped architecture. The central feature: all texts, including archived ones, are freely accessible and do not disappear into a paid archive after a certain period of time. For "information architect" Oliver Reichenstein
who developed and implemented the new concept, this openness is a must for news sites on the Internet. "Every link to an article helps to improve the website's ranking in search engines," explains Reichenstein. With closed archives, the pages remain "invisible" to Google & Co. If even Rupert Murdoch is now considering
Reichenstein believes that making the Wall Street Journal's articles freely accessible on the Internet is a clear sign of things to come. Notably, the Journal is one of the few newspapers in the world to have made large profits with its online subscription. Murdoch now wants to earn even more money with advertising, which he wants to place on the freely accessible and linkable websites. Advertising spaces, initially one prominent one per article, are now also available on dasmagazin.ch. And they are being noticed. The number of page views
(visits) has more than quintupled since the relaunch. While the magazine's old website was clicked on around 9,000 times a month, the new one now receives 50,000. It is uncertain whether Tamedia will use Das Magazin with its open structure as a model for its online plans. Tamedia spokesman Christoph Zimmer says only this much:
"Other web projects can certainly benefit from the know-how that was acquired at the magazine. "Nick Lüthi

With the Supertext.ch portal, Rinaldo Dieziger wants to sell headlines and editorial texts over the Internet in a similar way to last-minute trips. 
 
The success story starts with a temporary job. Having just returned from a trip around the world, copywriter Rinaldo Dieziger finds the advertising industry in a mild recession. As a former Publicis or SFLB employee and graduate of the Kreaschule, he does have an option at a leading top ten agency. But even there, the economy wants to take a break for a few more months. So Dieziger accepts the invitation of a colleague from the St.Gallen Institute for Young Enterprises. At a trade fair, he is to offer information about help for start-ups at his stand. It was a week of fun. But also the impetus for a completely different life. "The trade fair was the first time I came into close contact with this world of start-ups," recalls Dieziger. And he was suddenly no longer so keen on the option of employment. As a freelancer, he prefers to start by polishing up the texts on the Institute for Young Enterprises' website. He also attended a workshop for business plans - "because I wanted to know what I was actually writing about".
It was at this workshop that he finally caught "the entrepreneurial bug". "They were all guys who were moving forward. Setting up something of their own." As a result, Dieziger also practiced in various projects until he "saw at some point: You have to stick to what you're really good at." Two years ago, the first pool for copywriters in Switzerland was created, which organizes and sells its services online.
"People don't read advertising. They read what interests them. And sometimes it's a flyer," says the flyer for Supertext. Inside, under the headline "We'll put in a good word for you", you can read that Supertext offers letter texts, online texts, PR texts and advertising texts. "Delivery within 24 hours". Customers can choose between a "total revision" from CHF 199 or a "fine-tuning" from CHF 149. Agencies that are about to pitch and urgently need a few more slogans can also book a ghostwriter via Supertext. The "Solo" offer lets one of Supertext's 170 copywriters do the brainwork. "Trio" means that the agency can hope for suggestions from three different copywriters from CHF 499.
The idea made it to the top 38 of over 1,000 young companies in the "Start up" show on Swiss television in April this year. "Unfortunately, we didn't make it to the final round," regrets Dieziger. Nevertheless, Supertext AG has found an investor. "Texts are stronger than pictures", is the slogan on the back of the Supertext flyer, and with good reason. It also includes a few of the first references, such as PostMail, Zeiss, Publiconnect, Oertli Company and the Swiss SME portal eStarter.ch.
Supertext has its network center in a small office in Zurich's Technopark. In addition to the founder and "boss of the whole thing", Rinaldo Dieziger, his brother Fabian Dieziger also works there. The business economist's business card reads "Head of Business". The third member of the team is Rémy Blättler. His card reads "System Manager". The computer specialist lives and works part-time in New York. At the beginning, he was "only" supposed to program the Supertext website. "They were talking about a two-week job - which has now turned into two years." Since then, Supertext's technical concept has become just as sophisticated.
Customers who want to redesign or even just optimize a text must first upload a document with the raw content to the website. The customer then clicks on an ingenious drop-down list and enters their precise briefing with the desired style, target audience and deadline into the system. The order is automatically analyzed and within seconds the computer responds with a binding quote.
Supertext's business model is comparable to the price-performance ratio of Easyjet or the organization of Maxiprint, the print shop that mobilizes free capacity via the Internet. "The Internet has changed the travel industry. We want to do the same in the advertising industry: The traditional agencies are the personal travel agency, we are the online travel agency," says Rinaldo Dieziger. Instead of free hotel beds, freelance copywriters are simply pooled. These could also be based in a vacation destination. "One of them works from a Greek island," says Dieziger. A growing number of the 170 freelancers today are also contacted in Germany. All Supertexters have to undergo strict quality control. Supertext works closely with the copywriters of Script, and Rinaldo Dieziger has already been nominated for the board of this association.
 
And the future? "With the same system, we are expanding the service in the direction of translation/adaptation," Dieziger thinks aloud. And he reveals that Supertext is planning to move to larger offices soon.
   
Andreas Panzeri

The new organization at Ringier Verlag Zeitungen is having its first effects: The new editorial director Marc Walder is parting ways with 50-year-old Klaus Zaugg, a distinguished Swiss sports journalist, with immediate effect. His successor as head of the ice hockey section of the joint Blick and SonntagsBlick sports editorial team is 40-year-old Dino Kessler (photo). He has been working for the Blick sports editorial team since June 2005. Prior to that, he was an ice hockey professional and player for the Swiss national team, and took part in various world championships. According to an internal Ringier press release, Walder and Zaugg had held intensive discussions and realized that they had different views on the journalistic direction of the sports editorial team. "Klaus Zaugg is not a tabloid journalist by nature. Our discussions have shown that he sees himself first and foremost as an author, and that he would therefore like to return to what are known as long journalistic stretches. This was our main discrepancy," Walder is quoted as saying on the employee portal. Walder's answer to the following question is rather evasive: "Klaus Zaugg is considered to have an idiosyncratic personality. Were there any difficulties in this area?". In his answer, the Sonntagsblick editor-in-chief pointed out that he had brought Zaugg to the Blick and Sonntagsblick sports editorial team eleven years ago and held him in high regard as a journalist and a person of integrity. They parted on good terms.

 Ex-Sat.1 boss Roger Schawinski's book "Die TV-Falle" (The TV Trap), in which he divulges internal information about the broadcaster, made waves in the media. For Sat.1, the work is apparently too much of a good thing: The TV channel considered legal action against the book. "The Sat.1 colleagues are all simply appalled," Sat.1 press spokeswoman Kristina Fassler told Bunte magazine today. She considers the leaking of internal information "humanly poor" and is "deeply disappointed" in her former boss. However, Fassler told the news agency DDP that Sat.1 would now refrain from taking legal action: "It's simply not worth it." Sat.1 Switzerland, on the other hand, harbors no resentment towards Schawinski and supports the television personality's plans to return to Switzerland with his own talk show. However, the financing of the new talk show has not yet been secured.
The Swiss Board of Directors is enthusiastic about the project, Ringier TV boss Hannes Britschgi tells Blick. In his book "Die TV-Falle" (The TV Trap), which attracted a lot of media attention, Schawinski divulged internal information from the German broadcaster Sat.1. According to Britschgi, however, this should not be a problem, and Schawinski himself puts it into perspective: "My book is actually a declaration of love for Sat.1 and private TV."
However, funding for the new talk show has not yet been secured. Britschgi said that sponsors are currently being contacted. If everything works out financially, the show could start on Sat.1's Swiss window as early as this winter, according to Blick. According to Radio 24, two pilot programs for the new talk show are already in the can. According to Britschgi, interesting talks are being held with Schawinski about an innovative talk format. Schawinski himself says of his show: "My talk show will be different. Unlike any other in Switzerland". As Britschgi explained to Blick, the former Tele24 owner reveals something about the working methods of journalists.

Architecture Beat Egger and Valentina Hermann communicate that you can also find all the info about Swiss architects at www.world-architects.com. 
Architecture from Switzerland has long been a worldwide testimony to the fact that some of the most creative building artists work from our country. It is therefore only logical that one of the most important international platforms for architecture is also operated from Switzerland. Since 1998, PSA Publishers - which is abbreviated to Portfiles of Selected Architects - has been supplying the industry worldwide with news on all aspects of building. The portal www.world-architects.com registers 370,000 visitors per month. The editorial team is based in Zurich and headed by Hans Demarmels. There is a branch office in New York, contact offices in further 13 countries from Australia over Finland and Italy up to China or Japan. All these countries have their own website in the comprehensive portal. Swiss architects are also integrated in this list with their site swiss-architects.com. In total, more than 1500 profiles of renowned offices can be found on the worldwide portal. In addition to architects, these include designers, interior designers, landscape gardeners, engineers, photographers and lighting designers. "Good architects who want to do more than just build houses," could be the overarching description of the portal's members. A freelance creative team with Valentina Hermann (art direction) and Beat Egger (concept/text) has now put the results of such an understanding of architecture into tongue-in-cheek subjects to illustrate a new campaign for the world-architects.com platform.
Anyone who thinks of world-class architecture at the sight of a cucumber, a bird's nest, a tin can or an armadillo is outed by this campaign as an architecture lover and potential visitor to the leading platform with selected examples of contemporary architecture. Anyone who clicks on Switzerland among the 13 country portals will find, for example, in addition to the "Building of the Week", an extensive "Product Library", an event calendar, a "Jobs" section with currently over a hundred vacancies, information from the "Immofinanz" section and a "Magazine" under the editorship of Inge Beckel and Axel Simon. This provides weekly news from the world of construction. Currently, for example, with the story that São Paulo is the first metropolis in the world where all advertising in the cityscape has been banned since the beginning of this year. Says one architect: "Before, the city was confusing and ugly; without billboards, it's just ugly." Now you suddenly see all the unrenovated, poorly maintained facades.
The new campaign by Valentina Hermann and Beat Egger will not be seen on posters, but from September onwards in national and international trade magazines and on the web. It is intended to appeal equally to architects and builders. The subjects show - in case anyone could not decipher the picture puzzles: Swiss Re Tower, London (Foster & Partners); Olympic Stadium, Beijing (Herzog & de Meuron); Allianz Arena, Munich (Herzog & de Meuron); Ludwig Erhard Haus, Berlin (Grimshaw & Partners); Guggenheim Museum Bilbao (Frank Gehry).
Andreas Panzeri

Services With the slogan "Zurich's biggest family", Radio 24 advertises that the station wants to appeal to as many people as possible in this catchment area. No distance is too far for the editorial team, as the 9 p.m. news on Monday this week proved. After a report about rain around Salzburg, the people of Zurich were warned: "In Kirchdorf, all traffic has broken down due to bad weather." In case a Zurich family member found this news a bit randomly from the ticker or even seems irrelevant for our region: Kirchdorf is located in Tyrol. You can find the small village coming from Salzburg if you take the B178. Simply follow the signs for St. Johann in Tirol/Kitzbühel. Coming from Innsbruck, first take the A12 towards Wörgl, then take the Wörgl Ost exit and you will immediately see the signs for St. Johann in Tirol. Pass St. Johann (direction Salzburg-Lofer) and after approx. 5 km you will reach Kirchdorf. Coming from Munich, Radio 24 listeners take the A12 with signs for Salzburg/Innsbruck. Drive to Kufstein and take the Kufstein Süd exit. At the exit, you will immediately see signs for St. Johann/Kitzbühel. And Radio 24 can be found on 102.8, although in Kirchdorf it is very limited in rainy weather. (pan)

 The decision to stop broadcasting folk music on DRS 1 continues to make waves. SRG Director General Armin Walpen and DRS1 Program Director Christoph Gebel must therefore make representations to the National Council's Telecommunications Commission (KVF). This was decided by the KVF on Tuesday evening. The KVF President Franz Brun confirmed reports in the Berner Zeitung and the Neue Luzerner Zeitung to SDA on Wednesday that his committee's preferred date is the next meeting on September 10. As Brun explained, the KVF is of the opinion that all music genres should be played on DRS1, including Ländler, yodelling songs and brass band music. At the meeting with the program managers, the commission will demand a return to the decision.
As Brun argued, the outsourcing of popular programs to DRS Musigwälle mainly affects older people. As Musigwälle can only be received on digital radio or via cable, this group of listeners in particular faces challenges. The KVF President also referred to the many music clubs in the villages and towns. These offer young people meaningful leisure activities and are anchored in the culture of the country, which should be recognized by DRS 1.
The KVF is actually responsible for the Radio and Television Act and not for programming issues, said Brun. However, the Commission would like to contribute its thoughts. If necessary, the Commission will intervene with Media Minister Moritz Leuenberger.