The cinematic detox is progressing: Disney has announced that it intends to do without the blue haze in its family films in future. The Mikey Mouse Company is the first Hollywood studio to completely ban depictions of people and characters smoking. The planned smoking ban not only affects Disney films as such, but also the productions of its subsidiaries Touchstone and Miramax, whose audiences are largely made up of adults. In a corresponding report, the Basler Zeitung refers to the trade journal Broadcasting & Cable, according to which all DVD copies of films in which people smoke must also carry a warning about the harmful effects of cigarettes.
These measures are probably due to the upcoming tightening of age ratings in connection with smoking. The powerful Motion Picture Association of America, which classifies films, announced stricter rules in May after a total of 32 states demanded that films featuring smoking should only be released from the age of 17 (see
). Although the association is still resisting such a strict approach, pressure from child and youth protection associations and the anti-smoking lobby is growing. The demands are supported by studies that have shown that young people who identify strongly with smoking actors and characters are more likely than average to become addicted to nicotine themselves later on.

 In three events unique in Switzerland and organized by Werbewoche, communications, legal and Euro-08 experts will provide information on how to exploit marketing opportunities even as a non-sponsor at the 2008 European Football Championship. The seminars are aimed at marketing and advertising managers, entrepreneurs from the consumer goods and services industries, as well as advertising consultants, concept developers and strategists from advertising, PR and media agencies. The events will focus on the following questions, which will be discussed by the various speakers: What opportunities does Euro 2008 offer to non-sponsors? How can their company take advantage of the football spectacle? What are the benefits of being involved and what does it cost? Where are the boundaries between legal free-riding and prohibited ambush marketing? When will Uefa intervene? Clear answers, practical and case examples and concrete tips are provided.
The event will take place between 1:00 and 6:00 p.m. each day, on August 30 in Zurich (Kongresshaus), on September 6 in Bern (Kursaal) and on September 13 in Basel (Hilton). Registration, program and prices can be found under the following link:

 For the past three years, enterprising St. Gallen vocational and secondary school teachers have been publishing a civics and economics textbook financed by companies. After initial enthusiasm for the free teaching aid, it is now raising some awkward questions: Do the sponsors influence the content? The secondary school principals of the canton of Vaud would say yes. They are boycotting the "Recht Staat Wirtschaft" textbook because the advertising takes up too much space. Christine Schwaab, principal of the Gymnasium de Burier, believes that the use of the textbook contradicts the principle of political and economic neutrality that is required at a public school. A report by the SF news magazine "10vor10" showed what she means by this. The text teaches pupils that it is okay to take out a personal loan in certain circumstances. The advertisement of a credit institution is printed next to it.
The sponsorship of teaching materials is now also an issue for the Swiss Commission for Vocational Education and Training, as reported by SDA. The private sponsors include BP and Mobiliar. The project was also previously supported by the Federal Department of Finance, which has now discontinued its sponsorship. Nevertheless, the fourth, 100,000-copy edition of the teaching aid will soon be published. For the publisher Emil Schatz, cooperation between schools and business is simply a reality and the team of authors is completely independent.

 On Wednesday, it was announced that the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) is planning a new national alcohol prevention program. Among other things, alcohol sales are to be banned after 9 pm. This also includes advertising restrictions: No more advertising for alcohol is to be visible during media coverage of sporting events. However, nothing has been decided yet: "The prevention program was leaked to the media through an indiscretion," Anne Lévy, Head of the Alcohol Section at the FOPH, told Werbewoche. "The plan is currently being drawn up with the involvement of around 50 organizations". It will be submitted to the Federal Council in the fall. If it approves the program, the details will have to be negotiated. "It is not yet possible to say what the implementation would look like in detail," Lévy continues. It is therefore not yet clear whether manufacturers of alcoholic beverages would no longer be allowed to advertise on perimeter boards or print sponsor names on players' jerseys.
According to the FOPH, the reason for the measure is that international studies have shown the effect of availability prevention. "In addition to traditional prevention, prevention in the form of availability restrictions or advertising restrictions is also effective," said Lévy.
The Swiss Advertising Association was not pleased with the FOPH's plans. "Even if the matter has not yet been decided, one thing is clear: as was to be expected, the FOPH is continuing to work on reducing freedom of communication," said spokesperson Piero Schäfer in a statement to Werbewoche. The so-called availability prevention is a further step towards patronizing the citizen.
By prohibiting sponsorship in the sports sector, countless ice hockey and football clubs, and even hornussen clubs, would run into financial difficulties and thus reduce or even stop their work with young people. However, this does not seem to play a role for the FOPH, Schäfer continues: "Prevention through meaningful sporting activities for young people is not part of the FOPH's remit. Perhaps there will soon be no more alcohol advertising in stadiums and on shirts, but lots of frustrated kids on the streets. And what they do is clear even without international studies".

From July 27 to August 5, Werbewoche Online will take a short summer break. The first newsmail after the break will be published on Monday, August 6, 2007. The next issue of the printed Werbewoche will be published on August 16. We wish you all a wonderful summer time!

 The timing for this announcement couldn't be much better: In the middle of the vacation season, Zurich-based Primus Communications announces that it has taken over the nationwide PR mandate for STA Travel. When students travel, going to STA Travel, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the London-based STA Travel Group, is almost automatic. As Primus Communications writes in a press release, STA Travel is still the world's number 1 for youth and student travel. The travel company formerly known as SSR Travel has a worldwide network of branches.
The Swiss section has been in existence for 45 years and today employs 150 people in 13 travel agencies. The PR agency Primus Communications, which specializes in tourism, is now responsible for STA Travel's media relations. The focus will be on regular press relations with the consumer media in German-speaking and French-speaking Switzerland, according to the press release.

 In keeping with Werbewoche Online's last "Last but not least" before the summer break, a report on a marketing campaign by Ikea to turn its furniture stores into tourist attractions. 150 people spent the night at the furniture giant in Oslo this week - including a Norwegian bridal couple who spent their early wedding night in Ikea's bedding department. The two are getting married on Saturday and had spent all their money on organizing the celebration, as reported by SDA. "We have nothing left for a wedding night in a hotel," said 23-year-old bride Angelica Brockme. And so they accepted the free offer from the Swedish furniture company in Oslo on Tuesday.
However, the other sleeping guests were not allowed to enjoy the night by candlelight in the separee, but had to spend the night in a large dormitory in the mattress department. "We planned our vacation near Oslo and thought it would be fun to spend the night at Ikea with the family," said Vanya Olsen, mother of three.
People's vacation tastes are apparently different - some dream of a five-star hotel under palm trees, others of a night in a furniture store. With this in mind, the Werbewoche editorial team wishes you a good summer - whether you spend it on the beach, in a department store, in the mountains or in the office.

 According to figures from Procinema, over one million people have flocked to Swiss cinemas in the last six weeks. This is 525,000 more than in the same period last year, which corresponds to an increase of 106 percent. Cinecom described this as "sensational" in a press release, probably forgetting that the FIFA World Cup took place in the same period last year. The comparison is therefore only of limited significance. The champagne mood at the cinema advertising marketer Cinecom is also in contrast to the figures published by the Handelszeitung on Wednesday, according to which no records are likely to be set at the box office in the current year (see
). On the plus side, according to Cinecom, the sequels proved to be crowd-pullers in advance. And these have been flickering across screens in series since the beginning of the year, from "Pirates of the Carribean" to "Shrek the Third", "Die Hard 4.0" and, of course, "Harry Potter 5". And as the year began, so it continues; with "Rush Hour 3" and "The Bourne Ultimatum", two further sequels that guarantee ratings are still waiting in the wings. It is also to be expected that "The Simpsons Movie", which has just opened, and "Transformers", which got off to a good start in the USA, will ultimately produce a pleasing result.

Smart drivers can look forward to the side effects of winter - snow, ice, frost and poor visibility - with peace of mind. Provided they have had their vehicle subjected to the Daimler-Chrysler winter check. The Biel-based agency Erdmanpeisker is developing a transnational campaign to ensure that as many people as possible do so. Erdmannpeisker will use flyers, mailings, advertisements, posters and PoS materials to draw the attention of smart people to the offer. The campaign has the motto "There's not much that will stop you in winter" and promotes not only the service packages, but also smart accessories and accessories. According to the press release, Erdmannpeisker has also thought about those countries where winter is not an issue and has designed an alternative motif with the slogan "Service from the specialist".

Milk processor Emmi must pay 20,000 francs for covering the Lucerne water tower with an unauthorized poster in April 2006. The employee responsible was also fined 5,000 francs. Emmi had covered the medieval tower with a 17 by 15 meter poster advertising its new drink Lacto Tab (see
). On the same day, the poster was removed and the city police filed a criminal complaint. The Lucerne-City District Governor's Office subsequently issued two rulings: A fine of 5,000 francs for the company's head of marketing, which has been legally valid for some time. In addition, Emmi was to pay the state 20,000 francs because the group had gained an unlawful pecuniary advantage with the action. The company did not want to accept this and took the decision to the Lucerne High Court.
However, according to the ruling published on Thursday, the highest Lucerne court also came to the conclusion that the confiscation of assets was legal. The court did not accept the group's objection that it had rather suffered damage to its image because of the negative reporting. The action was the subject of widespread reporting and the court found that the positive effect of the publicity achieved was likely to significantly outweigh any negative effect. The advertising had been planned in detail and approved by the Executive Board.
According to the ruling, the Supreme Court considers it reasonable to have the amount of the collection calculated by an expert. It would have to be clarified with which financial advertising expenditure the same publicity effect could have been achieved legally. Emmi is obviously not interested in this. According to information provided by the local governor's office, the company accepted the injunction following the ruling of the higher court. The case is closed.
 

 Once again this year, the Faspo sponsorship association is looking for the best sponsorship projects. The International Sponsoring Award (ISA) honors sponsoring concepts that were implemented and communicated particularly successfully in Germany, Switzerland and Austria in 2007. The best sponsoring commitments in the categories of sport, culture, media and public are to be honored. In addition, a special award will be presented for the most innovative sponsorship commitment. The decisive factors for a successful entry are the mutual benefit for both partners, the strategic networking of activities and the measurable proof of successful communication, as Faspo explains in a press release.
Last year, Feldschlösschen and Erdgas Ostschweiz, among others, won an award alongside established names such as IBM and Coca Cola. The Sponsoring Association has announced that the jury will be made up of renowned experts from the worlds of business and science. Nominations are free of charge and will be accepted until October 15. These and the jury's suggestions will be used to determine the participants in the final round, which is subject to a fee. The award ceremony will then take place on January 15, 2008 in Hamburg. Interested parties can find the complete tender documents under the following link.

 Even after the discontinuation of three magazine formats in Germany, the station belonging to the ProSiebenSat.1 television group may retain its broadcasting license as a full program. The responsible State Agency for Media and Communication (LMK) in Ludwigshafen decided that the proportion of information in the total broadcasting time was still sufficient. In percentage terms, the proportion of information in the station's program is 23.4 percent, while 20 percent would be mandatory. When calculating the information share of a station, not only news is included, but also service contributions, as the SDA quotes the LMK in a press release. The review of the broadcasting license followed the discontinuation of three magazine formats in the course of the takeover of the SBS television group and the associated reduction of around 180 jobs (see
). This is partly offset by the thinning out of Sat.1's information program.