Contest: Loterie Romande is launching a new scratch-off ticket created by the Trio agency. The French-speaking agency also designed the launch campaign. About the ticket: With «Fou de …,» players can win a Mini Cooper S Convertible or 40,000 francs in cash. Those who don’t win can try their luck a second time online. Hidden beneath the scratch-off area of «Fou de …» are symbols of a Mini Cooper S Cabrio and prizes ranging from 4 to 10,000 francs. If the same amount appears three times when you scratch, you’ve won it. If the Mini appears three times: enjoy the ride!

 According to the Swiss Advertising Statistics Foundation, net advertising revenues rose again in 2006. Television and outdoor advertising both gained market share, while print media remained stable. For the third consecutive year, net advertising spending is on the rise. The low point was in 2003, when net advertising revenues for all of Switzerland stood at 5.123 billion Swiss francs. They have since reached 5.632 billion Swiss francs, meaning they are practically back at the 2001 level—at least at first glance.
However, this is not the case; the current total figure is not really comparable to those of previous years. This is because the statistics for trade fairs and exhibitions have been expanded, making the net volume appear significantly higher (see box «Trade Fairs and Exhibitions»). If the statistics had been compiled exactly as before, the current total net figure would likely still be about 130,000 Swiss francs lower than that of 2001. However, since WEMF also recalculated the statistics for 2005 using the new methodology, the following statement can still be made: The 5.632 billion in net revenue in 2006 is approximately 180 million Swiss francs, or 3.3 percent, higher than the comparable figure for 2005.
A look at the individual media categories reveals that, with the exception of teletext (–23.7 percent), radio (–2.9 percent), and movie theaters (unchanged), all categories saw slight growth compared to the previous year. Growth rates were 7 percent for outdoor advertising, 4.5 percent for television, 3.1 percent for print media, 3 percent for direct mail, and 0.7 percent for address books. Online and Ad-Screen are also listed for the first time—but only with gross figures and therefore outside the overall statistics.
It is interesting to note that net advertising revenues in 2006 grew at roughly the same rate as—or even slightly faster than—gross domestic product (GDP), which increased by 3.3 percent compared to 2005. In recent years (with the exception of 2004), net advertising revenues have consistently been well below GDP growth.
With regard to net advertising investments in the press, the following aspect is also likely to be significant for the future development of the Swiss newspaper landscape: Last year, 1.688 billion francs were invested in advertisements in daily, weekly, and Sunday newspapers—4.5 percent more than in 2005. The Sunday market saw the largest increase (+10.1 percent). However, the free daily and weekly newspapers benefited even more: Their net advertising revenue rose to 298 million Swiss francs—40 million, or 15.2 percent, more than in 2005. However, the existing free titles had to share this additional revenue with the four newcomers: Matin Bleu, 20 minutes, Heute, and Cash daily. Incidentally, subscription-based publications grew by only 2.5 percent.
When viewed by language region, the situation takes on a different perspective: In German-speaking Switzerland, daily and regional weekly newspapers (excluding Sunday papers) grew by a total of 4.5 percent, while free-circulation titles grew by 7.5 percent—twice as much as subscription-based newspapers. In French-speaking Switzerland and Ticino, daily and weekly titles grew by 4.8 percent, or 18 million francs. However, this growth—and even more besides, totaling 22 million francs—went entirely to the free publications, primarily to *Matin Bleu* and *20 minutes*. The subscription press actually recorded a decline of 1.1 percent compared to 2005.
The outlook is more positive for western and southern Switzerland when it comes to the general-interest, financial, and business press, as well as specialized and trade journals: Publications in the French- and Italian-speaking regions consistently posted gains, whereas those in German-speaking Switzerland posted losses across the board.
In terms of TV advertising (excluding sponsorship), Swiss private broadcasters once again posted the strongest growth, rising by 13.8 percent, while foreign advertising slots increased by 7 percent and SRG by 0.2 percent. Including sponsorship, however, the percentage increases in revenue for Swiss private broadcasters and advertising slots were nearly equal. Sponsorship of TV programs also showed a significantly higher growth rate than TV advertising: it rose by 11 million to 54 million Swiss francs (up 27.1 percent).
Radio advertising, on the other hand, was less in demand. Excluding sponsorship revenue—and thus excluding SRG stations—net advertising revenue fell by 10 million to 104 million Swiss francs (–8.3 percent), with German-speaking Switzerland suffering a greater decline both in percentage terms and in absolute figures than western and southern Switzerland. When sponsorship—and thus the SRG radio share—is factored in, the picture is similar to that of TV: sponsorship is also in high demand on the radio. Last year, it grew by 6 to 34 million Swiss francs (+19.1 percent) and already accounts for one-fifth of net revenue in this sector.
Markus Knöpfli

Publicitas At the P Publishers' Conference, Hanspeter Rohner made a brash appearance. He left many questions unanswered - and room for speculation. At the Publicitas Publishers' Conference on June 13 in Thun, PubliGroup CEO Hanspeter Rohner made a bold statement. On the one hand, he announced that he had terminated the framework agreement with Tamedia at the end of 2007. Negotiations were underway. "But if we can't reach an agreement, we'll have to do without Tamedia," said Rohner. However, he did not elaborate on what this would ultimately mean. Would Publicitas no longer even place advertisements for Tamedia titles? Even if this is what the clients want? Or was this just a threatening gesture? A second statement by Rohner made people sit up and take notice. "The days when Publigroupe was the Mother Teresa of Swiss newspapers are over," he said. The extent to which he sees P as a benefactor was again left to the interpretation of the audience. Obviously on purpose. Because Werbewoche, which contacted him by e-mail about the two statements, did not receive any explanations from Rohner either.
 
Reactions to Rohner's comments varied among the publishers. There were neither questions nor objections at the conference itself. However, most participants did not seem to take the speech too seriously. One, who did not wish to be named, dismissed it primarily as "loud shouting". "I bet Tamedia and Publicitas will agree on a contract in the end," he added.
Erwin Bachmann, Board Delegate of LZ Medien, also speaks primarily of "exaggerated rhetoric" and that the soup was probably not eaten as hot as it was served. A more casual response comes from Rüebliland: "What did Hanspeter Rohner actually want to tell us?" asks Ueli Eckstein, Head of Print Media at the AZ Media Group, with a grin. In any case, he doesn't want to get involved in interpretations.
And Hanspeter Lebrument, who had himself represented at the conference, even puts himself in front of the Publigroupe CEO: "I don't want to comment on my friend Hanspeter Rohner," says the Südostschweiz boss and publisher president.
Here and there, especially among publishers managed by Publicitas, Rohner has also met with cautious approval. "If Rohner meant that the P is stepping up its commitment to directorial titles again, then that is definitely a positive thing for us as a long-standing P partner," says Marcel Geissbühler, Head of Media at Biel-based W. Gassmann AG (Bieler Tagblatt/Journal du Jura). Did the P ever take on the role of Mother Teresa? "Certainly not in our case," Geissbühler defends himself.
The P is well compensated "Neither are we," says Urs Bucher, Publishing Director of the Thurgauer Zeitung (TZ). The TZ has been working under its own management since the beginning of the year, before that it was part-leased. "I always had the impression that our relationship was based on performance and consideration and that this was not too tight from the P's point of view," says Bucher. "In any case, she has never babied TC." It is possible that this was more necessary with smaller titles, Bucher adds.
However, this is far from the truth: "The P was never a Mother Teresa for us," emphasizes Fritz Lötscher, publishing director of the Entlebucher Anzeiger (circulation: 8800 copies). He does not hide the fact that the P generates 30 to 35 percent of his newspaper's turnover - thanks to partial management for the national market. "Small newspapers need an advocate, otherwise they can't get large-scale advertisements," he explains. But this is not free. "The P is not badly remunerated for its marketing," says Lötscher, who is also chairman of the "Luzerner Landzeitungen" advertising pool (also leased by the P).
Self-confident big playersAnd what about the big players, such as the Edipresse newspapers: Are they supported by the P? "No, we are not the orphans of the P," counters Théo Bouchat, Head of Edipresse Switzerland. Edipresse is a fairly large customer of P and is neither in a begging situation nor does the company need a mouthpiece. Rather, the relationship between Edipresse and P is always "negotiated on a business-oriented basis".
This is also the case at the NZZ. Nevertheless, Markus Ehrle, head of the NZZ advertising market, does not simply dismiss Rohner's thesis of "Mother Teresa". "Publimedia, which previously acted as a promoter of the print genre, is actually making a huge effort with 2,500 titles in its portfolio," he says. And he will know: Until just under a year ago, he was Marketing Director of this very Publigroupe subsidiary.
"Although it is a profit-making company, Publimedia also does things that - viewed in isolation - are not actually worthwhile, but which are of benefit to it and the press as a whole," continues Ehrle. In view of the trend towards direct booking discounts and self-direction, Publimedia must now consider what to do if it is no longer adequately paid by the publishers. "In any case, the NZZ as a directing partner is not unhappy if the P changes its policy and represents us more strongly in negotiations with customers," says Ehrle.
Two years ago, there were already tough negotiations between Tamedia and Publicitas that dragged on for more than a year. At that time, Tamedia had terminated the agreement for the advertising commission - but only for Tages-Anzeiger and SonntagsZeitung (SoZ).
When the new contract came into force retroactively from mid-2005, there was actually only one change to the content - to the bonus arrangements. The bonuses that Tagi and SoZ have been paying Publimedia since then are no longer purely dependent on turnover, but also on market share. At the time, Tamedia argued that P was not entitled to bonuses if it merely kept pace with market developments. However, as soon as the P made up ground for the Tamedia titles - even with falling sales - its efforts were to be rewarded. This bonus regulation has also applied to all other Tamedia titles since 2006. It is therefore likely that Publigroupe will now want to raise precisely this point for discussion again.
Markus Knöpfli

 Werbewoche: Why was the decision to discontinue *Facts* made at this particular time? Is there a connection to the launch of the first Swiss supplement of the German news magazine *Spiegel* on Monday, June 25, 2007? 
 
Christoph Zimmer: No. The decision has nothing to do with the publication of the one-time Swiss edition of *Der Spiegel*. The reason is that we no longer see any prospects for the weekly magazine *Facts*. Although we succeeded in stabilizing readership figures and building up the advertising market, unfortunately this was not enough. The hoped-for upswing failed to materialize. 
 
WW: According to rumors, the Zurich-based media company Tamedia has been in talks with *Der Spiegel*. But they couldn't reach an agreement on price? 
 
C.Z.: We discussed the possibility of a joint split release. However, we both came to the conclusion that this would not be profitable on the Swiss market. 
 
WW: Won't the subscriber base be sold to Spiegel either? 
 
C.Z.: No. We offer our subscribers other Tamedia publications, such as the *Sonntagszeitung*. 
 
WW: Will Andreas Durisch remain editor-in-chief of the Sonntagszeitung? 
 
C.Z.: Yes. It was always the plan for Andreas Durisch to return to the Sonntagszeitung after his temporary assignment at Facts. We would like to take this opportunity to thank him and all the Facts staff for their tremendous dedication, and we regret that we see no other option. 
 
WW: What will happen to the employees? What are the next steps? 
 
C.Z.: Employees can exercise their legal right to submit proposals aimed at saving Facts or seeking more lenient termination terms. We will also try to either place as many employees as possible in other positions within the company or assist them in finding new jobs. 
 
WW: Is there a chance that the affected employees' rights to participate could turn the situation around? 
 
C.Z.: It can't be ruled out that an employee might make a compelling proposal—but we've tried everything over the past few months to find a way forward for Facts. 
 
WW: What does the future hold for weekly news magazines at Tamedia? Are there plans for other titles? 
 
C.Z.: No, we’re not planning a new weekly news magazine. We’ve invested over 100 million in Facts over the past twelve years. However, Facts was in the red every year except one. We’ve come to the conclusion that the weekly market in Switzerland is too small due to the strong Sunday editions. 
 
WW: The media union Comedia has criticized Tamedia for discontinuing the news magazine *Facts*, calling the decision «incomprehensible.» What do you think of this criticism? 
 
C.Z.: Over the past twelve years, we’ve tried everything to make *Facts* a success, but we ultimately had to accept that the magazine has no future in Switzerland. Therefore, we see no other option but to discontinue *Facts*. 
Interview: Rona Grünenfelder

 Still no end in sight to the press subsidy dispute: an agreement conference is being held on the bill to reduce newspaper transportation fees. The Council of States is not satisfied with the concessions made by the National Council. Both Councils only want regional and local press with limited circulation and smaller member papers to benefit from the indirect press subsidy. In the last round, the National Council abandoned its "watering can" concept, which would have continued to include large publishers, without resistance.
However, the National Council was more generous with regard to the amount to be used: compared to the small chamber, it doubled the compensation for the regional and local press from CHF 20 million to CHF 40 million and for the member press from CHF 10 million to CHF 20 million.
The Council of States did not agree with this on Wednesday. In its view, the 30 million is enough to guarantee the tariffs. It was not acceptable to help a part of the press to free distribution. The small chamber also opposed the National Council's decision not to limit the aid to small-circulation titles until the end of 2011.
Both councils have the same number of members in the conciliation conference. If your proposal fails in even just one of the two chambers, the entire bill is off the table.

Market Research: According to the Swiss Advertising Statistics Foundation, net advertising revenues rose again in 2006. Television and outdoor advertising both gained market share, while print media remained stable. For the third consecutive year, net advertising spending is on the rise. The low point was in 2003, when net advertising revenue for all of Switzerland stood at 5.123 billion Swiss francs. It has since risen to 5.632 billion Swiss francs, meaning it is practically back at the 2001 level. At least at first glance. But that is not the case; the current total is not really comparable to previous years. This is because the statistics for trade fairs and exhibitions have been expanded, making the net volume appear significantly higher (see box «Trade Fairs and Exhibitions»). If the statistics had been compiled exactly as before, the current total net value would likely still be about 130,000 Swiss francs below that of 2001. However, since WEMF also recalculated the statistics for 2005 using the new methodology, the following statement can still be made: The 5.632 billion in net revenue in 2006 is approximately 180 million Swiss francs, or 3.3 percent, higher than the comparable figure for 2005.
A look at the individual media categories reveals that, with the exception of teletext (–23.7 percent), radio (–2.9 percent), and movie theaters (unchanged), all categories saw slight growth compared to the previous year. Growth rates were 7 percent for outdoor advertising, 4.5 percent for television, 3.1 percent for print media, 3 percent for direct mail, and 0.7 percent for address books. Online and Ad-Screen are also listed for the first time—but only with gross figures and therefore outside the overall statistics.
It is interesting to note that net advertising revenues in 2006 grew at roughly the same rate as—or even slightly faster than—gross domestic product (GDP), which increased by 3.3 percent compared to 2005. In recent years (with the exception of 2004), net advertising revenues have consistently been well below GDP growth.
With regard to net advertising investments in the press, the following factor is also likely to be significant for the future development of the Swiss newspaper landscape: Last year, 1.688 billion francs were invested in advertisements in daily, weekly, and Sunday newspapers—4.5 percent more than in 2005.  The Sunday market saw the largest increase (+10.1 percent). However, the free daily and weekly newspapers benefited even more: Their net advertising revenue rose to 298 million Swiss francs—40 million, or 15.2 percent, more than in 2005. However, the existing free publications had to share this additional revenue with the four newcomers: Matin Bleu, 20 minutes, Heute, and Cash daily. Subscription-based publications, by the way, grew by only 2.5 percent.
When viewed by language region, the situation takes on a different perspective: In German-speaking Switzerland, daily and regional weekly newspapers (excluding Sunday papers) grew by a total of 4.5 percent, while free-distribution titles grew by 7.5 percent—twice as much as subscription-based newspapers. In French-speaking Switzerland and Ticino, daily and weekly publications did grow by 4.8 percent, or 18 million francs. However, this growth—and even more besides, totaling 22 million francs—went entirely to the free publications, primarily to *Matin Bleu* and *20 minutes*. The subscription press actually recorded a decline of 1.1 percent compared to 2005.
The outlook is more positive for western and southern Switzerland when it comes to the general-interest, financial, and business press, as well as specialized and trade journals: Publications in the French- and Italian-speaking regions consistently posted gains, whereas those in German-speaking Switzerland posted losses across the board.
In terms of TV advertising (excluding sponsorship), Swiss private broadcasters once again posted the strongest growth, rising by 13.8 percent, while foreign advertising slots increased by 7 percent and SRG by 0.2 percent. Including sponsorship, however, the percentage increases in revenue for Swiss private broadcasters and advertising slots were nearly equal. Sponsorship of TV programs also showed a significantly higher growth rate than TV advertising: it rose by 11 million to 54 million Swiss francs (up 27.1 percent).
Radio advertising, on the other hand, was less in demand. Excluding sponsorship revenue—and thus excluding SRG stations—net advertising revenue fell by 10 million to 104 million Swiss francs (–8.3 percent), with German-speaking Switzerland suffering a greater decline both in percentage terms and in absolute figures than western and southern Switzerland. When sponsorship—and thus the SRG radio share—is factored in, the picture is similar to that of TV: sponsorship is also in high demand on the radio. Last year, it grew by 6 to 34 million Swiss francs (+19.1 percent) and already accounts for one-fifth of net revenue in this sector.   
Methodology: The figures are based on surveys of media companies (publishers, broadcasters) throughout Switzerland and the Principality of Liechtenstein and reflect the amounts that advertisers actually paid for advertising placements. Surveys were conducted from March through May 2007.
 
Estimates are included only if refusals to provide information would have resulted in significant distortions in the year-over-year comparison. The extent of these refusals is illustrated by the example of print media: In 2006, 379 titles reported their net revenues—79.8 percent of the total circulation of all print titles. In 2005, 377 titles reported their net revenues, representing 73.8 percent of the total circulation at that time.
 
Direct mail refers, on the one hand, to the actual revenue generated by distribution organizations from the distribution of unaddressed mail and, on the other hand, to an estimate by the postal service of postage revenue from addressed mail based on representative surveys of companies.
How Net Advertising Revenue from Customers Is Calculated: Net advertising revenue from customers is calculated by subtracting discounts (for volume and repeat purchases) from gross revenue. Commissions, fees (JUP, BK), and other incentives are not included. Production costs (such as those for the services of advertising and media agencies) for printing brochures or posters, producing a commercial, or constructing a trade show booth are also not included.
Trade Shows: A Special Case
The «Trade Fairs and Exhibitions» report is based on an annual survey conducted by the Swiss Trade Fair Association (VMS).  It is based on commercially oriented international, national, or regional events published in the Swiss Trade Fair Calendar. Last year, the VMS adapted its internal statistics to the needs of the industry, making them more comprehensive than before and therefore no longer comparable to the earlier publications of the Swiss Advertising Expenditure Foundation.
 
The figures from the expanded statistics were also collected retroactively for 2005. The year-over-year comparisons are based on the expanded statistics: For 2006, revenue from 217 trade shows was recorded (2005: 199 trade shows). The net revenue
Revenues in 2006 totaled 345 million Swiss francs, up 1.7 percent from the previous year.

Internet Second Life is the star in the media. But other worlds are booming more. About virtual worlds and their opportunities for advertisers. After school, Elias Hauenstein likes to spend his free time with friends. He plays football or helps his grandfather in the garage on free afternoons. After dinner, Elias withdraws and turns his back on the real world. He logs onto the internet and immerses himself in virtual worlds for hours. His territory is not the utopian world of Second Life. Elias, 10 years old, prefers the Habbo Hotel or Webkinz.Habbo Hotel is a meeting place for young people his age. They meet up to chat in rooms they have set up themselves. Elias chats about football or school. On the side, he feeds Hippo, his cyber stuffed animal, in another browser window. A few days ago, he received the cuddly toy from his uncle overseas, which has since sold millions of copies. Using the security code provided, Elias was able to bring the creature to life online. Since then, he has been feeding and caring for it like a Tamagotchi. As a reminder, the Japanese toy was a worldwide bestseller in the 1990s. The electronic animal had to be kept alive with the help of three buttons.
Upward trend for online worlds 10-year-old Elias is part of a booming phenomenon. More and more people are meeting in virtual and interactive internet environments. The younger generations in particular are discovering online playgrounds. Market researchers from Hitwise assume that more than 80 percent of Internet users will regularly spend their time in a pixel world in 2011. Today, according to an analysis by the consulting firm Fittkau & Maass, the figure is 30%.
Virtual gaming is not a subculture. The market is worth billions. The consulting firm Screen Digest estimates global revenues of 1.5 billion dollars. And that is from membership fees alone. Experts from the Gartner Group estimate that 526 million dollars were earned with subscriptions to virtual worlds in the USA in 2006. Fantasy worlds are particularly popular with children and young people.
The boom is now also affecting traditional media groups. News Corp, whose boss is media mogul Rupert Murdoch, has its eye on the online children's playground Club Penguins. However, its offer of 400 million dollars falls on deaf ears with the owners. Although the amount is roughly equivalent to the price Murdoch paid for the homepage portal MySpace. The homepage portal is one of the most popular Internet sites with the highest data traffic in the USA.
Club Penguins is the MySpace for 7 to 12-year-olds. Children have been waddling around the net with their pixel penguins since 2005. Starting with 15,000 members, the club now has more than four million registered children. On good days, up to 50,000 kids join. And the trend is rising. It is therefore obvious that Murdoch and, incidentally, Google are interested in the penguins. No target group is as receptive to advertising as children. Once a brand is anchored in the minds of children, it is difficult to banish it from their minds.
However, owner Lane Merrifield has other plans for the portal. Selling it is out of the question for her. Instead, she wants to set up an ad-free zone for the children online. She is not interested in advertising. After all, the club mainly earns money by selling fan merchandise and toys. This is not a business that the entrepreneur runs as a sideline. The children inundate the online store with requests. According to Mediamark Research, things are looking good globally. 47% of 9 to 17-year-olds ask their parents to buy their toys online only. Parents in the USA spend 112 billion dollars a year on toys for their children. Merrifield is aware of this.
The Penguin Club is not the only up-and-coming game world with great potential. Gaiaonline.com is also flourishing and is currently the most visited fantasy world. "Join the fastest growing online hangout", advertises the Internet world on the homepage. Second Life (SL) is nothing compared to this. The number of registered users on Gaiaonline.com doubles every year. The site regularly appears in the top ten rankings in the USA. Second Life is far behind. Despite the boom and intensive reporting. The renowned business journal Businessweek estimates that just 0.00091 percent of American web traffic is attributable to Second Life. The unknown medieval game RuneScape accounts for 0.17 percent.
When you read figures like these, the hype surrounding the second life raises questions. The many SL stories and diaries in the newspapers reporting on virtual Duckburg are incomprehensible. Yet young people and the majority of users spend their free time in other online spheres. In Switzerland, this is mainly in the Habbo Hotel or in the football world of Hattrick. Both games do not require elaborate graphic design. The Swiss are addicted to these games and spend an astonishing number of hours transferring players, building stadiums, setting up rooms or on virtual scavenger hunts.
Second Life is not keeping upHabbo Hotel has more than 75 million young members worldwide. In Switzerland, there are currently over one million registered players who meet in the 2D rooms. And since 2005, at least 400,000 new "Habbos" have joined every year. On rainy weekends, up to 2,600 young people meet simultaneously in the digital hotel lobby to chat in the Swiss version.
The business simulation Second Life is not keeping pace in terms of the number of players. A study by internet consultancy firm Fittkau & Maass shows that the gold rush atmosphere surrounding Second Life ends in disappointment for the majority of users. For 70 percent, according to the consultants, the first visit is also the last. Two out of three players are deadbeats. If you want to set up a Second Life presence in the form of a pompous pixel palace, think twice. In contrast to the other up-and-coming worlds, the Linden Lab world is yawningly empty. A video by a blogger shows this impressively. He regularly visited 60 companies and their branches and snapped a picture each time he stopped by. He compiled the photos into a movie. The sobering conclusion: yawning emptiness on site.
Thousands of transfers - every dayIn the Finnish online hit Habbo Hotel, on the other hand, you can always find people somewhere since 2001. In the Swedish football world Hattrick, too, there are always several thousand players online at the same time. Thousands of transfers are made every day. In many Swiss companies, there is even a ban on Hattrick. The reason: the manager simulation is addictive.
According to Habbo Hotel operator Sulake, the digital hotel is the most successful online game for young people. The axonometric 2D world scores highly with users. Advertisers also appreciate the virtual guest house. The Swiss hotel version is extremely popular for in-game advertising. Major corporations such as Coca-Cola, L'Oréal, Universal Pictures and UBS invest money in product launches.
Each campaign costs 20,000 francs. There are no upper limits. Users are not bothered by the advertising. This is also because the operators do not place clumsy banner ads, but instead place advertising in such a way that it is perceived as a playful element. Take Ovomaltine, for example. In a labyrinth, players had to answer questions about the new Ovo bar and find their way to the destination at the same time. The interstitials, which are like interruptive advertising on television, also achieve excellent click rates, according to the operators Sulake.
In this respect, Habbo Hotel is a success story when it comes to in-game advertising. Sulake has high hopes for its chat game platform and its advertising offer. Unlike fantasy games such as World of Warcraft, the hotel environment lends itself well to brand building. The environment is free of violence.
 
Christian Lüscher

 Daniel Imwinkelried will take over as head of the business section of the Aargauer Zeitung on August 13, 2007. The 40-year-old succeeds Max Fischer, who is moving to Schweizer Illustrierte. Imwinkelried previously worked for the Swiss Confederation, Bankgesellschaft and Handelszeitung, among others, where he was responsible for the financial section and covered the banking sector. After working briefly abroad for the daily newspaper Die Welt in Berlin, he moved to Cash in November 2004 as head of the investment section.

Lion Hunt III TheSwiss are making an effort, but construction sites remain. It is astonishing to see the giant strides the Swiss are making in their Cannes commitment: This year, 617 works from Switzerland are in the running. This represents an increase of almost 36 percent compared to the previous year, and 69 percent more than in 2005. The only annoying thing is that the number of lions won to date has not developed in proportion to the increased investment. In both 2005 and 2006, five trophies went to Switzerland, which could change for the better this year. The Amnesty International campaign by Walker, for example, is in the running in the outdoor sector and has already scored points at other international award shows. Both the idea and the execution are right here. The presentation stands out pleasantly from other motifs from Switzerland, which still try too hard to follow the "Brazilian" trend. In other words: nicely told visual jokes that are not really surprising - such as the Gran Gusto Gelateria campaign by Advico Young & Rubicam or the Hug campaign by Jung von Matt/Limmat. These works may be originally conceived, but they neither make the viewer think, nor do they cause an aha effect.
A few years ago, you could certainly still score points in Cannes with this kind of work. Nowadays, however, preference is given to print and outdoor contributions that challenge the viewer or play with the respective medium. This may also be one of the reasons why Walker's Fleurop advertisements, which are extremely popular in Switzerland and Germany, did not even make it onto the shortlist at the festival on the Côte d'Azur. Although these works trigger a pleasant sense of déjà vu in the viewer in view of the mother-child situations depicted, they only bring a brief smile to the face.
The Swiss have been performing consistently well at Lions Direct for the past three years - this year, three works once again made it onto the winners' podium. As in the previous year, this shows very clearly what the juries attach particular importance to: the unique idea. The "Tailored Shirts" campaign for Artesanos Camiseros by DraftFCB/Lowe Group, which is also very innovative in terms of its use of media, won two awards. The "Alternative World Cup 2006" campaign for Switzerland Tourism by SFLB also came out on top. What stands out positively here is that the original campaign idea is played out consistently across various media. Good execution and attractive artwork alone are not enough to win a Lion. The work must be original and unseen and contain a strong message. This is the case with the Swiss DM work.
Walker's Fleurop works have the potential to succeed in Cannes in the film category. Other entries, such as the Beck & Bondi films for Swisscom, may be popular in their home country. For the Cannes Lions, however, they are neither quirky nor emotional enough to make it through to the final round.
But no matter how hard the Swiss try to play a significant role in Cannes, there is still a huge construction site: the Swiss have hardly played a role at the Cyber Lions to date. A modest 17 works were submitted in this discipline. While everyone is talking about Web 2.0 and companies are shifting their marketing budgets towards online, Swiss agencies are still concentrating on print and outdoor. There is a huge amount of catching up to do here - and plenty of room for further growth.
Bärbel Unckrich

Automobil Jung von Matt/Limmat uses digital chain letters to call for test drives in a Mini. An unusual car also calls for unconventional ideas in advertising. "Is it love?" - with this slogan, the new era of the Mini began in 2001, when the English brand moved under the wing of BMW. Soon after, the new Mini was advertised with a sensational "Mission Mini." TV teams and media people from all over the world set off from Barcelona on a media-effective "scavenger hunt" with over 100 Mini in the colors of the participating countries. Now, the second generation of the popular small car has been available since November 2006. This time under the motto "Incredibly Mini. The new Mini. While the design has only been moderately updated, the engines in particular are new and more economical. The result: driving pleasure that is best tested in a test drive. After all, "60 percent of all potential buyers who test drive a Mini actually buy it," says Adrian Riesen at Mini Switzerland.
Voices from the InternetFor the call to test drive, Jung von Matt/Limmat has now developed digital chain letters. These have been sent to the recipients of the mini-newsletter. The letters contain very oblique texts, which are naturally intended to entice viral forwarding. To emphasize the anonymity of the medium, JvM had the texts spoken by computer voices from the Internet. A special viral effect: An "e-mail to 50 friends" function gives the recipient the opportunity to forward the letter to dozens of acquaintances with just one click.
The chain letters "Glück und Schweinebraten" (Happiness and roast pork) or "Elvis lebt" (Elvis lives) are also visible and audible on www.50-freunde.ch and partially on the radio.
Andreas Panzeri

Thomas Meyer has taken over the agency Malstube and renamed it Meyer Werbung. He plans more guerrilla campaigns. "Girl smell is a wonderful poison. Even a very little of it sends me into paralyzing raptures and gives me the odd fantastic hallucination," Thomas Meyer reveals. Once he's "poisoned," he knows how to lyricize: "Love is the wild dance over thin ice and the hovering flight into the seething volcano." Or: "Love is the pass ride without brakes, the jump into the bear enclosure and the nap on the pilot's seat." Quite poetic words from someone who has just introduced himself as a new young entrepreneur with the simple name Meyer Werbung. Let's look back.All these sentences can be found in the book "Die Federhure" by Thomas Meyer. Before he could no longer avoid this profession of a word worker, Meyer tried to be a good son to his parents by studying law. Although advertising interested him much more even then. But how does one become an advertiser? The people in charge at Schweizer Werbung (SW) will be happy to hear the answer: Jung-Meyer discovered in their brochure that the profession of copywriter exists. The rest is told without many words: Internships at Wirz, Hostettler and Fabrikant, GGK.
In 1997, he found his first real job with this agency in Zurich. In other words, "The legal career was in the toilet with that."
At GGK, junior lyricist Meyer not only found "a very good teacher" in Markus Rottmann. He also gave him the impetus to go public with his own underground texts in Zurich. Meyer developed a website that could be described as "the first blog" of the Zurich advertising scene. Meyer signed his texts with Hans Schmerz. He got the idea for this pseudonym at the cinema during the credits of the film "Alien". A certain John Hurt plays in it. The rest is translation. Later Meyer worked for the magazine Kult.
Meyer also ran "guerrilla advertising" for his pioneering website a few years before the big trend. He scattered stickers everywhere with just one mysterious web address on them: www.hansschmerz.ch. In the meantime, Meyer had landed at Advico and sent this address - without further text - also to Reini Weber. He thought, "We want that for WHS." Meyer thought, "I want that, too."
In his year at WHS, Meyer "went from junior to semi-senior" and, in addition to Switzerland Tourism, was also allowed to contribute to the legendary campaign for the Tagi, for example. Those were the headlines with the claim: "We'll stay tuned."
Copywriter or journalist? Meyer also wanted to get to know the world of media better and switched to City-Blick. For this sister product of Blick Online, he was allowed to report on the work of the airport police as a roving reporter or, for example, "train" to become a streetcar driver in a crash course at VBZ. "All things I always wanted to do," says Meyer, who naturally regretted that City-Blick was discontinued after six months. The journalist with an advertising soul - or vice versa - went back to WHS, but was allowed to continue writing columns for Blick online as a freelancer.
"There were always people who thought I had to choose between purpose-free texts and advertising copy. But I'm still convinced today that I don't have to choose," says Meyer. With the end of WHS and "a sacking at Euro RSCG," the situation was then clarified anyway. Meyer applied to Facts as a producer in 2005 and was hired as head of copy.
"Sex and language" - those were the two topics that most interested Meyer in his part-time job as a journalistic writer. Today, it's "love and language. In addition to his two books "Die Federhure" and "Die Federhure ff.", his first text also appeared in the magazine of the Tages-Anzeiger in 2000. Since then, he has enjoyed guest privileges there once every year and occasionally writes for Weltwoche. "Such and other side jobs in the media will remain, otherwise I'm doing something wrong," says Meyer, who then once again shuttled back to advertising when the role of head of copywriting "fell victim to a structural change" at Facts. 
Meyer subsequently bought into the Malstube. He had already provided the name for this graphic studio of Fabian Gruber in 2001. Since then, he has worked there as a freelancer, while Malstube has increasingly developed into a full-service agency. The most important customers are still Hostpoint and the online marketplace Piazza. For the latter, Malstube caught the eye with the funny story "Sorry, but their marital problems rather not". Later, it was possible to get rid of stupid gifts via Piazza.
When Fabian Gruber said a few months ago that he no longer wanted to do advertising - "and also implemented this opinion" - Meyer just as quickly took over the paint shop 100 percent.
The partner's exit provided Meyer with the opportunity to "find a new decision for everything. What's the name of the agency? Who do I do it with and where?
"That's when I changed everything right away," Meyer states. Instead of working with new partners, he wants to work only with freelancers. "Discussions bore me, which is often interpreted as arrogance. But it's a fact: I prefer to work alone." If he has an idea, he wants to develop it as far as possible without outside influences and, consequently, convince the customer of it himself. "The idea has to be good enough for me to sell it."
He also didn't think the name Malstube was as appropriate anymore. "Let's say it as banal as it really is: Meyer does advertising, so let's put it on the board that way."
And in which area of advertising does Meyer want to be active in the future?
Hostpoint and Piazza remain loyal customers. To this end, Meyer works a lot with the Mediabox agency. Guerrilla marketing. "In this line of business, it's even more challenging to succeed because you approach people so directly that you really have to pick them up. You can't go wrong with an ad, but guerrilla is measurable and really has to work."
What about customer confidence in such a small "kitchen table agency"? "I won't be able to answer that question for another three years. But I'm confident, otherwise I wouldn't be doing it. It's a question of discipline and diligence. As much as you want and demand - that's how much you get." Or to put it again in the words of "Feather Whore," "Never would I sell my soul. But parts of my body."   
 
Andreas Panzeri

 The media union Comedia has criticized Tamedia for discontinuing the news magazine *Facts*. Many jobs will be affected, said Comedia General Secretary Serge Gnos in response to a query from the SDA. Gnos described the end of *Facts* as extremely regrettable. He said it was incomprehensible that this decision would come at this particular time: Tamedia is doing exceptionally well. Last year, it posted the best results in its history and is now investing over 200 million Swiss francs in the acquisition of Espace Media.
«It's incomprehensible that Facts should no longer be given a chance to develop in the market,» Gnos told the SDA. Comedia will now contact Tamedia to begin negotiations on a severance plan for the affected employees.