Following protests and accusations of racism from US civil rights groups and politicians against a Playstation advertisement, Sony has officially apologized. In June, the Japanese electronics giant had shown posters in the Netherlands showing a white woman aggressively grabbing the face of a black woman. The caption read: "The white Playstation is coming", as reported by SDA. Sony did not want to convey any message with the advertisement. Rather, the aim was to emphasize the contrast between the previous black and the new white version of the Playstation, said a Sony spokesperson. "But there were different views in the interpretation of the advertisement, and the company has apologized to those who were offended by the campaign," the spokesperson continued.
Provocative advertising is already well known, not least from Benetton.
However, Sony's marketing professionals should have realized in advance that such advertising generates more than just attention.

LeShop, Migros' online retail subsidiary, recorded a 40 percent increase in sales to CHF 32.7 million in the first half of 2006. LeShop thus achieved two profitable quarters in succession, as the Swiss online store writes in a press release. No figures are given on profitability. However, LeShop was able to acquire 15,600 new customers and the growth of the shopping basket increased by 6.7 percent to an average of 222 francs per customer, confirming the growth trend that LeShop has been experiencing for three years: "For more and more Swiss consumers, online grocery shopping is part of their everyday lives," says Christian Wanner, Managing Director of LeShop, according to the press release. Three years ago, LeShop was a small fish in the international arena - "today, LeShop has caught up and achieves the same turnover as large companies abroad, but in a much smaller market," says Urs Rieder, Head of Marketing at the Migros Cooperative Federation. According to LeShop, the market in Switzerland could reach a volume of 300 to 400 million Swiss francs by 2010. LeShop was founded in 1997. Migros has an 80 percent equity stake in LeShop.

After a good year, Michael Schönhaus has left the advertising agency Zogg.Kettiger.Gasser. He was a member of the management team and, as creative director, was responsible for clients such as Haribo, Exelcat, Fiat, Alfa Romeo, Lancia and for various pharmaceutical accounts, as Persönlich reported. "I don't want to say more about that," Schoenhaus declined an inquiry from Klein Report. Schoenhaus has been a member of the Art Directors Club for 10 years and will work as a freelancer until further notice.

The German tabloid Bild is reintroducing the corrections column on page two from July 14. Following the American model, errors in reporting will be listed and corrected there. Editor-in-chief Kai Diekmann justifies the move with the speed of reporting and human flaws: Due to a huge network of around a thousand journalists, mistakes simply could not be avoided. Corrections should be made quickly and easily in the corrections column.
The correction column had already been introduced by Diekmann's predecessor Udo Röbel. His reasoning: Nothing increases the credibility of a newspaper more than admitting mistakes. Last year, Röbel, together with a colleague and a Hamburg media lawyer, launched the internet portal Fairpress.biz, which aims to give victims of false and one-sided reporting the opportunity to respond with a public rebuttal.

In collaboration with SBB, the advertising agency Z.B. has produced a handbook containing all the important announcements that can be heard on the platforms every day. The handbook is intended to be an important reference work for SBB employees to ensure that messages and information are available at all railroad stations in Switzerland.Z.B is also supporting the launch of the new Center for Medical Education in Berne. The launch is planned for January 1, 2007. Z.B is creating the new name and designing the entire communication presence. The first works should be on display in late fall 2006. As the agency based in Zurich and Berne also reports, the Z.B team will be strengthened by copywriter Valentina Röschli from the beginning of August.

Film funding After the success of the last
year, Talent Screen is looking for Swiss talent for the second time this fall.
Film talents of the future. The initiators Philip Delaquis, Min Li Marti
and Stefan Zuber are breaking new ground with various events in
the promotion of young talent. In a film marathon within 48 hours
a short film can be made. In the Pitch Battle, future
screenwriters compete against each other in front of an audience. Venue of the
competitions is the Zurich Theater Gessnerallee. Communicative
Talent Screen managed by Wirz Werbung. At the center of the
tender is the "Haslimeier" commercial. This consists only of
credits. The credits, however, are quite something: Around 100 times
the name Haslimeier is mentioned.

Josefa Haas, Head of the Media Institute, on the change from publishing to media management. WW: What does a media manager look like?
Josefa Haas: A
A media manager knows the
production and value creation processes in the media industry. He or she
can optimally position its own products on the market and
develop further.

WW: In which areas do media managers work and in which positions can they be found in the media industry?
Haas: It
are women and men in media companies who are strategically
responsibility for the development of their products and for the
the company as a whole.

WW: What are examples of such media products?
Haas: Media managers
and media managers are trained across all genres. They learn the
print sector, the radio and television sector, the Internet and the
developments in multimedia.
 

WW: Training has adapted to the changing developments in the media industry. What does that mean exactly?
Haas: The
The most important thing is the consistent alignment and further development of the
publishing management to media management. Today you cannot
journalistic products in an isolated media genre market
settle. Anyone who publishes a magazine today needs to know how it
the Internet presence is in order or leads a
such themselves. Those who make radio are active in multimedia, those who make print
is itself a provider or competitor in the market at the interfaces with other media genres.

WW: In what way
training is also a tool to counteract the creeping change in the
media by management from outside the industry, which has no industry focus on
maximum profit?
Haas: Central
is that for the media manager, journalistic and media-related
products, i.e. newspapers, Internet platforms, radio and television.
or television products. They must comply with the editorial and
meet journalistic standards. These journalistic products
are marketed in the advertising and user market, which is why it makes a
big difference whether someone has a purely advertising or
PR training and uses the media as one of many instruments
considered. When training to become a media manager and
media manager, journalistic products are at the center of her work. The focus
is therefore a different one.

WW: The federal recognition of the training is not yet finalized?
Haas: Currently
is the procedure at the Federal Office for Professional Education and Technology
(BBT) is still underway. It should be ready by the end of August. It
nothing speaks against recognition.

WW: How important is training in an international or European comparison?
Haas: The
Positioning of media management training corresponds to the
Developments like those seen in Germany, for example. There too
there was a development from publishing salesman to media salesman,
because the orientation towards pure media genres in the media market today
is no longer sufficient. The key arguments are therefore the same. They are
in-service process-oriented training courses, where you can work with
the business from A to Z in a highly systematic way.

WW: With 46 course days, the course is relatively short. Why?
Haas: The
Training takes place on a part-time basis. For the course, one of the
The prerequisite is that you are already working in the media industry.
Future media managers are therefore people who
have already achieved expert status in their specific job.
The final exam tests the entire body of knowledge, i.e. not
only the learning experience, but also the work experience. This is about
a fusion of professional practice and vocational training. This is
the big difference to the universities of applied sciences, which are strongly
are oriented towards the transfer of knowledge at school.

WW: How many students can attend the course?
Haas: In the
last course there were 25 people, which was a bit much. This time I reckon
with between eight and fourteen participants - a small one,
compact class, with members benefiting greatly from each other
be

WW: The training takes place on the premises of the MAZ in Lucerne. What role does the MAZ play?
Haas: None. We are only rented from the MAZ.

The only training in Switzerland
The diploma course for media managers is organized by the Media Institute of the
Swiss Press. The course is the second
Level of the only comprehensive and practice-oriented vocational training for
Media management in Switzerland. The focus is on networked
Application of established industry knowledge, brand management,
Management skills, controlling, planning, communication, law and
Multimedia. The course is aimed at managers in the media sector
and provides knowledge of the mechanisms and developments of the
media market. The examination regulations will be adapted to current developments
adapted to European education policy.

Information under
www.medieninstitut.ch

Interview: René Worni

Insurance company Catsky & Partner shows Suva how insured persons can save costs with its New Case Management at SuvaCare.
Suva has been able to raise over 200 million francs in the last three years.
without sacrificing performance, but solely thanks to the
intelligent care concept. For this rehabilitation and
reintegration concept, Suva won the Swiss Innovation Award of the
private insurance and created around 65 new jobs.

"Suva is showing the IV how to generate fewer new pensions and
people recover properly after a serious accident and also in the
back into working life in their own interest, so that the
quality of life is maintained," says Claude Catsky.

The Zurich-based advertiser is proud of the fact that he has launched several campaigns in
the last three years certainly also "played a certain part in the success
Suva has." Catsky's new large-scale campaign now deals with
the topic of SuvaCare: rehabilitation and reintegration of
Accident insurance.

At the heart of the matter is the statement that Suva is responsible for all
and insured persons to be the true stars of our time, who have made the
difficult times of rehabilitation and fought his way back
into life. Suva would like to thank them and at the same time
that they will continue to support people who have suffered serious accidents.
and helps them with their rehabilitation. Because with the
reintegration, everyone is a winner in the end: the accident victim, the
accident insurance, which helped him, and the whole system.

The advertisement subjects were once again created by Dutch star photographer Arthur
Mebius, with which Catsky won a Cannes Lion in 2004.
The subjects play with the figures of "James Bond", "Terminator" and "Lara
Croft". Markenfilm Switzerland was responsible for the TV commercial.

Irony of fate: just as the campaign was being realized
Claude Catsky has "experienced everything first-hand". The creative
had to undergo a complicated lung operation after a serious car accident.
and spent several weeks in the rehabilitation clinic
Mammern. At the end of his ordeal, Catsky was murdered by the
Suva managers picked up in a limousine "just like in the commercial"
and returned to the world of work.

Andreas Panzeri

Broadcasting fee collection companies from Europe and Israel have founded their own umbrella organization, the Broadcasting Fee Association BFA. Switzerland is represented on the BFA board by Billag. The aim of the BFA is to improve fee management. In addition, technological, legal, financial and strategic issues relating to fee management and fee communication are to be addressed, as Billag writes in a press release. Broadcasting fee collection companies from Austria, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Germany, Great Britain, Ireland, Israel, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland are currently represented. Other countries are considering joining. In terms of the obligation to pay fees, Switzerland is in a leading position in Europe: 96% of television and 92% of radio consumers are duly registered with Billag, as Billag writes further.

Merchandising In May, the Berlin
agency Kamps conducted an online survey on bullshit marketing for the
Football World Cup launched. A creative response to the sins "committed in
marketing departments for the World Cup," explains the owner
Christoph Kamps on the motivation for awarding the "Red Card". From
the 100 or so World Cup tastelessnesses of the self-proclaimed
Marketing experts were given the red card for the worst taste
to the football urn of a Düsseldorf funeral home. The
Yellow card for a foul in the stomach area received the "Black Red
Gold Land Bockwurst". With a warning and thus third place, the
"Fifa World Cup Eau de Toilette" from it. We are eagerly awaiting
Merchandising ideas from local creatives for Euro 2008.

Radio and TV research SRG has made its research service fit for integration, which SRG announced three months ago,
she has now implemented: On June 30, she founded the company Mediapulse AG
for media research. This will take over all activities with immediate effect
of the SRG Research Service, which was previously run by SRG as a department.
has been managed. With the foundation of Mediapulse, SRG is taking the first
step, which is necessary in order to make radio and TV research one day
to integrate an independent foundation. The new RTVA
is required. Accordingly, Mediapulse will soon be publishing the panel of
Radiocontrol and Telecontrol as well as the associated Establishment
Survey (basic research) - at a value of 4.2
million francs.

The concrete effects of founding the company: From now on the
SRG research service Mediapulse, which is now an AG with two million
Swiss francs in share capital and its own Board of Directors. And the company
will soon be relocating to Thunstrasse 16 in Berne - which means that it will also be
will be physically separated from SRG. Nothing will change in terms of personnel
who works for the Research Service today, stays with it.
Head of Research Manuel Dähler becomes Managing Director of
Mediapulse. It is still unclear whether and when the people responsible for the
Internet research, from Mediapulse to the company Net Metrix
change. The internet research company Net Metrix will soon be separately
and jointly founded by SRG and Wemf - SRG is bringing its
new Internet panel (Net-Tracking).

Back to Mediapulse: its Board of Directors is headed by DRS Radio Director
Walter Rüegg presides over the committee, the other members are TSR Director Gilles
Marchand, Publisuisse Director Martin Schneider and Silvio Studer,
Head of the SRG Media Service Center. As Rüegg explained
Mediapulse's operating budget is made up of the revenues that
from the sale of radio and TV data to SRG and private broadcasters.
can be generated. The latter have the assurance that the prices for
the data will not be increased in the coming years. Not only that:
Rüegg even believes that he may be able to offer them even more cheaply than today.
can.

The next step is now the establishment of a research foundation
on. According to Rüegg, the Federal Office of Communications (Bakom) is already
invite "all interested parties" to a meeting soon. SRG, Bakom
and the associations of private TVs and radios have already submitted proposals.
which will be put up for discussion. The foundation will
The company is expected to be founded at the beginning of 2007, says Rüegg.

What will happen to Publica Data AG (PDAG) is still open. This
100 percent SRG subsidiary was previously responsible for the sale of the
research data to private parties. This was intended to
research remain separate. The associations of the
private TVs and radios will in principle be retained in the future. According to
Rüegg, they therefore had the opportunity to take over PDAG, but
no offers were received.

Markus Knöpfli

The British business newspaper Financial Times is in the process of merging its online and print activities into a multimedia newsroom. This threatens 50 employees with unemployment, but the aim is to keep job cuts to a minimum. The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) is concerned that the impending job cuts could damage the quality of reporting.
By closely linking online, print, reporting and production, the Financial Times is to become one of the best-integrated multimedia newsrooms in the world, according to the publishing house Pearson. In future, there will be fewer differences between the various editions for Europe, America and Asia. Editors will use a new system to publish web and print pages from a single platform.