International banks in the
United States increasingly look like cafés or stores.
The creative concept is to make the customer feel completely at ease.
When you enter a branch of the Bank of
America on Manhattan's Upper East Side, an expansive seating area beckons,
surrounded by shelves of renowned business magazines that
customers to take a seat. Right next to it are a few
Standing desks with computers that provide free Internet access at the
TVs flicker on the walls, showing the business channel CNBC.

Other financial institutions are changing their design, making the
bank employees are more accessible to customers and try to make their
stores with bright colors and subdued background music.
a friendlier face. "They are the Starbucks of
business world," says John McCune, analyst at the financial research institute
SNL Financial. "It's all about reaching out to customers."

A bank that is the first to be recognized as particularly innovative in its
Washington Mutual was seen as the most customer-friendly. In over the
half of its approximately 2000 stores have been equipped with the so
Occasio" design was installed - an oval entrance area where the
every client is greeted personally and in which the banker does not
behind a pane of glass, but customers can now be welcomed at a
open bar tables. "People feel comfortable with us," says
Mary Kelley, spokeswoman for Washington Mutual. "They love coming to us,
instead of seeing the visit to the bank as a necessary errand."

Patented oases of well-being
The concept, which the bank has even had patented, concludes
Also play corners for children with books, toys and Gameboys
one. Washington Mutual merchandise, such as ballpoint pens and
You can buy piggy banks here. To lighten up the atmosphere,
some of the employees even wear casual khakis. "I think that
for a creative strategy," comments Richard Nolan,
economics professor at the University of Washington. "And it's good
for business." However, it is clear that the fun factor is by no means
distract from the fact that these are serious financial transactions.
deals.

Other banks, such as Umpqua Bank, which, like
Washington Mutual is primarily located on the US West Coast,
expand the range of Internet screens and seating areas with
free coffee and snacks. Customers therefore call the stores
also like "bank bistros". A branch in Portland also offers
Friday night feature films, yoga classes and DIY workshops in his
premises in order to strengthen its position as a community facility.
to represent. Commerce Bank, one of the avant-gardists in this
area, is famous for its shoeshine boys.

Branding experts in the game
With this trend, the banks are joining the ranks of companies
who seek advice from branding experts who would otherwise work for stores.
such as The Gap or Apple Stores. Citizens Bank in the north-east of the
USA, for example, hired an entire team from the marketing company Lippincott
Mercer to make its interior design modern and friendly.
leave. "It's all about setting yourself apart from the others.
and to appeal to a specific niche audience," says
John McCune. "However, this also means that the additional costs
in the form of higher fees."

Symphony Bank, a financial institution that tends to operate in rural areas.
has set its sights on a specific target group:
Hummer drivers. The expansive vehicles, which are often driven by farmers
usually do not fit through the regular passage of a
Drive-through business. So Symphony Bank widened the driveways
for its outdoor ATMs by almost one meter and also built
a roof over it to protect against bad weather.

Smaller segmented peer groups
Other banks have developed a further service strategy: the
opening hours of their stores. Some have
Financial institutions on weekdays until midnight or also on Saturday and Sunday
open for customers. Branches near large shopping centers,
However, train stations and cinemas are more likely to remain open than those in
deserted downtown areas where there is little public traffic in the evening.
reigns.
 
Among the pioneers of the trend are Commerce Bank in the north-east of the
USA, Bank Atlantic in Florida and Wachovia Corporation, the
operates nationwide. The aim is to encourage customers to buy new
to open accounts and deposit more money. "Bank customers vote with
feet," says Wachovia spokeswoman Mary Beth Navarro. "80 percent
of all new customers come through the front door."     

Gerti Schön

(pr) The Swiss company search engine HELP.ch now publishes extended business information and key figures on Swiss online advertising. In addition to an overview of the 2,000 largest companies in the world, interested users can also find the 500 richest people in the world, the most expensive cities and the cities with the highest quality of life. Specifically for Switzerland, the top 10 lists of Swiss banks, insurance companies, health insurance companies, watch companies, shopping centers and casinos are listed. Monthly overview of Swiss online advertising usage data and key figures: A constantly updated overview page of Swiss online key figures and usage data contains all the relevant facts and figures from the most important sources, such as Switch, Nielsen/Netrating, WEMF, Goldbach Media and others, combined with ranking lists and top 10 lists:
Specific ranking lists from the consumer program konsum.tv, the business newspaper Cash, the business magazine Bilanz and the gourmet guide Gault Millau can also be called up and the respective company portraits can be viewed quickly and easily with a click.
The top 10 lists are available for the most important sectors of the Swiss economy. The largest banks, insurance companies, health insurance companies, watch companies, shopping centers and casinos are currently published.
Detailed information on the Swiss websites:
On the individual company portraits of over 50,000 Swiss websites, users can now find important search engine key figures from Google, Yahoo, MSN, Search.ch and HELP.ch. The official WEMF usage data is also available.

Matthias O. Hütköper (36) will take over as Head of Advertising at the Berner Zeitung (BZ) on July 1. Hütköper is currently Managing Director of Schleswig-Holsteinischer Druck und Verlagsservice. He previously worked as advertising manager at the Oldenburgische Volkszeitung and was head of advertising sales at the Berliner Zeitung. The qualified business economist will take over the management of the entire advertising market (commercial advertisements, classifieds and online sales on espace.ch) for the entire BZ edition (including Thuner Tagblatt, Berner Oberländer, Solothurner Tagblatt and Der Bund). The previous advertising manager Michael Seiler is moving at his own request to the German Switzerland/International sales department, where he is responsible for sales. Stefan Hostettler, who has been responsible for sales in the Zurich area for two years, will become the new sales manager in Berne.

The Zurich-based internet agency MitLinks is creating the website for the Salzburger Stier cabaret prize for Swiss Radio DRS. The site is intended to provide visitors with information about the prize, give them an understanding of the idea behind it and present the current and past winners. The Salzburger Stier is endowed with 6,000 euros and will be awarded this year on May 19/20. It goes to the poetry slam word acrobat Gabriel Vetter from Switzerland, the cabaret artist Andreas Rebers from Germany and the brass band Mnozil Brass from Austria. The prize is awarded by the public radio stations from Germany, Austria, Switzerland and South Tyrol.

TV formats The consolidation among Swiss film producers is really irritating Ringier TV.
When, shortly before Easter, the Zurich
Film producer Condor Films acquires the smaller Bern-based competitor Faro-TV
took over Ringier-TV, the television unit of the largest Swiss
Swiss media group, to long faces. "We are surprised
and not very happy," says Managing Director Marc Görtz.
The reason: Ringier-TV and Faro-TV, both in the TV format business
have had a joint company with Zana Media for a year now, through
which they distribute their formats internationally. Zana Media is
exclusive Swiss member of the Sparks Network, an international
Hub for TV formats. "We are now analyzing how the new
ownership will have an impact on our partnership with Zana Media.
However, we have not yet spoken to the new owners of Faro-TV.
spoken," says Görtz. Ringier holds 70 percent of Zana Media and Faro-TV 30 percent.
percent.
The reaction at Sat 1 Schweiz, in which Ringier holds a 50 percent stake, is different.
and where two formats, "Joya rennt" and "Celebrations", are involved.
will be broadcast by Faro-TV. "We were informed in advance by Faro-TV
and we were assured that the contracts would be honored," says Christian
Gartmann, one of the managing directors of Sat 1 Switzerland. With the formats of Faro-TV,
both "successful both with viewers and commercially".
are", he is certainly "happy". "It is important to us that
we have reliable contacts who offer good service at market conditions.
products," says Gartmann. If this is the case, the
Ownership does not matter. With Condor Films, however, Sat 1 Switzerland still has
never worked together.

Markus Knöpfli

Gabriela Brönimann will succeed Colette Gradwohl as Head of Training at Schweizer Radio DRS. Brönimann is currently still head of the Zurich/Schaffhausen (ZH/SH) regional editorial office. Brönimann has worked for Swiss Radio DRS since 1992, starting out as an editor in the Zurich/Schaffhausen regional journal. She moved to DRS 3 in 1995, where she first worked as an editor and from 1996 as head of the Szene and Graffiti programs. As Producer Daytime, she was then responsible for the journalistic management of the daytime program on Radio DRS 3. Since December 2001 she has been head of Regionaljournal ZH/SH. Colette Gradwohl took over the position of editor-in-chief at the Winterthur daily newspaper Der Landbote at the beginning of this year.

René Worni on the opportunities and risks of local media experiments. The region is sexy. The
The big wide world is free anyway, so who wants to do it themselves?
make the shoes dusty. The Tages-Anzeiger is not the only one
realized that the media roots lie in the local. Even the NZZ
had flirted with the idea, but decided against it shortly before the launch of five
new local newspapers in Thurgau on already existing alliances with
regional titles.

The Aargauer Zeitung has long since recognized that in the ramified
Cantonal territory, cut by the Jura mountains, is particularly
information needs of the public. Also in French-speaking Switzerland
24 Heures has entered the market - albeit with initial difficulties.
The Jungfrauzeitung jumped on the regionalization bandwagon. Finally, the Jungfrauzeitung -
copied in part by many - has made the local the highest maxim
and the small world with its neighbors' worries to the core of the media.
events.

And now the Schaffhauser Nachrichten is also strengthening its local
Approach with new local editorial offices, which are located in media microcosms
for stories and spend a considerable amount of their working time
invest in maintaining contact with the authorities and the public. The
North of the Rhine seems to be - like the famous
Gallic village - to develop into a media special case. Not
only that the owners do not stop resisting the intruders.
and absolutely not selling. There seems to be a
experimental kitchen from which mixtures can be expected,
which other Swiss media regions are also likely to receive.

In Schaffhausen, all media operate under one roof: radio, TV,
Newspaper, Internet and even its own delivery organization.
This setting makes it possible to do more than just advertise.
is sold, but the effect of it. The
Project in experimental status. But it is likely to set a precedent,
hopefully with the same respect for the editorial
Independence.

René Worni

The previous Head of Publishing and Sales for the "Health Unit", Martin Tamas, is leaving the Ringier media group Gesundheit Sprechstunde at the end of April. This will result in the reorganization of the Publishing and Sales divisions of Gesundheit Sprechstunde. These areas will now be divided between two people. Oliver Knick (39), who previously headed the "Projects" department, will become Head of Sales. A new Publishing Director has not yet been appointed, but the position of Publishing Director is to be filled in the next few days. The Head of Sales, the Publishing Director and Editor-in-Chief Regula Käch together form the new management team under the overall leadership of Fibo Deutsch. Martin Tamas is leaving the "Health Unit" because he wants to change his personal direction, according to a press release.

The Swisscom subsidiaries Teleclub and Bluewin TV as well as SRG have acquired the TV rights to the Super League. From the 2006/2007 season and for the next three years, they will share the transmission of the matches. According to the Basler Zeitung, which cites association circles, the football league has received just under CHF 12 million for the rights. From the coming championship, two matches on Saturday and the Sunday match will be broadcast on Teleclub. Teleclub is only available to subscribers and has been part of Swisscom for several months. The Sunday game will also be broadcast on Bluewin TV in the future. However, until Bluewin TV goes online in the fall, Sat 1 will broadcast the Sunday game on free TV for one season. It is not yet clear exactly which rights SRG has secured.

Coffee In Hollywood, a new
Gambling addiction. More and more prominent film stars are playing in a
Commercial with. After John Malkovich appeared for Zurich-based Condor in a
short feature film for IWC and had previously worked with Noami
Campbell stepped in front of the camera for Pirelli, it has now also
George Clooney has joined the advertising guild. On April 24
a teaser of his commercial for Nespresso on Swiss television for the first time
shown. A longer version is also planned for theaters at a later date. Director
The Boutique" was directed by Oscar-winner Michel Gondry. The spot
shows Clooney in a Nespresso boutique getting into an amusing
misunderstanding with two attractive ladies. The
Swiss Michel Comte has realized a making-of. 

Ipex II Ipex 2006 presented itself as a
a trade fair characterized by technology and business models. Spectacular
However, there were no new products.
From April 4 to 11, Birmingham
Ipex, the most important trade fair for the print and media industry
of the year. According to our own impressions and initial reports, the
The event was a great success in terms of visitor numbers. A
trade fair theme was not to be found at Ipex 2006. When a
would have to be named, then probably the "focusing
to new business models". Because "business" and the resulting
"Opportunities" were the most frequently used catchphrases that were
countless trade press conferences held during Ipex and
were regularly sought by company managers. 

In search of trends in offset printing
The emerging trends in offset printing, alongside the
Process integration (networking of machines with order processing systems)
and pre-stage systems) also the use of inline measuring devices
for quality control, especially for industrial manufacturing companies.
businesses. For this customer group, the three
Suppliers Heidelberg, MAN Roland and KBA as a further recognizable trend
sheeter on offer. Offset machines equipped with this
are thus transformed into reel-to-sheet machines. These
development makes perfect sense, as roll paper is much cheaper than
sheet material and the feeding of paper is significantly simplified.
It was also noticeable that the manufacturers in the smaller
increasingly longer or with more and more inking units
equipped or even long turning machines. On the trend
for higher-quality printed matter and packaging are parried by the
Printing press manufacturers with new solutions. Both MAN Roland (with
InlineFoiler) as well as Heidelberg (Coldfoil) both presented
machine superstructures, with which inline - i.e. during the printing process - the
foils can be applied for metallic effects. These
Integration is certainly justified, because thanks to
Inline production significantly improves the added value of print shops
lets.

Below are a few selected trade fair highlights, in alphabetical order
manufacturers: At Heidelberg, in addition to the
process integration, the innovations already announced in advance in the
Center. Particular attention was paid to the new Anicolor inking unit
equipped Speedmaster SM 52 printing press and new
Finishing systems (saddle stitcher Stitchmaster ST 450,
Eurobind 4000 perfect binder, Diana X 115/135 folder gluer).
The company also presented its medium format machine
Speedmaster CD 74 (50 ¥ 70 cm) in a 18,000 sheets/hour high-speed press
version. The manufacturer promises this speed via a
wide range of substrates, from thin printing paper through to
cardboard packaging. Heidelberg was the first supplier to present more
with the Speedmaster SM 52-10-P, a ten-color press in 35 ¥ format.
50 cm. In doing so, the company is responding to what it says is an increased
Demand for even longer perfectors in this sheet format
react. The name Speedmaster CD 74-5+LY-P-5+L stands for
a machine that reduces the production time of printed materials.
can be shortened overall: The paint shops before and after the
The perfecting unit enables the printed sheet to be turned significantly faster.
can be processed further than before. Even if the trade fair appearance
was at least visually oriented towards machines and technology, the
At the press conference, CEO Bernhard Schreier emphasized the focus on
customer needs to the fore: "New developments such as the
The machines shown are no longer created exclusively in the minds of
by product developers, but are increasingly the result of
customer requirements."
 
KBA presented a press equipped with a reel feeder
Ten-color medium-format Rapida 105 press for 5/5-color straight printing
and relief printing at the center of its trade fair presence. The up to 18000
sheet/hour printing machine in B1 format was equipped with a
automatically convertible perfecting device. This series is available from
classic five-color machines via five- or
Six-color hybrid machines, double-coating machines and even
15-unit machines with perfecting device and coating finishing on both sides of the
sheet available.

At MAN Roland, machines ranging from small to medium format
demonstrated. The Roland 200 was equipped with a device for the
printing on cardboard, which makes the machine very easy to use.
can be used flexibly. As a ten-color machine with
The Roland 500 with a speed of 15,000 sheets per hour could be seen in the second sheet turning.
The star of the stand, however, was the Roland 700 in the six-color version
with coating unit and extension. The company promises shorter
set-up times thanks to the QuickChange system. To
cost savings and an improvement in quality, the
InlineInspector inspection system in combination with the ejection station
InlineSorter. MAN now offers the 700 series in the 3B+ format
as a straight printing press. It can be used to print substrates up to
780 ¥ 1040 mm format. Compared to the standard
machine, provided the enlarged format is relevant,
Productivity increases of up to 50 percent possible. MAN believes
This makes this machine ideal for packaging and label printers.
be.

Trends in digital printing
The manufacturers of digital printing systems presented like never before
applications to the fore. Selected information here too: Agfa offers its :Anapurna printing systems in 160 (L) and 250 (L) widths.
mm (XL). The two inkjet printing systems are capable of printing up to 50 mm
thick substrates, which makes them very well suited for the
production of outdoor advertising materials. In addition to CMYK, the
Large format printers that achieve resolutions of up to 1440 ¥ 1440 dpi, each
a light version of cyan and magenta as well as the color white. In
Depending on the resolution, the printers can print up to 20 m2/h.
Agfa also presented its :Dotrix web-fed digital printing system, which has been available since
the acquisition of Dotrix to the Agfa portfolio. The printer
prints up to 907 m2 of reel material per hour and is recognized by Agfa as a
ideal for the decoration and packaging market. The with a
The machine can be equipped with a flexographic printing unit for
prior application of protective varnish or white paint (as a base).
for transparent substrates) and with a slitting mechanism
The wide roll can be ordered to be cut into narrow rolls before winding.
Rolls for direct further processing in, for example
filling stations. Looking at Agfa's now clearly
extended product range, then the statement by
Agfa President Stefaan Vanhooren, who notes that Agfa has become a
leading provider in inkjet printing.

There was a mass of people at Canon. Finally the
company will present its new color digital printing series of the
to the trade public. The new ImagePress C7000VP was one of the
of the trade fair highlights. It features air-supported
sheet feeder and keeps a supply of up to 10,000 sheets of paper in the
Access. Thanks to a comprehensive range of features, the system can
Stacking, punching and cutting paper, including stapled brochures
inline production. The 70-page machine was then also used by David
Preskett, Canon Professional Solutions Marketing Director, as a
"genuine, uncompromising focus on quality and productivity
color printing system". In the new printing system, new
developed toner and developer as well as a new imaging drum
for use.  

At the center of HP's trade fair appearance was the HP
Indigo press w3250, which was shown to a specialist audience for the first time in Europe.
was. Alon Bar-Shany, General Manager of HP's Indigo Division, is
convinced: "The HP Indigo press w3250 utilizes the possibilities of the
digital printing and combines the speed and quality of digital
of offset printing with the efficiency and intelligence of digital printing."
With up to 8000 A4 pages per hour (four-color, two-up), the
system is also one of the fastest digital printers around. Besides
new printers, HP has also introduced a new ink. The HP Vivera
said liquid promises, according to HP, an even more photorealistic
reproduction than was possible with other methods. Striking
is that HP has discovered photo book printing for itself: Several
Partner companies were on site at the Hewlett-Packard stand and provided information on
about solutions for the production of photo books. 

Kodak introduces its recently launched digital color press
Nexpress 2500 to the European trade public for the first time. The printer
has been designed for even higher productivity and reliability.
By adding a fifth printing unit to the digital printing press
Kodak has informed users that they will be able to purchase additional
unlocking sales potential. The additional printing unit enables the
Application of special colors, watermarks, a transparent
protective coating or a high-gloss finish. Also on display was a
Nexglosser is a high-gloss finisher for finishing
book covers, prints of digital photos, coffee table books, greeting cards and
Brochures.

Following its withdrawal from the camera business, the
Konica Minolta is now increasingly focusing on digital printing. At the
Ipex, the previously announced bizhub Pro 6050 printer
introduced. The new system prints up to 65 pages/minute in color or
black and white and is designed for a volume of up to 200,000 pages/month.
designed. With the launch of the printer, Konica Minolta is introducing a
new polymer toner called Simitri-HD, which can be used to
achieve outstanding printing results. For its bizhub
Pro 1050, the Group has introduced a bookbinding device and can
therefore also offer a complete solution.

With the Truepress Jet520, the Japanese company Screen has introduced a
Roll-fed color printing system suitable for printing variable data
before. The manufacturer promises high print quality with low
Operating costs. The Xeikon company presented itself at Ipex
as a total solution provider for the first time. The focus was on the
four-color transaction printing and a production line for the
Production of brochures with variable content. For printing
the Xeikon 5000 digital printing system. Also of particular interest
Xeikon's commitment to textile printing. A specially coated
The film can be digitally printed and then the
Transfer subjects to textiles using the normal transfer process
be 

The attraction at the Xerox stand was the expansion of the iGen3 series. The
iGen3 90, a new 90-page press, is being launched by Xerox as a
entry-level machine and at the same time fills the gap between the iGen3
110 and the Docucolor printers. As new all-round systems
the company presented the Xerox 4590 and 4110 models. These 90
or 110-page/minute machines can be used for both printing
small print runs of brochures and booklets or for the
transaction printing. Its commitment to the
Xerox is reaffirming its position in large format printing with the new
Xerox Epson systems, marketed jointly with Epson
7400 and 9400 as well as 7800 and 9800. For its digital production system
the Nuvera family, the company has introduced a finishing module,
with which print service providers provide manuals and individual
produce marketing materials.   

Jürgen Franck

Paper The year 2006
makes the hearts of soccer fans beat faster: On June 9
the World Championships begin in Germany. All over the world
fans with their teams, including in Switzerland, which for the first time
has qualified for a World Cup since 1994. Elco brings in time
The Football Edition 2006 was launched on this occasion. The
range includes a wealth of articles: The Football College Blocks
printed with dynamic football scenes or the Swiss cross
are right on trend. Even with an adjustable goal and table ball
these blocks are available. Download the Creative Colors football cards
invites fans big and small to a children's birthday party or fan party. To the
Football Edition also includes the Football Perfo block, true to scale
printed with a football pitch. Not only creative ideas can be
ideas during a game, but also strategies - of course
footballing - to hold on to. All articles are also suitable for the
business use as promotional gifts.