Television The music channel MTV is planning a program for French-speaking Switzerland. According to a report by L'Hébdo, the French and English versions of MTV can already be received in almost 85% of households in French-speaking Switzerland. MTV now wants to invest CHF 9 million in a local program with local presenters.

Photography Who is prepared to expose their precious camera to the rain? With the Coolpix S2, Nikon puts an end to this dilemma. The digital recording camera is suitable for all weather conditions thanks to its splash-proof housing. Equipped with a bright 2.5-inch LCD monitor, compact dimensions (the housing is only 22 mm deep) and numerous innovative functions, the stylish Coolpix S2 ensures that the photos also look good.

Column Writing is a lucrative business, but most journalists lack good ideas.Someone offers you a column, Mbwana? Well, columns are an unappealing thing. They were invented by editors-in-chief who didn't understand that personality, ideas and wit are everyday things, i.e. the business of the editorial office itself. And who therefore believe that originality can be bought in like spice for a soup. The rule of thumb is: the more columns, the less skill in the paper. On the other hand, Mbwana, a column is highly lucrative: it guarantees regular money. And without a lot of research. So say yes to column assignments. But avoid the pitfalls along the way.
The tricky thing about a column is the lack of resources; you should actually have an idea from time to time. But you only get ideas by quarterly subscription at best. And other resources are not enough. If you write about your private life, you will realize that you don't have one, at least not a really interesting one. You mostly sit in front of a computer. And if something really exciting happens, such as a divorce, you can't write about it. The result: you scribble harmless things and call yourself Mr. and Mrs. Baumann or Meier.
You will also see that your opinions are not enough. At most, you will have five or six passable opinions that are at the same time grounded in experience, genuinely passionate and reasonably new. The rest will be splatter (see the legion of chief editors, ex-chief editors and publishing directors).
So the dramaturgical problem of the column, Mbwana, is: no matter whether you are drunk, distressed, befuddled, you have to deliver the ideas you don't have week after week. The solution: you don't have to have the ideas, you have to simulate them. (Writing is the perfect medium for impostors: what I write in three hours, you read in three minutes. So my speed advantage is a factor of 60 - it's easy to look intelligent).
There's a trick to crafting the engine of an assembly line product like a column. You only need a single idea - right at the beginning: a clear package of tone, content and form for the column. Then you don't have to worry about much more than making sure a mediocre idea fits into the corset it's wearing. The rest is automation and filing. Martin Suter's Business Class column tells the same old story: a manager tries a career trick and stumbles over it. Or the lovely Eliane gives sex tips (the misfortune of others is exciting, it's exciting to see whether you would have guessed the same thing as Eliane). Or, for example, the satirical monster column in the WOZ, which I have been writing for over ten years: real names from politics and the media are mechanically transported into a trashy novel setting. If you choose the right tone, the column always works: the decline of the FDP in Buddenbrock's tone, Bishop Haas' fake doctorate as a doctor's novel, the pissing debate in the Council of States as an indecent poem - in no case is it a problem to come up with punchlines. One to three hours of work is enough.
Clever columns with the right tone-content-form package should be able to be written in a hat and coat in one to three hours after just a few weeks, otherwise the package won't be right.
A writer like Linus Reichlin, who needs a week and a top salary to write a column, is above all a negotiating genius. (Hello Facts, others will do the same for you for half the fee in a tenth of the time!)
This column here, dear Mbwana, is based above all on the combination of a highly impertinent and highly obsequious tone. It was written without inspiration in a gloomy mood (after all, I resigned from my employer after seven years), the fee is 300 francs, and it cost me an hour and fifty minutes.
> Constantin Seibt is still editor of the weekly newspaper (WOZ).

Sales systems The Bern-based communications agency Push 'n' Pull is expanding its client portfolio with Selecta AG, a provider of sales systems for snack bars, which is introducing a new corporate design throughout Europe. Push 'n' Pull was commissioned with the country-specific implementation of the new image for selected advertising materials. Among other things, a new image brochure, a periodical customer magazine and a retail product range list will be produced. The first advertising materials can be seen in mid-July.

Media planning The agency m&m gives Mediakeys, the French poster specialist, a helping hand in Switzerland and establishes contacts worldwide.m&m, the media agency in Glattbrugg, is not only tapping into new markets such as the Netherlands, Hungary and the Czech Republic, but is also acquiring the necessary country-specific media expertise. One of the ways in which m&m does this is by sharing the knowledge of others via corporate networks. "We are all-rounders in Switzerland, but it's good to be able to rely on the expertise of network-independent alliance partners abroad," says m&m owner Wolfgang Mecklenburg. This is why m&m-Holding entered into a partnership with the French poster specialist Mediakeys (see box), which wants to gain a foothold in Switzerland. The m&m holding company holds a minority stake in Mediakeys Swiss and further partnerships are possible
The connection with Mediakeys is the second of its kind in the m&m network: "We have had good experiences with the international media agency OMD, a buying specialist, for several years," says Mecklenburg. Specifically, OMD Germany holds a 30 percent stake in Mecklenburg's subsidiary mm&b Stuttgart. Mecklenburg is keeping the option open for further partnerships, for example with radio or cinema specialists. He chose Mediakeys because the poster specialist is not part of an agency network. In addition, the two companies have known each other for a long time: m&m subsidiary mm&b France has its offices in the Mediakeys headquarters in Paris. The intended transfer of know-how will work in that m&m will be able to call on Mediakeys' local specialists for the planning and purchasing of outdoor media abroad. Because they know specialists in other media genres in their respective countries, they also provide m&m with the relevant contacts. Conversely, m&m helps Mediakeys to enter the Swiss outdoor advertising market. But why is a poster specialist interested in Switzerland, where out-of-home advertising is quite clearly structured thanks to Affichage's strong market position? "It is precisely because it is so simple that new, creative outdoor solutions are possible," says Vincent Jäggi, Managing Director of Mediakeys Swiss. What's more, together with Mediakeys Germany, it covers poster handling in the entire German-speaking region. "In a Europe of regions, cross-border outdoor campaigns are becoming increasingly important," says Jäggi. On the other hand, in addition to existing Mediakeys clients, he will also be seeking out new multinational clients based in Switzerland - in the hope that they will be able to use their
media agencies to work with the poster specialist in future.
Mediakeys operates worldwide The specialist agency Mediakeys was founded in 1999 by Frenchmen Philippe Bizot and Paul Cahierre. It is now active on all continents and has its own offices everywhere except Australia. European country representatives are located in Paris, Genoa, Rheinbach (D), London and Glattbrugg. For the other European countries, regional managers are available at the head office as contacts. Mediakeys maintains a database containing the outdoor advertising spaces of the 50 most important airports worldwide, the possibilities in the field of megaposters and other outdoor offers in terms of location, prices and addresses. (www.mediakeys.net)
An important guide in the outdoor advertising jungleUnlike in Switzerland, the outdoor advertising market is highly segmented in many countries. Only around 33 percent of the global outdoor offering is in the hands of the big players Clear Channel, JCDecaux and Viacom. The remaining 67 percent is distributed among national or even local providers.
To avoid getting lost in this jungle, many media agencies seek the support of outdoor advertising or poster specialists who provide everything from planning and media buying to billposting control and invoicing from a single source. Mediakeys is just one of them. Others are Portland, PM, Posterscope, PSI and Poster Publicity. The latter has also had an office in Switzerland - in Küsnacht ZH - since 2001. Managing Director Winfried Karst is responsible for the operation in Switzerland together with Manuela Krähenbühl. Based in London, Poster Publicity is active on all continents except Africa; in Europe, the specialist is directly represented in ten countries.
Poster Publicity works with partner companies in other countries and also in Africa. According to its own information, Poster Publicity International places customer budgets worth around 650 million dollars annually. (www.posterpublicity.com) (mk)
Markus Knöpfli

Advertising market The Metropool will probably expand its regional reach.
The Metropool, the combination of Tages-Anzeiger, Berner Zeitung and Basler Zeitung (BaZ), is considering a plus variant: national customers are expected to be offered a regional in-depth option in the three regions of the Golden Triangle from January 1, 2006. In Zurich this is likely to be the Landbote, in Berne the Bieler Tagblatt. And in Basel? A suitable Plus variant has been missing there until now. This gap can now be partially closed: On June 2, the Neue Fricktaler Zeitung (NFZ), the merger product of Fricktaler Bote and Fricktaler Zeitung, will be launched. Basler Zeitung Medien (BZM) holds a 21 percent stake in it, and BaZ and NFZ also form an advertising combination. BZM would like to integrate this into the Metropool as part of its new Northwestern Switzerland network - and thus reward NFZ for its willingness to cooperate. Ruth Ludwig-Hagemann, member of the Board of Directors of BZM and NFZ, confirmed on request that talks are underway with the Metropool in this direction.
No comment was available from the Metropool in Bern, but from the Tages-Anzeiger. Like the BaZ, the Tages-Anzeiger is interested in rewarding its partner Landbote for its withdrawal from the Zurich press deal. A link to the national advertising market seems to be a suitable reward. Tagi publishing director Maili Wolf does not deny this, but emphasizes: "We are exploring an enormous number of options to make the Metropool more attractive for the market." This goal is paramount. The pool should therefore not be "overpriced" under any circumstances.
This is probably a nod to the BZM. Because BaZ publisher Matthias Hagemann has always stated that his Northwestern Switzerland association is open to other papers - such as the Basellandschaftliche Zeitung and the Volksstimme in Sissach. But Maili Wolf is probably worried about that. Could the Metropool integrate the two titles in a meaningful way if they are lured into the BaZ network by the new docking option?
(mk)

Sponsorship The Street Parade has gained the Italian fashion label Kappa as a sponsor.Kappa is designing a special collection for the Zurich street festival. "Contemporary designs and cuts from the Italian label will set the fashion trends for this summer", announces Street Parade in a press release. Other partners of the mega event are Calanda, Coca-Cola, Valser, Sun Look and Garnier Fructis Style.

Newspapers While daily newspapers are stagnating in this country, the newspaper industry is growing worldwide.395 million According to a study by the World Association of Newspapers (WAN), circulation and advertising revenues rose significantly in 2004 after a slight decline in 2003. This was announced by the association at the 58th World Newspaper Congress in Seoul. There is talk of a "rebirth" of the daily newspaper, as the total worldwide circulation of daily newspapers rose by 2.1 percent in 2004, reaching a new high of 395 million copies per day. Advertising revenues increased by 5.3 percent in 2004. The newspaper industry in Europe recorded a decline of 1.4 percent.

Just in time for the implementation of its new umbrella brand strategy, APG/Affichage hosted the Swiss Poster Award in the hot summer temperatures of the Maag Event Hall. Only the following coincidences gave the shortlist author something to think about: Gold in the "Commercial" category went to Jung von Matt/Limmat for SBB (on the jury: Dominique von Matt). Silver (VBZ) and bronze (Suva) went to Ruf Lanz (in the jury: Danielle Lanz). The "Public Services" category was dominated by Publicis with gold for Global Fund and silver for Terre des hommes (in the jury: Markus Gut), bronze went to Wyler Werbung for Multimobil (wasn't jury member Dani Lanz once a freelancer for Wyler?). In the "Culture" category, the jury held back a little and rewarded Zug-based DNS-Transport, an interdisciplinary art exhibition team, with gold. Silver went to the graphics class from the Lucerne School of Art and Design. The cultural bronze went to Publicis for the Schauspielhaus (on the jury: NZZ publishing director Tobias Trevisan, whose advertising agency is called, well, what?) The main prize of the evening, called the Swiss Poster Award, ultimately went to Global Fund and Publicis. Which was only logical, as the jury president was Fredy Collioud.
Of course, we immediately and vehemently deny any suspicion of cheating. But one thing is certain. The following jury members did not win anything and therefore demonstrably did not award themselves: Daniel Comte from Advico, Remy Fabrikant, JWT+H+F, Martin Spillmann, SFLB, as well as K. Domenic Geissbühler and Wendelin Hess. Whether out of fairness or a lack of assertiveness, we do not know.
Beat Fritschmitten in the countryside, or so it seems. But this picture was taken in the industrial landscape of the former Maag factory. Beautifully oversized backgrounds like this one could be found there at the APG Poster Night. As the attentive observer will notice, this is a poster from the SBB campaign. Although it won gold in its category, the main prize went to a different subject.
All new at the end of May: Fresh CI for the venerable APG.
Host Christian Kauter proves to Reto Cina (l.) from Davidoff and Jean-Marie Egger (r.) that he has the right cigars.
APG Sales Manager Ivan Schultheiss (l.) with Christian Erni, Futurecom, who is responsible for the new Affichage homepage.
Proud of the new CI and the successful Poster Night: Dani Ettinger, Othmar Casutt, Ruth Bertschi and Roger Möschler (from left).
Enjoying the evening and partying a little: Fredy Collioud, Andreas Prokesch, David Allemann and Remy Fabrikant (from left).
Andres Brütsch (left) from Topic Film and Uwe Schlupp, Krieg Schlupp Springer & Jacoby, were seen engrossed in intensive table discussions.
Gourmets: Bruno Niederberger, APG, with Urs Straehl and Mario Suter from the Academy of Art and Design (from left).
Orange in a tight spot: Roli Ehrler (l.) and Jürg Pauli (r.) from Swisscom put Marcel Benz from Orange in the sandwich.
Satisfied: Winfried Karst and Manuela Krähenbühl from Poster Publicity with Christinger Managing Director Dani Weissbaum (from left).
Silver-plated: Markus Ruf with his customers Heinz Vögeli and Nicolas Adolph from the transport company of the city of Zurich (from left).
Bronze was awarded to Christoph Stuehn from Schauspielhaus Zürich and Publicis CEO CD Markus Gut (right).
Enjoyed celebrating with APG: Livio Padrun from Omega with Renato Schena, Paron/Affichage, and Rolf Bühler from Outdoor Media (from left).
Susanne Baumgartner (l.) and Katja Ehrensperger made themselves comfortable together on the super-comfortable lounge sofas.
Christoph Meier (left) from Carat and Victor Rosser, advertising agency Wacker and Rosser, were clearly in a good mood.
BSW President Peter Leutenegger (left), with Migros advertising manager Beat Mühlemann, looked more critically into the camera than ever before.
Christoph Bürge (left) and Uwe Schlupp were certainly of the same opinion about the APG event.

Newspaper On June 2, two Fricktaler titles merge to form the Neue Fricktaler Zeitung. Its godmother, the Basler Zeitung, now wants to attach its protégé to the Metropool.
The lettering of the Neue Fricktaler Zeitung (NFZ) is simple but full of symbolism: the name itself is a continuation of the gender of the Fricktaler Zeitung (FZ), while the Fricktaler Bote lives on in the color blue. The slightly italicized font takes something from the FZ logo, while the spelling with all capital letters goes back to the Bote. The message is clear: the new paper is not something grafted on, it builds on the tradition of the two previous titles. And it wants to help weld together the upper and lower Fricktal, two areas that are oriented differently in terms of their centers. This is also reflected in the layout: it largely dispenses with dividing lines between the articles - almost an appeal to break down the obstructive, small-scale demarcations (in the mind). But that's not all: the NFZ is energetically forging ahead and keeping the editorial offices in Frick and Rheinfelden unchanged.Publication organ in 27 municipalitiesWith the Thursday large print run, the NFZ, like its predecessor titles, mutates into the publication organ (PubO) of various Fricktal municipalities. From the Fricktaler Boten it takes over the contracts with all 25 municipalities in the upper Fricktal, from the FZ those with Rheinfelden and Möhlin. For the remaining 21 municipalities in the lower Fricktal and three neighboring Baselbieter municipalities, however, the official PubO is the Bezirksanzeiger in Stein. The latter also voluntarily publishes the municipal news of all those Fricktal municipalities for which it is not the PubO.
The Neue Fricktaler Zeitung (layout pages here) has a simple appearance and builds on the tradition of the two merged titles.
Local stories on the front pageIn terms of content, the paper clearly focuses on the entire Fricktal. "You know what's happening worldwide immediately via radio, TV and the Internet. However, this doesn't apply to the same extent in the local area," says Walter Herzog, editor-in-chief, majority shareholder (58 percent) and Chairman of the Board of Directors of the new paper all in one. The NFZ front page therefore features two to three local stories and leads the reader to the back pages. People from the region are presented on the second page, while the focus on page three highlights a current Fricktal topic. This is followed by one page each for the district capitals of Rheinfelden and Laufenburg and for the up-and-coming towns of Möhlin and Frick/ Gipf-Oberfrick. The Fricktal pages cover news from the other municipalities and southern Baden, while two further pages look at Rüebliland and Aarau as well as north-western Switzerland and Basel. The Express section brings national and international news in brief. "We clearly see ourselves as a second newspaper alongside Basler Zeitung (BaZ) and Aargauer Zeitung," says Herzog confidently. The 20 to a maximum of 48 pages of the one- or two-page newspaper are rounded off with two to three pages of regional sport. A calendar of events is published on Fridays and the clubs are also given a platform. Herzog could not and did not want to fully participate in the four-color and tabloid trend. "In my opinion, a newspaper should show format," he said with a wink.
Rate increaseLike its two predecessor titles, the NFZ will continue to be published three times a week (Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays). Due to
the sharp increase in circulation to 11,000 copies, the rate will be raised to CHF 4,970 for the normal circulation (+21 percent) and CHF 6,366 for the Thursday large circulation (31,000 copies) as of June 2 (+2 percent). "Compared to the mono circulation of the two previous individual titles, however, the rate in the NFZ will fall by 37 percent," emphasizes Herzog.
The price increase will not yet affect most of the combos that NFZ has taken over from Fricktaler Boten and FZ and to which it remains loyal this year. The hat trick with the Basellandschaftliche Zeitung (Liestal) and the Volksstimme (Sissach), the Y-combo with the free newspaper Aargauer Woche and the Landpresse-combo with the Frei-schütz (Muri) will be strengthened by the higher NFZ circulation, but their prices will remain unchanged. Only the "BaZ-Zusatzangebot Fricktal" combination will see an immediate price adjustment: with the NFZ standard circulation, the millimeter will now cost CHF 3.47, with the NFZ large circulation CHF 3.73.
A rate adjustment is only planned for January 1, 2006. According to Herzog, the NFZ will then also extend its publication frequency with an additional Wednesday edition. The reason for this is that the launch of the Nordwestschweiz network launched by BaZ publisher Matthias Hagemann is planned for this date. This alliance primarily means that the NFZ can dock onto the Metropool via an advertising combination with the BaZ (see also page 1). This is not yet definite, but talks are underway, as Ruth Ludwig-Hagemann, member of the Board of Directors of Basler Zeitung Medien and NFZ, said on request. However, the NFZ must become more flexible in terms of bookings, which would make a fourth weekly edition necessary.
Basler Zeitung Medien is probably keen to allow the NFZ to participate in national campaigns in this way. On the one hand, it wants to reward the Fricktaler Blatt, in which it holds a 21 percent stake, for its willingness to cooperate. On the other hand, it could once again demonstrate to the other regional papers, such as the Basellandschaftliche Zeitung and Volksstimme, that a partnership with the Basler Zeitung could be worthwhile.
Who knows, maybe the two will be lured into the Northwestern Switzerland network by the new docking option at the Metropool. In any case, this is wide open to them - as BaZ publisher Matthias Hagemann has always emphasized.
(mk)

Press logistics Swiss Post is of existential importance for many press titles, many of which only reach their subscribers thanks to the services of the yellow giant, yet major publishers such as NZZ, Ringier and Tamedia are trying to steal Swiss Post's thunder by means of the Alternative Delivery Organization (AZO). However, as soon as they sense an opportunity to boost their own retail sales at post offices, they are happy to partner with Swiss Post again. Several of them, such as Ringier, Tamedia and Jean Frey, will therefore take part in the press sales test that Swiss Post is launching on June 13. They are well aware that this is likely to reduce the sales of retail giant Valora, whose newsstands are just as vital for some titles as Swiss Post is for others.
But what the heck, Valora will once again be in demand as a partner to publishers at the latest when they take up arms against Swiss Post - as is the case with the AZO project, in which Valora is known to be actively involved. (More on this topic on page 18.)

Awards III Swiss advertising is strongly represented on the shortlist of the New York Festivals' print and outdoor competition. Ten agencies are finalists:Ruf Lanz with work for Suva, McKinsey & Company, Bank Coop and for Big; Sulzer Sutter with work for Parisienne and for Buch und Wein; Spillmann Felser Leo Burnett with work for Rhäzünser, the Alpenarena and for the Foundation for Social Youth Projects; Jung von Matt/Limmat with work for Schlagenhauf, Ofrag, Swisslos and Mentor Foundation; Publicis with work for Maggi, Amnesty International, Nestlé, Wilson Tennis and Sportplausch Wider; Euro RSCG with work for Riposa and Radio Energy; Advico Young & Rubicam with work for ADC Switzerland, Ceylor and for the Swiss milk producers; Saatchi & Saatchi Simko with work for Carlsberg; Matter & Partner for the Salvation Army and Walker for WC-Ente.