Germany Even after the 18th Munich Media Days, digitalization is still causing headaches in the industry.
The television landscape is to be digitized, both via cable and terrestrial reception: this discussion has been going on in Germany for over ten years. During the 18th Munich Media Days, the fronts have now been cemented even further. Georg Kofler, head of pay-TV Premiere, called the introduction and subsidization of DVB-T (digital reception via antenna) "nonsense in terms of industry strategy". He called on media politicians to stop subsidizing DVB-T immediately. RTL Managing Director Gerhard Zeiler, on the other hand, took up the cudgels for terrestrial digital television, because "we want to offer our customers a wider range of services." ZDF Director General Markus Schächter also joined the ranks of advocates, seeing DVB-T as "a mobile and transportable system" that opens up new qualities and dimensions for television. But do all free TV broadcasters in the country want digital terrestrial television? Jürgen Doetz, President of the Association of Private Broadcasting and Telecommunications (VPRT), waves it off. There are different opinions among the VPRT members, he says. "Everyone wants digitization, but only where it is necessary."
Dreaming of additional business
But the real key question, namely "How many viewers actually want digital TV?", was also discussed in Munich. For example, André Wiegand, consultant at Goldmedia, presented a study according to which acceptance of digital program packages in Germany is currently still below five percent (excluding Premiere).
The German newspaper industry, on the other hand, has fewer problems with digitization - at least in technical terms. Due to the ongoing migration of millions of advertising dollars to the Internet, publishing houses are desperately searching for new sources of revenue. Local hero Klaus Josef Lutz, Managing Director of Süddeutscher Verlag, presented himself as the reigning German champion in this discipline. His Süddeutsche Zeitung is currently generating millions in additional revenue with the sale of books and CDs (see WW 37/04). Within four days, 12,000 copies of the new classical music series "Klavier-Kaiser" were ordered from the publisher.
Tammo Andersch, Partner at KPMG, presented excerpts from a study on this controversial topic, which will be published soon. According to the study, the German newspaper industry is in an era of upheaval and realignment. If Andersch is to be believed, the introduction of
Tabloid newspapers "a step in the right direction". With small-format editions of established daily newspapers, it could be possible to appeal to young non-readers without scaring off regular readers.
Ringtones instead of printCorrespondingly, only 26 percent of the publishers surveyed categorically rule out tabloid editions. Newspaper managers are particularly keen on tapping into new markets with additional products or services. German publishing houses also see potential in postal services that can be combined with the delivery service. "However, it is questionable whether a 30 percent slump in the advertising business can be absorbed in this way," says Andersch, qualifying overly high expectations.
Despite realignment and experimentation, one core target group seems to be increasingly dropping out - young people. According to the tenor of many discussions during the three-day industry summit, they are hardly interested in printed matter anymore. The 12 to 18-year-olds prefer to invest in ringtones, text messages and the Internet.
The Federal Association of German Newspaper Publishers (BDZV) found that nine out of ten German newspapers produce special offers for young people. However, according to Iconkids & Youth, their formats and content hardly reach young people. According to Axel Dammler from I&Y, many newspapers do not reach young people because they are not where young people are and because there is not enough emotional coverage of their top issues. Conclusion: Youth pages are still being neglected.
More realismWith around 7000 congress participants (2003: 5800), the Munich Media Days recorded an increase in the number of participants for the sixth time in a row. In addition, the event has turned 18 this year and has thus come of age and grown up. While last year the end of the advertising crisis and recession was still naively proclaimed, this year's forecasts were more realistic. The great interest in the industry congress can be seen as a tentative sign of consolidation and recovery in the German media industry. (pe)
An industry "on the move" (poster excerpt): Digital TV reception and new sources of revenue for print media were key topics in Munich.
Guest speaker: Bavaria's Minister President Edmund Stoiber.
Peter Ehm

People The former editor-in-chief of Facts, Hannes Britschgi, is to become editorial director of the consumer magazine Saldo. Britschgi confirmed to Werbewoche a report by Klein Report that he has been working as a freelance journalist and media trainer since leaving Facts in October 2003. According to the imprint, Saldo has not had an editor-in-chief to date; publisher René Schuhmacher is responsible for the journalistic management.

Outdoor advertising At Zurich's Bahnhofplatz, APG can expand its poster presence from 10 to 64 sites. The reopening of the redesigned Bahnhofplatz on November 2 represents both an urban development and advertising sensation for the city on the Limmat. At the heart of the 20 million renovation project, which took around four years to complete, is a new streetcar stop shelter that is unparalleled in Europe with a length of 69.55 meters. The steel and glass construction of this above-ground hall, for which Verkehrsbetriebe Zürich (VBZ) is spending CHF 5 million alone, was created in close cooperation with APG. The aim was to refinance the high investment costs through billboard advertising (see also box).
The net-like structure of the hall is also based on the dimensions of the F12 illuminated posters. In total, it is made up of 192 such elements - 96 on each side of the station. Although most of these are transparent, a total of 32 are illuminated from the inside - as they are double-glazed - and serve as double-sided surfaces for advertising posters. This means that a total of 64 F12 illuminated advertising spaces are now available.
Prior to the redesign, there were only ten F12 billboards available at this highly frequented location. "This is huge for APG because we can now offer our customers this fantastic advertising opportunity at the most attractive advertising location in Switzerland," says Beat Holenstein, Head of APG Zurich, visibly delighted.
Holenstein also comes up with impressive figures for Bahnhofplatz: 8 of a total of 13 VBZ lines pass through the square, and around 48,000 people get on or off at this stop every day. The entire square is frequented by a total of 350000 to 400000 people every day (including motorists). This figure is likely to increase in future, as the redesign will make the square more pedestrian-friendly again. Previously, pedestrians were kept as far away from the square as possible via the underground Shop-Ville.
Strategy perfectedThe station square now closes a gap in the APG strategy.
the main station-Bahnhofstrasse-Paradeplatz-Bellevue axis. "In all major cities, APG is present with its billboards in the city center, namely where there is very high footfall and where commuter flows mingle with passers-by who are keen to consume," explains Holenstein. "Here in Zurich, too, we have been able to perfect this strategy in exemplary fashion." In fact, APG has already been able to offer the E-Board and Rolling Stars at the station and around 60 F200 illuminated posters on Zurich's "promenade". The 64 F12 luminaires are now being added.
They will be offered as follows: Around 47 will be integrated into the twelve existing networks from week 47, meaning that each network customer will be represented around four times at Bahnhofplatz. Ten further spaces have already been sold with annual contracts. "They went like hot cakes," smiles Holenstein. The rest will be sold individually.
There are two surprises in store for the inauguration: Firstly, all 64 spaces will be rented to a single customer in week 46. However, Holenstein does not want to reveal who it is. The actual kick-off on October 27, however, will be a joint teaser campaign by APG and VBZ, designed by the advertising agency Publicis. Holenstein only presents the teaser subject - a frog king - with the caption "On November 2, a wondrous transformation will take place here".
APG lights up VBZ Since the early 1990s, APG has been a "very important and successful partner of VBZ", says Martin Zollinger, Head of VBZ Traffic Media. The
Cooperation includes both the poster sites on the streetcar and bus shelters throughout the VBZ network and the advertising spaces in and on the vehicles (including hanging boxes).
While illuminated F200 posts have long since been installed in most bus shelters, illuminated advertising is only making its way into the Trams 2000 from this week: APG and VBZ are now offering Traffic Light Posters, backlit poster panels measuring 75 cm x 35 cm, on the roof slopes of this type of streetcar.
Two panels are installed per vehicle, currently a total of 340. The advertising expansion makes sense, as VBZ transports 298 million passengers a year - more than SBB (255 million).
Radio-poster comboThe combo, which Radio 24 and APG Zurich have been offering since May this year, can also be booked next year. "It has proved its worth and will continue unchanged," says Beat Holenstein. So far, the combi, which comprises 155 F200 spaces on Zurich's main arteries and 24 20-second spots on Radio 24, has been booked by around a dozen customers for one to two weeks at a time.
At times, such as before Mother's Day, customers even had to be turned away because the Kombi can only be booked by one customer per period, says Holenstein. Demand is similarly strong again towards Christmas. (mk)
Transformation at Zurich's Bahnhofplatz: APG's photomontage anticipates the new advertising opportunities.
Markus Knöpfli

Television In the real estate industry, "Wohntraum-TV" has established itself as a strong alternative in the marketing mix. Anyone looking for a new apartment or even a house knows the scene well enough: on at least two evenings a week and mercilessly every Saturday, hopefuls set off on a property tour. With a list of addresses in hand, countless properties are visited, viewed and checked off. "80 percent of people who come to view a property via an advertisement are disappointed," says Olivier Laube, quoting statistics from the real estate industry. However, anyone who has already seen the house "up close" on television can start their search in a more targeted way. "Wohntraum-TV" is the name of the concept with which Olivier Laube and René Schoch are enjoying increasing success on Primetime in Schlieren. In September, they started their second year of broadcasting with many expansion plans.
Following TeleZüri and TeleTop, the real estate magazine will also be shown on Schaffhausen television from October 25. In addition, the main sponsors Immoscout24.ch and Coop Bau Hobby have extended their contracts with "Wohntraum-TV". The magazine has entered into a new cooperation with the real estate consulting firm Wüest Partner. It provides the latest data for a new section with regional news.
150000 viewers per weekWatching television in your living room: This idea of a real estate advertisement with moving images reached 150000 viewers per week even before the Schaffhauser went on air. Each program is broadcast nine times and is divided into three parts: real estate, specialist tips and interior design.
"Our claim is infotainment in the area of beautiful living," says Laube, summarizing the concept. The phrases "quiet location, beautiful view" are outdated, according to the realizer and presenter of the new magazine. In printed advertisements, such words hardly arouse any emotions any more. With "Wohntraum-TV", however, genuine curiosity about a property can come into play.
The emotional charge of the filmed advertisements is to be achieved with stories that show more than just the property. Example: the new Puls 5 loft development in Zurich. The same building houses stores, restaurants and a fitness club. "Wohntraum-TV" has therefore produced a longer commercial for this client, in which an entire football team moves through the rooms on offer, playing with a ball. "We want to visually show the arguments why someone might fit into a particular house," says Laube.
"Why should someone live there?" is also a question posed by the client Intershop AG, which wants to see a visual idea for its commercials in the direction of "real estate lifestyle". "Building stories around the target group" is also a claim with which the magazine never gets boring, even for viewers who are looking for a suitable property over a longer period of time.
Results are measurableThe concept has been a success with real estate marketers. The presentation of the Mediacampus in Altstetten generated so many lettings that a new major order has now been received for the Binz Park in Zurich as a result of the response. Wohntraum-TV" is offered with a detailed illustrated supplement on the Internet. This combination enables the magazine to offer a comprehensive basis for decision-making. Television is expensive, you might think. But thanks to sponsors and advertisements for furnishings, the spot prices for real estate providers can be kept "very low" compared to print. A 20-second picture ad on TeleZüri costs CHF 720 per week, including production. The most expensive are 120-second spots. These are individually produced and broadcast for 3990 francs, including presentation on Immoscout24.ch.
All programs are sold and produced by Primetime itself. Primetime has purchased airtime from TeleZüri and other stations for daily broadcasts from Monday to Sunday at 6.40 pm and additionally on Saturdays and Sundays at 11 am. The filmed advertisements are adapted locally, the magazine section Immo-Tipp with an interview in the studio is conceived nationally.
Emotions instead of empty phrases: "Wohntraum-TV" is able to lure many people in front of the screen.

Andreas Panzeri

Radio Although no second radio station is planned for Biel alongside Canal 3, the initiators of Radio Bilingue have now submitted a license application to Bakom (see WW 37/04). However, the aim is not a second station: "Rather, we want to ensure that the existing Radio Canal 3 continues to broadcast both with a regionally anchored management and with such a sponsorship", says entrepreneur Thomas Eichelberger, designated Chairman of the Board of Radio Bilingue SA, which is currently being founded. Béatrice Sermet, principal of the French high school in Biel and designated Vice-President of the Board of Directors of Radio Bilingue, fears that the French frequency "will be neglected or even outsourced" by Espace Media, which primarily broadcasts in German and wants to take over Canal 3.Radio Bilingue SA, based in Biel, is starting with a share capital of CHF 100,000. The ownership consists of people who live or work in the broadcasting area. Radio Bilingue is supported by a strategy group made up of business and cultural representatives.
(mk)

Beverages Granador aims to position itself as an innovative fruit juice brand with the launch of the table drink Liquid. Nestlé Wellness, Nendaz Citron, Rhäzünser Plus: various new launches demonstrate the growing consumer demand for beverages with added value. While the mineral water industry is adding flavors to its still and sparkling waters, fruit juice producers are adding water to their drinks. The most recent example is the grande dame of fruit juice producers, Granador AG. The company, based in Hitzkirch, Lucerne, has built up fruit juice expertise over the course of its more than 100-year history and today, according to its own statements, occupies a podium position among Switzerland's branded fruit juices. At the end of October, Granador is launching a new product, Liquid. Produced on a water basis and with a fruit juice content of between 20 and 30 percent, the drink will be marketed in four flavors with a refreshing effect. The introduction of Liquid is part of a repositioning of the Granador brand as an innovative fruit juice brand. The new product line, which will initially be distributed via Coop stores in the Zurich/Central Switzerland area, also features the brand's revised logo.
The Liquid concept is not entirely new. Last spring, Migros launched its own brand Xotica, a table drink with fruit juice content in the lower percentage range. In addition, our northern neighbors have been drinking Punica for almost thirty years. "Liquid is not so much the answer to Xotica or Punica, but to consumer demand for such drinks," counters Romano Strebel, consultant at Jung von Matt/Limmat (JvM). The Zurich agency developed the creative strategy for the Liquid launch together with Granador.
As Granador Liquid is placed on the shelf next to the fruit juices, the aim of the public campaign was to clearly distinguish the new product as a refreshing drink from the rather heavy fruit juices. The JvM creative team led by CD Michael Rottmann dramatizes this consumer benefit in a very exaggerated way: sweaty people cool themselves with penguins. "Stop the penguin abuse! Refresh yourselves with Liquid", demands the claim, whose typeface at first glance does indeed evoke associations with an animal welfare organization. "The subjects are structured in such a way that the only logical solution in the end can only be the consumption of liquid," says Rottmann, explaining the "detour via the penguin". In addition to the posters and advertisements, which will be used at the beginning of November, Rottmann says that teaser campaigns will also be carried out in the sports environment and on TV shows. According to the CD, people in the audience will cool themselves with fabric penguins.
102 years of thirst quenchersThe Granador Group was founded in 1902 as the Lucerne Fruit Processing Cooperative. Half a century later, the company began producing sweet drinks and, in 1970, fruit juices.
Today, the company's core competencies lie in the development, production and marketing of its own branded products as well as the production of beverages for other brands in the beverage industry. In 2003, the Granador Group achieved net sales of around CHF 79 million and an annual production of 134 million liters.
In the first half of this year, net sales (37.9 million) were around 7% lower than in the previous year. The management sees the reason for this in the tense market conditions and the poor weather compared to last year's record summer.
However, Granador expects sales to return to the previous year's level by the end of the current year. New bottling orders and, not least, the new launch of Granador Liquid should contribute to this. (sk)
Jung von Matt/Limmat had a bird - a penguin - when they created the Liquid campaign for Granador >> page 8
A good tip if you don't have a penguin to hand: Liquid campaign by Jung von Matt/Limmat.
Simone Keller

Whether it's the demand for school uniforms or prostitution under the term "label sex" to finance expensive fashion brands: unlike in 1995, when Horx and Wippermann presented their pioneering analysis of the fetish nature of certain products, no one today disputes the relevance, even explosiveness, of the brand cult in society as a whole. Today, the two Hamburg trend pioneers act as official trend popes, but their smug collection of essays is now only available in antiquarian bookshops, despite the fact that their oeuvre, which is as opinionated as it is fact-poor, has long since achieved cult status among connoisseurs. No wonder, since it not only presented brand strategies such as morphing, bootlegging, archaization and authentication for the first time, but also the anti-advertising of the Adbusters. Which is why "Markenkult" should still be required reading for newbies in the branding business.
> Brand cult.
How goods become icons by Matthias Horx and Peter Wippermann. Econ Verlag, Düsseldorf 1995. 472 pages, 32 francs. (out of print)
(oc)

Food Unilever Bestfoods is consolidating the Europe-wide advertising mandate for the Knorr brand - around CHF 45 million - in the J. Walter Thompson (JWT) network in 2005. The food and consumer goods group is transferring the DDB share of its communications budget to the JWT Group, which is thus gaining a further 18 countries in addition to the existing 8. In Switzerland, Knorr has been working with JWT + Hostettler + Fabrikant since 2001.

Private TV The Federal Office of Communications (OFCOM) is investigating U1 TV, a private broadcaster suspected of interrupting its reality show "U-Haft" with advertising more often than permitted by the Radio and Television Act. Carole Winistörfer, co-head of supervision at Bakom, explained this to the SonntagsZeitung. U1 is taking over "U-Haft" from its sister stations TV München and TV Berlin. But even though the show originates from Germany, U1 is bound by Swiss law, Winistörfer noted.

Column The U.S. election campaign is a prime example of what counts more than ever in political and commercial communication: Speak simply, emotionally and as repetitively as possible.Admittedly, hitting the books at three in the morning doesn't exactly improve the quality of life. But it's still worth it every four years. Because when the U.S. presidential candidates enter the arena, there's a lot to learn about communication. This was also the case in the three TV duels between George W. Bush and John Kerry. The show element may irritate us staid Swiss. But "what the heck?" is part of the game. Politically, you can have whatever you want to say about Christoph Blocher. But when he appears in the "Arena," at least there's something going on. If, on the other hand, Joseph Deiss enters the ring, you doze off before you even start watching. The same applies to the US election campaign, but to an even greater extent.
For those who are to vote for the most powerful man in the world want to know that he also has emotions and is not a database made flesh. It was only when Bush played the emotional piano in the second of the three debates that he was seen as having the power of persuasion. And the fact that the "human factor" hardly comes across in Kerry, the blue-blood from New England, could cost him victory.
From a technical point of view, the opponents are on an equal footing. Both are perfectly prepared by their advisory staffs and are always in a position to counter opposing figures with their own statistics that prove the opposite. Kerry, for example, accused Bush of destroying 1.6 million jobs and of being responsible for the fact that real incomes have fallen three years in a row. He, Kerry, would change that and restore spending discipline. Bush unapologetically countered this by pointing out that as a senator, Kerry had voted for tax increases 98 times and against tax cuts 127 times in the last 20 years, and 277 times he had worked to lift budget restraints, which - if he had gotten away with it - would have resulted in $4.2 trillion in additional spending.
Remember: It is not about doubting the statistics (read: message) of the other, but about ignoring them and hammering one's own message into the heads of the voters. The fact that both sides play hardball in the process is part of the game. However, it is advisable not to aim below the belt in the verbal exchange of blows. For example, Kerry's discussion of Dick Cheney's daughter and her lesbian tendencies in debate three did not win him any sympathy. His justification was too flimsy: he merely wanted to point out that same-sex relations were also an issue in the vice president's family.
A tough fight is appreciated by the audience, but only as long as it remains fair. Accusing your opponent of bad policy is one thing; attacking the private person is another. Which is why Bush, for his part, was forced to distance himself when some overzealous supporters publicly questioned Kerry's conduct in the Vietnam War. Bush's "spin doctors" rightly feared that such mudslinging could ultimately turn against the president himself.
Here in Germany, the same is true: Apart from the SVP clientele, people have had enough of blaming the other side; they want solutions to problems. And paradoxically, both in detail and in simple terms. Here, too, the soundbite-tested US politicians are miles ahead of us, having long since internalized KISS (keep it simple, stupid).
What can all the market-oriented and consumer-conscious Swiss CEOs learn from this? The same as our politicians: communication success only comes to those who arouse emotions, at the same time stick to the facts, are meticulously prepared, speak a clear language, but at the same time refrain from denigrating the competitor and limit themselves to a few, constantly repeated core messages. Or as Bush aptly puts it, "It just takes strong leadership." Have fun!
> Sacha Wigdorovits heads the Zurich-based communications agency Contract Media.

Retail Jelmoli's media budget will be managed by Zip Media with immediate effect. The Zurich agency has already been working for Jelmoli's Gourmet Factory since the end of 2003. The cooperation is now being extended to the entire budget of the Zurich department store. In cooperation with the advertising agency Spillmann Felser Leo Burnett, Zip Media also works for the tourism labels Alpenarena.ch and Weisse Arena in Flims and Laax.

Media corporations An investigative historian takes aim at Bertelsmann's business methods and pseudo-ethics. In 1998, Hersch Fischler accused Bertelsmann of systematically falsifying its own history for decades and falsely portraying itself as a publishing house that resisted the Nazis. Six years after this revelation - which has since been confirmed by an expert commission - the historian, together with journalist Frank Böckelmann, is now presenting his general reckoning with the Gütersloh powerhouse, beginning in 2002, more precisely with the dismissal of the then CEO Thomas Middelhoff. As is well known, the common explanation was that the wife of Bertelsmann patriarch Reinhard Mohn had forced his departure in order to keep power in the family. Wrong, say Fischler/Böckelmann. They think they know "what happened behind the scenes". And ask whether the journalists who spread the above official version "were not merely using the cliché of female power behind power to cover up other events". Covering up? Has the media once again unwittingly conspired with Bertelsmann to spread false legends, as they did with the myth of the resistance publishing house?
The authors claim that Middelhoff did not have to leave because Reinhard or Liz Mohn feared for the control of their conglomerate. Rather, they cite an article in the Washington Post about fictitious transactions by AOL in the USA, in which Bertelsmann was involved and where Middelhoff sat on the supervisory board. He was not even mentioned in the article. But a few days after the publication of this revelatory story, Middelhoff was fired. According to the authors, this was no mere coincidence, as Bertelsmann feared for its good reputation and global business.
As it is not conclusively substantiated anywhere, Die Welt describes this thesis - like the entire book - as a "grotesque conspiracy theory". If the authors are to be believed, however, their investigative reconstruction of this case is "highly plausible". The truth probably lies somewhere in between.
The analysis of the company's history is more convincing than the analysis of yesterday's news. For example, the legitimization of Reinhard's father Heinrich Mohn's philosophy of expansion is illuminated. Since he was soon no longer only printing religious books, he could no longer justify his business spirit with faith - and invented the ethical exaltation that still characterizes Bertelsmann today.
It is true that many examples prove the permanent reinterpretation of the pursuit of profit as working for the common good, especially by the company's own foundation. However, the accusatory undertone and the various unnecessary side-swipes reflect the anti-capitalist resentment of the 1970s, which ultimately spoils the reading of what is in itself an informative work.
> Bertelsmann - Behind the facade of the media empire by Frank Böckelmann and Hersch Fischler. Eichborn Verlag, Frankfurt a.M. 2004.
352 pages, 38 francs.
Oliver Classen