Schmuck World's End in Zurich is the best-known Swiss piercing and tattoo studio, claims master piercer and owner Rock Battaglia.Schmuck World's End in Zurich is the best-known Swiss piercing and tattoo studio, claims master piercer and owner Rock Battaglia. He can now draw on over twelve years of experience and is considered a legend in the scene. Wirz Werbung, whose creative team developed the world's first pierced letterheads for the establishment, has recently increased its presence in the local market. In addition, billboards and advertisements feature a nipple piercing on the doorbell, photographed by Martin Hemmi in a gritty World's End aesthetic.

Watches Walca has entrusted the Biel-based advertising agency Virus Ideenlabor with all its communication measures, and following an agency evaluation, the watchmaking group based in Biel and Hong Kong has opted for Virus. According to a statement from the agency, the decisive factor in awarding the account was its many years of experience and knowledge in this sector. Walca produces watches for various well-known global fashion and lifestyle brands.

Column With "infomercials" and "advertainment", the industry has so far only discredited itself. "Recently, I received a concerned letter from the sales management of a respected major German media outlet about the increasingly pestilential mixing of editorial content with advertising and PR. Surprisingly, the knowledgeable practitioners of commercial communication are not only concerned about their own profession; they are also worrying about their journalistic colleagues. And rightly so, because the situation is indeed alarming: on the one hand, the writers point to a technical development that has rarely been discussed to date. With the help of hard disk recorders, television viewers will soon be able to fade out commercial breaks at will. The consequence, according to our colleagues, will be that "the clients or their agencies will set themselves up to write scripts and take over the director's chairs". If advertising, fenced into blocks, is no longer taken note of, advertising will simply have to be sunk into the content itself.
As long as it's only about which make of car the heroes of the soul dramas on air drive, you might not care. But if reports are also financed by sponsors in the near future, all objectivity will be lost. It's not just the financially weaker special interest channels that are already asking with every new broadcasting concept: "And who pays for the films?"
Would it be acceptable if reporting on healthcare reform was financed by the pharmaceutical industry, documentary films about wind turbines by Greenpeace and reports from Afghanistan by Pentagon agencies? But this is precisely the acute danger for the most basic of all journalistic resources, called credibility. Accordingly, public television broadcasters also regularly come under fire for unfair sponsorship in the form of product placement and other surreptitious advertising methods.
Unfortunately, we have become accustomed to the fact that car and food critics are occasionally - but not always - all too closely associated with their test objects. But what if the omnipresent and constantly growing PR industry is increasingly manipulating the political information processes that are vital for democracies? In any case, the American agency Rudder-Finn has, according to its own statements, performed brilliant propaganda work for Bosnia's ex-president Izetbegovic. The Serbian and Croatian heads of state were also well advised. And the American government now employs so many agency professionals that they outnumber the Washington correspondents. What if government-affiliated broadcasters soon (also) broadcast mainly the ready-made video packages from agencies for cost reasons? As "infoganda" with first-class image material?
In addition, my sources write: "We have recently experienced that some marketing managers of German blue chip companies declare classic advertising obsolete and demand 'cooperation' from all media indiscriminately." In other words: The usual, hitherto reasonably harmless and hardly replaceable financing of media via advertising is in danger of suppressing the free flow of critical communication. If this development is not stopped quickly and decisively, then God have mercy on us. Because ultimately, only critical media consumers will be able to prevent the corruption of the fourth power in the state.
> Peter Glotz is Professor of Media and Communication Management at the University of St. Gallen and a SonntagsBlick columnist.

Job board The Zurich-based media company Tamedia has entrusted Unikat with the Jobwinner.ch account. The Küsnacht-based communications agency came out on top in a pitch against four competitors.job board The Zurich-based media house Tamedia has entrusted Unikat with the Jobwinner.ch budget. The Küsnacht-based communications agency came out on top in a pitch against four competitors. The successful job platform Jobwinner.ch is part of the specialist publisher Tamedia Stellenmarkt, which also includes the management job market Alpha and the Stellen-Anzeiger. Tamedia
announced in March that it would be investing heavily in technology and personnel at Jobwinner.ch.

Casino Weber Harbeke stages the excitement in the casino, and now it's getting "damn exciting" on TV too. After advertisements and posters with people who forget everything else in the face of the excitement of gambling, Weber Harbeke is now showing the same ideas in TV commercials for Grand Casino Baden. With over 20 casinos, Switzerland has the highest density of casinos in the world. The Grand Casino Baden is the market leader with more than 1000 admissions per day and an annual gross gaming revenue of over CHF 100 million. In order to consolidate this position and attract new gambling enthusiasts, the operators were looking for a new communication strategy and a concept that could be adapted to both classic and below-the-line advertising media.
Following a multi-stage evaluation process, the Zurich advertising agency Weber Harbeke was chosen at the beginning of the year. The task was to present the Grand Casino Baden as the leading A-casino in Switzerland and to define a clear promise for the Grand Casino Baden brand.
It was clear to the agency that the competition for a casino is not just other casinos, but any kind of evening entertainment, be it a trip to the movies, a party or a night out with friends. The challenge for the creatives at Weber Harbeke was therefore to work out what a visit to the casino has over all other activities.
The strategic goal was therefore to position the Grand Casino Baden as a place of maximum excitement. "Because nothing is more exciting than playing for money, the Grand Casino Baden's brand promise is the absolute excitement on offer there," say Thomas Harbeke and Max Weber.
Because nobody can escape this tension, the statement was ultimately reduced to: It's simply "damn exciting". This pair of words also became the claim of the campaign. It shows how the tension affects the players: they are so captivated that they light the cigarette upside down, pour the tonic next to the gin or bite into their jewelry.
These small observations first appeared as posters and advertisements. Now also as TV commercials. In addition, the theme of excitement is varied on the radio. Frank Baumann, who has been shaping the Grand Casino Baden's radio advertising since the opening, was once again recruited for this.
The three 20-second TV commercials were realized in just one day of shooting. This was "thanks to the very professional handling" by Pumpkin Film in collaboration with freelance agency producer Cem Capanoglu, who accompanied the project.
The commercials were shot on location at Casino Baden by young director Pierre Monard. In addition to the actors, the employees of the casino also took part as extras. Even without a Hollywood budget, Pierre Monard and cameraman Darran Bragg succeeded in giving these spots glamor. This can now be seen on TeleZüri and Tele M1.
Completely out of place: Scenes at the gambling table, filmed at Casino Baden.

Andreas Panzeri

Belcom CEO Andreas Meili explains why two paragraphs of the RTVA led to his withdrawal from the VSP.WW City Pool radio stations do not agree with articles 54.3 and 55.2 of the RTVA (see box) - in contrast to the other members of the VSP.
members of the Swiss Private Radio Association. But why did you leave the VSP straight away?
Andreas Meili: The articles contain key provisions from the point of view of publisher radio stations: According to 55.2, media houses active in multimedia must expect that they will no longer be able to operate licensed radio or TV in the future. And those that do receive a license may own a maximum of two stations according to 54.3. This is an arbitrary limit because it is not based on actual market shares, but on a purely numerical criterion. This makes it more difficult for the market to develop. We are also of the opinion that the support of a large media company can enhance the quality of a channel and thus have a positive effect on the diversity of opinions and offerings. And that no further market restrictions are needed in addition to the new, more effective Cartel Act. In these matters, which are very fundamental for us, we do not feel represented by the VSP.
Do you expect other publisher radio stations such as Basel 1, BE1, Munot, Grischa or 32 to leave?
I assume that they are thinking along similar lines to the city pool radios.
Are you actively trying to attract more publisher radio stations to your side?
There are contacts between them.
Will you set up a second association?
We would certainly like to bundle our positions, but the organizational form is still open. It is also possible that we could become involved in the publishers' association.
This is probably the right place for your concern, as the two articles primarily concern publishers' interests. Why do you mix these with the actual radio interests in the VSP?
Especially in political decision-making, it is not always possible to distinguish between the two. And with our withdrawal, we wanted to reveal this fundamental difference of opinion. In other areas, however, such as radio research or VHF frequencies, we are of the same opinion as the VSP. We will continue to work together on these issues.
I interpret her resignation as a renewed commitment that Tamedia wants to expand its radio and TV chains.
I have to correct that: We are not in the process of forming chains. We own Radios 24 and Basilisk and have a minority stake in ExtraBern via the Berner Zeitung (BZ). And we work together in the City Pool, where we feel comfortable, as well as in the Swiss Radio Pool. Operationally, however, only two stations are under my responsibility. My primary concern is to offer the market sensible forms of advertising - and I believe that we are doing this. However, if opportunities arise, which must always allow for sensible advertising and programming combinations, we also want to be able to participate in other stations. We would like the law to allow this. Everyone, including foreigners, should be able to grow if the market offers this. But it is not the case that we are on a shopping spree.
And in the TV sector?
We own TeleZüri and also hold a minority stake in TeleBärn via BZ. In addition, we cooperate in TeleNewsCombi (TNC). This can still grow. But here, too, we have no intention of acquiring a stake in other stations. We want to make TeleZüri a success first. The main goal there is to break even, which would take us a big step further.
A second, much bigger problem is recouping the investment of around CHF 115 million for Belcom and Basilisk. You have your back to the wall.
The fact is that we paid a hefty price for the two investments. What's more, 2002 and 2003 were particularly weak years in economic terms. But we are very satisfied with Basilisk and 24, both of which are among the most profitable stations in Switzerland.
But they are never so profitable that the large investments can be repaid within ten years.
We have made two value adjustments at Belcom and Basilisk, partly due to the weak economy.
Nevertheless, around 80 million francs remain. Are further value adjustments imminent? No, I don't think so.
By when and how do you want to achieve the return on investment?
We do not provide any information about our calculation models and strategies. However, it should not be forgotten that Tamedia has not only acquired two very successful radio stations, but also the associated sales companies, a successful TV station in the form of TeleZüri and a property in Zurich and Basel.
Once again on possible acquisitions: In Bern, Tamedia is reportedly waiting until Charles von Graffenried, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Espace Media, retires. This could offer the opportunity to create new majority structures at BZ, ExtraBern and TeleBärn.
No, we do not make such considerations. We are asking ourselves how we can operate our radios and TeleZüri most successfully. In this context, we also want to keep our investment options open. But we are not speculating on the resignation of Mr. von Graffenried.
There are several TV stations that have their doors more or less open, such as TeleOstschweiz or NordWest 5 (NW 5). Is NW 5 not an option for
Tamedia?
We have no intention of getting involved there. However, a larger concession area would certainly be important for NW 5 itself, and I would welcome this. After all, competition is good for a monopolized media market like Basel. What's more, the City of Basel's negative opinion on the NW 5 expansion application has protectionist overtones. I am very curious to see how the Federal Office of Communications and the Federal Council will react to this.
NW-5 Managing Director Beat Alder does not seem to need your help.
have. He can acquire advertising. According to his figures, he earned CHF 68,000,000 in advertising and sponsorship income in 2003, almost as much as Tele Basel, for which your Basel sales company Medag acquired a portion. For 2004, Alder is even expecting 2 million francs.
I don't know whether these figures are correct. Marketing Tele Basel was difficult. Regional TV did not have the same acceptance two years ago as it does today. And the connection to TNC will pay off even more for Tele Basel in the future.
But aren't you annoyed that Alder is showing you up like this with NW 5? With
With just 25 municipalities - excluding the city of Basel - and without TNC membership, it brings together more than Medag.
If he actually manages to do that, I can only congratulate him. He may have a lot of goodwill in his region. But whether a station can be financed on this basis in the long term is very questionable. In the end, normal performance figures such as reach or GRP will be decisive. That is why Mr. Alder remains dependent on a larger broadcasting area.
About Tele Basel: Until his death in February, Basilisk co-founder Hans-Ruedi Ledermann was a member of the committee of the cable network foundation. This meant that Tamedia was also represented on the board of Tele Basel. Would you like to continue to sit on it?
If it makes sense for Tele Basel. We have not yet received a request, but would certainly consider one.
Are you not taking action yourself?
The political side of Tele Basel is not uninteresting for us, but it is not the main focus. I favor cooperation in the commercial sector. For example, Radio Basilisk and Tele Basel will cooperate on the FC Basel championship celebrations.
The bone of contentionThe controversial paragraphs of the RTVA, as passed by the National Council as the first chamber
Art. 54.3: A broadcaster or the company which owns it may acquire a maximum of two television licences and two radio licences. Art. 55.2: If several applications are received in the invitation to tender for a license, preference shall be given to the applicant who is best able to fulfil the performance mandate. If several applications are largely equivalent from this point of view, preference shall be given to the applicant who is least dependent on other broadcasters and other media companies.
Paragraph dispute: Andreas Meili, Head of Electronic Media at Tamedia.
Interview: Markus Knöpfli

Advertising bans A majority of the Swiss population is comfortable with the idea of only allowing tobacco advertising at points of sale. 64 percent are "very much in favor" or "somewhat in favor", according to a survey by the Federal Office of Public Health. Even the 561 people surveyed
daily smokers are 52 percent in favor of the advertising restrictions

Television SF DRS has decided to discontinue the women's program "Flamingo". They want to "pool resources and resources" in order to produce their own sitcom for primetime, which will be partly financed with income from the televoting of "MusicStar". SF DRS writes that abandoning "Flamingo" would free up additional, urgently needed funds.

Hygiene The PR agency Dr. Peter P. Knobel AG won four new mandates in the first quarter of 2004. Dr. Knobel is responsible for the Kleenex brand for Tela-Kimberly Switzerland, while wet shaving specialist Wilkinson Sword has entrusted the agency with publicizing its new products. The Italian furniture designer Natuzzi is also looking for marketing communications. PIAG Performance Improvement AG relies on Knobel's expertise in corporate communications. The agency is supporting the start-up company's entire market presence.

By the time this issue of Werbewoche is published, it's almost no longer true, but a good week and a half ago, the advertising agency Publicis hosted a bratwurst and risotto dinner followed by the burning of the Böögg. Or more precisely, the traditional Sechseläuten event. The time that has now passed even allows us to make an initial assessment of the predictive quality of the Böögg burning. It is well known that the snowman predicts the quality of the coming summer via the duration of his stay on the pyre. Last year, the prediction came true in full, as it carved off the head of the winter symbol in a record time of just under six minutes. It is still fleetingly remembered that this was followed by a never-ending millennium summer.
Well, we shouldn't be in for a Dacapo this year if the Böögg is right (even if the start so far has given us hope). The stubborn lingering time of almost a quarter of an hour suggests a mixed summer. The purists among the Publicis guests even debated whether the Böögg had been transported to the wintry afterlife in a manner befitting its status. Attentive observers claim to have noticed that the Böögg's head did not explode in accordance with the regulations, but was merely blown off and then flickered for some time between the horses' hooves of the guild members on horseback.
A reliable forecast for the coming summer is therefore proving more difficult than ever. For this reason, neither the guild members present (splendid Markus Gut in his garb from the United Guilds of Gerwe and Shoemakers) nor other Böögg-knowledgeable attendees wanted to let themselves out on the branches.
Beat Fritsch made his way to the Publicis advertising agency on Sechseläuten Monday. With its generous window fronts, the company on Stadelhoferplatz offers an almost ideal
A box seat to the Sechseläutenwiese, where the annual parade of the guilds (popularly known as the parade of disguised tax optimizers) ends - and winter in all its glory becomes a victim of the flames.
Where the communications, media and publishing industries meet for their parties, we locate them at the events of the scene. Do you already have something to report? Pick up the phone (01 296 97 98) or hit the keys ([email protected]). Event tips and further shortlist images are available online at www.werbewoche.ch
The sausage belongs to Sechseläuten like the big bang belongs to the Böögg.
No reliable summer forecast possible this year: Guild founder Markus Gut (left) with Eva Keller and Fredy Collioud.
Andreas Prokesch with Kaspar Loeb and Marco E. de Stoppani (from left), who "would actually have had the better view from the NZZ".
Perfect product placement: Pascal Schaub (r.) and Lukas Tenger with Boudewijn D. J. van Rompu (l.), CEO of Heineken Switzerland.
Enjoying the sausages at Publicis: NZZ Head of Marketing Christoph Bauer (left) with Claudia Wilden and Roger Baur from Cinecom.
Jürg Trösch (right) and Dani Stierli (left) from Linkgroup with Daniel Straumann from Straumann talked about printing and prepress.
Sandro Proietto (right) and Nico Keramanis from Mediabox Print swarmed around Nadine Andres from 20 Minuten like moths to a flame.
Vera Lüchinger from La Prairie with Peter Kettiger, who took part in this year's parade as a guild guest.
Ringier meets Tamedia meets NZZ - united at Publicis: Christoph Grenacher, Andreas Durisch and Tobias Trevisan (from left).
Together with their wives and offspring, they could be found in the terrace marquee: Cumi Karagülle (l.) and Jean-Christophe Francet.
Couldn't stop doing business at Sechseläuten either: Medard Meier (l.) and Sacha Wigdorovits at the palm adjustment.
Took exemplary care of the customers: Philippe Meyer (right) from Publicis with Benoit Anger, Managing Director Club Med.
Watching the Böögg explosion together: Roger Sommerhalder from Büttikofer und Partner with Carina Hungerbühler, Publicis.
They did not miss the party in their own house: Marc-André Capeder (l.), Carmela Carbone and Mirko Paci from Publicis.
Famed visual artist: photographer Julien Vonier with Beat Obermayr (l.), Viviana Chiusi and Andrea Dübendorfer (r.) from Publicis.
Not immodest: They are the backbone of Publicis, said Tom Zürcher (r.), Ariel Zumstein and Seraina Wächter.

Banks Zürcher Kantonalbank has concentrated its advertising budget with Wirz Werbung. The appearance has become more uniform.
The main strategic direction is clear: Zürcher Kantonalbank (ZKB), which claims to be Zurich's market-leading universal bank and Switzerland's third-largest bank, wants to continue to grow. On the one hand, in its traditional lending business, where its market share in the canton of Zurich is already over 40 percent for mortgages and around 50 percent for corporate clients. On the other hand, in the investment and pension business, where ZKB has now become the fifth largest asset manager in Switzerland. Despite its success, the balancing act of positioning itself as a bank that is both close and universal has proven to be an ever greater challenge - especially as advertising was managed by various agencies until last fall.evolution instead of revolution
Matthias Hohermuth, Head of Marketing at ZKB, countered the risk of fragmentation of ZKB's advertising presence by consolidating the budgets with a single agency. Wirz Werbung was asked to develop a concept that would enable consistent unity in terms of content as well as form.
"We didn't start a revolution, but an evolution," explains Wirz consulting group manager Markus Müller. After all, the agency's task was to close a perception gap, especially among potential customers. Although ZKB is perceived as a leading retail and mortgage bank by this target group, the two big banks are top of mind in areas such as wealthy private customers and fund business. In order to combine local roots with expertise in the global financial business, the creative team led by CD Hanspeter Schweizer chose an implementation that focuses less on the products and more on the customer and respects the formal elements of the brand image that was introduced shortly before. In addition to the continued testimonial campaign for SME customers, this resulted in a platform designed to strengthen the ZKB mono-brand through the homogeneous and harmonious implementation of the various sub-campaigns.
The corporate philosophy expressed in the brand claim "The close bank" is now also continued in the advertising subjects. The square thought bubbles of the illustrations are intended to demonstrate the empathetic perspective of the bank by bypassing the usual pattern of bank advertising with their content. Only in rare cases do the thoughts revolve around business or banking aspects, whereby Wirz succeeds in a certain way in creating a Swiss-like, well-behaved approach to the quirky, innovative and independent campaign of the German HypoVereinsbank. With this human proximity, the copy takes in all business areas and is intended to communicate to private and corporate customers the security of being with a bank that understands their needs: "ZKB, the human professional", summarizes Hanspeter Schweizer.
Only the small print mentions the safe deposit box: Wirz campaign for ZKB.
Luca Aloisi

Gastronomy The new Airside Center will open at Zurich Airport in September. The Compass Group is responsible for the catering in the central area behind passport control and is setting up five different establishments, from a bar and pizzeria to a hamburger grill. The company is being advised by St. Gallen-based BPR Communications. BPR provides public relations and marketing support, organizes events and also designs the signage, decorative elements and uniforms for the restaurants.