Internet The website of the Basler Zeitung has started the new year with a traffic record. In January, BaZ.ch had 1.2 million visitors and 4.2 million page views. The online quiz and Roger Federer's victories at the Australian Open contributed to the top result, write the Basler Zeitung Medien. The forum discussions, for example on the university's austerity program, the transfer of Hakan Yakin to Stuttgart and the federal votes, also attracted a lot of attention.

Soft drinks beverage group Henniez has commissioned Zurich-based communications agency X-Act to design and implement a series of events in March and April, at which Henniez will present this year's new products to its customers from the food service industry and selected journalists. The five events will take place in five cities in German-speaking and French-speaking Switzerland.

Internet Internet provider Bluewin is exhibiting at Muba this year. From February 13 to 22, Bluewin will be showcasing its range of products and services for private customers. Bluewin's presence at the Basel consumer fair is part of a new concept. "We are now presenting ourselves at consumer fairs because our target group has shifted towards them," Bluewin media spokesperson Myriam Ziesack told the Netzwoche ticker.

TourismThe agency Virus Ideenlabor in Biel and Aidentity Marketing und Kommunikation in Bern have been entrusted by the South African embassy in the federal capital with the conception of all measures for the "10 years of a new South Africa" celebrations. The publicity campaign and project-specific work will be used throughout the year.

Gastronomy The Gourmesse, the "trade fair for gourmets", will continue to be held after all. This year, it will take place from 8 to 11 October at the Zurich Kongresshaus, where the organizer Edition Salz & Pfeffer announced in November that the event had been cancelled because the Kongresshaus "could not guarantee a constant and acceptable date for the event". As in 2003, the current date is during the fall vacations.

Foreign Minister Micheline Calmy-Rey will be present at this year's Advertising Day.associations She will give a speech at the members' meeting of Swiss Advertising (SW) and friendly associations.

Direct Marketing Switzerland has three chances of winning the German Dialog Marketing Award: Lowe Direct, Zurich, and Eugster Kommunikation in Rorschacherberg have been nominated in the "D-A-CH Campaign" category, where Swiss and Austrian agencies are also eligible. Lowe is on the shortlist with the Swiss frequent flyer program and the VIP invitations for Orange Cinema. Eugster reached the final with its "Bumerang" self-promotion. A total of nine out of 52 entries were nominated in the newly launched category. The winners will be announced on April 2.

Market research Manta Reisen, Mövenpick and Calida placed the most popular ads in the Swiss media in the fourth quarter of last year.Best of NorthwestAffinity of ads among supporters in "Yuppieland" Gold (152) Rivella raw materials (Lowe)
Silver (132) Calida AG Just feel
Bronze (130) Dolce & Gabbana Four men
In collaboration with the market research institute Demoscope, Publimedia presents readers of Werbewoche with an extract of the results from the Advertising Index (AX-Print) five times a year. This index is a module of the

Market Radar and measures the popularity of ads. The boxes on the left and right contain the ads that achieved the greatest acceptance in the relevant psychographic target group. The three subjects that performed best with the entire sample, i.e. with all four target groups in total, are listed under the title "Top Three". (ww)

Outdoor advertising The Allgemeine Plakatgesellschaft (APG) has massively increased the prices for political posters in Bern, affecting only posters that are displayed on temporary stands. Instead of CHF 40, in future CHF 375 will have to be paid and the number of locations will be reduced from 30
reduced to 22. Branch manager Ernst Erismann justified the measures with increasing costs due to acts of vandalism. Before the federal elections in the fall, the posters were torn down and smeared or the stands tipped over. The Green Alliance protests against the
price increase and has called in the price watchdog.

Customer magazines At the beginning of June, Hans Schneeberger will become editor-in-chief of the new Migros magazine; he is currently deputy editor-in-chief of the Aargauer Zeitung - a position he only took up last July. At Construire, the previous deputy Joël Guillet was promoted to editor-in-chief. Until the end of 2003, journalistic director Michel Danthe headed the editorial offices of both Migros member newspapers.

Cannes Lions Switzerland is represented at this year's Cannes Lions by Bernhard Abegglen. The Creative Partner of the Bern-based agency Contexta is on the jury for Press & Outdoor.Cannes Lions Switzerland is represented at this year's Cannes Lions by Bernhard Abegglen. The Creative Partner of the Bern-based agency Contexta is a member of the jury for Press & Outdoor. Another Swiss juror has been nominated for the direct marketing competition of the advertising film festival. It is not yet known who will receive this honor.

Special Interest The new Schweizer Golfmagazin is published at the end of March - the cut-throat battle is hotting up When the golf magazine market is really groaning and cracking, it's an unmistakable sign that the opening of the season is just around the corner. Schweizer Golfmagazin is the latest challenger to shake up the overcrowded golf publication market this year. The plan is to publish a magazine in tabloid format, which will start courting golfers at the end of March. With a print run of 14,000 copies, the new Swiss golf magazine will be available at newsstands, in golf clubs and driving ranges, in golf hotels and by subscription. VIP Media Verlag AG, which published Golf & Country and the titles Petri Heil and Kavallo until the end of May 2003, is behind the brazen attack. However, Urs H. Dillier is no longer behind the publishing house based in Scherzingen. In spring 2003, majority shareholder Alexandra Jahr had a falling out with Dillier and threw him out as managing director and minority shareholder. Jahr took over Dillier's 25 percent stake and founded the new publishing house Jahr & Co. VIP Media Verlag, which is now wholly owned by her and continues to publish the three titles mentioned above.
Newcomer to the industry The only thing that remained in Dillier's hands was the naming rights to his VIP Media publishing house. On January 1, 2004, he sold these to his friend Hans Ruf - with whom he has shared a passion for aviation for over ten years. Ruf is a qualified aircraft engineer and owner of Fiber Seal, a company based in Kesswil, Thurgau, which is active in a special area of aircraft maintenance (textile fiber protection). With his entry into the publishing business, he wanted to gain a second mainstay, explained Ruf, who is not from the industry, to Werbewoche.
The planned magazine, which will be published under the name Schweizer Golfmagazin for the first time at the end of March, aims to cover all aspects of golf. With a lot of service, but also with the necessary portion of entertainment, as the tariff documentation promises. Dillier, who is still subject to a non-competition clause until December 31, 2004 following the sale of his stake to Alexandra Jahr, has nothing more to do with VIP Media Verlag, emphasizes Ruf. And he adds: "But he can advise me as a friend."
Ambitious goals
The new publisher is convinced that there is room for a new golf publication in the Swiss market. "Golf & Country is fizzling out and Drive is also lacking momentum," explains Ruf. That's why now is the ideal time for a new launch. He is extremely optimistic about the market opportunities for the new magazine, expecting to break even "within twelve months". This is possible "thanks to very lean structures and minimal fixed costs". It has not yet been decided which printing company will be allowed to print the new magazine.
Ruf holds his most important trump card in the area of advertisement acquisition. For this crucial task, he has recruited Yvonne Cox, a specialist who, as a long-standing Golf & Country advertising saleswoman, knows the market inside out and has an extensive network of contacts with the relevant advertisers.
A hip shot?
Nevertheless, the established golf magazines are shaking their heads at the bold attack. "There is simply no room for a new launch in our small market," explains Ursula Meier, who produces the member magazine Golf Suisse on behalf of the Swiss Golf Association ASG. "Instead, we expected that one of our existing market partners would soon pull the plug." Thomas Müllerschön, publishing director of the NZZ newspaper Drive, is similarly pessimistic about the potential. "I don't see any opportunities for a newcomer in the paid-for title sector."
Franco Carabelli, whose sports publishing house Europa Medien AG has taken over the production of Golf & Country for Alexandra Jahr, doubts "whether a serious market survey has even been carried out for the new magazine". "I assume that this is more of a hip shot," says Carabelli.
Big clean-out at the start of the seasonWhile the new Swiss golf publication is once again
competition is intensifying, the
established golf magazines fit for the start of the season. With the recently published January/February issue, Golf & Country has created a
completely new layout. "We have retained the magazine character
and brought more order to the magazine," explains Editor-in-Chief Franco Carabelli. Art Director Anita Lorenz was in charge of the visual redesign. The association magazine Golf Suisse is also starting the season with a milestone. The focus has now been expanded to include global events in the golf scene. Previously, the magazine had been limited exclusively to Switzerland. The expansion was made possible because the Swiss Golf Association ASG is now contributing to the production costs of the magazine. This also benefits the size of the magazine: the guaranteed number of pages per issue is now at least 80 pages, compared to the previous minimum of 48 pages. (dse)
"No chance for a newcomer": The established golf magazines hardly give the new competition a chance.
Daniel Schifferle