Publisher Hans-Heinrich Coninx and CEO Martin Kall have promised the Express crew new jobs at Tamedia. Now, however, "generous severance payments" were offered at Monday's staff meeting. Will there be redundancies after all? "No, we won't be laying anyone off," says former Express publishing director Marius Hagger. Severance pay has only been offered in the event that no equivalent position can be found for individual employees. Or if someone gets fed up with Tamedia. "But we hope that this will not be everyone," he added. (mk)

Daniel Deicher will become the new Chief of Staff of the Security Directorate of the City of Lucerne on May 1. Until January, he was Managing Director of Hitradio Z....
Elisabeth Demidoff (34) has been appointed as the new Managing Director of Presse Publicité Rep. SA by the Board of Directors. She was most recently in charge of the Key Accounts Department at Publicitas Léman. Deputy Director of the new management of Presse Publicité Rep. SA will be Yannick Chevailler (31).
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Thomas Fink (35) is the new PR Manager of the Intentia Central Europe Business Group, which comprises Switzerland, Germany, Austria, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Poland and Slovakia.
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Jürg Zentner is ending his tenure as Editor-in-Chief of the lifestyle magazine Faces. He had been editor-in-chief since the magazine's launch two years ago. Art Director Anka Wessely will also no longer work at Faces.
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Bruno Hollenweger is moving from Zurich-based Publimedia AG to TeleTell. He will take over operational responsibility for the Central Switzerland regional TV station as Managing Director from June 1, 2003.
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At the Annual General Meeting on Monday, Markus Gisler and Heinz B. Wermelinger resigned from the Board of Directors (BoD) of the media company Jean Frey AG. Martin Wagner, the Group Attorney of the publishing house, was newly elected to the Board. Board Chairman Adriano Agostini, Vice Chairman Charles von Graffenried and Peter Kleiner remain on the now four-member board.
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Markus Vögeli joined the team of Karlen-Consulting AG in Ostermundigen as a junior consultant on February 1. The 27-year-old media engineer will deal with the areas of crossmedia, prepress and media informatics.

Dialog marketing With WRH Marketing's Memostick, self-adhesive coupons can also be placed in newspapers for the first time in Switzerland.
As a self-adhesive label, the Memostick offers advertisers the opportunity to "advertise interactively" in newspapers, is how WRH Marketing in Hinwil describes its latest advertising medium. The coupon, which sticks like a Post-it sticker, has been used in glossy magazines and periodicals for some time, but until now it has not been possible to place such messages in newspapers for technical reasons. This problem has now been solved by Ferag, which specializes in print finishing. "This complements the strengths of the newspaper with an interactive communication tool for advertising purposes," says Nicolas Böhmer, PR Manager at WRH Marketing, who is convinced that the memo stick can be recognized by its green color and brand name. Placed in a prominent position, it stands out from the newspaper so that it is immediately noticed. According to Böhmer, the decisive intention is for the reader to detach the memo stick from the newspaper and attach it to a suitable place, be it the telephone, the computer monitor or the agenda.
Well-placed voucher
Various campaigns can be realized with the Memostick. For example, if you want to increase customer frequency, you can place a voucher that the reader can "stick" in a suitable place and then redeem at the right time.
The provider hopes that readers will recognize the sticker after just a few campaigns. "The Memostick sticks in the mind and not on paper," says the company's own advertising.
Two different test campaigns were successfully launched at El Periodico in Spain and SonntagsZeitung in Switzerland. In Spain, Burger King and the computer company Dell were won over by a prototype of the Memostick. In Switzerland, the SonntagsZeitung used an eye-catching Memostick on the front page to draw attention to its Formula 1 supplement inside the paper. Following these technical tests, Viseca Card Services SA has now booked the first official Memostick campaign. Readers were able to find the first Memostick on the March 14 edition of the Swiss business newspaper Cash.
The right price is still missing
Böhm cannot yet say anything binding about the costs. The first campaigns should convince customers that certain technical problems can be solved and provide definitive experience for everyone involved. Ultimately, the test phase should also serve to "find the right price for the Memostick", explains the PR manager.
Small global companyFerag AG in Hinwil operates worldwide in the field of print finishing for newspapers, magazines and commercial print products. Its systems are distributed exclusively via the 23 companies WRH Marketing AG of Walter Reist Holding AG in Hinwil. (pan)
Andreas Panzeri

Local radio station Radio Extra Bern is celebrating its 20th birthday on the road this year: numerous events are planned around a converted articulated bus as an "Extra Mobil", which the station will present for the first time on March 27 on Waisenhausplatz in Bern together with sponsors Loeb and McDonald's. The vehicle can serve as a show stage, shuttle bus or café bar. The three "Extra Mobil" partners will be carrying out both joint and independent activities with the bus throughout the year. Radio Extra Bern will be using the bus at the BEA trade fair, the beach volleyball event on the Bundesplatz and the women's run, while the Loeb department store chain will be using it for its "Feel Good" promotion with former top athlete Jacqueline Schneider.

Internet The online real estate platform ImmoScout24 and the regional marketplaces Immodream and ImmoPage of the St.Galler and Thurgauer Kantonalbank will be working together in future: advertisers on the fee-based ImmoScout24 can also advertise properties located in these cantons free of charge on ImmoPage and Immodream. Anyone who advertises properties on the free marketplaces of the cantonal banks can also book a placement on ImmoScout24 at the same time, but must pay the usual advertising rate.

Bank marketing II After the storm at Banque Cantonale Vaudoise, the new in-house agency DDB, Berne, is now letting customers have their say.The news hit like a bombshell at the end of October 2002: the canton of Vaud had to provide a massive financial injection for its own cantonal bank - just three months after it had already helped out Banque Cantonale Vaudoise (BCV) with CHF 600 million. No less than CHF 1.25 billion in public funds had to be pumped back into the ailing financial institution. The reaction to the debacle at the time was rather clumsy crisis communication: an advertising campaign - harmonious group pictures with men - attempted to win back the lost trust and convey calm business as usual. The consultant and concept developer of the Lausanne agency responsible justified "the forward strategy" - according to BCV's communications manager at the time - by saying that it was a B2B campaign that was of little interest to the man in the street. Far from it.
Low profile looks more honest
The current management takes a fundamentally different view. The new management wants to reduce the bank's risk profile and get earnings back on track with a radical overhaul. The realignment restricts the bank's activities to its core business. It now ranges from the savings and lending business to asset management, securities and foreign exchange trading as well as support for individual major clients.
Consequently, those responsible also drew a definitive line under the scandals and crises in the communication strategy. BCV is embarking on a new era with fresh forces and a new in-house agency. DDB, Bern/Lausanne, won the mandate in a competitive presentation among five Lausanne agencies.
The team led by CD Gilles Aeby responded to this desired return with proverbial Vaudois sobriety. "The aim was to focus on the personal relationship with the customer, the humanity of the institution and the local business in day-to-day business and in the external image," says Aeby. So much patience and generosity on the part of the owner can ultimately only be explained by the roots of the institution. After all, market research has shown that consumers are very forgiving in their relationship with the bank and tend to react lethargically to indulgences. In addition, the strong presence in the canton and the far-reaching commitment in the areas of culture, sport and education further confirm customer loyalty.
The institutional image campaign, which was created in collaboration with the DDB siblings in Geneva and Zurich, builds on this emotional connection and puts customers at the center. Vaudois from all four corners of the canton and from all age groups present their ideas, plans and visions, which do not, however, contain any statements about the bank. This is a tried and tested testimonial concept, the unpretentious implementation of which was also used by the Brot und Spiele agency for Glarner Kantonalbank in 2001. The message is clear: BCV listens to the concerns of its customers.
In a second phase, however, more product- and performance-related subjects are to follow, focusing on the mortgage business, private banking or asset management. But here too, people will once again play the leading role, says Aeby.
Men's businessIn the aftermath of the financial debacle last fall, BCV was still going for high profile. The aim was to signal to the public that the bank is there for its customers even in times of crisis. At the time, however, BCV's top management spent a long time considering whether
the campaign should not be postponed because it could have been counterproductive at the time in question. As the advertising space had already been reserved, the decision was made to publish the less meaningful slogan after all. (la)
Luca Aloisi

Far removed from fashionable and contemporary trends in visual communication, Barbara and Gerd Baumann and their firm Baumann & Baumann have spent more than twenty years finding and developing their own visual language. The almost 400-page illustrated book "Insights, overviews and outlooks" presents large and small projects. The Baumann & Baumann office in Schwäbisch Gmünd develops design and communication concepts for companies, exhibitions and trade fair appearances. They also design orientation and information systems as well as books and posters. Her work for the German Bundestag in Bonn and the Great Court of the British Museum in London is well known. Her book "Spiel Räume" has been published by Hatje Cantz Verlag in Stuttgart (ISBN 3-7757-0942-8).

Posters Can a humorous poster do its job, or won't people buy anything from a clown anyway? "What you mean seriously is best said in jest," wrote Wilhelm Busch. For advertisers, selling goods and ideas is a serious matter. A selection from the "classic" period of poster art between 1880 and 1960 now shows the many registers of humorous advertising. The works from the collection of the Museum für Gestaltung in Zurich can be seen in the display cases of the Swiss National Bank in Zurich. A text on the exhibition can be obtained from the porter's lodge at the National Bank.Leonetto Capiello poster for Maurin from 1920.

Markus Eisenhut, editor-in-chief of 20 Minuten, is one of the winners in the abruptly halted competition between free newspapers in Zurich. The editor-in-chief of 20 Minuten had been planning his vacation in Australia in April for some time. But after the surprising demise of Tamedia's rival project Express, Markus Eisenhut can enjoy his vacation all the more. After all, he and his team and the publishing house have ensured that there won't be an expensive material battle for the free newspapers. Even if a certain amount of tension is now gone, the
The self-confessed news junkie Eisenhut can hardly be deterred from regularly calling the newsroom from Australia. Not that he doesn't have confidence in his people, as he describes his deputy as a "lottery joker". But Eisenhut's characteristic impatience always drives him to improve the commuter newspaper.
Even now, without the Express breathing down his neck, Eisenhut still sees many challenges for 20 Minuten. He and his team want to maintain the virtues of flexibility and ambition and attract more readers and advertisers. "We will be the big winners again at Mach 03 this October," Eisenhut is convinced. The fact that Tamedia is now a partner of 20 Minuten does not bother the editor-in-chief at all. After all, the Tagi has not only always been his in-house newspaper; in the course of his career he has already worked at both newspapers on Werdstrasse - Tages-Anzeiger and SonntagsZeitung. His children also attend Tamedia's crèche.
Eisenhut ended up in journalism more by chance than anything else. His dream job was actually to be a surgeon. However, as an active athlete, studying medicine was too time-consuming for him, so he tried studying law and later German. At the beginning of the 1980s, he applied to Swiss television as a presenter for a music program. He didn't get the job, but shortly afterwards he received a letter from Blick, where he was soon working as a sports reporter. This was back in Peter Übersax's day, which proved to be very good training for Eisenhut and also made him resilient. His career led him to become editor-in-chief of 20 Minuten, the newsroom of Schweizer Illustrierte, the sports desk of Tagi and then head of sports at Blick and SonntagsBlick. Eisenhut then became Head of News at SonntagsZeitung and later Deputy Head of Service at Tages-Anzeiger. The thoroughbred journalist did not pass up the opportunity to switch to 20 Minuten.
He saw himself as sufficiently qualified for the job of editor-in-chief: "It's important for me to be challenged, but not overwhelmed." He still sees his future at Pendlerblatt, even if the new ownership situation is still giving rise to speculation (see also page 16). "I still enjoy coming to work every day and don't want to do anything else at the moment." What continues to fascinate him is the actively practiced cross-media approach, which is not found anywhere else in Switzerland in this pronounced form. The whole network is extremely exciting. He also enjoys working with a young, motivated team. The latest product
20 Minuten will publish a nightlife magazine as planned.
The soon-to-be 40-year-old prefers to spend the little free time he has with his daughters Lina and Kaja and his wife, who works as a journalist for SonntagsBlick. Eisenhut says he is an unstressed person. But there are also things that annoy him. For example, the Grönemeyer article in which the wrong picture was used. "When something annoys me, I have to get it out. But then things calm down again," he explains his sometimes impulsive nature. He sees his directness as both a strength and a weakness. In any case, he also shows very clearly when something pleases him.
Going on vacation to Australia after an exciting few weeks: Markus Eisenhut.
Patrick Hediger

Commuter newspaper 20 Minuten Holding feared that the planned Express would ruin its own paper's image.why is 20 Minuten Holding already prepared to cede parts of its Swiss subsidiary to Tamedia? It could certainly have demanded more thanks to the foreseeable further increase in readership figures in the fall. However, the planned Express circulation of 330000 copies apparently made an impression on the holding company. "We would have been forced to increase our circulation in the Zurich area as well," says Chris Tanner, who represents the Müller-Möhl heirs and other Swiss shareholders on the board of 20 Minuten Holding. This would not only have cost a lot, but would also have ruined 20 Minuten's image: "Twice as many newspapers on the street, more aggressive distribution and a larger mountain of waste would have jeopardized our current acceptance," says Tanner, explaining the exit.
Tanner does not accept the objection that 20 Minuten would hardly have needed more copies thanks to its wide reach and clear target group. "The gigantism of the Express would have undermined our position with advertisers," he says. Even if 20 Minuten had won in the end, it would have cost a lot of money and goodwill and would have resulted in losses. And it would hardly have been possible to achieve any reasonable proceeds for the investors.
Furthermore, both Tanner and Christian Stahl, responsible for media investments at Apax, emphasize that the shareholder structure of 20 Minuten Holding will remain the same. Apax will continue to hold 27.8 percent, the Swiss shareholders 29.1 percent and Schibsted the remainder. It is not individual shareholders who are selling shares, but the holding company, which is withdrawing from its 100 percent subsidiary 20 Minuten Schweiz. The brand rights for Switzerland, which are currently held by the holding company, are to be transferred to 20 Minuten Schweiz and then to Tamedia at the end of 2006 following the approval of the Competition Commission. >> p. 16-17
(mk)

Commuter newspapers Following the 20 Minuten-Tamedia deal, the Mittelland Zeitung is now caught in the headlock between Tamedia and Espace Media.Nevertheless, Ueli Eckstein, deputy CEO of AZ Medien, is not immediately afraid of a commuter newspaper.WW Mr. Eckstein, does the purchase of 20 Minuten by Tamedia and Espace Media hurt you?
Ueli Eckstein We could live with the current situation. And we would certainly have followed the duel between 20 Minuten and Express with interest. However, the new development does not cause us any pain. Of course, there are mental games about what would happen if 20 Minuten were to move east or west. However, we assume that the commuter newspaper will first have to expand its market position in the Bern and Basel conurbations before embarking on such an adventure.
However, the Mittelland Zeitung is one of the losers of the 20 Minuten-Tamedia deal: it is now even more caught in the sandwich between Tamedia and Espace Media. How do you protect your market against further penetration by 20 Minuten?
I don't see any operational threats to us at the moment. 20 Minuten - and Metropol at the time - tried unsuccessfully to penetrate our space right after its launch. Let me remind you that Metropol in Aarau had already canceled its plans after a month.
However, 20 Minuten now has access to Tamedia's expanded cross-media options, which could quickly strengthen the commuter newspaper further.
Since its launch, 20 Minuten has been anchored in the Dietikon district, where we are also at home with the Limmattaler Tagblatt. Although we are located here in a stronghold of the commuter newspaper, we have been able to maintain our circulation. However, I can well imagine that the battle in the Limmattal will become even tougher.
When will the Mittelland Zeitung launch its own commuter newspaper?
I can hardly imagine a commuter newspaper in our area, no matter who it comes from. Because a commuter newspaper needs epicentric conurbations like Zurich. In contrast, we have various medium-sized centers such as Baden, Aarau, Olten and Solothurn, but they are too small for a commuter newspaper. The logistical effort would simply not be worth it.
AZ Medien will lose
Group will probably soon receive the print order for a partial run of
20 Minuten. Tamedia and Espace Media are expanding their printing capacities and will print the commuter newspaper themselves.
I cannot give any details on the contractually agreed duration of this printing order. But we assume that the new co-owners will adhere to the existing contracts. This means that we will continue to print the 20-minute edition for Berne and Basel well beyond the current year.
Luzerner leave their AnzeigerJust recently, the Neue Luzerner Zeitung (NLZ) acquired a stake in Anzeiger Luzern AG in order to keep new intruders from the free and commuter newspaper sector out of its own market on the eve of the launch of "Express" (WW 11/03). After Tamedia's participation in 20 Minuten and the aborted Express, these hasty efforts now appear to have been in vain.
Nevertheless, Erwin Bachmann, Delegate of the Board of Directors of LZ Medien, is not deterred in his chosen path. "We are a publishing house that has lived without free newspapers until now. And we want to change that by working with Anzeiger Luzern AG. However, this is a long-term strategy and was not directly planned for the launch of the Express." Bachmann assumes that 20 Minuten will concentrate on its existing distribution areas and "not encroach on our catchment area". The LZ boss is now also more explicit about the possible further development of Anzeiger Luzern and Luzerner Woche. "From today's perspective, there is no need to think in terms of a commuter newspaper. We can continue to maintain the two free papers as they are." (dse)
Plaything of the big boysFor the second time in a year, Zehnder Print in Wil (TG) has lost out on a juicy print job. Tamedia has currently delayed the launch of its commuter newspaper project Express zwei
Canceled days before the start - Zehnder Print lost a one-year contract. A year ago, the free newspaper Metropol pulled the plug and stopped its printing order with Zehnder after two years - the contract would have continued for another year. In both cases, the order was for the printing of 150,000 copies, five times a week.
Owner Andreas Zehnder, son of publisher Rolf-Peter Zehnder, seems to think that his print shop is being used as a pawn by large publishers.
Zehnder, however, was not particularly bothered. He had already received "X amount" from Metropol after the stop. "And our contract with Tamedia is also financially secure, we knew that Tamedia and 20 Minuten could join forces," he says. For Zehnder, the sudden and short-term termination of the contract does not represent a breach of contract, but rather one of the contractually agreed "options". He does not have to dismiss anyone because of this. "But of course we would have loved to print the 'Express'," the Wiler printer told Werbewoche. (mk)
Interview: Daniel Schifferle

Fashion advertisements The fashion houses Sand and Dior are showing us where women's hands are nowadays: they play it cool and casually hold on to their own underpants. Be careful with lace underwear: it tears relatively quickly and costs a fortune. This hand position is nothing new, at least not in men's football. It's not unheard of to adjust and pluck something. And since the female emancipation movement has already left many a defender of old values behind, this posture is also copied. The main thing is to increase one's own well-being. Incidentally, thanks to the two subjects, another fashion trend has been revealed. Bras seem to be out. Today, women only wear what nature has given them under their white blazers. The temperatures may rise soon...
Not just in the head.
(ck)