The "Committee for the Upswing" wants to improve consumer sentiment with the help of PublicisBy Simone KellerThe economic climate is gloomy. And unlike the weather, there is no end in sight to the downturn. With a poster campaign designed by Publicis, the "Committee for the Upswing" wants to encourage consumers to spend money.
The collapse of Enron, WorldCom and Swissair, plummeting share prices, redundancies and cuts in pension fund contributions are just some of the dark clouds that are darkening the economic skies over Switzerland. Fearing what might come next, the Swiss prefer to put their money aside instead of consuming and investing. This is yet another blow to the Swiss economy, as private consumption is one of the most important pillars of the economy.
Since last Friday, the "Committee for the Upswing" has been demonstrating to consumers on various APG billboards that their contribution is important. The organization is backed by opinion leaders from politics, business, culture, sport and the media who are committed to improving the consumer climate. The Zurich agency Publicis, which was a co-initiator of the committee and campaign alongside APG and PiAr, is in charge of designing the B12 and 12-square-metre posters. Based on the "Love is..." subjects of the New Zealander Kim Casali, who died in 1997, the creatives show what upswing is and how each individual can contribute to it. For example, by daring to do something new, believing in the future or not seeing the black.
It is understandable that advertising agencies are campaigning for a good consumer climate: advertising budgets are usually the first to fall victim to the recession scissors. Even if the economic success of these campaigns cannot be proven, they have at least left a creative mark.
For example, the slogan "Upswing begins in the mind", which Bootz & Grolimund used in 1993 to counter the persistent recession, remains unforgotten. After September 11, McCann-Erickson launched the "I love shopping - I hate terrorism" initiative on its own initiative and Euro RSCG Switzerland is currently also making its contribution to boosting consumption with the "Think +" advertising theme. Fortunately, hope is the last thing to die - especially for the compulsive optimists.
AD rating

Upswing campaign
The textbook campaign wasn't so good after all. It's just a difficult profession. And it won't be easy to get people to consume. Or is it? Please click on www. werbewoche.ch/adrating
Klett and Balmer campaign
Top: 45,43%
Flop: 54,57%
Praise and criticism of ad-raters summarized at www.werbewoche .ch/adrating/comments

The telecoms group Swisscom has added the newly founded advertising agency Spillmann Felser Leo Burnett (SFLB) to its agency pool.budget news SFLB becomes Swisscom agency The collaboration will cover various areas of Swisscom and will begin in the next few weeks, SFLB announced. The first work is expected to be seen from the beginning of 2003. Publicis, Contexta, Euro RSCG and AY&R are also in the agency pool of the telecom group.
Simko gets 24 heures budget The Geneva-based advertising agency Simko is now in charge of the advertising budget of the Vaud daily newspaper 24 heures. The previous account holder was Italiques from Lausanne. According to agency boss Pedro Simko, the task is to communicate the upcoming relaunch of the daily newspaper.
At Ikea, Ruf Lanz succeeds JVMThe Swedish furniture store Ikea is ending its collaboration with the Zurich-based advertising agency Jung von Matt/Limmat (JvM). Back in May, Ikea commissioned the Finnish account holder Hasan & Partners with a TV campaign to be used in Finland, Belgium, the Netherlands and Switzerland. This is the first time that Ikea has consolidated national budgets. JvM has managed the account since 1998, but Ikea does not want to do without a Swiss agency altogether, as the company has selected the Zurich agency Ruf Lanz for the advertising announcement of the reopening in Dietlikon.
Alex Schmid joins the Credit Suisse team The dialog marketing agency Alex Schmid AG is strengthening its team for the client Credit Suisse with Sven Rosemann and Carolin Kiefer. This addition to the team is Alex Schmid's response to an increasing number of orders from Credit Suisse. "While we previously worked primarily for the Swiss retail business, we can now also work for Credit Suisse Private Banking," explained co-owner Ralf Doller.

20-Minuten boss Rolf Bollmann on the free newspaper project Quotidiano Indipendente "We won't look at Ticino until after the break-even point at the earliest"
By Markus Knöpfli
A largely anonymous group of investors, allegedly from Switzerland, wants to launch a free newspaper à la 20 Minuten in Ticino. A company called Quotidiano Indipendente SA was founded in July. WerbeWoche asked Rolf Bollmann, Managing Director of 20 Minuten Schweiz, what he thinks of the new project.
Mr. Bollmann, are 20 Minuten Switzerland or its parent company Schibsted also among the investors in Quotidiano Indipendente?
Rolf Bollmann: Most certainly not. I'm not a member of the Board of Directors, but as Managing Director of 20 Minuten Schweiz I would certainly know.
Were 20 Minuten Schweiz or Schibsted also not approached as investors?
Bollmann: Not to my knowledge.
Are you annoyed that someone in Ticino is apparently beating you to it?
Bollmann: No. We are in the consolidation phase and have never thought about Ticino before.
Although you could also do something beyond the national border there?
Bollmann: Possibly. We have not evaluated this market. The 20-Minuten-Holding was different: it had a project in Milan in mind for a long time, but then dropped it due to political and trade union blockades. If the Milan project had been realized, a Ticino project might also have made sense for us. But as Ticino alone represents the smallest market of all the Swiss language regions, we won't be looking at it until after the 20 Minuten Zurich-Bern-Basel break-even point at the earliest.
What about the break-even point originally estimated for the end of 2002?
Bollmann: We have had to postpone the break-even point to the end of 2003. If even highly paid economic research gurus are repeatedly wrong with their forecasts, I also have the right to adjust my forecasts to the poor economic situation. And it is understandable that we are not exactly on track with our business plan at the moment. After all, we are also suffering from the poor advertising environment, with page volumes falling by 4 percent in the first seven months. There was even a 59.8 percent drop in the volume of classified ads (especially jobs), but we almost made up for this by increasing the volume of commercial ads. What is decisive, however, is what happens in terms of value. In contrast to the major daily newspapers, which have lost around 20 to 30 percent in terms of value, 20 Minuten Schweiz achieved an increase in advertising sales of 12 percent in the first seven months of this year, although a higher increase had been budgeted.
Back to the Ticino project, of which the following key figures are known: A share capital of three million francs, launch on September 2 with 36 pages, printing in Milan, distribution box system, possibly Lega National Councillor Flavio Maspoli as editor-in-chief. How do you rate the project?
Bollmann: It's difficult to say, as we don't even know the circulation, publication frequency and distribution area. But I can't imagine that you can establish such a product with three million francs. The big cost blocks are printing and paper, then distribution and finally personnel and marketing. For us, these each account for almost a third. There is also the question of whether Quotidiano will set up its boxes in the city or conclude a contract with the SBB, which would be more expensive. If something similar to 20 Minuten is actually created, I wonder whether there is enough potential for young readers. There are certainly tourists, but they are of no use because they are not included in the readership figures.
Can you imagine working with Quotidiano Indipendente one day, for example in the advertising market?
Bollmann: Absolutely, assuming that Quotidiano will be on the same editorial level as us. It would also have to fit in with us in terms of target group strategy, architecture and publication style. However, if it were to drift in the direction of a free newspaper, a cooperation would be out of the question for me.
Will 20 Minuten Switzerland take part in the Quotidiano?
Bollmann: You'll have to ask my Board of Directors. Consolidation in the Golden Triangle really is my top priority now.
So far we have been talking about Ticino, but 20 minutes in western Switzerland would be closer. When is the time there?
Bollmann: Of course, these ideas come up again and again, and we are occasionally approached by advertising clients. The region would be more interesting than Ticino simply because of the size of the market. Cooperation in the advertising market would be possible, which is why we have already held talks with Le Matin. But these have been frozen. That's probably because Edipresse and Publicitas Léman still don't really understand 20 Minuten. However, I am convinced that 20 Minuten and Le Matin would be a good fit in terms of readership structure and format.
Who is behind the Quotidiano?

Quotidiano Indipendente SA (QI) was founded on July 18, 2002. The only member of the QI Board of Directors (BoD) is Carlo Riva, who, according to Ticino newspapers, does not wish to disclose the identity of the investors. A company spokesperson denied to SDA that the German company Thermoselect SA, which builds waste incineration plants, could be one of them. However, QI works in a Thermoselect building and Carlo Riva is also a member of the Thermoselect board of directors. However, he could not be reached by WerbeWoche before the editorial deadline.

By Beat FritschThe Idée-VfW kicked off the summer event series, which has not yet become a real one, with the first Idée film event. Together with Leos Gerteis' recording studio NJP, a new offer was launched for Idée members. A movie was chosen from a selection of three films, which was then screened in the recording studio in Küsnacht. The choice fell on the musical "Moulin Rouge", and the guests enjoyed an aperitif in the NJP garden with fine appetizers and top Portuguese wines from the catering service BG Bongusto, which sponsored the event together with the Ticino weekly magazine Ticino 7 and host NJP. During the aperitif, musician and composer Gino Todesco performed his repertoire of well-known film melodies on the piano, with hosts and guests getting in the mood for the sound studio presentation and film screening. At the end of the movie evening, a nightcap was served, accompanied by a spontaneous vocal performance by singer Susan Orus, accompanied by keyboard artist Gino.
Every month
it's also a cult vernissage! The launch of the trendy magazine has recently been taking place in the "Kaufleuten" lounge, and since the change of location - the parties used to take place in the "Roxy" - it no longer has the character of a glittering ball night, but rather a sophisticated aperitif séance. When Rainer Kuhn and his guests celebrate the premiere of the latest issue, there are still plenty of celebrities on the dance floor. The magazine has undergone a radical facelift, with many new and interesting features replacing the familiar in-magazine journals.
Florian Biafori and Sandro Proietto, owners of Mediabox Print, who market the advertising space in Kult, were among those at the Kult party. The new Managing Director of Mediabox Print is Christian Sager, who was just as keen to attend the Kult vernissage as Nicole Yap. The K&K Kult authors Frank Bodin (creative) and Midi Gottet (comedy), AD Grischa Rubinick and agency owner Remy Fabrikant were also present.
The opening night of the Orange-Kino-am-See also took place in beautiful weather. As always, not only movie buffs but also many advertising freaks came together. Once again, the staff led by Cinerent managers Peter Hürlimann and Daniel Höltschi did a great job. Not forgetting Orange's name sponsors, above all event manager Philip Kramer, press spokeswoman Therese Wenger and marketing manager Giuseppe Bonina. One should not forget: What can be seen in Zurich is only a fifth of the whole. There are four more Orange open-air cinemas in Basel, Bern, Geneva and Lausanne.
The delegation from cinema marketer RMB, who had dined in the nearby "Tres Kilos" pub before the film, were in good spirits at the premiere party. Among other things, a liter or two of margarita is said to have found its way down their throats. However, this didn't upset the sworn film fans any further, but only slightly.
With so many events during the summer vacation, IP Multimedia did not want to be left behind. It organized an RTL 2 talk with IPM boss Michi Frank, Josef Andorfer, Managing Director of RTL 2, and Hitradio Z Marketing Manager Mike Gut, also in the "Kaufleuten" lounge. Afterwards, a concert with the pop bands "Bro'Sis", "No Angels" and "Tears" was on the program. A good five hundred names were on the guest list, including a number of advertising and media celebrities.
As at the premiere, the Orange Night at the Kino am See also attracts quite a few advertisers. And once again, at least the movie fans were lucky. The event took place on the only rain-free day since August 1. And for once, the most frequently asked question was not "How are you?", but "Does anyone know what movie is being shown?". It was the thriller "Insomnia" with Al Pacino and Robin Williams (unusually as the main villain) in the leading roles.
There was also a great atmosphere after the screening. The surprise film is always followed by a huge party at "Lakeside Zürichhorn", this year generously sponsored by Nokia. Incidentally, there are several ways to enjoy the Orange Night. Some reserve a seat as soon as the doors open and are not seen again until the movie starts. Others don't miss a second of the movie and don't leave the cinema by the lake at all. Others only attend the aperitif and head to a nice restaurant after the movie starts, only to indulge in the party at Lakeside afterwards with a well-filled stomach. The shortlist team chose the last option, to really enjoy themselves at the "Ristorante Italiano Heimelig". Not without reason, because during the summer months and at weekends, WerbeWoche copywriter Carlo Bernasconi serves Italian cuisine there on a temporary basis. On this evening, Euro-RSCG boss Frank Bodin and Mediaxis owner Peter Hofstetter did not want to miss out.
An invitation from the Aarau advertising agency Renzen & Partner brought us an excursion beyond Zurich's borders. Owner Frédéric Renzen and his crew always invite clients and friends to the "Heitere Open-Air". For over ten years now, the Zofingen-based company has been organizing an open-air music spectacle that is promoted by Renzen & Partner. One that boasts a remarkable line-up of stars for a so-called "smaller" open-air event. On Friday, singer Joe Cocker took to the stage alongside "Züri West" and "Fettes Brot". Someone who was already there at the mother of all open airs in Woodstock over thirty years ago. And thrilled the crowds then as he does today. The "poor" rating once again went to the weather. On Zofingen's local mountain, the Heitere, the weather showed its gloomy side.
The Lowe Direct agency also had little luck with the weather for its birthday party at Seebadi Enge. At least they had a roof over their heads, there was no wind and Brazilian rhythms made sure that at least their hearts were warmed.
The Street Parade is the last event during the summer break and invited guests always spend it at the "Baur au Lac" with a direct view of the procession of techno disciples from the beautiful garden. Let's hope that the end of the summer break also means the end of the rainy season. Whatever the case, the Viva Swizz event for the Street Parade was "the place to be". The mix of the sophisticated ambience inside and the wickedly crazy dancing in front of the posh hostel was really something. And because the weather was so absolutely atrocious this year, it was even possible to have fun inside the beautiful hotel. A room was available for the guests of Viva-Swizz and its marketer Radiotele, where Suzanne Speich, Asta Baumöller, Bruno Oetterli and Hans-Peter Scholl were able to greet their guests in the dry with cocktails and canapés. The guests thanked the Viva Swizz organizers once again this year by turning up in large numbers, although only the very hardy ones were able to stay for longer than a few hours.
ventured into the damp outdoor area for a wet quarter of an hour.
The shortlist team enjoyed the end of the Street Parade at the Energy Party in and around the Hallenstadion. Schoscho Rufener, who is no stranger to advertising circles, was one of the people pulling the strings there. However, because it was simply impossible to spot any familiar faces among the 23,000 or so ravers in the Hallenstadion, the photo yield was relatively modest. Only Didier Liechti, Brand Promoter Parisienne at B.A.T. Switzerland, really stood out. He handed out stroboscopically illuminated hand fans for a visually hallucinogenic experience, which was a huge hit with the ecstatic, uplifted visitors to Energy and therefore sold like hot cakes.
Beat Fritsch

in the dry. Fortunately for the attendees, the invitation to the street parade by Viva-Swizz and Radiotele to the "Baur au Lac" also included a few rain-free corners. The visitors were grateful. You can find out what else happened during the summer break in this shortlist.
We find out who meets in the communications scene at the various events and parties at the numerous industry events. Do you already have something exciting to report? Pick up the phone (01 296 97 98) or hit the keyboard ([email protected]). For event tips as well as further shortlist images: www.werbewoche.ch

Swiss media companies do not expect advertising expenditure to pick up until mid-2003 at the earliestBy Daniel Schifferle Now consumer sentiment and retail sales, the indicators that were previously resistant to the crisis, have also plummeted to their lowest points - in addition to the stock market depression. Swiss media companies are bracing themselves for a prolonged lean period. If advertising expenditure takes another sharp dive, many of them will be in dire straits.
The bad news just keeps coming. Now consumers, who have so far maintained their good mood despite the sluggish economy, are also failing. Last week, the retail sales figures for June were published. They were down by over four percent, compared with growth of over eight percent a year earlier. The consumer sentiment index has also fallen to a five-year low. This news has further undermined hopes of an imminent recovery. The exponents of Swiss media companies are under no illusions that a further, more or less long dry spell lies ahead.
"Too many indicators are pointing downwards," says Ueli Eckstein, Deputy CEO of the AZ Media Group. The media companies agree that the next upturn has certainly been postponed. Fears differ as to the duration of the additional lean period. "I assume that the poor economic situation will be sustainable. I would be surprised if we felt an upswing anywhere as early as 2003," explains Südostschweiz boss Hanspeter Lebrument. Ueli Eckstein is also "skeptical as to whether the upswing will come in 2003." According to Martin Werfeli, deputy CEO at Ringier, "things will continue as before over the next 12 months." Only Beat Meyer, CEO of the Basel media group, is somewhat more optimistic. He believes that the upturn has been "postponed by six months".
In the event of a double dip, it becomes difficult for everyone
The crisis-tested Swiss media companies have already made the adjustments to lower sales. No company has not carried out more or less painful cost-cutting exercises in recent months. "I don't see what's happening now as dramatic. I have already carried out such cost-cutting exercises many times in the past," says Lebrument reassuringly. And Beat Meyer is not yet seeing red either: "If advertising expenditure remains at the current level, no further cost-cutting exercises will be necessary."
However, whether the decline in advertising expenditure is already over remains more than questionable. After all, gloomy clouds continue to hang over the economic future. In addition to the aforementioned slump in consumer confidence, the dramatic downward turbulence on the stock market is also likely to have a more or less severe impact on economic development. There are no illusions about this in the media industry. "Everything is unsettled, so people are saving now. Consumption will develop very cautiously," fears Tamedia spokesman Peter Hartmeier.
If there is a double dip, as feared in the USA, it will be dramatic for the media. Publishing experts also agree on this. "As part of the cost-cutting exercises, what could be saved with a clear conscience was cut - which also limited the scope for further cost reductions," says Ralph Büchi, publisher of HandelsZeitung. "But what could happen now could have a painful impact on the market performance of many companies." Beat Meyer also speaks plainly: "If advertising expenditure were to fall massively again - let's say by 10 to 20 percent - we would have to think fundamentally about the services offered by Basler Zeitung."
Hartmeier is convinced that the current crisis could not only change the products themselves, but also the media landscape itself. "Individual titles will disappear, others will be merged," he fears. Hartmeier sees serious problems ahead for medium-sized regional newspapers. "Because of their cost blocks, they are dependent on national advertising, which they now lack. It will be very tight for these medium-sized titles." Another trend that is coming to a head in the crisis is that the advertising industry will focus on titles that reach clear target groups. "That's why it's now important to be number one either in a certain regional area, for certain topics or in a certain target group. Those who have such media will benefit even before the general upswing," explains Hartmeier.
Price and tariff increases are not an option
What remains is the possibility of generating additional income by increasing the price of advertisements or subscriptions and individual sales. "Everyone has become a little poorer. That's why it might be difficult to push through price increases anywhere," explains Lebrument.
We will have to learn to live with the resources available. This will no longer just be about further cost-cutting exercises. "All media companies will be talking about their cost blocks over the next twelve to eighteen months. Are the resources being used in the right place? Are we making the right products and the right content? Where can we be better than the competition with which investments?" - According to Hartmeier, topics like these are now being discussed. Seen in this light, the current difficult phase is not all negative. "It forces us to consider how we can better meet the needs of readers with our resources."

His opinion carries weight, because his pen is quite sharp:. After journalist Linus Reichlin returned to his former employer, Facts, after six years at Weltwoche, the supporting feet of a billboard stand have collapsed. Whew! The writer weighs 79 kilos. Whether he can now continue to be an (important) opinion maker at Facts or has to lose weight - that is a question to which the subject does not yet provide a clear answer. It was piquantly placed with Reichlin's former employer, Weltwoche.corners as an advertising medium. How does a 20-minute reader realize that he could consume even more good news? With deceptively real-looking "torn" corners on the pages of the Good News magazine, which is inserted once a month in the commuter paper, the show and concert organizer draws attention to the fact that the monthly supplement in 20 Minuten is only a reduced edition of the Good News magazine. "Subscribe to the original," is advertised on the "torn-off" corner. This has 48 pages and is published ten times a year with a circulation of 40,000 copies. Advertisers may be interested in the fact that they can not only place advertisements in Good News magazine, but can also be present at an event with the advertised product.
Beautifully tapped advertising. Some time ago, advertising discovered petrol pump taps as a new medium. However, the available advertising space is small. The US company DirectCast Network has therefore come up with something new: Now the gas pump nozzles deliver their messages verbally. When a driver fills the tank of his car, a two- to three-minute program sounds from the tap, containing 15-second commercials as well as quiz questions and sports information, as reported by Advertising Age.
MCI Group acquires British event management company. MCI Group, Geneva, has acquired 100 percent of the event management company Status, Petersfield. MCI Group, which also operates branches in Zurich and Geneva, is one of the largest European companies in the event communications sector. Following the takeover, MCI expects sales of 60 million pounds in the current year.
Real fan. The 2002/03 football championship has got off to a good start for FC Zurich. As the city club has many new players and a new kit supplier this season, FCZ is now using posters to advertise its newly developed textile fan collection. The creatives at Hesskiss have found a typical FCZ fan from the south curve as the model for the two motifs. On two posters, Edi shows the FCZ rain jacket in a stylish dark blue as well as the cap and a pair of swimming trunks.
A design prize for Die Zeit. Scholz & Friends, the Berlin-based in-house agency of the Hamburg weekly Die Zeit, tailors a tailor-made suit from the "liberal bedspread" (Spiegel publisher Rudolf Augstein). The reason for the not entirely wrinkle-free image campaign is the title of "World's Best-Designed Newspaper", which Die Zeit - together with the London Independent on Sunday - was awarded by the American "Society for News Design".
Insolvency proceedings opened against White Lion. Insolvency proceedings have been opened against White Lion International, the Krefeld-based agency for integrated marketing. Founder Thomas Huber cites the difficult market situation, the unsuccessful IPO in 2000 and an overstretching of the thin capital base due to high development costs for the marketing portal and a six-figure loss of receivables as the reasons for the agency's failure. White Lion's holdings in Wiesbaden and Zurich are not affected by the insolvency.
Black miles. Above the clouds, freedom may well be limitless. With the promise that a personal miles account in Switzerland will be treated as discreetly as the infamous bank account, Swiss International Air Lines is advertising in the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung to entice Germans to fly with Swiss instead of Lufthansa. The advertisement alludes to the scandal of members of parliament who misused their professionally earned bonus miles for private flights. "The biggest secret in Switzerland: your personal miles account," is the claim. An even bigger mystery, however, is why someone who is not a member of parliament should switch from Lufthansa's good service to Swiss' salty sandwiches of all things.
Edi now with two juries. The jury for the Edi Swiss Commissioned and Commercial Film Award has been determined. Two different committees will now decide on the best commissioned films and the best commercials. The two juries will each be made up of five people. The jury is elected by the Federal Department of Home Affairs on the recommendation of the Swiss Film and Video Producers SFVP Board for a term of office of one year. The jury can be re-elected. It can award outstanding works as well as outstanding individual achievements with an Edi and a certificate of recognition. At least one award is presented in each category. The deadline for entries for the Edi 02 competition is August 28. The completely new Edi 2002 juries are (in alphabetical order):
Nescafe is worth 12.8 billion dollars. For the second year in a row, BusinessWeek has published the Interbrand ranking of the 100 most valuable brands in the world in collaboration with Interbrand. Coca-Cola is still in first place with an estimated brand value of 69.6 billion dollars. It is followed by Microsoft (64.1 billion) and IBM (51.2 billion). The best Swiss brand is Nescafe in 22nd place (12.8 billion). Nestlé is in 61st place and Rolex in 69th place. The brand values in the annually published ranking are based exclusively on publicly available information.
Beautiful bubbles for patriots. Just as the holes in Emmental cheese are genuinely Swiss, so too are the bubbles in Henniez mineral water. Just in time for the national holiday, the almost hundred-year-old mineral spring drew attention to its Swiss roots. The Vaud-based company is flying the flag with full-page advertisements in the daily press. The "Still Swiss" claim in the Swiss cross, launched by the Geneva-based Hermès Communication agency, is a deliberate sideswipe at the competition from Graubünden, which recently passed into American hands (see also page 13). Many things are becoming American. Henniez remains well and truly Swiss.
Ice sign of the times. It is part of the culture of the Lucerne agency Velvet to hold a joint creative week every year. During the advertising breaks, the team collects material for the realization of an independent instant magazine intended for self-promotion. While the Lucerne creatives' creative break had previously been held in locations abroad, namely Havana, Hong Kong, New York and Piacenza, this year they chose the coldest place in Switzerland: La Brévine. In order to get more out of themselves, they wanted to be less exposed to exotic external influences. "We were very much thrown back on ourselves," says co-owner Peter Moser, who describes the magazine as a visual document about "a no man's land", "which has something enchanted about it." Velvet organized the creative week, which also serves as the "Chropfleerete", for the fifth time in 2002.

The Zug-based e-mail marketing company Mailprofiler has won a new customer in 20 Minuten.News Mailprofiler for 20 Minuten The Swiss commuter newspaper would like to use Mailprofiler's technology to provide its advertisers and agencies with personalized news from the sales area once a month in future.
Tagesanzeiger.ch goes e-commerce
Shopping is now also possible on the Tagesanzeiger website. Books, software and hardware are now advertised in the Tagesanzeiger.ch computer channel. The offers, which are clearly marked as advertising, lead to the online store of the cooperation partner Inetconsult AG. Other themed channels will soon follow this example.
Immostreet.ch is a new Bluewin partner
The real estate platform Immostreet.ch is a new partner of the Bluewin portal. Since the beginning of August, over 17,000 offers from ImmoStreet.ch have been directly accessible to Bluewin users. Bluewin had previously cooperated with the Tamedia platform ImmoWinner, in which the company also held a stake until the end of May. As part of the integration of its print and Internet products, Tamedia intends to give up the ImmoWinner brand and offer online real estate ads directly under the umbrella of Tagesanzeiger.ch in future.

Pro Infirmis continues to fight prejudice with new poster campaignSwiss theater director Stefan Bachmann caused a scandal in Denmark. His production of "Hamlet" fell through because several actors objected to Bachmann's theatrical borderline performance, in which Christina, a 35-year-old woman suffering from Down syndrome, was supposed to play Ophelia. Various actors feared that Christina would be put on display and would not be able to protect her integrity. Both her parents and the association for the disabled supported the experiment.Looking at the new image campaign of Pro Infirmis, one imagines oneself in a more progressive country. Here, seven mothers and fathers with their disabled babies and toddlers take a stand against discrimination in everyday life. Much more than in the previous campaign, those responsible faced up to possible ethical concerns. page 6

Stocks and Moneycab are convinced of their survival despite the adverse environmentBy Daniel Schifferle When investors run away from the stock market, the financial media must fear for their audience. But Stocks and Moneycab, the two children of the stock market boom, believe in their future despite the stock market crash.
The stock market hype brought them out, will the stock market crash take them away again? For Stocks and Moneycab, the two children of the long-term bull market, the environment had already changed radically with their launch.
Stocks was launched at the beginning of November 2000 - but as soon as the new magazine from the HandelsZeitung publishing group was on the market, the stock market party was already over. Despite the adverse environment, publisher Ralph Büchi told WerbeWoche in April: "The magazine is rock solid."
Now that the stock market has plummeted again, Büchi still sees no reason to revise this commitment. "What helps us decisively is the high proportion of wealthy people in Switzerland who remain invested in the stock market despite the slump and continue to ask for financial information. We also have the most subscribers in this public segment," explains Büchi (see also the interview below). In the pitch-black month of July, only 200 to 300 subscriptions were lost. In contrast, the stock market crash left deep marks on newsstand sales. Büchi: "At the moment, Stocks is selling an average of around 1500 copies per issue at newsstands; in normal times, this figure would be around 3000 to 4000 copies."
Despite the continuing poor performance of the international stock markets, Büchi sees no danger for Stocks. "We practice lean publishing, the operating losses at Stocks are in the six-figure range and not in the seven-figure range. This gives us a very good chance of quickly earning back the investments made in good years." Nevertheless, time is now running out to reach the operating break-even point, which the company wanted to achieve within three years, as the halfway point on the way there has long since passed. Nevertheless, Büchi remains optimistic with regard to this goal: "If the second half of 2003 is good, we will very quickly be in the black operationally."
Even before the stock market crash of the past few weeks, the Moneycab website, which was launched in spring 2001, was already in a tight spot. However, contrary to expectations, the additional gloom on the stock markets did not lead to a loss of customers. "We are not experiencing any negative effects," says Fredy Hämmerli, Managing Director of Moneycab. "In the short term, the effects were even positive for us. We have never had so many hits on our site as at the time when the stock market crash was at its worst."
He also does not anticipate any negative effects in the future due to the weakened stock market. Moneycab is primarily a portal for economic information and is not primarily used by those who just want to call up stock market prices. "That's why we haven't lost any users at the moment," says Hämmerli.
Finanz und Wirtschaft (FuW) also benefited from the stock market boom. Between 1996 and 2000, its circulation increased by over thirty percent or a good 12,000 copies. The wild climb only came to an end in 2001. After years of an unbroken upward trend, a good 2500 copies or five percent of the circulation were lost.
However, Tamedia spokesman Peter Hartmeier does not expect the market to crumble any further. "FuW is not the organ of those who jumped on the stock market boom at the last minute. It is the critical and analytical newspaper for long-term stock market players - and they know very well that the stock market will remain a crucial part of our country's economy in the medium and long term." For this reason, Hartmeier is convinced that the majority of FuW's readership will remain loyal in the future.

Radio Street Parade (RSP) wants to stay on air throughout the year. For the past three years, RSP has been broadcasting four weeks before the major event in Zurich with a short-term license.News full year Radio Street Parade? In the event of full operation, RSP wants to be a music station that doesn't just cover house and techno. According to Bakom, a consultation is currently underway on the question of whether Zurich should have another radio station aimed at young people.
New Swiss monthly magazine in English A new English-language magazine is to be published nationwide from December. Violet will be dedicated to political and economic Switzerland on a monthly basis. The founders of the online newspaper Largeur .com, Pierre Grosjean and Gabriel Sigrist, are behind the project. Sigrist expects a circulation of 35,000 to 40,000 copies before it becomes profitable. The initial investment amounts to CHF 2 million and will be provided by banks and private individuals.
Salary waiver at Ticino private TV Private broadcaster Tele Ticino is facing a loss of over 500,000 francs by the end of the year. The 35 employees have therefore agreed to forgo part of their salary for six months. Executives will have to make do with 20% less pay. Salaries over 5,000 francs will be reduced by 10%, lower salaries by 5%. Thanks to these cuts, CHF 100,000 could be saved and redundancies avoided for the time being, Tele Ticino reported.
Puls-Tipp refreshes its layout Puls-Tipp has had a fresher, more modern look since the August issue. In order to publicize the new look, the health magazine will be published in September with an additional print run of around 400,000 copies, which will be sent out addressed. The sister publications K-Tipp and Bon à Savoir will also be sent out in large print runs next month. A redesign of K-Tipp is planned for the beginning of 2003.

Editor-in-chief Daniel Pillard has to slim down his Sunday newspaper dimanche.chBy Anita Vaucher The dismissal of eight employees at dimanche.ch has fueled rumors that the French-speaking Swiss Sunday newspaper will soon come to an end. Daniel Pillard, editor-in-chief of dimanche.ch for the past year, is optimistic.
Daniel Pillard's declared aim is to position Ringier Romandie's Sunday newspaper dimanche.ch as a complementary paper to its major competitor Matin Dimanche. Matin Dimanche is a service newspaper, while dimanche.ch wants to be a newspaper that provides food for thought. With these words, Pillard defines his paper - in the full conviction that readers in French-speaking Switzerland want an alternative to the monopolist Matin Dimanche. However, Pillard admits that this goal can only be achieved in stages. Even though the Ringier management has not set a deadline for its editor-in-chief, he is well aware that he does not have much time left to anchor the paper in the French-speaking Swiss newspaper landscape. After all, speculation about the future of the paper was already rife in January.
No cervelat celebrities from French-speaking Switzerland
As a first measure, Pillard restructured the first section when he took up his post a year ago and filled it with more news. Reader guidance has also been improved with clearer designations for the individual sections. On the sales front, the number of sales boxes has been increased from 1000 to 1700. New sections that are already occupied by Matin Dimanche or do not fit in with the mission statement of dimanche.ch have been removed.
For example, the topic of tourism is no longer covered and the people page with the Cervelat celebrities from French-speaking Switzerland has been deleted without replacement. This is probably due to cost-cutting measures. In line with the mission statement, the third and fourth bundles will be merged from September 1 and reduced from 22 to 16 pages.
"Less, but better" is Pillard's new credo for his newspaper. The same also applied to the eight employees, including five journalists, who were made redundant before the summer vacation. However, the remaining editorial team signaled a need for explanation when Daniel Pillard hired two new journalists immediately afterwards. He argued that he was looking for polyvalent journalists rather than specialists for his small editorial team.

Despite the sale of the Winterthurer Woche, two free newspapers continue to be published in the Eulach cityBy Markus Knöpfli The Eulach city is currently experiencing a publishing farce: the publisher of the Stadtanzeiger, Ziegler Druck, is buying the title rights to its competitor Winterthurer Woche (WiWo) - in order to shut it down.
In this deal, however, the Ziegler print shop did the math without the landlord. With this operation, it is paving the way for a new competitor: Wiler Druckerei Zehnder promptly launches its own title - with the WiWo staff and probably also in the WiWo offices.
When two people quarrel, the third is always happy - in this case, the Schaffhausen-based publishing house Steiner & Grüninger can rejoice. First, it sold Ziegler Druck und Verlag in Winterthur the title rights to the free newspaper Winterthurer Woche. And now it is negotiating with Ziegler's competitor Druckerei Zehnder in Wil (SG) for the WiWo offices, furniture and equipment - because Ziegler was understandably not interested. But publisher Willy Grüninger shakes his head at this. "Ziegler is making the same mistake as Tamedia did when it bought Züri Leu in order to shut it down. That immediately brought Züri Woche onto the scene."
But first things first: In July, the publishing house Steiner & Grüninger sold the WiWo title rights to the Landbote publisher Ziegler Druck und Verlag. Ziegler wants to merge these with its own Stadtanzeiger and discontinue the WiWo. Logically, Ziegler was also not interested in the WiWo staff.
The Winterthur hole can now be filled with ease
This was exactly what the Wiler publisher Rolf-Peter Zehnder was looking for, as he has long been toying with the idea of having his own paper in Winterthur. The reason: 15 of his existing 21 free titles form a band from Lake Constance to Olten, but there is a gaping hole in Winterthur.
The death of WiWo now offers Zehnder a welcome opportunity to close this gap. To this end, he has announced the launch of his Winterthur News (circulation: 64,000) in the second half of September.
He has already taken over the WiWo editorial team and most of the sales staff, the newspaper concept is an adaptation of his own Wiler Nachrichten, printing is done in his own print shop and distribution is handled by Promopost. What is still missing are offices, PCs and furniture. He is negotiating this with Steiner & Grüninger. Both sides confirm that an agreement is imminent.
The only question that remains with this deal is whether two free titles in Winterthur have enough space and advertising volume to survive. Zehnder has no doubts. Unlike the previous WiWo, he prints himself, he says. He is also planning advertising combinations between the Winterthurer Nachrichten and one or more of his other titles.
Zehnder will set up an AG for the Winterthurer Nachrichten together with civic circles in Winterthur, in which he intends to acquire a majority stake.
It was also rumored that Günter Heuberger, head of the Top Group, would be involved. However, when asked, he denied any financial involvement or editorial collaboration.
Wanted: VSGZ President

With the closure of Winterthurer Woche, the Association of Swiss Free Newspapers (VSGZ) will also lose one of its eight members. But that's not all: Willy Grüninger is stepping down as VSGZ President in the fall. It is not yet clear who his successor will be. However, Grüninger will remain a member of the VSGZ. Contrary to plans, Grüninger was unable to find a buyer for his second title, the Schaffhauser Bock - "despite negotiations with all the major publishers".