Since the dismissal of Real Media CEO Urs Wolfensberger in mid-January, speculation about the resizing and restructuring of Publigroupe's Internet unit has been rife. It is now clear where the journey is heading: the brokerage division, which accounts for the lion's share of Real Media AG's turnover at around 95 percent, will now be incorporated into Publimedia. The business unit headed by Marcel Bosshard is called Publimedia Webadvertising AG and will inherit the Zurich offices of Real Media AG on Holbeinstrasse at the beginning of March, including 25 of a total of 30 employees. The telephone number will also be taken over. Real Media, on the other hand, will have to look for new premises with its remaining five employees and will still be responsible for the exclusive marketing of websites.According to Publimedia boss Otto Meier, the reorganization of the Internet unit makes sense because "two areas that do not fit together" can be unbundled. "Real Media operated site marketing under an exclusive contract (direction) on the one hand and universal mediation on the other. A tricky combination, because you can't be a neutral intermediary on the one hand and represent the interests of very specific sites with exclusive contracts on the other." (dse)

The new training brochure of the Swiss Marketing Club (SMC) presents the job profiles of sales manager and coordinator, marketing manager and planner, and key account manager, along with the admission requirements for second-chance training. The brochure can be ordered from the SMC by fax at 062 207 07 71. Excerpts can be viewed on the website www.smc-cms.ch.Older people like to consumeNow we have scientific proof in black and white: the over 55s feel young, enjoy life and want to consume. This is the conclusion of a study conducted by the Institute for Marketing and Retailing at the University of St. Gallen. It researched the values and attitudes of senior citizens by means of interviews and group discussions. The study is available for 50 francs from the publisher Thexis of the Institute of Marketing and Retailing, Tel. 071 224 28 45 or directly on the website: www.thexis.ch
INCIDENT COMMUNICATION
The terms risk, incident and communication are often associated with disaster in public discussion. In the publication "Risk - Incident - Communication 1", edited by Rolf Gerling and Otto-Petter Obermeiner, this problem area is structured. In the second volume, the reasons and laws of disturbed risk communication are elaborated and bridges are built to the individual risk styles. Both publications are published by Gerling Akademie Verlag and cost 36 Swiss francs each. The first volume has the ISB number
3-9803352-0-8, the second the ISBN 3-9803352-1-6.
MORE SUCCESS WITH
OFFENSIVE MARKETING
With the publication "Offensive Marketing," authors Anton Meyer and Hugh Davidson demonstrate how companies use marketing to compete in the business world. The book is intended to serve readers as a practical, perspective, leadership, and management guide to the world of marketing. The ISB number of "Offensives Marketing" is 3-448-04093-2, and the price is 63.80 francs. A free sample is available at www.offensivesmar keting.de.

have apparently not quite voluntarily been promoted to Page 8 girl. I don't think I'm wrong in assuming that your open-hearted statement about your Nissan connection and your belly piercing contributed significantly to your being chosen as the lead image for a multi-page car story. The half-opened pants can't be the reason, because they have nothing to do with car sales. Or does it? You deliver what you promise and therefore go home in the evening with a clear conscience. Aha! And what is the significance of the trouser door on your jeans? Do you want the people interested in Nissan to be more concerned with your lower belly than with the color of the car upholstery? Or do you rather want to demonstrate the proven heating system of the new Nissan models? I'm freezing at the sight, though. But as we all know, when you're young you still do a lot of things with a clear conscience. You believe in the Easter Bunny, in Prince Charming and in the selling power of cellulite-free belly zones. Yours, Chandra Kurt
Column: Carne valeBy Martin Lanz
What distinguishes humans from animals is their knowledge of finiteness. One day we learn that we have to die. Carne vale. Snug corpse, pass away. From that point on, we are subject to the compulsion to make something of our lives. We have role models, after all. And time is short.
One of them starts smoking, for example. Has role models. Stinks all his life as a smoker. Says it's fun. If you say it's even more fun not to be a slave, to have fresh breath, to feel what you eat and drink, and to try it out, you learn the truth: you can't be without it. Fun as compulsion. That's where the fun stops.
A very gifted advertiser has opened an excellent agency. He got a lot of fame and money. But that was not enough. You have to become something. So you go to Vienna. To Berlin. Misses the little family because of all the work. You learn about defeat. You are forced not to give up. After all, you have role models.
A gifted advertiser now also wants to know. The Lanz store will finally open in the middle of the year. Danielle will be successful. There is hardly anything better in this country. Will Danielle also be happy? Every weekend in the office. Night shift. Hardly any vacations. Whoever writes this knows why he's writing it. And suddenly you're no longer young. But rich. Do rich people die happier?
This year's advertiser is a genius if only because he balances idleness and creativity so well. Will he keep it up? Or will he one day turn gray in his own pad? And bury all his dreams in lush balance sheets?
Why do we love unhappiness? Why are even those who call themselves creative subject to the compulsion to sacrifice their lives for work instead of devoting themselves to life? Because that's how it works: The car with gasoline, the streetcar with electricity, the human being with coal.
Language watcher: Free translationFree translation
I put a few key phrases of pop history through the internet translation wringer (various translation engines):
Tonight's the night, we make history.
Tonight's the night, we make history.
All you need is love.
All you need is love.
The answer, my friend, is blowing in the wind.
The answer is blowing in the wind.
The answer, my friend blowing in the wind.
The answer blows in the wind.
Freedom is just another word for nothing left to lose.
Freedom is just another word to lose nothing to the left.
It's only rock and roll, but I like it!
It's just rock and roll, but I like it!
Yesterday, all my trouble seemed so far away.
Yesterday, all my difficulty seemed so removed.
Let's spend the night together,
Now I need you more than ever ...
Let's spend the night together.
Now I need you more than ever....
Is it better to burn out than to fade away?
Is it better to burn out than wither away?
Come together!
Come together!
We will we will rock you!
We will rock you!
Rock against right
Skirt against to the right
All in all, you're just another brick in the wall.
All in all, you're just another brick in the wall.
We gotta get out of this place.
We, Gotta get off this place.
Take a walk on the wild side.
Take a walk on the wild side.
And she's buying a stairway to heaven.
And she buys a staircase to heaven.
Beat Gloor, www.textcontrol.ch

A US chips company satirizes the presidential election counting processBy Thérèse BalduzziA commercial for "Ruffles" chips pokes fun at the inconsistencies and endless delays of the last US presidential election. Instead of punch cards, chips are held up in the air and closely scrutinized by inspectors.
The dubious achievement of the American election debacle in 2000: instructing the world's population on the differences between "dimpled chads", "pregnant chads" and "hanging chads" as well as an introductory course on the various voting methods used in America. Above all about the punch card system, which led to the problem of "chads" requiring interpretation, because the counting machines do not count "chads" that are not completely separated as votes.
For the comedy shows, the disaster was a feast for the eyes. It seemed that they couldn't show enough images - real and re-enacted - of pensioners with purple hair and inspectors squinting at ballot papers during the recount period. Not only comedy shows, but also Fritolay, the largest American French fries manufacturer, capitalizes on this and makes fun of the vote counters.
In the "Florida Inspection" commercial, which comes across like a news broadcast, it is announced at the beginning that the vote counters from Broward County in Florida have been hired to prove that the new "Flavorrush Cheddar & Salsa Ruffles Chips" are completely covered in spice. The chip packets are rolled in by officials in a handcart. The scene takes place in an authentic neon-lit office.
The chips are connected to the
Silver eye inspected
Like the ballot papers, the chips are held up in the air and examined individually by three independent vote counters. These, too, are exactly the same as the originals: an older woman with reading glasses, a young man and - the favorite of all comedy shows - a bald man who pushes up his glasses to look closely at the ballot papers and starts squinting with his googly eyes.
The commercial also imitates TV news in other details. At the bottom of the screen is the title "Selection 2001" instead of "Decision 2000" as well as a subtitle that changes from picture to picture: "Dimpled Chips under Review" or "unpresidented Flavor", which should really be "unprecedented", and finally "more absentee Bags to come", alluding to the "absentee ballots", the ballot papers sent by post that became more important during the counting process.
The last of the three counters eats the chips, and when asked how many he has already eaten, he replies "I lost count" - "no idea!". The commercial was created by BBDO New York in January.

Switzerland Tourism wants to offer "the best country site in the world" with MySwitzerland.comBy Andreas Panzeri "Holiday Switzerland on the Internet. One mouse click ahead." There are no empty words behind this slogan, as the graphically restyled and technologically enhanced MySwitzerland.com site shows. With 10,000 virtual tourists a day for an average of twelve minutes, the Internet address is already attracting twice as much interest as it did a year ago.
According to Jürg Schmid, Director of Switzerland Tourism, the fundamentally revised MySwitzerland.com website, which was presented to the media last week, is characterized by "not just a bit of color, but a new structure, new technologies and new navigation". Switzerland's largest and most comprehensive vacation and travel portal was launched just over a year ago. The website is already attracting over 10,000 visitors a day, and the trend is encouragingly upwards. And now, thanks to the use of the latest technology, Switzerland fans all over the world will be able to access their information even faster and much more easily, as Thomas Winkler, Director Web Division at Switzerland Tourism, convincingly demonstrated.
Search for keywords,
Regions, promotions, prices
Just type in "Botta" on the homepage and MySwitzerland.com presents the two top tips, the Jean Tinguely Museum in Basel and the Church of Santa Maria degli Angeli in Ticino. If you click on the church, you will find a short text about the place of worship, which was built by architect Mario Botta between 1992 and 1994, as well as directions from Rivera (SBB) by cable car to Alpe Foppa (1530 m above sea level). The link to the website www.montemaro.ch explains the local details.
If you already know that you don't want to take the cable car back (phone 091 946 23 03) but want to walk, you can also zoom in on a section of the map in the adjacent Swiss Mapping System until you find the most winding path. If the hotel in Tamaro, which can be called up directly on the site under "Accommodation", happens to be fully booked on the planned day of travel, even a South American unfamiliar with the area can discover on the zoomable map that Locarno must be a beautifully situated town very close by.
Guided in Spanish, English, French, Italian, German or Dutch, he can then surf on to the Locarno hotel offer. Photos of the room or the hotel bar make it easier to make a decision in the online reservation system, which is updated daily. The booking is confirmed with just one click of the mouse - virtual vacations in Switzerland will soon become reality.
The task of Switzerland Tourism and thus also of the new website is to promote demand for Switzerland as a travel, vacation and conference destination. So far, this has been achieved by distributing 280 tons of brochures annually and answering 2,000 telephone calls every day.
Cooperation with Internet partners around the world
These channels will continue to be available in the same quantity in the future. However, Switzerland Tourism expects significant growth on the Internet. "The internet already plays a key role in the travel and vacation sector," says Jürg Schmid. Among the e-commerce sectors that are used most intensively by the public, the travel sector is the world leader. Thanks to the partnerships already agreed with a total of 30 cooperation partners - including Bluewin, TravelScout24, SBB, Orangeworld, Planet Holiday in Switzerland and, worldwide, Yahoo! Weather, RTL World, Away.com and OnTheSnow - MySwitzerland.com will be able to display its data to two million visitors per day in future. Preparations for a Japanese version are also in full swing.
In contrast to conventional advertising media, where a brochure costs five francs and a processed telephone inquiry around eight francs, marketing via the Internet will hardly become more expensive for technical reasons, even with ever wider distribution. "Growth at zero cost," says Jürg Schmid happily.
This tourism ideas exchange on MySwitzerland.com is provided with content by five full-time editorial staff at Switzerland Tourism. In addition, 250 local tourist offices provide their daily information on the weather or 60000 events from sport to culture. 1800 of the total of around 5400 hotels in Switzerland already provide online booking options.
Together with further background information on politics, culture, the economy and transportation, an attractive selection of 220 sights from the Swiss tourism offer serves as an introduction to the vacation world. Five top tips per region, such as the five most beautiful hikes in Graubünden or the five most traditional grottos in Ticino, are designed to whet the appetite of potential guests for Switzerland. Trendy last-minute offers are also available via an integrated calendar. This not only shows specially discounted offers, but also informs tourists who are booking at ever shorter notice about available hotel beds, for example on the coming weekend in freshly snow-covered Davos. A daily updated weather report for all relevant vacation resorts shows how much it has actually snowed there.
A collection of 360° panoramic images from the most beautiful vantage points in Switzerland enrich the visual presentation. In a picture gallery, 2000 subjects await homesick Swiss people. According to Director Schmid, the mobile webcam has already found an organized fan club in Belgium in the form of the SBB locomotive christened "MySwitzerland.com".
The destinations and sights are visualized on a dynamic map of Switzerland. Thanks to this geographical information system, finding tourist attractions is child's play.
Switzerland.com now also finally belongs to Switzerland
In Switzerland, "Internett" would still have been spelled with two t's at the end, joked Schmid about the fact that a visionary American had already reserved the domain address Switzerland.com in 1994. Since then, 1.5 million visitors a year want to find out about Switzerland there. An interest group from the Swiss business community has now bought the domain. It was agreed not to disclose the price, as the seller "owns" other attractive country names.
However, MySwitzerland.com will remain a popular brand alongside Switzerland.com.

"Nobody is interested in biased information "Hermann Strittmatter on the SP and SVP newspaper projects
Both the Swiss People's Party (SVP) and the Social Democratic Party of Switzerland (SPS, see also page 21) want to merge their cantonal and internal member information and each launch a medium-sized newspaper, partly financed by advertising, which should also appeal to audiences outside the two parties. Do both projects have any chance at all? Hermann Strittmatter, owner of GGK, Zurich, and SP member, clearly thinks not.
Hermann Strittmatter, is the timing of these projects a coincidence?
Hermann Strittmatter: How should I know that? In any case, your question overestimates the intellectual planning potential of a party. And if you are referring to external influences: In terms of simultaneity, the only connection is that the SVP doesn't yet have a party paper and the SP almost doesn't.
Do you believe in the resurgence of a kind of party press?
Strittmatter: No, because apart from the apparatchiks, nobody is interested in biased information. This is pure job creation. That's actually a good thing. But the danger of ideological navel-gazing remains acute.
As an SP member, is that also what you say about an SP project?
Strittmatter: Yes, of course, otherwise I wouldn't dare to talk about it like that.
So you no longer give the party press a chance. But what about the NZZ? As an FDP
It has been able to hold on to its position as a close newspaper to this day and even gain a good reputation.
Strittmatter: But only because it has helped shape the transformation of Swiss liberalism for 150 years and is very liberal, intelligent and well written in the non-political sections such as features, sport and even local affairs.
The SVP and SP also emphasize that they don't want to bring ideologically biased newspapers onto the market, but rather journalistically produced ones. Don't you trust these parties to do that?
Strittmatter: Yes, it is, and it is also perfectly legitimate to want to make such a newspaper. But it seems to me that the need for it has not been sufficiently explored in either case. It's not a contradiction at all: ideas are the prerequisite for communication.
Does this mean that, at best, a party can only produce a (self-)critical scene paper?
Strittmatter: This means that a party cannot produce a journalistically and financially successful newspaper. Otherwise, these people could work successfully in the business world and earn ten times as much there.
What hurdles will they fail to overcome?
Strittmatter: The requirement to be able to write about topics and events in such a way that they interest the reader and not in the way that they interest the author. In my opinion, however, party writers are not in a position to do this because they have to fulfill a party task: It's called PR writing.
At what point could one speak of success or failure?
Strittmatter: Never at all, there's no need to talk about it, because party papers with the aforementioned claim are a contradiction in terms and therefore not viable.
Will the two newspapers also be unsuccessful in the advertising market? After all, they are opening up to advertising and are likely to have clearly definable target audiences that are now also quite affluent.
Strittmatter: No matter how good or large the target audience is: If no one in this target audience consumes these products, there is no point in talking about them. And if the two papers are now open to advertising, that may be interesting, but only advertisers with esoteric offers, cultural organizers or Denner with its initiatives will advertise in the left-wing papers. And with the SVP, only those who want to try to get into these circles will advertise.
What consequences could the SVP paper have for the Schweizerzeit and the SP paper for the WochenZeitung (WoZ)?
Strittmatter: The WoZ and Schweizerzeit have an independence that is not affected by the party circus. Just like Blick, Tagi, NZZ and other successful media.
Interview: Markus Knöpfli

The outdoor advertising company Plakanda will be allowed to market the advertising space in the new Y-Fingerdock at Basel-Mulhouse Airport, which will open in summer 2001, and will then control around 80 percent of all indoor advertising at Basel Airport, according to its own information. The remaining 20 percent and the outdoor advertising will be shared between Affichage and other providers. Plakanda, which is majority-owned by the Clear Channel Group, won the tender against JC Decaux and Affichage. Plakanda was already awarded the contract for all outdoor advertising at Zurich Airport in December (mk).

In addition: Rolf Wespe, the current head of communications at the Federal Office for the Environment, Forests, and Landscape (Buwal), is moving to the Media Training Center (MAZ). In June, he will succeed Eva Neugebauer as director of the part-time diploma program.
The Swiss Health Insurers' Association (KSK) has appointed Yves Seydoux as its Public Affairs Representative. With this newly created position, the KSK aims to increase its political influence. He will assume his position on April 1.
Schaffhausen-based local radio station Munot will have a new editor-in-chief starting in May: Heiko Ciceri will take over the position from Walter Studer, who has been serving in an interim capacity. Studer will remain the managing director of Radio Munot and the Schaffhausen TV station. Ciceri previously worked as an editor for «Täglich ran» at Sat 1 Switzerland.
Catherine Mühlemann of Switzerland will become the new managing director of MTV Germany. The former head of programming at TV 3 will take over on May 1, succeeding Christiane zu Salm, who is moving to TM 3.
On February 6, François Küssenberger took over as managing director of Fisch Meier Promotion. Previously, he held positions including head of marketing and communications at Hapimag, marketing director at the Lenzerheide-Valbella Tourism Association, and at the Visa Card Center.
Nik Hartmann’s small Zurich-based agency, H-Partnership, has evolved into Transformer Werbeagentur AG as of February 1. Oliver Stäcker has joined as a new partner and co-owner, serving as Creative Director.

The Tamedia media group generated operating revenues of CHF 823 million in 2000, 7 percent more than in the previous year. Electronic media showed the strongest growth, increasing by 22 percent to CHF 31 million. The print media division increased its income by 12 percent to 714 million francs. Tamedia reported that this once again exceeded the growth of the advertising market. The reasons for this were the booming job advertisements and the takeover of the magazine Finanz und Wirtschaft. In the electronic media, TV 3 and Winner.ch in particular generated higher sales. In contrast, the Services division suffered a slump, falling by 28 percent to 78 million. This was due to a reduction in printing capacity and its increased internal use. The full annual report is to be published on March 29.Computerworld with CeBit specialThe Swiss IT weekly Computerworld is presenting a special edition on CeBit for the first time. CeBit in Hanover, the world's largest trade fair for information and communication technology, is taking place for the 16th time from March 22 to 28. The special will appear in the March 16 issue, will be distributed on Swissair and Lufthansa flights from Zurich to Hanover and will be available at the Swiss Pavilion at the trade fair.
New design for Slash
To mark its fifth anniversary, the bilingual internet print magazine Slash is getting a new look. From March, it will appear with a clearer and simpler layout and a better structure. There will also be a number of new sections, for example for investors and children.

Christian Monzel of Jung von Matt, Hamburg, on creativity in car advertisingFor client BMW, Jung von Matt picked up several nails in various categories at the German ADC 2000. JvM won the awards with imaginative advertising, as Christian Monzel from the Hamburg agency explains.What is the difference between good and bad car advertising?
Christian Monzel: Still through the idea. An idea is good if you can describe it in one sentence. A good example: the commercial with the man who can't remember where the tank is.
Can only prestige brands like BMW afford ADC-worthy appearances?
Monzel: That's a false impression. In general, many social accounts and small brands win at ADC. Overall, companies that support more courageous campaigns win at ADC. Prestige brands don't have a subscription to prizes. BMW, for example, didn't win a single prize at ADC in 1998. In 1999, we received twelve prizes for BMW. The smaller car brands always try to do only one thing: show the car as big as possible. That is the death of every idea and therefore of good advertising.
Why are clients so conservative about fancy campaigns in car advertising?
Monzel: See previous answer. But even big brands often follow a misunderstood form of CI. VW, for example, has been doing quite good TV advertising lately. But the print ads always follow the same pattern and are boring and meaningless. At Mercedes, the focus is also on a relatively rigid layout. Springer & Jacoby also always manages to fill the format with an idea. At BMW, we take a completely different approach with a flexible layout and support the product substance with long copy texts. I do believe that the brand allows something different and needs that. The question is not whether the brand allows it, but the people who manage it.
Auto campaigns are usually products of a central lead agency. Are such globalized, leveled implementations at all suitable for the most diverse local markets?
Monzel: The motto here is: as global as possible, as local as necessary. And the local automotive markets are very different. That's why we need a decentralized corrective through decentralized agencies. But the brand can only have one brand core, one positioning. That's why it's important to manage and steer the brand internationally. But we have to take into account the individual market conditions and requirements. A global campaign therefore makes little sense in the automotive market.
Do you recognize a new trend in car advertising?
Monzel: Yes. Increased emotionalization. But also the slide into mainstream advertising. People are trying to escape into worlds that have already been occupied by other consumer goods or service companies. As a result, you lose your profile. However, this is also a trend that can be derived from the brands' product policies. A Lexus looks exactly like a Mercedes. A Mazda, Toyota or Nissan are indistinguishable. A Jaguar is becoming more and more like a BMW, and so on.
Interview: Luca Aloisi

The Zurich-based communications agency Advertising Art & Ideas (AA&I) has formed a strategic alliance with the U.S. agency Kirshenbaum Bond & Partners (KBP). No details have been announced yet. They are «dependent on a very large pitch,» Creative Director Stefan Winzenried explained to WerbeWoche. A GIANT JOKE FROM RINGIER. «One glance is enough, dear Tamedia,» jokes a giant billboard from the Ringier media group, which will adorn the facade of the Zurich Museum of Constructive and Concrete Art—currently under construction on the Sihl—starting March 10. The design, of which only a photomontage currently exists, is being installed right under the noses of Tamedia, which is located on the opposite bank of the river in the Werdareal. With this facade display, the museum—which is moving from Seefeld to the former power plant on the Sihl—aims to help finance the six-million-franc renovation. Hans Ulrich Schweizer, a member of the museum’s board of trustees and chairman of the executive board at Wirz Werbung in Zurich, estimated revenues of over 200,000 francs. They had hoped for about four sponsors, but only Ringier and Swissair agreed to participate. No wonder, since Ellen Ringier, Michael’s wife, chairs the museum’s board of trustees.
WoZ Concept to Be Overhauled. The WochenZeitung (WoZ) is currently undergoing a comprehensive overhaul of its editorial content and publishing profile. According to Publishing Director Verena Mühlberger, the newspaper plans to «broaden its thematic scope» starting this fall and has established a working group (WG) with external consultants to this end. In addition, the publication’s visual identity is set to be improved as early as May. The WoZ’s advertising sales team has already been expanded by 50 to 160 percent of a full-time position. «In many quarters, the prevailing opinion is still that the WoZ doesn’t want advertisements. That’s wrong. We want plenty of them—and in color, too,» adds the publishing director.
LOST IN THE GARDEN OF EDEN. Sisley, a brand belonging to the Benetton Group, features a man named Adam in its Spring/Summer 2001 catalog, fluttering about in an earthly paradise in Jamaica while being courted by three women named Eve. Terry Richardson has photographed for Sisley for the eighth time. The concept was developed by Art Director Nikko Amandonico. Energy Project is responsible for production. The poses, which straddle the line between innocence and sin, are provocative; they can also be viewed at www.benetton
.com/press.
The tobacco industry’s «OK» campaign is resonating. The Swiss associations representing the cigarette industry and tobacco retailers are pleased with the response to their campaign against the sale of tobacco to minors (“No cigarette sales to those under 16, OK?”). A survey by the Link research institute found that 93.3 percent of retail sales staff and 36.6 percent of the general public are aware of the campaign. 83.5 percent of the general public welcomed the campaign. However, only 25.8 percent believed it would be effective. The campaign’s organizers plan to step up their efforts even further.
Popular DM Award. A total of 260 entries were submitted for the third Swiss Direct Marketing Award in 2001, 9 percent more than the previous year. Foreign agencies also participated: One-eighth of the entries came from Germany or Austria. The 17-member jury is chaired by Jörg Rindlisbacher (CEO of Impiric). The awards will be presented on April 27 in Glattbrugg, ZH.
The Advertiser’s Bed. This man makes money while he sleeps: Instead of selling his clients« furniture, Christoph Stähli, co-owner of the advertising agency Boxx, is competing with them by selling a bed he designed himself. The collapsible bed, made of beech plywood, also features a backrest. »This allows you to read or work in bed,” says Stähli. And that—according to rumor—is, after all, the favorite pastime of many advertisers in bed. Incidentally, it costs 5,260 francs, can be ordered from Boxx Design in Zurich, and—with a bit of luck—might even be deductible from your salary as a business expense. Health insurance companies would only cover consequences that would arise from other uses of the bed.
Editorial:

New Experiments with Press Corpses
The SVP plans to launch a weekly newspaper at the end of the year, while the SPS will launch the monthly magazine links.ch on May 1; both are intended to meet high professional standards. It remains to be seen whether these party publications will be more than just club newsletters or hobby newspapers. In any case, skepticism is warranted. Read more in the article on page 21 and in the interview with advertising executive Hermann Strittmatter (page 5).
Party politics has become more transparent. Party conventions are held with extensive media coverage. Today, citizens receive political information almost exclusively through
the mass media. The more active politicians have long been aware that there is no alternative to a media-driven society, and they are quite adept at navigating the mechanisms of today’s media landscape. They do not rely on the propaganda-style journalism of the planned party newspapers.
«A Dead Tree from the Sacred Grove of Democracy» was the title of Ulrich Frei’s 1987 dissertation on the decline of the Swiss party press, particularly the Social Democratic *Volksrecht*. According to his analysis, the SP newspapers and other party publications did not die a sudden death but succumbed to old age, because today’s media consumers simply had no interest left in these newspapers. The party newspapers of that era were published largely behind closed doors and were not taken seriously by their own party members, union members, or even voters. In any case, Ulrich Frei’s dissertation is highly recommended as required reading for today’s party officials.
Samuel Helbling

Young pioneers presents trends and trendsetters in web design at the GDIBy Carole KochWithin just a few years, the web has developed into a multimedia communication platform. On March 7, the Gottlieb Duttweiler Institute will present speakers who will talk about their experiences, developments and trends in web design and present their projects as part of "Young pioneers".
Web designers live at the interface between the virtual and real worlds. They are modern storytellers, use multimedia to stage reality and create new worlds in other dimensions. Patrick Patman Spahr - web designer at the internet agency RØSA and also the first and only ADC Web AD - defines his profession as the development of interactive worlds of experience. In this process, he acts as a digital pixel showmaster, a composer of bits and bites.
"Today, a lot of emphasis is placed on the usability of a site," he says, citing one of the prevailing trends. "Because as long as design is not content, it will remain just packaging. Good content cannot be replaced by good design," he comments on this development. Incidentally, the current motto for website design is "reduction to the essentials".
According to Patman, tomorrow's popular sites will be complete solutions that meet both high creative and content requirements. In his opinion, the convergence of different transmission media will also have an influence on design: "A website will always have to be fast in the future," he explains.
In his work, Patman still tries to "apply technology and design in an unconventional way". Websites should get users to their destination quickly, leave strong impressions and encourage them to click on.
The web as the world's biggest emotion machine
For Marco Casile, Managing Director of Festland Internet Marketing in St.Gallen, differentiation is also a decisive criterion for success - paired with an outstanding offer and an equally outstanding formal design. "Nowhere is the battle for mindshare greater than on the web," explains Casile and goes on to emphasize that an idealized web design does not shy away from the technical possibilities, but experiments with them at an early stage.
He cites the increasing demands of users, growing competition among providers and the growing performance of online technologies as the driving force behind the rapid development of the web. For him, images and animations are part of the basic equipment of a website. "Today, more and more sites are using sound, video and 3D elements, and we are even working on transmitting scents," says Casile, describing the current trend.
The largest reference work in the world is therefore well on the way to becoming the largest emotion machine. "It's not the usability of a site that will play a role in the future, but its experiential value," Casile is convinced. He sees further important developments in the combination of web design with intelligent CRM systems and the greater integration of offline and online marketing.
Unlike the internet agency RØSA or Festland Internet Marketing, Lightear Multimedia, Paris, offers not only web design and conception but also music production, media content and individual travel in Paris. The company's name symbolizes a multimedia vision that combines image, text and sound on the web.