German publishing giant now leads Swiss trade publishersPer January 1, 2001, BertelsmannSpringer takes over Rüschliker Bauverlag Schück Söhne AG, the Swiss market leader in the construction project information segment. Together with the publishing offerings of its subsidiary MVS Baumarketing AG, the Berlin-based company will occupy by far the leading position in the Swiss construction information business.Schück Söhne AG was founded in Zurich in 1940 and today employs 105 people. The core of the traditional construction publishing house is the Schweizer Baublatt, which is published twice a week with a circulation of 13,500 copies and is the most important trade journal for the Swiss main and ancillary construction trade, independent of any association. Schück owns other well-known publications such as Bau-Kontakt, which has the highest sales and circulation in this product area in Switzerland, as well as Bau-Bulletin and Bau-Tip. Schück also has a stake in the online platform www.bauonline.ch and owns a print shop.
The acquisition of Schück AG makes BertelsmannSpringer one of the largest trade publishers in Switzerland, with total sales of DM 75 million. Daniel Schifferle

WHS has prominent Swiss people advertise for the Tages-AnzeigerThe eight prominent testimonials in the image campaign for Tamedia's flagship newspaper have one thing in common: they are all diligent readers of the Zurich daily, if the current print campaign for the Tages-Anzeiger is to be believed. On the subjects, they present their personal Tagi world. The message is clear: Not only the Tagi stays tuned, but also every reader. The agency responsible, WHS, is thus continuing the paper's tried-and-tested headline campaign, which has now finally been discontinued. Nevertheless, the subjects are only intended as an interim solution - the definitive new advertising presence of the paper will be programmed by WHS for the beginning of the year. Page 6

Muse & Musse David Liebi
Which cultural event did you attend last and why this one in particular?
David Liebi: The Blue Balls Night at Kaufleuten - because of the good program.
What are you reading right now and why?
Liebi: Nothing.
Which CD do you currently prefer to listen to?
Liebi: "Riding with the Kings" by Eric Clapton and BBKing.
Which movie would you most like to see again and why?
Liebi: "Dead Man" with the actor Johnny Depp. Why? Rejoice in life.
What TV show did you fall asleep during the other night?
Liebi: Basically with the evening program.
What is your latest discovery on the Internet?
Liebi: www.atomfilms.com
Love is...?
Liebi: Looking in the mirror with joy in the morning...

Glass gave ex-advertiser Ruth Arber a seductive giftChristmas time - gift time. Because people who receive gifts always enjoy surprises, director and co-owner of the production company Glass, Marcello Schnyder (Freixenet, Coop image spots), didn't wait until Christmas Eve to give life partner and ex-advertiser Ruth Arber a seductive present: Five months after opening her Zurich furniture store for living in a Mediterranean ethnic look, Casa Smeralda, Schnyder let his low-budget TV spot go off the air two weeks ago as a launch campaign for the furniture store. Since the new furniture store needs to distinguish itself from a number of established stores, Schnyder advised this unusual advertising medium for the industry. Even the soundtrack, a Celentano adaptation, comes from Schnyder's pen and vocal cords. As the creator of the 20-second spot jokingly remarked at an advertising event, this was probably the first furniture store of its kind to have a commercial. This is not vouched for.
What is certain, however, is this: The strip, in which a sparse living room interior is conjured up en plain air in the wildly romantic landscape of the Costa Smeralda, is an endearing, promotional and seductive gift from Schnyder to Ruth Arber, who knows something about advertising. As co-founder and owner of the By Heart agency, she definitely saddled up to her hobbyhorse furnishings in the spring and left the advertising business after more than 20 years. Luca Aloisi

Susann Mäusli, Managing Director of the Swiss Graphic Designers Association, on quality and trainingThis year, for the tenth time since 1991, the Swiss Graphic Designers Association (SGV) awarded its promotional prize (WW 43/00). At the award ceremony in Lucerne, SGV Managing Director Susann Mäusli also explained to WerbeWoche what new opportunities are open to aspiring graphic designers as a result of changes at schools.What is the goal of the Swiss Graphic Designers Association in awarding its sponsorship prize?
Susann Mäusli: We have been awarding the prize of 12,000 Swiss francs every year since 1991 to support quality assurance among young professionals. The award was created ten years ago because the level of training in Switzerland varied greatly and comparisons were almost impossible due to the different tasks in the various examination regions. The aim was to see the results of the individual examination regions side by side. After ten years, it can be said that the quality level has generally risen. Whereas in the beginning there was perhaps only one examination task that required conceptual thinking, today five out of eight tasks lie in this area. After all, a graphic designer should not be a "mold baker", but should be able to analyze a task and take responsibility as its author.
Aren't you a little too optimistic about the impact of the grant?
Mäusli: We are sure that the award has made a difference. Design is open to discussion, an exchange is taking place, for example through the fact that the assessment of the juried works is taken back to the schools. The Förderpreis brochure, which contains the jury's assessment of the nominated works, is also read in the educational institutions and taken seriously. Furthermore, there have been efforts to strive for a common examination topic throughout Switzerland. This discussion, which is currently being relaunched, also arose as a result of the sponsorship award.
Don't other factors also play a role here, such as the influence of U.S. graphics on Swiss graphics?
Mäusli: It was mainly in the fifties and sixties that the so-called New Graphic Design - a movement that goes back to the developments in concrete art - achieved international renown. I know from the president of the association, Peter Vetter, who worked in the USA for a long time, that Swiss Design is still a positive term there today. Abroad, people talk about Swiss design, but not here at home. This disparity may have something to do with the fact that the Swiss mentality is fundamentally more reserved. That's why we want to try to make Swiss Design a brand here, too, and that includes showing works. But I think that the level of quality in the future will also be influenced by the current changes in the design education landscape.
What specific changes are you thinking about?
Mäusli: Everything is currently in flux. The training model of the two design associations is based on the idea of a sound basic training with various models for further training. In the revised training regulations for graphic designers, the area of conception, which was previously only taught in rudimentary form, has tended to be shifted to the continuing education level. However, the new three-year apprenticeship must clearly be seen in the context of the preliminary course, which is required by the new training regulations and by the Federal Office for Education and Technology. The three-year apprenticeship builds on the knowledge already acquired in the preliminary course. The graphic designer apprenticeship has therefore only been shortened to a certain extent. It is designed to impart basic knowledge, followed - a must in today's world of constantly evolving technologies anyway - by continuous professional development and specialization, whether at a university of applied sciences or part-time with a diploma. The training therefore consists of modules that can be individually combined after the basic training.
Is the basic education enough to be able to study at the university of applied sciences?
Mäusli: No. According to the Swiss Federal Law on Universities of Applied Sciences, you need a vocational baccalaureate. However, we are currently working on a concept for in-service training to become a federally certified visual designer. We know from the Federal Commission for Universities of Applied Sciences that there are plans to admit designers with this diploma to the universities of applied sciences without a vocational baccalaureate, which represents a clear upgrading of the practice-oriented training. Today, there are a wide variety of options to choose from. I really like the news that you no longer necessarily need the vocational baccalaureate if you have completed other job-specific training. In other professions, it is still the case that the vocational baccalaureate or another type of baccalaureate is a prerequisite for studying at a university of applied sciences. In the field of design, this decision prevents more lateral entrants without basic professional training from being trained at the continuing education level. The profession of graphic design is thus clearly upgraded.
What connects you to graphic design and the association?
Mäusli: I was already working in the art trade during my law studies. After graduating, I ran my own gallery for contemporary Swiss art for six years. I was approached to join the association by my husband, who is also a member, because the connection between law and art, as shown in my curriculum, was considered interesting for the association. As the managing director of the association, I perform a staff function for the board, implement its decisions and represent the association externally in its sense.
How do you educate yourself?
Mäusli: At the moment I'm taking the postgraduate course Art and Profession at the University of Bern. This postgraduate course, which is a further training course in cultural management, was basically set up for art historians who - I'm saying this somewhat prosaically now - have learned little or nothing about the demands of the modern cultural business during their studies. Already now, I can incorporate the knowledge imparted in the postgraduate course into my association activities. Interview: Ernst Weber

Affinity of ads among supporters in the "Christian camp "Best of Print Advertising The advertising hits 2000 from the Advertising Index of the market research institute Demoscope
In cooperation with the market research institute Demoscope, Publimedia presents the readers of WerbeWoche five times a year with an excerpt from the
Results from the Advertising Index (AX Print). This index (see box) is a module of the Market Radar and measures the popularity of advertising subjects. In the top two rows are those subjects that achieved the greatest acceptance in the relevant psychographic target group (see wind rose). The three subjects that performed best among the entire sample, i.e. among all four target groups in total, in the 3rd quarter 2000 are shown under the heading "Top three".

Publisher Jean-Marie Fleury celebrates the 30th birthday of Genève Home Informations with BelcantoBy Christophe Büchi The Geneva free weekly GHI (Genève Home Informations) is celebrating its 30th birthday. Publisher Jean-Marie Fleury has so far managed to steer his free paper past the turbulence of the Geneva media market.
When you call GHI in Geneva and are pushed onto the waiting bench, you are treated to the lilting bel canto of an organ-strong tenor. And the compliments that GHI serves itself on the occasion of its 30th anniversary also sound like bel canto.
In the course of the last 30 years, "GHI has become a kind of canard enchaîné among Genevans," it says, and continues: "a flattering nickname. Indeed, one can only say! Although the WerbeWoche correspondent first read the comparison with the French satirical magazine in the GHI communiqué. What was that again about self-praise?
When two (or even three) quarrel...
But this factual situation is certain: Jean-Marie Fleury did pioneering work in French with his GHI. The paper with the funny name in veritable Franglais met with little joy when it first appeared - on the tense Geneva press market, the Tribune de Genève, the Sonor paper La Suisse, the liberal Journal de Genève and even the left-wing Catholic Courrier de Genève were fighting over the advertising francs to be distributed at the time.
The paper, which was initially published fortnightly and then switched to a weekly rhythm from 1977, benefited from the tough competitive situation in the press market: Because neither La Suisse publisher Jean-Claude Nicole nor the Tribune de Genève (then belonging to the Publicitas Group) had a clear leader position in the 1970s, the clever outsider Fleury was able to gradually gain a small place in the sun. Incidentally, Fleury was also the founder of the Lausanne-Cités free newspaper, which he soon sold to his partners in the Edipresse Group.
In recent years, GHI has been able to establish itself firmly, although Edipresse - as owner of La Tribune de Genève and Le Matin and shareholder of Le Temps - now has a firm grip on the Geneva press market. Thus, the strong position of Edipresse has so far not been able to harm Fleury.
On the contrary: in the past, GHI has been able to play the role of the good Genevan outsider who stands up to the "Vaudois monopolist" Edipresse. In reality, Edipresse and Fleury each hold 50 percent of the title.
Nevertheless, the fact that Fleury was able to hold on for 30 years is an achievement, even if the competition is repeatedly accused of Fleury's dumping policy (but which competitor in the advertising market is not also accused of this by his dear colleagues?) The Berno-Zurigo Geneva real estate shark Jürg Stäubli, and later the local publisher Roland Ray, have also tried in recent years to offer Genevans an alternative to Edipresse publications - without success.
The GHI communiqué explains this achievement by referring to the free newspaper's editorial stance in its early years: "GHI had an aggressive editorial tone that did not sit well with many, engaged in top fights, defended minorities, and even lobbied on issues that were lost in advance.
Very quickly she had acquired a reputation as a critic, but was never afraid to expose injustices, unlike other newspapers that tended to go for 'cover-up'." This aria is also pure bel canto.
As far as minorities are concerned, it is more the case that the free newspaper occasionally floundered in right-wing populist waters. However, it cannot be denied that it occasionally contrasted with the "political correctness" of the major newspapers.
GHI brashly calls itself number 1 in Geneva
As it continued to grow, however, the paper became increasingly restrained. Today, GHI is a free newspaper like many others in Swiss cities, with a large commercial section and a less large editorial section, in which you can sometimes find something good.
In the GHI distribution area (WG 11 and the French border region), the free newspaper has 230,000 readers, of whom around 216,000 are served by the distribution company Epsilon - the rest of the population can get their copy, if they want, via a newspaper box on the street. Thus, GHI brashly calls itself the number 1 of the Geneva press.
The weekly newspaper is produced at the sister company Sediprint in Geneva and printed at the CIEG (Centre d'impression Edipresse Genève). It employs around 50 people and generates sales of around 20 million Swiss francs. This puts it in first place among all free newspapers in Switzerland, according to GHI.
Mamma mia, che bel canto!

(Values = "Supporters" index of the ad compared to the average of all ads in the industry; 1.00 = average = 100%)Best of Print Advertising The ad hits 2000 from the Advertising Index of the market research institute Demoscope
In cooperation with the market research institute Demoscope, Publimedia presents the readers of WerbeWoche five times a year with an excerpt from the
Results from the Advertising Index (AX Print). This index (see box) is a module of the Market Radar and measures the popularity of advertising subjects. In the top two rows are those subjects that achieved the greatest acceptance in the relevant psychographic target group (see wind rose). The three subjects that performed best among the entire sample, i.e. among all four target groups in total, in the 3rd quarter 2000 are shown under the heading "Top three".
Telecommunications Fixed network Swisscom Swisscom small miracle 1.5

Informatik World Online Your world at your fingertips 1.3
Banks/credit cards/post UBS hurdler 1.6
Tourism American Airlines Your Business Partner 1.3
Advertising IndexFor the Advertising Index ad tests, a representative sample of around 800 people is surveyed in 8 survey waves. The respondent first completes a psychological test (50-item test) and then leafs through a booklet containing 45 advertisements. As when reading a magazine, they are free to linger over each advertisement for as long as they wish. Before turning the page, she rates the ad on a scale from 5 ("appeals to me a lot") to 1 ("doesn't appeal to me at all"). Supporters are people who are "very" or "fairly" attracted by an ad. The acceptance of advertising determined in this way correlates strongly with other functions of advertising impact and is therefore suitable for benchmarking.
For the segmentation of the sample according to target groups, Market Radar uses a psychographic test, the so-called 50-item test. With the help of this test, the value orientations of the respondent are determined and assigned to one of the psychogram fields (see wind rose). The value orientations range from South (conservative) to North (progressive) and from West (outward-looking, materialistic) to East (inward-looking, idealistic).
Further information on the Advertising Index and the Market Radar is available from Demoscope. Planning support with the Advertising Index, the Radar and new
with the Print Advertising Monitor (PAM), Publimedia.

The search engine operator Google (www.google.com), which has so far refrained from banner advertising, has launched AdWords, a self-service news targeting service for advertisers.
These can reserve certain keywords or search terms for which so-called sponsored links should appear to the right of the normal search results. The text that appears in the small boxes can be entered directly on the Google website. Images are not accepted. Payment, which is based on a thousand contact price, can also be made online.
by credit card.
Ad Pepper finds partner for Asia Ad Pepper Media (www.ad pepper.com), a marketer of online advertising, e-sponsorships and e-commerce solutions, has entered into a strategic alliance with BMC Media, a Sydney-based marketer of online advertising in the Asia/Pacific region. Ad Pepper Media itself is active in 13 European countries (including Switzerland) and the USA. Thanks to the cooperation, Australia and four Asian countries are now to be added to the existing online advertising markets.

The Solothurn-based publishing house Vogt-Schild takes over the international weapons magazine Visier from the German Paul Parey Zeitschriften-Verlag on December 1.News Vogt-Schild with weapons magazine
With a circulation of 45,000 copies, Visier is the number one in the sporting gun magazine segment, the publisher announced; it already publishes the Internationale Waffenzeitung and the magazine Caliber.
SRG with loose sponsorshipThe SRG has violated the Radio and Television Act (RTVA) by linking the names of sponsors with advertising slogans. This verdict was handed down by the criminal court in Bern. When broadcasting traffic information on Radio DRS, the sponsor's name was linked to slogans such as "Citroën Xara, one you can trust". In March, the Federal Office of Communications fined SRG CHF 2,000 for this. SRG will "most likely" appeal the ruling that has now been handed down.
TV 3 violates its license with newsBy switching from the 20-minute news programme "News um 7" to six-minute short news bulletins, TV 3 has violated its license. The Department of the Environment, Transport, Energy and Communications (DETEC) thus agreed with the opinion of OFCOM, against whose decision TV 3 had appealed. The concession obliges TV 3 to broadcast a full program with a focus on information and entertainment, writes the Uvek. TV 3 called the ruling "incomprehensible", as the short news items attract three to six times as many viewers as the previous long news items. The broadcaster is now examining how to proceed. Under discussion are an appeal of the decision to the Federal Supreme Court, the restoration of the previous situation or an application for a change of license.
Ta revises thematic bundleThe Tages-Anzeiger is reorganizing its thematic bundle for January 22, 2001. As Newsmail reported, the youth supplement "Ernst" is giving way to a weekly media supplement. "Ernst" will only exist as a community offer on the TA website. In future, the flip side of the "Themenbund" will present information on going out and the TV program.
Ricardo and Scout24 become partnersThe auction platform Ricardo.ch and the Scout24 marketplaces are entering into a strategic collaboration as of December 1. The aim of the partnership is to provide users with a comprehensive offering in the B-to-C and C-to-C segments "at the click of a mouse".
Bluewin launches Blueprimus.ch
Blueprimus, a subsidiary of Bluewin and the German e-commerce company Primus-Online (49%), has gone online. The virtual shopping center offers consumer electronics, videos, CDs and DVDs. Blueprimus also includes platforms for auctions and "power shopping".

Two graphic designers and a typographer are behind the start-up creadesign bbt GmbH, based in Rapperswil.The company offers support in the field of visual communication, from printed matter, image and text processing to logo design and corporate identity. Creadesign emerged from the studio of graphic designer Theo Böhler, who has been working independently in Rapperswil for 14 years. "The founding of the company was therefore not a start from scratch," says partner Martin Thumm, "but a business expansion." The third equal partner in the alliance is graphic designer Justo Barragán. Creadesign bbt wants to work primarily for direct customers. (ba)

Lucia Degonda on the vfg. and its exhibition "The Selection vfg. "For the third time, the vfg. association of photographic designers is inviting entries for "The Selection vfg. All photographic works by professional photographers published in Switzerland or abroad in the year 2000 are eligible for this exhibition. The winner of the competition will receive the magazine photography prize worth 10,000 Swiss francs. vfg. member Lucia Degonda invites advertising photographers in particular to take part. What are the goals of your association?
Lucia Degonda: The vfg. association of photographic designers was founded in 1995 with the aim of creating a forum for professionals. At the moment, it has about 90 members who work in advertising, editorial and art photography. The vfg. is the first association to encompass the entire professional spectrum. In everyday professional life, these disciplines are mixing more and more: reportage photographers are asked to photograph advertising campaigns, fashion photographers are asked to do reportage. The disciplines can no longer be clearly distinguished. That's why we thought it would make sense to create an association that stands for all these photographic disciplines.
What specific services does vfg. provide?
Degonda: Through regular picture soirées, we encourage exchange and encounters among photographers. Then we promote young photography with the vfg. young talent award for apprentices, students of photography, self-taught photographers as well as young professionals and organize lectures and presentations that shed light on various areas of photography, such as its history or the image of man in advertising photography. In addition, we conduct educational practice-oriented workshops according to the needs of professionals and offer members their own website in collaboration with swissartwork.
What is the goal of "The Selection vfg."?
Degonda: "The Selection vfg." wants to convey a picture of Swiss professional photography, to show its position and value. The idea of creating a selection show of Swiss professional photography already existed when vfg. was founded. The project is organized by a team of the vfg. and the office for cultural management d.o.k.. The vfg. team determines the content of the project in such a way that it is of benefit to professional photography. The d.o.k. office is responsible for the coordination, organization and project management of the event. "The Selection vfg." takes place annually and is intended to become a contemporary document of professional photography.
Since when does "The Selection vfg." exist?
Degonda: "The Selection vfg." is being held for the third time. We have noticed an enormous increase in interest: while in the first year we received around 100 works, last year the jury already had almost 300 works to judge. The selected works will be shown in an exhibition in Zurich and other Swiss cities and documented in a catalog. Our goal is that this work book, like the Keystone picture catalog, will be in every advertising agency and picture editor's office. The catalog is not meant to be an art book, but a reference work that people use.
What judging criteria do the jurors use?
Degonda: vfg. has absolutely no influence on the judging, but only on the composition of the jury. It includes photographers, advertisers, picture editors and art historians who come from as many parts of the country as possible, as well as from abroad. Swiss professional photography cannot be considered in isolation from other countries, since many of us work with foreign clients. We want to include them because their judgment is relevant.
What is the role of the Federal Office of Culture?
Degonda: The Federal Office of Culture has taken over the patronage of "The Selection vfg. We were granted a start-up credit for last year's catalog. This year we are collaborating on the touring exhibition that we would like to show in Lausanne, Basel, Chur and possibly in Ticino.
What does "The Selection vfg." have to do with the magazine's photo night?
Degonda: I might have to explain this from the story. With the idea "The Selection vfg." we looked for partners in the photo industry for a year without success. Then, together with the d.o.k. office, we approached Das Magazin and proposed "The Selection vfg." as content for the magazine photo night. Tamedia and Das Magazin, which promotes new perspectives on Swiss photography, supported this idea. Das Magazin invested massively in the communication of "The Selection vfg.", which is certainly one reason for the rapid establishment of the Selection show. In addition, Das Magazin donates a photo prize worth 10,000 Swiss francs, which is awarded in each case to a participant selected by the jury.
What is the reputation of Swiss commissioned photography?
Degonda: Photography has generally gained in importance over the past ten or fifteen years. Especially art photography. After this upswing had already been noticeable in the U.S. for quite some time, photography has now also become firmly established in the European art world. Applied professional photography, on the other hand, which is created in the context of products and deals with everyday life, is less well perceived, even though a lot of great work is being done in this area in particular. It is a matter of concern to us that this part of photographic design is also generally perceived.
What is your photographic style?
Degonda: I have very broad photographic interests. I have been working as a freelance photographer for 14 years. I used to work mainly in the editorial field, but now I take pictures for architects and hospitals, as well as landscapes, and I do portraits. I also teach photography at the School of Design and Art in Zurich and at the MAZ in Lucerne, and like many other photographers, I have a personal theme: I photograph mountains. Interview: Ernst Weber