In mid-August, Viktor ran his last marathon as a professional. But he has no time to rest. The two endurance athletes are already dueling with wit and mischievousness off the race course in the run-up to "The Competition". European marathon champion Viktor Röthlin has just contested his last race as a top athlete at the European Championships in Zurich and is currently being challenged for what is probably his most unconventional duel: the contest presented by Isostar between the two exceptional athletes " Vic vs. Dario - The Competition".

As a counterpart, the current three-time Olympic and overall World Cup cross-country skiing champion Dario Cologna takes up this challenge. The two successful athletes measure themselves against each other in the other's sport: Both teams of 6 will run the Switzerland Marathon light on 7.9.14 in Sarnen as well as the 47th Engadiner Skimarathon on 8.3.15. Applications for a place in one of the teams are being accepted as of now on the landing page of "The Competition Vic vs. Dario".

"The Competition" can be viewed on the Facebook page and under The-competition.ch can be followed along. The duel will be launched with a comic-style teaser clip and a launch clip with the two top athletes teasing each other on YouTube and various Facebook pages. Several expert trailers featuring professionals from Asics and Vikmotion, as well as athlete statements with tips on professional race preparation, will also go viral. The winning team will be announced in a short film in March 2015, which will also summarize the two decisive races.

Responsible at Wander/Isostar: Emmanuel Currat (Brand Manager Isostar), Angelika Leemann (Marketing Manager Wander). Responsible at Partner & Partner: Benno Maggi (concept), Gianfranco Acocella (CD/AD), Luc Holzach (strategy/consulting, script writer).
 

Even an extraordinary profit in the triple-digit millions will then result from the merger of Search.ch and Local.ch at the end of this year or the beginning of next year, as Tamedia CEO Christoph Tonini explained in a conference call on Friday. The extra profit has its origins in the revaluation of Search.ch.

This will take place before the directory service is brought into a joint venture with Swisscom. A joint venture to merge Search.ch and Local.ch has been agreed between the telecommunications giant and the Zurich-based media group, after both had sought to acquire Publigroupe.

Now, in a first step, Swisscom is buying Publigroupe and thus becoming the sole owner of the directory service Local.ch. With the intention of being able to counter Google's offerings, the directory services of the two companies will then be merged in a second step.

However, the joint venture with Swisscom, in which Tamedia is a junior partner, will also make a profit contribution to the media group in the future. Search.ch alone does not do this at present. (SDA)
 

In addition, the Audience Award was presented, which is voted for by consumers. Winning a Swiss Packaging Award enables participation in the international packaging competition World Star. With 47 entries, it was another good year, according to a statement from the Swiss Packaging Institute (SVI). This year's field of participants mainly represented the packaging materials corrugated board, fine cardboard and plastic.

"Zytgloggenturm" wins audience award
The 2014 Audience Award was won by the "Zytgloggenturm" from Andreas Kopp AG. The can, which depicts the Zytgloggenturm in Bern, impresses with its detailed design. The aim of the packaging was to create a tinplate packaging based on the construction plans provided by the city of Bern, which combines the traditional with the modern, while meeting the highest demands of a packaging.

Winners list

The continued decline in income from the sale of advertisements in print media was offset by the acquisition of the Winterthurer Landbote. The digital business area, i.e. internet platforms such as Homegate and Jobcloud or the ticket sales company Starticket, also brought in more money. However, the 20 Minuten news platform also contributed to the 11.6 percent growth in the digital business, whereas Newsnet suffered slight losses.

Tamedia was able to increase its profits more than its sales. The Group's operating profit (EBIT) rose by 14.8 percent to CHF 73.2 million and net profit by 8.2 percent to CHF 59.2 million, as detailed in a press release issued on Friday.
In addition to the acquisition of Landbote, Tamedia cites measures to increase efficiency in the paid daily newspapers as well as at 20 Minuten and the magazines as reasons for the improved profitability. Investments in the digital sector also contributed to the improvement in results.

Participation in financial advisory platform Moneypark

Tamedia is acquiring a stake in the financial advice platform Moneypark. According to an announcement on Friday, it is buying 20.4 percent of the internet company, which was founded in 2011 and now has around 60 employees. How much Tamedia is paying for the stake and how much turnover and profit Moneypark is currently generating were not disclosed. The company founders Stefan Heitmann and Leo Grünstein remain the majority shareholders of Moneypark.

With this investment, the Tamedia Group is further expanding its business with sales, brokerage and consulting platforms on the Internet. The media company already owns, among others, the offer platform Olmero, the ticket distributor Starticket, the real estate platform Homegate and the search engine Search.ch. Tamedia also holds stakes in the Internet television provider Zattoo, the appointment scheduler Doodle, the classifieds platform Tutti.ch, the job portal Jobs.ch and other companies. Meanwhile, 23 percent of the Tamedia Group's turnover comes from activities in the digital world.

Moneypark specializes in comparing and brokering financial products such as mortgages or 3rd pillar accounts and also offers advice on financial investments. The company does not offer any financial products of its own, but is nevertheless subject to the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority (Finma) as a broker of financial products.

Moneypark operates a website, but also has branches in Zurich, Basel and Lucerne. (SDA)

Merger of Search.ch and Local.ch brings Tamedia high profits

 

"As a regular SRF 3 listener, I am looking forward to being live at the international matches in the future," Lustrinelli was quoted as saying in an SRF statement on Friday. "I have often listened to the broadcasts with Hanspeter Latour and know that this will not be an easy task."

Lustrinelli is currently FC Thun's U18 coach and is responsible for the morning training sessions for Thun's talented students. Lustrinelli has played several times as a striker for the Swiss national team. (SDA)
 

The agency Mé - Mesmer Société, led by the two creatives Andreas Mesmer and Jan Schlomo Knopp, sees itself as an agency for storytelling that uses design to answer the question of the "why" of communication in line with its paradigm "Form Follows Content". "We call it the future II of communication," explains Knopp. "In other words: what should the communication have triggered in people in the end? What has changed in their minds? We develop our story, our design, based on this answer. "

In 2014, the agency has already designed two publications for Vitra, the Landi Chair brochure and the Workbays workbook, both of which won a Red Dot Award. Both publications were also nominated by the German Design Council for the German Design Award 2015 for Excellent Communications Design.

 

As early as Monday, the Grisons native will celebrate his on-screen debut with the discussion show joiZone. He will present the daily talk show joiZone from August 25. The 23-year-old from Graubünden has set himself a clear goal: "I want to do my part to make joiZone the most exciting talk show in Switzerland," Caviezel says confidently.

Corsin Caviezel has already proven that he can rise to these challenges at the local radio stations Radio 24 and Radio Grischa. Now he's venturing onto the national TV stage: "I'm looking forward to exceptional guests and exciting conversations."

The daily talk show joiZone (Monday to Friday) starts next Monday with the first show after the summer break. Everything that moves the world finds its place in joiZone, according to a Joiz release. From socially relevant topics to politics and digital - to exciting life stories and relationship tips: joiZone acts as an advisor and agenda-setter for a young audience.
 

BSSM with new mandates

BSSM is pleased to announce two new mandates. The Foundation for Health and Nature has commissioned the agency to develop all communication measures from the CD to the website. The foundation promotes projects that guarantee a long-term beneficial effect on people, nature and the environment. The focus of the private foundation's commitment is the well-being of children. It also supports projects in the fields of medicine, mountain aid, nature and fishing. The Foundation for Health is based in Basel. It was established in 2013 and is governed by Swiss law.

BSSM has developed various B2B measures for Qontis, the first independent personal finance manager (PFM) in Switzerland. The web-based financial management system from Qontis provides customers with a detailed overview of their income and expenditure in a matter of seconds. Thanks to the simple and intuitive handling of the PFM, several accounts can be linked with just a few clicks. Qontis was founded by the media company NZZ, the technology supplier Crealogix and an experienced management team consisting of Christian Bieri (CEO), Nils Reimelt (CMO) and Walter Meister (VR).

 

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Startbahnwest and Quade & Zurfluh win mandate from the SFOE

 
In March 2014, the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) launched a nationwide tender entitled "Marketing concept and implementation for the promotion of energy-efficient vehicles". The bidding consortium Startbahnwest and Quade & Zurfluh were able to secure the budget in a two-stage process, which will extend over a period of three years. The first works can be seen in 2015.

 

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Eclat takes off with Zurich Airport

Switzerland's most important transportation and meeting hub - Zurich Airport - put its 2014 annual report out to tender and chose Eclat following a pitch. The annual report has established itself as a valuable brand management tool. With a fresh design and new image concept, the corporate values of Flughafen Zürich AG are conveyed emotionally in print and online media.

 

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Trendcommerce receives major order for Cumulus mailing from Migros

Trendcommerce wins another major project and will process the bimonthly Cumulus mailing for Migros in future. Well-known customers such as Raiffeisen have already placed their trust in Trendcommerce to handle the printing and mailing of their customers' account statements, and now Migros is also relying on the St. Gallen-based SME. Every two months, Cumulus participants receive their current personal account statement by post. The mailing includes additional discount coupons that are specifically tailored to the customer's interests. In addition to the clear track record, the most important reasons for awarding the contract were security, efficiency and the wide range of customization options at the modern printing center in Gossau (SG).

 

Twice a year, the Media Research Group surveys the top 750 advertisers about their communication plans for the coming twelve months. The data collected at the beginning of the year applies to the current year, while the data collected mid-year applies to the second half of the current year and the first half of the following year. In the first survey, 411 advertisers disclosed their communication plans, while 424 did so in the second survey, which has just been completed. In addition to the size of their available communication budgets, respondents were also asked how those budgets were allocated across the various media and communication channels.

The total communications budget for the period from July 2014 to June 2015 amounts to 5.75 billion francs. This is 145 million francs less than at the beginning of the year. When viewed at the level of individual clients, this decline is somewhat put into perspective. In the most recent survey, just under three in ten clients (28.6 percent) expressed the intention to increase their communications budget over the next twelve months. In January, only one in six (16.3 percent) said this. Conversely, only 15.4 percent intend to cut their budget. This is a clear indication that the decline in advertising spending is primarily attributable to advertisers with larger communication budgets.

For the period from July '14 to June '15, the top 750 advertisers forecast a decline in media volume of 110 million francs to 2.96 billion francs. The breakdown of this figure across the various media categories continues to be subject to fairly significant changes:

	2nd semester of 2014 through 1st semester of 2015	2014	Difference
Newspapers	18,7%	20,1%	-1,4
Magazines	16,1%	16,6%	-0,5
Television	29,0%	28,0%	+1,0
Radio	2,5%	2,4%	+0,1
Cinema	1,0%	0,9%	+0,1
Outdoor advertising	11,8%	11,8%	+/-0
Online Media	18,1%	17,7%	+0,4
Mobile Media	2.9%	2.5%	+0.4

The decline in advertising spending on print media shows no signs of stopping. Its share of the market shrinks by another two percent, with newspapers losing 1.4 percent and magazines 0.5 percent. Outdoor advertising has managed to maintain its share. All other sectors are growing, with television leading the way, increasing its share by a full one percent. Online and mobile media are also expanding their shares by 0.4 percent each.

The rest of the communications sector is losing just 35 million francs. It is also subject to fewer major changes:
 

	2nd semester of 2014 through 1st semester of 2015	2014	Difference
traditional media	51,7%	52,3%	-0,6
Direct mail	13,6%	12,9%	+0,7
Sponsoring	11,7%	11,7%	+/-0
Sales Promotion	13,2%	13,1%	+0,1
Trade fairs	4,7%	4,8%	-0,1
PR	5,1%	5,3%	-0,2

The decline in advertising spending on print media is responsible for the drop in traditional media’s share of total communications. At the beginning of the year, advertisers planned to invest 52.3 percent of their communications budget in traditional media. By mid-year, this share had fallen to 51.7 percent. Direct marketing stands to benefit most from this decline, increasing its share by 0.7 percent to 13.6 percent. All other communication channels remain unchanged (sponsorship) or show only minor changes.

 

David Nauer, 37, studied history, Russian literature and Russian linguistics at the University of Zurich and graduated in spring 2005. From 2003 to 2004, Nauer spent a year in St. Petersburg researching archives and completed an internship at a press agency. He also wrote his thesis there. David Nauer was then employed as an editor at the AP in Bern for two years before working as Moscow correspondent for the "Tages-Anzeiger" from 2006 to 2009. He has been reporting from Berlin for the same newspaper since 2009.

According to a press release, David Nauer will take up his new position as SRF radio correspondent in spring 2015, initially in Bern, where he will be introduced to the editorial processes of Radio SRF. In fall 2015, he will take over the position in Moscow from Peter Gysling, who will then retire. Martin Durrer, Head of Foreign Affairs CR Radio: "We are looking forward to a new colleague and a new voice in Moscow."

Escape the summer that is not - the new travel magazine Schweizer Illustrierte Travel (SI Travel) makes'it possible. On 92 pages, richly illustrated travel destinations are presented from luxurious to simple, from sporty to comfortable. Celebrities such as Sandra Studer reveal more about their vacation habits in the "Indiscreet Travel Interview," TV presenter Annina Frey offers a glimpse into her luggage in the "Suitcase Open!" column, and comedian and actor Beat Schlatter reports on vacation experiences of an unusual kind in the "Globetrotter" column.

Urs Heller, Managing Director of Magazines Switzerland and responsible for the concept at SI Travel, describes the look and feel of his latest creation as "lifestylish, elegant and sensual". A strong and competent partner for SI Travel has been found in Tui Suisse. The magazine is co-branded with TUI Suisse. Martin Wittwer, CEO TUI Suisse: "SI Travel is an ideal platform for TUI Suisse because the magazine wonderfully depicts what vacation experiences with Tui look like."

The editorial director of SI Travel is Nina Siegrist, Kathrin Hefel is responsible for the modern layout as art director, and the travel magazine is supported editorially by the editorial team of Schweizer Illustrierte. Ringier Publishing Media, headed by Thomas Passen, is responsible for the advertising section.

In 2010, Republica created the Alpine farmers' blog together with the SMP Alpgeschichten.ch. Every day, dairy farmers write about their life and work on the alp. The blog gives the Schweizer Alpkäse brand a face and brings visitors closer to the traditional Swiss alpine economy in a multifaceted and authentic way. Alpgeschichten.ch complements the other marketing measures of the Schweizer Alpkäse brand, such as tastings of alpine products at major retailers, with a wide range of content and creates awareness of the unique quality of alpine products.

In its fifth year of existence, Alpgeschichten.ch was relaunched for the 2014 Alpine season. Republica conceived and designed the responsive, easy-to-use website. The Bern-based agency also trained the bloggers of the nine alps on the easy-to-use system. The alpine dairymen and women can easily enter and publish their blog posts in the frontend on their mobile devices.

Responsible at SMP: Martin Rüegsegger and Claudia Ramseyer (Dachmarke Schweizer Alpkäse). Responsible at Republica: Chris Morgan (Creative Director), Simon Matz (Web Design), Janine Karbulka (Consulting, Project Management). Responsible at gridonic: Alexander Muischneek (Programming).