Blick published the full names and portrait pictures of the two suspects involved and asked "Did he defile her?". SVP cantonal councillor Markus Hürlimann also complained to the Press Council about this and other articles published in Blick. With its first article on the so-called Zug sex affair, the newspaper had violated the journalists' code in several respects, according to a statement published by the Press Council on Tuesday. Since Blick had obviously assumed that a sexual offense had possibly occurred, it had violated the protection of victims by identifying the alleged victim. With the subsequent discontinuation of the proceedings, it has been legally established that no sexual offense was committed. In the opinion of the Press Council, possible sexual contact clearly falls within the scope of protected privacy. As a rule, there is "no overriding public interest to the contrary", writes the Press Council.

Blick had argued that an intimate contact between the then co-president of the Alternative/The Greens and the then SVP cantonal president had a dimension that took the matter beyond the private sphere. However, the Press Council did not follow this argument. Blick had violated Spiess-Hegglin's private and intimate sphere. Even the fact that she later spoke out in public herself cannot be accepted as justification by the Press Council.

Hürlimann's appeal also upheld

The Press Council also partially upheld Markus Hürlimann's complaint against several Blick articles. It found that Blick had violated privacy and intimacy, published unverifiable rumors and had not heard the accused about the allegations. "What took place behind closed doors cannot be the subject of media reporting," writes the Press Council. On the other hand, Blick was allowed to report that Hürlimann was temporarily detained on suspicion of a sexual offense. According to the Press Council, this is undoubtedly of public interest. However, Hürlimann should have been heard about these serious allegations. The fact that he was detained overnight was no reason to dispense with this hearing. The publisher had taken note of the Press Council's statement, Ringier spokesperson Edi Estermann said on request. "The decision was discussed within the editorial team and the measures we derived from it were taken."

Affair legally concluded

The morning after the Landammann celebration in December 2014, Jolanda Spiess-Hegglin went to hospital with no memory of the previous evening and with abdominal pain, according to her own account. Her fellow cantonal councillor Markus Hürlimann was then suspected of having drugged her with knockout drops. Hürlimann had always denied this. Although there had been an approach, it had been consensual. The affair is legally closed. The proceedings against Hürlimann were discontinued last September. (SDA)

This is shown in the 2015 annual report of Ombudscom, which was published on Tuesday. In total, around 6450 people turned to the mediation service in 2015. This corresponds to around 537 customers per month. The number of actual conciliation proceedings increased significantly for the first time in five years. As in previous years, the main cause of complaint was the unwanted conclusion of contracts by telephone. They accounted for more than a quarter of all complaints. Ombudsman Oliver Sidler was quoted in the press release as saying that older people were often contacted by telephone by telecom providers with the intention of switching to a different contract. "In the complaints, they often expressed their disbelief at the providers' poaching practices." They were not comprehensively informed about a possible change of provider and the duration of the contract.

Treacherous value-added services

The second most frequent complaint was about billing. These included complaints about discounts included in the subscription that were not taken into account on the bill, complaints about the payment deadline, newly charged fees for the paper bill, and other ambiguities regarding the bill. Many complaints were also received about value-added services. The stricter regulations on price disclosure from July 1, 2015, and in particular the requirement that the purchase or activation of a subscription must be additionally confirmed, have not led to a drop in complaints, writes Ombudscom. The official telecommunications arbitration board provided for by the Telecommunications Act mediates in civil disputes between customers and telecommunications and value-added service providers on behalf of the Federal Office of Communications (OFCOM). (SDA)

It is intended to show how the historic GGK wants to move into the future, how it fulfills its mission in the canton of St. Gallen and how it promotes and cultivates volunteer work. A modern, warm visual world should carry the idea of the GGK in all products. The CI/CD developed by Freicom was also used in a new website which in its simple modernity can invite and pick up people across generations.

Together with the photographer Nico Schaerer Freicom has created a new visual world. The idea: the modern, individualized person in correspondence with the community. The visual language deliberately focuses on the individual in the public space, but at the same time takes care not to overemphasize their individuality by maintaining a certain distance.

Responsible at GGK St. Gallen: Hubertus Schmid (President GGK SG) Marco Dörig (Board GGK SG). Responsible at Freicom: Karin Fagetti (overall project responsibility), Patrizia Fani (creation and web design), Nina Boschetti (polygraphy). Photography: Nico Schaerer.

Other external members of the Advisory Board include former FDP parliamentary group leader Gabi Huber, Spiegel Online Editor-in-Chief Florian Harms, former Avenir Suisse CEO and NZZ editor Gerhard Schwarz, and Lucy Küng, Professor of Media Innovation. The Board of Directors is represented on the Advisory Board by Carolina Müller-Möhl and Christoph Schmid. The Journalistic Advisory Board advises the Chairman of the NZZ Board of Directors on issues of media change, digital transformation and the resulting demands on quality journalism. The committee does not have decision-making authority. This lies with the Board of Directors. (SDA)

As reported by the Sonntagszeitung, the case involves contractually guaranteed commissions and revenue shares. In addition, the plaintiffs accuse Salt of conduct in breach of contract, which resulted in the discontinuation of their agency activities. Adarna Switzerland is claiming 2.6 million Swiss francs, Mobilcom Switzerland even 8.5 million Swiss francs. Mobilcom was forced to lay off 42 employees and file for bankruptcy due to the failure to pay millions in commissions. Adarna also terminated 16 employees without notice.

In 2015, Salt terminated most of the sales partners who had previously worked for Orange for years. As the company confirmed to the Sonntagszeitung, it is now concentrating more on direct customer contact - but it rejects the accusation of breach of contract. The company has always adhered to the contract and the applicable agency law.

Adarna managing director René Matzigner accuses Salt of bleeding its long-time business partners dry by not carrying out any more transfers after the termination - even though work was still being done and new customers were being referred during the three-month notice period. In addition, Matzinger accuses Salt of speculating that a small company could not afford legal proceedings anyway and therefore demanded a high party compensation in case of a victory in court. However, this request was rejected by the Zurich Commercial Court. (hae)
 

In a series of articles penned by deputy editor-in-chief Philipp Gut, Weltwoche accused historians Sarasin and Goltermann of "relationship corruption": Professor Sarasin had not recused himself from Goltermann's appointment proceedings, even though the two had had a "romantic relationship" in the past.

An accusation that was and is vehemently denied by both defendants. Nevertheless, Gut has followed up in over a dozen texts since October 2014 and repeatedly emphasized that the story is true. He must now prove this in court. However, this could be difficult, as Gut is invoking the protection of sources. In his articles, he referred to anonymized interview transcripts from Sarasin's personal environment.

Sarasin and Goltermann are seeking satisfaction and damages, which according to the Sonntagszeitung are said to be in the low five-figure range. They are demanding that Weltwoche must never repeat the accusations again and must publish the verdict. The published articles must also be deleted from the archive.

According to the Sonntagszeitung, the two have intact chances of success. On the one hand, because Weltwoche wrote, among other things, that the "largely unknown outside social history circles" Goltermann only got her chair in Zurich "thanks to vitamin B in heavy doses". She was also described as the "body of the nation". This is "the best ammunition for any lawyer", writes the newspaper. On the other hand, because the researcher received medical treatment after the campaign against her and was eventually put on sick leave.

In the fall, Gut will have to answer to the public prosecutor's office again in the same case. The public prosecutor's office brought the charges after the two professors filed a criminal complaint. Gut is accused of multiple counts of defamation and multiple violations of the Federal Act against Unfair Competition. (hae)

More and more people in Switzerland are buying animals via online platforms. At the same time, cases of fraud and animal cruelty in connection with the Internet animal trade are increasing. To mark the launch of the new "Tatort Internet" campaign, Vier Pfoten asked the online platforms Tutti.ch, Anibis.ch and Preso.ch what their policy on animal ads is and what they are doing specifically to prevent abuse and crime. Conclusion: The leading Swiss classifieds platforms have recognized the problem and are trying to stem the tide of dubious offers on their sites with various measures.

"Vier Pfoten is in constructive talks with the large platforms Tutti.ch and Anibis.ch in order to establish safety measures that are as comprehensive as possible," says Lucia Oeschger, campaign manager of Vier Pfoten Schweiz. Measures should protect animals and consumers "We have drawn up a very concrete catalog of measures that we have presented to the platforms," says Oeschger. "From the responses, you can see how seriously the companies take both animal and consumer protection." The measures include close scrutiny of sellers, mandatory information on the animal itself such as information on health, exact age, etc., as well as a precise listing of all animals that are not allowed to be sold. The latter include primates, numerous wild animals, pregnant animals and animals that are too young. According to Vier Pfoten, the comparison of the platforms is intended to give consumers a certain orientation and awareness of which considerations are important in connection with animal welfare, but also with fraud prevention. "Unfortunately, we cannot prevent animals from being purchased online in Switzerland or elsewhere. But it is important to us that animals are not simply seen as goods, but as sentient beings. People need to know that there is an extreme amount of abuse going on here," says Oeschger.

Research in ten countries reveals many cases of fraud

For the international campaign "Tatort Internet", Vier Pfoten conducted research in ten countries. In Switzerland, too, buyers were repeatedly confronted with cases of fraud; often the newly acquired animal died after a few days or consumers suffered considerable financial damage due to veterinary costs as a result of such a purchase. "There are countless problems," Oeschger sums it up. "However, lack of advice, dubious sources and animal cruelty are the most serious."

Finally, Vier Pfoten would like to point out in a press release that animal shelters also often have their own websites where interested parties can search for animal companions. Countless animals are waiting there for loving owners. Four paws recommends generally to turn with the acquisition of an animal first to the overcrowded Swiss animal homes.

The paid offer called "Spiegel Plus" is to be gradually expanded and further developed, the publisher explained. In addition to the sale of individual articles, there are also plans to offer time passes as a kind of flat-rate model in future. According to the publisher, the paid articles with the red "Spiegel Plus" logo can be read immediately. Readers will only have to pay once they have collected a sum of five euros. Payment is processed via the micropayment provider LaterPay. With the payment model, the publisher wants to make Spiegel journalism "even more visible in the digital world and at the same time create new revenue opportunities" for the online business, explained Managing Director Thomas Haas. Many other German news portals already offer paid content. (SDA)

APG|SGA is stepping up its activities in mobile media, user activation, and data collection. Back in 2014, the out-of-home advertising company launched the "Double Impact" product, which enables the combination of billboards and mobile devices by means of advertising banners. Only recently, APG|SGA successfully implemented the pilot project "Guess why beacons" with the loyalty app Poinz and Swisscom (Werbewoche.ch reported). According to the company, it is convinced that mobile Internet use in the context of analog and, above all, digital outdoor advertising will result in new interactive forms of advertising and open up innovative and data-supported targeting options - especially in the direction of programmatic planning.

"The location and relevance of the advertising content played out are becoming increasingly important. We see unique opportunities in linking our advertising media with mobile devices," says Markus Ehrle, CEO APG|SGA.

Raphael Bratschi knows the outdoor advertising business. From 2008 to 2010, he already worked for APG|SGA as a key account consultant. After that, he was active in various companies for the digital advertising market. Since fall 2014, he worked for Adwebster as Sales Director & Business Development and was responsible for the areas of marketing and consulting. Raphael Bratschi will take up his position at APG|SGA on September 1, 2016 and will report directly to Beat Holenstein, Head of the Partner & Product Management division.

"With her lifestyle, Morena is a perfect fit for the Planet 105 concept," 105 owner Roger Schawinski said in a statement. The 19-year-old Frehner earned her spurs in the insurance industry. With the expansion of the sales team, Planet 105 wants to address changing customer needs even more intensively and break new ground in radio marketing with customized concepts. The advertising customer is to become an even stronger part of Planet 105 thanks to comprehensive consulting and teamwork. "This process needs space and resources. With Morena Frehner as an additional customer consultant, this vision will become reality," says Sales Manager Kaczynski.
 

The Weko Secretariat had communicated this view to the Federal Office of Communications (Bakom), as Söhner-Bührer stated on Monday in response to an inquiry. She thus confirmed a report in the NZZ am Sonntag. «It was a review request, not a criticism,» she emphasized. The intention was not to interfere with SRG’s programming. However, in the Competition Commission’s view, the report relies too heavily on the status quo. From a competition perspective, public service broadcasting is only necessary where the market fails, Söhner said. In her view, it would also be conceivable to temporarily restrict SRG’s services. «Then such questions could be evaluated.»

The media union Schweizer Syndikat Medienschaffender (SSM) called it a «scandal» on Monday. It argued that, with its demands, the Competition Commission (Weko) is uncritically aligning itself with those circles that seek to weaken the SRG for both political and market-based reasons. Furthermore, the Weko has approved all previous mergers in the private media sector. It therefore seems strange «when the Weko begins to interfere in media policy,» criticized the union, which, according to its own figures, represents over 3,000 SRG employees.

However, the Weko does not plan to take any further steps. Söhner-Bührer clarified that the Weko had merely submitted comments on the public service report as part of an interagency consultation. The Federal Council had published the long-awaited report in mid-June. In it, the Federal Council proposes that SRG continue to offer comprehensive public service broadcasting. However, the Federal Council expects adjustments to the programming, which should be more clearly distinguished from commercial content than before. News and information should take on an even more central role. (SDA)