Martin Radelfinger is the new president of the IAB Switzerland Association. (Photo: Goldbach)

Roger Baur and David Burst were able to report on an eventful year 2019, which again resulted in a profit. This is mainly based on income from the Academy. In 2019, ten diploma courses and three customized in-house training courses were held. Various IAB events such as the Digital Experience Conference DEX, the second Content Marketing Day, and the second Programmatic Day in Lausanne were also a success.

Expansion of the Board of Management

Roger Baur has made himself available for a seat on the IAB Board following his resignation as Managing Director. He was elected without a dissenting vote and will take over the Education portfolio in the future. David Burst has decided to step down as President and to focus on his activities in the IAB Board (Communication and Events) in the future.

Martin Radelfinger becomes new president 

Martin Radelfinger of Goldbach Group was elected as Burst's successor and is also a new member of the board of the IAB Switzerland Association. The Chairman of the Board of Directors of Dreifive was already jointly responsible for the founding of the European umbrella association, IAB Europe, in 1998. His extensive network in the Swiss and international digital advertising market is second to none.

"When we brought the IAB from New York via London to Europe in 1997, I had no idea what an important role this association would play in the development of digital advertising in Europe, and in Switzerland in particular," the newly minted president is quoted as saying. "To now be nominated for this function by my long-time professional colleagues is a great honor."

As a result, the IAB Switzerland Board will comprise seven members as of the 2019 General Meeting.

Changes in the Advisory Board 

Due to the close cooperation with the Swiss Advertising Association SWA, the agency association Leading Swiss Agencies and the interest group electronic media IGEM, their managing directors Roland Ehrler (SWA), Catherine Purgly (LSA) as well as Siri Fischer (IGEM) will take a seat on the Advisory Board of IAB Switzerland in the future. They will thus have an advisory function. The Advisory Board will thus consist of 14 members in the future.

New branch manager 

There are also changes in the IAB Switzerland office. Urs Flückiger from Mediamint has already taken over the management of the office in April in addition to his seat on the board and is thus responsible for the day-to-day business.

Targets for the 2020 financial year 

A core objective for the current financial year is the establishment of the transparency initiative, which the IAB Switzerland is driving forward together with the SWA and the LSA. In addition, the focus is on the topic of data protection. Here, the IAB is working closely with its European partners. Finally, the topic of "Standards in the Swiss digital advertising market" is being driven forward. This includes quality certificates for agencies active in the field of digital marketing. One certificate each for SEO and SEA are among the first to be offered in the Swiss market in Q2 2020. The topic of 3rd party cookies will also occupy the IAB in the current year.

At the Academy, the program, which consists of the diploma courses at the basic and advanced levels, as well as various specialized courses, will temporarily continue online.

The magazine's advertising revenues have "more than halved" in the last six years, the Ringier Axel Springer Group wrote in a statement on Tuesday evening. The Corona crisis has further aggravated the economic situation.

L'illustré was able to increase its readership in 2019 and continues to be appreciated by the public, it adds. However, the title must be placed on a new foundation for the future.

For the dismissed employees, flanking measures will be applied that go beyond the legal requirements, according to the statement. The editorial team will consist of 23 people in the future. Freelancers from French-speaking Switzerland are also to be included.

The magazine celebrates its 100th anniversary next year. (SDA)

After the research phase was completed, strong value propositions were defined together with the client, concise key visuals were created, and the Website optimized on the basis of the findings. Potentially interested parties are now to be made aware of the offer by means of programmatic advertisements.

In order to be able to process the data obtained in a meaningful and profitable way, various customer journeys were developed and implemented using marketing automation software. In this way, AgentSelly should be able to optimally support each prospective customer on his or her journey to selling an apartment or house and offer each prospective customer the information that suits him or her best.

The new platform accompanies exhibitors from the initial registration, through stand registration including booking of additional services, insurances, advertising materials as well as guest cards, to the post-processing of the trade fair appearance. The central element is a user-friendly task overview that guides the user through the booking process and ensures navigation to existing systems and back again. All systems involved are accessible via single sign-on. The newly designed page frame is intended to ensure a consistent and continuous user experience across all systems.

Integrated marketing functions and an external marketing automation solution allow Bernexpo's trade fair teams to communicate efficiently with their customers and market their products and services in a targeted manner.

Nexum supported Bernexpo Groupe throughout the entire project cycle and was responsible for the UX concept (prototyping and user testing), the screen design and the technical implementation. The solution was realized as a modern frontend application with the MEVN stack (Mongo-DB, Express, Vus.js, Node.js).

The Web presencethe gateway to the Feldschlösschen brand, was completely redesigned and further developed. With almost the same content, the look & feel was significantly modernized and also brought up to date in terms of technology.

Thanks to a clever layout and a consistent teaser concept, it now takes no more than three navigation points to make the rich assortment, the rooted heritage, and the brand idea "Feldschlösschen connects" accessible and tangible on the website. Thanks to a completely modular system, all elements can be placed anywhere on any page using drag & drop.

New CMS deployed

For the implementation, the Zurich agency used the new CMS Umbraco Heartcore, which was not yet available at the time of the pitch last fall. This makes Nueva one of the first agencies to pull up Umbraco on a full Jamstack architecture around Nuxt and Vue.js.

Measures to increase the UX

To further enhance the user experience on the website, the agency implemented measures such as the smooth animation of the selectable containers on the product details page, the filter according to bitterness, alcohol content and color on the product overview, as well as the "paternoster" as an alternative overview of the individual beers, which moves up and down "on scroll" like the lift system that gives it its name.

All API: The Promo Engine

Three years ago, Nueva's sister agency Cab Web Services already built a solution for promotions based on TYPO3 to manage the many on-pack promo codes for various contests and their prize distribution for Feldschlösschen. To pursue the headless approach holistically, Nueva designed an API that Cab implemented as an update to the promo engine. It also solved the transfer to the existing customer database and the connection to the newsletter provider.

The complete frontend can thus remain independent and display prices from the promo engine, send millions of codes to the engine and deliver content from Umbraco at the same time. In addition, this extension allows the promo engine to be used within mobile apps and the like.

Specifically, Sunrise and Salt are establishing the new joint venture "Swiss Open Fiber" to lay 1.5 million new fiber-optic lines to households (FTTH) over the next five to seven years. This would connect over 70 percent of the population to the ultra-fast data highways. That would be about twice as many as today, Salt and Sunrise announced on Tuesday.

A total of 3 billion Swiss francs is to be invested in the expansion. "This is an ambitious program," said Marc Furrer, chairman of the new company's board of directors. He added that the market for high-speed Internet was receiving a new boost after having stalled in recent years. Consumers are to benefit from a revival of the telecommunications market with favorable prices.

Furrer is a prominent figure: as president of the Federal Communications Commission Comcom, he prevented a proliferation of fiber-optic construction a good decade ago by committing the industry to uniform standards for development, such as the fiber-optic socket in homes with four connections.

Furrer said, "I believe in the success of the fiber rollout, which we started ten years ago with a lot of heart and soul." Now, he said, we have to move forward. "It is a personal concern of mine to now achieve the goal we set back then." That's why he took over as chairman of the board of the new joint venture, he said. "This is a real stimulus program for the Swiss economy by building powerful communications infrastructures."

Fiber optic construction in the agglos

Since the inner cities are already largely connected to the fast data lines, the focus is on the agglomerations, said Salt CEO Pascal Grieder. "In rural areas, it will very likely be difficult to get off the ground economically." That's where the new mobile technology 5G is likely to lead the way, he said.

It is still too early to say where concrete construction will take place, Grieder said. He said talks are already underway with various parties. "We expect to start construction as early as the fourth quarter," said Sunrise CEO André Krause.

The new joint venture Swiss Open Fiber wants to cooperate with the local electricity companies in the construction of the optical fibers, Furrer said on the sidelines of the conference in an interview with the AWP news agency. It would be quicker to get fiber to homes if the empty conduits of the EWs could be used, he said. "We certainly don't want to tear up roads." Construction will be outsourced to general contractors, he said.

Also open for Swisscom

Initially, Sunrise and Salt will use the new fiber optic lines. But Sunrise CEO Krause said that other telecom providers are also invited to bring their services to customers on this infrastructure. An open platform is offered, he said.

This means that the new fiber-optic network is also accessible to Swisscom, said Salt CEO Pascal Grieder: "We are open to all network and retail partners. It's not about creating a new monopoly."

Swisscom said it was open to talks. "As in the past, we are examining possibilities for cooperation," said Swisscom spokesman Sepp Huber.

Grieder also appealed to communities and EWs that were toying with the idea of building fiber to come forward, saying, "We're here and we want to build fast."

Bringing a financial investor on board

Sunrise and Salt do not want to handle the billion-euro expansion alone. They will bring a financial investor on board, who should ultimately own about half of the joint venture, said Krause. This is possible because there are many infrastructure investors on the capital market who are willing to support such projects.

Sunrise and Salt are thus benefiting from the low interest rates on the capital market. In view of these low interest rates, investors are desperately looking for yield-generating investments.

No new wedding plans

However, the fiber cooperation is not a new start for a marriage of Salt and Sunrise. "A merger of Sunrise and Salt is not on the agenda," said Sunrise CEO André Krause.

A merger of the two Swisscom competitors was prohibited by the Federal Competition Commission Weko ten years ago. There will also be no merger of the mobile networks, said Krause. This is because both Sunrise and Salt have already sold their cell phone antenna masts to the Spanish company Cellnex.

"We are cooperating here on fiber optics because it makes sense for both companies to be involved, even as independent companies," Krause said. The economic advantages are evident.

It is a piquant fact that Marc Furrer, as Comcom President, had always been a strong advocate of merging the mobile networks of Sunrise and Salt. Now this same Furrer is president of the new joint fiber-optic company. (SDA)

After an extensive analysis phase with internal and external stakeholders, Wilco's brand positioning was revised, the vision and mission formulated, and the five brand values defined. The claim "Being sure" is intended to get to the heart of the brand and position the company as a solution provider that focuses on people and their safety.

Flexible design system

For the new brand identity, an intensive creative process resulted in a flexible design system that can be applied to all touch points and provides a consistent brand experience.

The logo with the self-confident lettering and the new figurative mark is intended to unite the two extremes of the brand: technology, innovation and process reliability with passion, responsibility and enthusiasm. The imagery relies on a high-contrast, bright color scheme with warm accents. The strong brand colors are intended to give the brand a self-confident and modern appearance and, in combination with the secondary design elements, bring a dynamic consistency to the appearance that is always new.

Website as a dynamic information hub

This dynamic is also carried by the new online presence, both visually and in terms of content. With large-scale images, a playful approach to the new brand colors, and micro-animated brand elements, the website is designed to provide an optimal introduction to the new Wilco brand world.

Customer-specific applications, the expertise they contain, and new technologies form the content basis of the site and can be accessed directly via the navigation. Structured knowledge and in-depth information as well as cross-links pave the way to the individual solution. Key features can be discovered interactively and targeted recommendations encourage users to read deeper into the subject matter. The information hub is thus designed to enable customers to experience applications as a specific solution for a wide range of technologies, products and services.

From the business card to the 100-square-meter trade fair stand

The new image and initial measures have been on display since the beginning of the year. For the introduction, a brand film was realized, which enthused the employees for the first time at the internal launch event. In addition to the comprehensive website, the entire business equipment as well as office templates, qualification documentation and building signage were newly realized. In addition, the new appearance can also be experienced on social media, in advertisements and at trade fairs.

The cantonal council rejected a motion by Rahel Estermann (Greens) on Monday. Estermann wanted to oblige the cantonal government to draw up a model for the promotion of online media. She justified her request by arguing that the media were under economic pressure and that quality was suffering as a result.

Digital channel important for young audiences

The Green parliamentary group only received support from the SP. Its speaker Simone Brunner (SP) said that the digital channel was important for reaching a young audience. She called for reporting in Lucerne to be broadened again and for more analytical and well-founded reporting.

No cantonal solution

The conservative parliamentary groups rejected the motion. Their spokespersons explained that the media were in crisis. However, it would be wrong to create a cantonal solution. Daniel Keller (SVP) also expressed concerns that the independence of the press could be jeopardized by one-sided cantonal media funding.

The conservative parliamentary groups thus supported the position of the cantonal government. Economic Director Fabian Peter said that the federal government was in the lead. A bill would soon be submitted to parliament. Peter referred to the decision taken by the responsible Council of States committee on Monday to advocate greater support for newspapers, radio and TV stations and news agencies. (SDA)

The tourism sector in Ticino is preparing to welcome guests again. Since May 4, 2020, hotels are once again allowed to accommodate tourists. The majority of Ticino's accommodations will consequently open their doors in the course of the month. On May 11, the starting signal was given to restaurants, bars, museums and retail. A further step is to follow on June 8, when it is expected that all other tourist service providers will also be allowed to resume operations. This clear roadmap will enable Ticino Turismo to start courting guests again. A multi-stage campaign is being launched and is aimed primarily at tourists north of the Alps.

"See you soon - Ticino is looking forward to seeing you".

After Ticino had to ask its guests with a heavy heart to stay at home at Easter, the moment has now come to actively court them again. "After the crisis, we are now entering the recovery phase with the opening of hotels and restaurants," explains Angelo Trotta, director of Ticino Turismo. "The last few weeks have shown us all how important tourists are for the canton of Ticino. They will therefore be more than welcome."

This part of the campaign is heralded by the slogan "See you soon - Ticino is looking forward to seeing you".

"We want our Swiss guests to know that tourism in Ticino is coming back to life," explains Manuela Nicoletti, marketing director of Ticino Turismo. "The solidarity from the rest of Switzerland for Ticino has been great. Many have contacted us via social media in recent weeks and expressed how much they missed visiting Italian Switzerland at Easter. A key part of this phase of our campaign will therefore be close contact with guests via social media, featuring Ticino fans' favorite places."

With the relaxation phase come the first steps towards normality and vacations in one's own country will be possible for Swiss people. In order to generate bookings for the summer and autumn season, Ticino Turismo has therefore joined forces with its distribution partner Swiss Travel Center Special offers where guests benefit from a 20 percent discount on the daily rate of selected Ticino hotels until Oct. 31, 2020. Included are hotels of all categories.

Relaunch of Ticino Tourism with the message "Exoticism is so close".

The complete relaunch of Ticino Tourism is currently scheduled for June, so that Ticino Turismo will then move into the next phase of the cross-media marketing campaign. When the other tourist service providers are expected to be able to reopen on June 8, 2020, the motto will be "Welcome back - Bentornato". Under the motto "Exoticism is so close", the various exotic, Mediterranean landscape aspects of Italian-speaking Switzerland will then be showcased. In addition, guests will continuously receive specific tips for summer vacations in Ticino. These include places of strength in nature to regain energy after the crisis, ideas for hiking and biking excursions or activities on the water. In addition, hygiene will play a greater role for vacation guests than before, which is why this factor, which is actually taken for granted in Swiss hotels and restaurants, will be addressed more strongly in Ticino Turismo's communication in the future. The aim is to highlight the fact that safe travel is guaranteed in Ticino.

Hope for German guests in summer

The possible opening of the borders with Germany, France and Austria from June 15, 2020 was held out, so that foreign tourists could also spend their summer vacations in Switzerland. "Even though the largest share of guests in Ticino traditionally comes from Switzerland, we usually have many visitors from southern Germany, especially in August and September," explains director Angelo Trotta. "With the opening of the border before the summer holiday season, Italian-speaking Switzerland could thus also be an attractive alternative for Germans to the usual beach vacations on the Mediterranean."

"Vivi il tuo Ticino" - Holidays for Ticino residents in their home canton

In addition to the campaign to attract guests from outside the canton, the Ticino government, together with Ticino Turismo and the Cantonal Bank, launched the "Vivi il tuo Ticino" project last week. The aim is to boost the local tourism economy and encourage the local population to rediscover their canton. To this end, all residents of Ticino will receive vouchers offering a 20 percent discount on hotel stays in the southernmost canton and restaurant vouchers worth 25 Swiss francs that can be redeemed at local restaurants. The promotion is valid from June 22 to September 30, 2020.

The collaboration between Fortis and MetaDesign has resulted in a brand that clearly acknowledges its independence. A brand that confidently uses its powerful design to emphasize the robust characteristics of its watches. Timepieces that can take on anything in everyday life and, like a good tool, can withstand any strain. That don't have to or want to please everyone. And which are loved by their wearers in return.

Jupp Philipp, who took over Fortis in 2018, is consciously relying on the strength of his brand to shape its future independently. As part of the new positioning, MetaDesign sharpened the logo, typography, visual language, brand language and all other fundamentals of brand communication. And thus prepared a stage with rough edges for timepieces that precisely perform what they were created for. Without ifs and buts. For a lifetime.

Jupp Philipp, owner of Fortis: "Our watches belong on the wrist, not in the safe. MetaDesign immediately understood this passion for the object and our desire for independence - and got to the heart of the matter in no uncertain terms."

"A good watch accompanies you through life. Just like a clear attitude. Fortis has both. Jupp Philipp and his team have the strong will to position Fortis independently. That deserves respect," says MetaDesign CEO Alexander Haldemann.

The Committee for Transport and Telecommunications of the Council of States (KVF) approved the bill by eleven votes to two, as reported by the parliamentary services on Monday. An intact media landscape is indispensable for Switzerland from a democratic and political point of view. In addition to an expansion of indirect press subsidies, the package of measures provides for support for online media and general measures in favor of electronic media. A majority of the committee considers the bill to be balanced. A minority requested that it be rejected.

Priority help for the little ones

In the detailed discussion, the committee made adjustments to the Federal Council's draft. It unanimously requested that the Council link delivery discounts to circulation. The higher the circulation of a newspaper or magazine, the lower the discounts should be. With this gradation, the Commission wants to provide greater support for the local and regional press.

When it comes to promoting online media, the Commission backs the Federal Council. Accordingly, only online media that also finance their offerings through services provided in return by their users should be supported. A motion calling for support to be extended to free offerings was rejected by nine votes to three. A minority is sticking to this motion.

Division of the template discussed

A division of the bill is also under discussion. According to one proposal, the expansion of indirect press funding and support for electronic and online media should be split into two drafts. The Council of States committee only narrowly voted against this by 7 votes to 6. The majority was of the opinion that print and online represent a single entity in today's media world and that their promotion should therefore be discussed together. A minority was in favor of a division in order to conclude the consultation on indirect press funding as quickly as possible.

The committee will continue to discuss the media package at the end of May. The bill will be discussed for the first time in the small chamber during the summer session.

New model

In addition to the SRG, which currently receives CHF 1.2 billion from the fee pot and will receive CHF 1.25 billion from 2021, CHF 111 million per year has so far gone to the private media: CHF 81 million to local radio and television stations and CHF 30 million to the postal delivery of regional and local press.

According to the Federal Council's draft, CHF 50 million instead of CHF 30 million will now be available for indirect press funding. Online media are to receive CHF 30 million per year. They have not been funded to date.

Media market in crisis

In the past, opinions have differed on the expansion of media funding. Various reforms failed to find a majority - whether in the government or in parliament. However, the pressure on the media is constantly increasing. Even before the coronavirus crisis, advertising revenues were falling rapidly. Since the turn of the millennium, the Swiss press has lost more than two thirds of its advertising revenue. The pandemic has exacerbated the existing problems. Publishers are therefore being forced to pass on more and more costs to subscribers and cut staff.

Emergency funding capable of winning a majority

The coming months will show whether the media package is capable of gaining a majority in parliament. What is clear is that Parliament has recognized the emergency situation. The National Council and Council of States voted in favor of bridging aid in the extraordinary session at the beginning of May. This includes temporary funds so that the Keystone-SDA news agency can provide its basic text service to Swiss media customers in German, French and Italian free of charge. It also includes free or discounted newspaper delivery and emergency aid of CHF 30 million for private radio and TV stations.

The measures are intended to bridge the gap until the regular media package comes into force. The administration is currently working on the corresponding emergency ordinance. (SDA)

Swiss people are ready for carefree days in the mountains: Two months after the "lockdown" to contain the Covid 19 pandemic, a gradual normalization of everyday life is drawing ever closer. Hotel and destination platforms are already recording increased hits and bookings for weekends and vacations in Davos Klosters.

About the website Davos.ch/dreamsunlimited respectively Klosters.ch/dreamsunlimited guests can specify vacation wishes for the summer of 2020 and define the date and a budget framework.

Continuation of the value-added strategy

"Dreams Unlimited" was conceived by the team at Destination Davos Klosters itself, as CEO Reto Branschi explains: "Dreams Unlimited is the continuation of the value-added strategy we have been pursuing for years: Instead of offering discounts, we simply want to offer our guests more for their money."

According to Branschi, the recipe has worked for years: "Neither after the financial crisis in 2008 nor after the exchange rate crisis in 2015 did Davos Klosters have to engage in discount battles. With Dreams Unlimited, we are now continuing this successful value-added strategy."

There is also a media strategy behind Dreams Unlimited, as Reto Branschi continues: "If we surprise our guests, they will also show it to their friends. Via social networks, we thus reach a huge audience and inspire them to stay in Davos Klosters."

The campaign launches the summer 2020 in Davos Klosters. The summer season starts on June 8, 2020 and lasts until October 25, 2020. The launch is accompanied by a comprehensive marketing and communication campaign. This will be supported by celebrities such as HCD coach Christian Wohlwend and multiple Olympic champion Dario Cologna.