In 2023, the UBI opened 38 new complaints procedures, seven more than in 2022, as it announced on Thursday. Twelve of these proceedings each concerned TV broadcasts and the online sector, the remaining radio broadcasts and several media. 31 proceedings were settled and violations of the law were established in three of them.

In the online area, it was about editorial matters or the handling of online comments - according to the Federal Supreme Court, the UBI is responsible for this. In two proceedings, the UBI upheld seven complaints from a user of SRF commentary columns. The non-publication of the comments violated the freedom of expression.

The formal hurdle for such comment complaints is very low because they are individual complaints that do not have to be signed by several people, according to the UBI's annual report. The majority of complaints have been approved so far. The number of cases received increased noticeably in 2023.

The subject of the new complaints were almost exclusively publications in SRG programs. In one case, a regional private radio station was affected. Most of the complaints concerned news and information broadcasts, including on the national elections in fall 2023 and on votes, for example on the Climate Protection Act.

However, domestic political topics such as organ donation and conflicts abroad as well as transport, climate, energy and health issues were also at the heart of the publications in question. The UBI's decisions can be appealed to the Federal Supreme Court. (SDA)

In operational terms, however, the MCH Group fared better again last year. The core business of exhibitions in particular posted higher sales. Sales in this business segment rose by just under 30 percent to CHF 185.8 million, as can be seen from the annual report published on Thursday.

By contrast, the group's second mainstay, the Experience Marketing Division, suffered a drop in sales (-10 percent). At CHF 393.7 million, the MCH Group's overall turnover remained practically at the previous year's level.

Provision due to parking lot

At EBITDA level, this resulted in a profit of CHF 12.3 million (previous year: CHF 14 million). However, the result was negatively impacted by a provision of CHF 4.2 million. This had to be formed for a tarred surface on a parking lot previously rented in Zurich.

Without this special effect, the MCH Group was more profitable. At CHF 16.5 million, the adjusted EBITDA rose by around 18 percent compared with 2022. However, even after deduction of the provision, the loss of CHF 9.8 million was higher than the deficit of CHF 9.3 million in 2022.

More hesitant outlook

The MCH Group remains optimistic for 2024 and expects further improvements. In addition, "everything possible will be done to reach the break-even point", as stated in the communiqué.

The management of the MCH Group has thus backtracked on earlier statements. Previously, it had definitely expected to be back in the black in 2024. The group has been making losses since 2017, as it had already been overrun by the transformation process in the exhibition business before the coronavirus pandemic. (SDA)

The TikTok agency Equipe has prevailed against numerous competitors in an extensive selection process and will be the new lead agency for Swiss TikTok for 2024 and 2025 as of March 2024.

"I am delighted that we have been able to win Equipe as the lead agency for such a strategically important social media channel for us. With Equipe, we have our finger on the pulse and can therefore optimally expand TikTok," says Stefan Vasic, Head of Marketing at Swiss.

As a member of the editorial team, 39-year-old Stephanie Hess will be responsible for the journalistic direction of Annabelle and shape its face, as detailed in a press release. She succeeds Paula Scheidt, who is the new head of the magazine of the NZZ on Sunday directs.

"I am delighted that we have been able to recruit Stephanie Hess to head up the reportage department. Stephanie Hess knows Annabelle She is a team player and a high-profile magazine journalist with an excellent feel for good stories. With her journalistic experience and her passion for reporting, she will perfectly complement the extended editorial team in strategic matters," says Annabelle-Editor-in-Chief Barbara Loop.

Stephanie Hess has been responsible for Annabelle first as a trainee, later as a reportage editor. She has been deputy head of the reportage department since 2020. Her journalistic interests include socio-political issues, gender equality topics and, in particular, stories and research relating to sustainability. She wrote the guidebook "Ökologisch - Fakten, Wissen, Tipps. Sustainable consumption in Switzerland", which was published in the Beobachter edition in 2020.

For Annabelle she regularly writes reports on environmental issues, most recently on how we will travel in the future. In the "Green question" section, she answers readers' questions about environmentally conscious living.

Stephanie Hess graduated in journalism and organizational communication from the Zurich University of Applied Sciences in 2012 and then worked as an editor at the New Zug Newspaper. As a freelance journalist, she also wrote for the Observer, Tages-Anzeiger and for the international news platform Swissinfo. Stephanie Hess lives in Zurich with her partner and two children.

Roman Emunds took over the role of Managing Director at Swisscontent at the beginning of February 2024. In his new role, he is responsible for the agency's operational business. He is also joining the strategic management consultancy Forward Advisors as a Senior Partner.

Before joining Swisscontent, Roman Emunds gained many years of experience as a member of the management and executive board in both agencies and companies. On the corporate side, he most recently worked as Head of Marketing Strategy & Research at UBS and as Director Market Strategy & Operations at Generali. On the agency side, he worked as Strategy Director for the Wirz Group and as COO at Geyst. In addition to his professional commitments, the business administration graduate is a member of ADC Switzerland.

With his appointment, the growing agency group - consisting of Swisscontent, Forward Advisors and Women in Business - continues to sharpen its profile.

With the Event trend study 2024 a comprehensive picture of the mood in the Swiss LiveCom industry was drawn up at the beginning of this year for the second time since 2022. Christian Künzli, President of the Swiss LiveCom Association, which took part in the study, emphasizes its importance: "On the one hand, studies like this clearly show how the industry is currently doing. On the other hand, we also find out whether our members are satisfied with our association's work and where we have room for improvement."

The Event Trend Study 2024 was commissioned by the Swiss LiveCom Association, the Swiss Association of the Technical Stage and Event Industry SVTB, the Swiss Association of Marquee Builders & Temporary Structures Tectum and VSSA, the Association of Swiss Stadium and Arena Operators. The members of the associations were surveyed in the period from mid-January to mid-February 2024. The response rate is sufficient to assume that the survey is representative.

Dynamic personnel development and international orientation

The landscape of the Swiss event and LiveCom industry has changed significantly in recent years. Despite global uncertainties, the workforce is growing. Almost half of the companies have recorded an increase in the number of employees. This development is particularly reflected in the ranks of Swiss LiveCom Association members, almost two-thirds of whom are planning further recruitment over the next two years.

At the same time, the internationalization of the Swiss event industry plays a central role. The members of the LiveCom industry association are particularly active in the international arena. Almost half of the orders are acquired and successfully implemented abroad. This development underlines the high quality and innovative strength of the Swiss event industry as well as its ability to compete globally and tap into international markets.

Another key aspect of the study is the increasing awareness and concrete commitment to sustainability in the event industry. Expo-Event members are playing a pioneering role here. They consistently focus on integrating sustainability aspects into their events and actively sensitize their customers to ecologically responsible event solutions. Furthermore, 38 % of the association members are planning certification based on the ISO 20121 Sustainability Management Systems standard.

Praise for the political work

Of the Swiss LiveCom Association members, 77% say that they value the work of the association. "Such confirmation of our work naturally makes us very happy," comments Christian Künzli. The association receives particularly high marks from its members for its political work and lobbying. Among other things, this is due to the association's active and early involvement in political events. This also includes the recently published consultation response to the partial revision of the Epidemics Act, which the Swiss LiveCom Association welcomes in principle. Nevertheless, there is still a need for additional action in terms of anchoring a legal obligation to provide financial support for businesses ordered to close by the authorities. "A basis is needed in the Epidemics Act to be able to compensate the affected companies for the loss of turnover in the event of prohibitions on economic activities due to epidemics. This must be clearly stated," says former President Christoph Kamber, who now works for the association as Delegate Political Affairs.

The campaign highlights the diversity of the degree programs and speaks directly to the target audience of the respective continuing education courses. Strong brand colors and large texts were used to attract attention.

The texts are aimed at two trigger points: Either they entice with the careers of internationally or nationally known personalities from the respective industries, such as Elon Musk and Nils Planzer. Or they skillfully use humorous puns that match the respective training courses. A total of eight study areas are advertised in these two ways.

With eye-catching texts such as "You want Elon's job? We can't give you Elon's job, but we can give you the booster for your career" for business informatics and "Be the machine among mechanical engineers." for mechanical engineering, are intended to appeal to potential students.

Each subject is intended to encourage people to find out more online about the further education courses on offer and to choose an individual career path. The OOH and DOOH advertising media are displayed in the schools' catchment areas.

Responsible at Ipso! Education: Sven Reichhold (Head of Marketing). Responsible at Jim & Jim: Robin Steiner (overall direction), Robin Steiner, Kelly Nicole (project management), Robin Steiner, Kelly Nicole, Angela Ehrsam, Joe Frei (idea and concept), Angela Ehrsam (art direction), Jim & Jim, Rod (text). Responsible at Attackera: Emilia Elmer, Kevin Köchli (Media).

Last year, Google blocked or removed more than 5.5 billion advertisements that violated the online company's guidelines or were intended to serve fraudulent purposes. This is according to a Google report on ad security. The blocked content included advertisements for dangerous products or sexual content, but also ads that were dubious or fraudulent, such as those promising miracle cures or quick riches.

Google manager Duncan Lennox, who is responsible for ad security at the search engine operator as Vice President, said: "Google's goal is to identify fraudulent ads and block accounts before they reach the Google platforms, or remove them as soon as they are discovered."

Most important trends in AI

The most important trend in 2023 was the impact of generative artificial intelligence, as seen in chatbots such as Google Gemini. This new technology has triggered relevant and significant changes in the digital advertising industry - from performance optimization to image processing. "But there is also no question that the introduction of readily available AI video tools has exacerbated the spread of fraudulent ads with so-called deepfakes," said Lennox.

Deepfakes are photos, videos or audio files that are deliberately altered with the help of artificial intelligence. You see or hear people doing or saying things that they have never actually done or said.

The Google manager emphasized that the AI also helps to identify fraudulent content and enforce Google's guidelines. AI is significantly involved in 90 percent of blocking decisions. If advertisers or publishers believe that the AI has made a mistake, Google teams will check this. In cases where errors are found, these findings are used to further improve the systems.

According to Lennox, Google not only removed 5.5 billion questionable or even fraudulent ads in 2023, but also blocked or removed 12.7 million advertiser accounts, which is almost double the number from the previous year. The company does not disclose the total number of ad placements per year on its own sites or via the Google advertising network. Industry experts estimate that Google's servers deliver an average of around 30 billion ads per day. (SDA/swi)

What began out of pure joy in photographing her city of Zurich has quickly developed into an information channel for the city on the Limmat. It was a "burst of courage" when Manuela Leonhard decided to give up her job as assistant to the mayor in 2023 and devote herself entirely to her favorite topics, says Manuela Leonhard. She brings her life experience to the stage as a keynote speaker. As a content creator and influencer, her favorite topics are Zurich as a city of culture and adventure and travel. "And it's always the people behind the scenes that interest me." Tens of thousands follow Manuela Leonhard on social media, 37,000 on Instagram alone and over 50,000 on LinkedIn. Now, as an ambassador for Excellence, she will "capture the beauty of Europe photographically on the river", Leonhard said in a statement.

Excellence CEO Stephan Frei became aware of Manuela Leonhard while listening to the radio: "I wanted to know who this likeable and eloquent voice belongs to. It turned out to be the assistant to the Mayor of Zurich. When she gave up her job at the city hall, I seized the opportunity - and was able to win her over as an ambassador for Excellence." She is a positive thinker who loves to travel, is a doer and enjoys life - a good match, according to Frei.

Leonhard's experiences are recorded in a column in the Excellence newsletter and on the travel blog. In May, for example, Manuela Leonhard accompanied the Danube voyage from Passau to Budapest on the Excellence Princess as an expert in social media, storytelling and cell phone photography.

Manuela Leonhard photographs and talks about cultural and culinary Zurich on Instagram. On her account @zurich_is_beautiful it puts the people of the city in the spotlight.

A new poster campaign from Interdiscount is causing misunderstanding due to a sexist slogan. The claim "We offer more service than your ex" is not well received by many. On LinkedIn, for example, Fabio Greiner, Security Awareness Specialist at Switch, speaks out and explains why the advertising is problematic.

The post receives a lot of approval. Within one day, over 430 people responded to Fabio Greiner's text and almost 100 comments were posted. Most of the commenters agree with Fabio Greiner. There are also a few comments in which users back Interdiscount and want to keep "LinkedIn woke free". Interdiscount's official account also responded to the post. In the reply, Interdiscount wrote that it did not want to offend anyone with this advertisement. Interdiscount apologized and stated that it would forward the post to the relevant department.

On request, Interdiscount media spokeswoman Salome Balmer writes that the entire advertising campaign with seven different subjects is intended to draw attention to Interdiscount's stores, service, advice and omnichannel approach. "In a highly competitive market with many changes, we are going on the offensive and drawing attention to ourselves," the media spokesperson continues. The headline "We offer more service than your ex" is intended to target competing companies that are closing sales outlets or withdrawing from the market. "We did not intend to discriminate against anyone with this statement and apologize. The subject will be removed everywhere." (Sara Meier/jor)

This article first appeared in Netzwoche.

YouMedia's claim "Media and you. You and media" summarizes the aim of the initiative. With various digital offerings, the Youth Media Week, which has been running for seven years YouNews and other new formats are designed to promote young people's media skills. Together with young people and aimed at young people. 

The choice of media has never been greater - and the question of its quality has never been more pressing. Orientation towards social media is intuitive, and a conscious approach is becoming increasingly demanding. Because young people are both the present and the future of society, YouMedia explicitly operates in their media world and at their eye level. Following the principle of peer to peer - in terms of topic, content and communication.

On social media, YouMedia is primarily focused on Tiktok and Instagram. The aim is to show in a playful, entertaining and authentic way how media consumption can be enriching and helpful. And how to deal with the downsides - fake news, AI, doom scrolling, controversial role models and illusory worlds. The service will be developed and established in cooperation with young hosts, tailored to their needs, their topics and their usage behavior. To this end, YouMedia is using a casting call to find young people who will help shape the service from the outset. 

In summer 2024, the youth media platform Youmedia.ch which provides information on further activities and offers. Media content produced by young people can also be accessed on the website. The platform, which also contains background information on the topic of media literacy in dossiers, is also aimed at interested school classes, teachers and parents. 

In addition, thehe Youth Media Week YouNews, in which young people visit editorial offices and research topics themselves, write articles or even present radio and TV programs, will have a new digital home on YouMedia from summer 2024. YouNews will remain an independent brand and will be expanded and upgraded as part of YouMedia. For example, YouNews reporters will be able to apply for the YouMedia Award in a separate category. 

With the YouMedia Award, a separate prize is also being planned. Media products and content from young people aged between 13 and 20 will be nominated in various categories and honored at an awards ceremony in Bern. Exciting, relevant and innovative content, particularly on social media, that manages to reach, inspire and inform a young audience is eligible for the award. 

The study by the Institute of Marketing Management at the ZHAW School of Management and Law examined the maturity level of companies' lead management. 385 companies from Switzerland and Germany were surveyed in the areas of lead research, lead generation, lead engagement, lead scoring and lead automation.

Use of AI and automation can be greatly expanded

The average Lead Automation Maturity Index (LAMI), i.e. the maturity level of automation in lead management, is just 36 points on a scale of 0 to 100 for the companies surveyed. Individual sectors such as technology providers and service providers are slightly higher. Only five percent are already very far along in the scaling phase with AI and have implemented AI-based tools widely in their business processes. Almost half of the companies surveyed (44%) are still in the learning phase, want to understand AI use cases in their business and are exploring initial use cases. A further 44 percent are carrying out smaller pilot projects for specific AI applications and are in the testing phase. Only seven percent do not believe in AI and categorically reject it.

AI use cases in lead management 

Automated personalization of emails is increasingly being generated with AI. The majority of respondents see the recognition of leads' willingness to buy through AI as a major advantage. Almost half consider it valuable to increase the deliverability of emails and social media engagement thanks to AI. The companies surveyed also consider it advantageous to dynamically adapt the content of their website based on user behaviour (43%) or even customize it (27%).

"In the survey, we found that 56% of companies are still scoring their leads manually. There is considerable potential here for increasing efficiency through automation and the use of AI," says Darius Zumstein from the Institute of Marketing Management at the ZHAW School of Management and Law, who is responsible for the study.

LinkedIn is the most important channel for contact data 

At 58%, LinkedIn is the most important source of contact data in lead research, followed by events and personal recommendations. "This underlines the importance of social networks and direct interactions in the B2B sector for data collection and sales," says Darius Zumstein. In lead engagement, 41% also prefer personal interaction with (potential) prospects. Despite advancing digitalization and the availability of AI-supported tools, personal interactions and networks continue to play a central role in lead management.

High potential for automation

Despite the importance of personal interactions, there is a clear need for further automation and increased efficiency in order to fully exploit the potential of modern technologies. The study authors emphasize the high, transformative potential of AI and automation for marketing strategies and customer communication. "Companies that use AI technologies can significantly increase efficiency in lead generation and qualification through more precise customer data analysis, improved predictions of customer behaviour and personalized marketing approaches," says Darius Zumstein. So far, limited resources and a lack of skills are the biggest obstacles to the introduction of AI in marketing for 72 percent of respondents.

At Marketing Automation & AI Report of the ZHAW The research partners Cotide (Marc Gasser and Virginie Cantin), Mayoris (Urs Thüring), Atedo (Daniel Kölle), Webalyse (Klaus Völk) and Advanis (Markus Vesely) took part in the project.