2012/01/22
Santha has brought bad news for the Sapnish press. The announcement of the closure of the free newspaper ADN (DNA in English) on 22nd December. To this bitter carbon present it joined last 3rd January the filling for voluntary insolvency declaration by Mediapubli, the publisher of the daily Public, before court of Barcelona.

The insolvency procedure started by Mediapubli for Público (Public) adds to the one started by The subsidiary of Mediapubli, which edites the newspaper La Voz de Asturias (The Voice of Asturias). Those are only two examples of the difficult situation in the Spanish press sector, in special in the case of free newspapers.

The causes of this particular crisis have been already summarized by the Association of Spanish Newspaper Publishers (AEDE in Spanish): The general economic and advertising crisis, along with the fact that this kind of publications are living a transformation process- more clear, change of model from paper to digital – by the Internet revolution. I agree with this diagnostics as it explains the problem, at least partially.

2011/12/20
The recent announcement on the merger (better absortion) of La Sexta and Antena 3 has made the alarms jump at the Spanish Association of Advertisers (aea). The same had already happened ads were banned on TVE, or more recently when it was carried out the integration operation Tele5-Cuatro.

The controversy between the Association and TVE is not something new, there have been “sound battles” since the mythical times when there was just one TV channel (today it is called La1) in Spain, and with just three or four insertions everybody in the country knew about the latest launch.
The reason why aea and TV used to fight at that time was the price of the spots. Now the aea’s complaints are to do with other issues such as restrictions of the free competition in the television market or the menace of the “duopoly-sack man” at a national level. An important point for the advertisers that sell FMCG (fast moving consumer goods). And, of course, the advertisers feel concerned.

2011/12/04
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has finally come to a compromise with Facebook after several complaints from users, saying that this network did not respect their privacy, as their personal data were not protected.
The FTC is a United States Agency well known by its decisions in the fields of advertising and marketing. This Agency has concluded that Facebook has been deceiving its users and logically it is on course of stopping this social network’s missbehavior from now on.
We have told about the case on the eastwindblog recently (for more information click on the link included at the end of the present commentary).

On the image.- “Take this lollipop” Facebook app and video by Jason Zada. If interested in living the experience just visit http://www.takethislollipop.com

In this run towards being the most and the best, Facebook has not taken the time needed to consider that IT, like the atomic power, can benefit, and much, mankind, but also harm or even kill people.

2011/11/14
It seems incredible, as a crystal ball foretell, but it is nothing but expert’s forecast.
ZenithOptimedia, for example, points that in 2013 Internet is to overcome newspapers becoming the second in the world ranking by advertising investment received. The same will happen in Spain.
The 14.4% slice of the ad spend cake eaten by Internet in 2010, will turn into a 18.9% portion in just two years.
Those are not risky prognosis, given the growth rates, which on-line is experiencing in Spain and the chances in the field of interactivity and new communication forms it provides in comparison with other media.

31/10/2011
The launch of the Barbie Tokidoki last October in Santa Monica (United States) adds another “scandal” more to the rich personal life of this charismatic wrist, already over her 50′s. This limited edition pink haired, tattooed Barbie, who is owner of a spiked cactus doggy in green has charmed some and shocked some others. There have been much debate on it all these days. But the fact is that from a starting price set at $50 in the Barbie collectors store Barbie Tokidoki was sold for not less $490, once sold out at the manufacturer’s store.

Pure marketing!, some might say reprobative. Of course it is.
Mattel keeps on connecting with the children, but also with their parents all over the world for over half a century through Barbie. And good marketing is the secret of the long life of this magical doll as well as of the miracle business around her.

The american toy brand has become into an actual gold mine at a global scale for all kind of publics, selling a wide range of products from the doll itself to clothes, add-ons, cosmetics, automotive, mobile phones, and all these through the Internet, other retailers and the Barbie themed shops.
Barbie brand offers not only products but services, entertainment and a whole lifestyle, not only for kids, but for adults as well.
This is a pure winning marketing strategy!.

2011/10/17
Someone forecast some years ago, perhaps to impress the audience, that newspapers and tabloids were going to die soon. the speaker even dared to tell the date, if I remember it well, he said that we all would attend to the paper’s funeral by 2030. I can’t remember now who was the diviner, but surely he was a digital freak -there are people like this- who was not able to understand that there is plenty of life beyond Internet.
This guy had no ability to predict the future. He just barked, and very loud, up the wrong tree.
At least this is what shows the research titled “Press: digital versus paper”, which has been carried out by the AIMC among Spanish Internet users. We have already published a short excerpt on this study on the eastwindblog -Spanish edition-
Our digital prophet didn’t know anything of the AIMC’s report, or else he would have kept his mouth quite shut.

2011/10/03

First there came on 21st September that agreement adopted by te Board of RTVE (the State owned Spanish radio and television ) allowing the members of the Board the access to iNews, the digital edition system, while the journalists were still preparing the information to be broadcasted.
Just two days later the same Board revoked the agreement pushed by the protests of the journalists, their unions and some political parties, as this previous control reminded too much the once upon a time censorship established by the regime before our current Spanish democracy.

The “we’ve just changed our minds” the members of the Board sang on their revoke document has made everybody feel somewhat quiet again. But just for a while, because the agreement adopted has left some unconfidence behind.
The members of the Board assure that they didn’t want to use the censorship scissors on the contents and the freedom of speech of the journalists, but on the contrary they were just thinking of making the Board members more easy to carry out their functions, as they would have just entered into the iNews system to get informed about what they were working on the journalists.

2011/07/22

The first thing one thinks in view of the list of winners of the 58th International Festival of Creativity, held recently in Cannes (France), is that Asian countries are climbing up positions fast, also in the field of creativity, when it comes to communication. This fact is widely proven by the Lions won by agencies in the region in this Festival, which is the most international of all those who exist in the world by the number of participating countries, 90 coming from the five continents, the number of entries, 28.828, in the latest edition, and the breadth of the subjects dealt with both in the competition and the seminars held on it sidelines.

God those breeds, Campofrío manufactures it and McCann “cooks” them both together.
Leandro Raposo (Executive Creative Director of McCann Erickson) and his team give a detailed explanation on what toads and ham have to do through a fun fable, with batrachian included, their latest ad for Campofrío.
A toad has started committing suicide today, Thursday, 16th June, on the Spanish television searching for the reincarnation as a human being that enjoys the pleasures of life, among them, buying a mega dish full of boiled ham. Soon the batrachian will do it online and through social networks, supported by MRM Worldwide.
The campaign is composed by several (80″, 60″, 30-2 – and 10″) TV pieces to be aired in Spain. For Portugal, the tale is told through 60″, 30″ -2-, and 10″.
Zenith Media distributes the spots and the rest of inserts among the media.

“Toad Life” McCann Erickson for Campofrío (June 2011)

2011/06/16

2011/05/24
On Sunday 22nd May local and regional elections were held in Spain. By the way, the PSOE (socialist party -left winged-) was the looser and the PP (Poular Party -right winged-) was the winner. All of us had the chance to watch again , during the weeks leading up to the elections, how a bunch of candidates have been promising this and that, have been kissing children, shaking hands, giving speeches and taking care of people before the cameras. They did everything to get the precious vote of the average citizen.
The posters of the political parties have literally wrapped up outdoor ad spaces, even the walls of the buildings.
Politicians have had more insertions in TV than “The real thing”.
Wealthy parties have even broadcasted actual advertising videos, including a professional strategical planning behind.
I call them ads, because they are ads, although the political propaganda in Spain does not need to comply with the legal ban of deceiving advertising.
I can’t understand why. Does it deserve less respect a vote than an euro or a dollar?.
Might be, at least for the Spanish law. But this is a matter, which is perhaps somewhat different from the point I am commenting now.

The point is that in this downturn environment we are living today the agency CP Proximity Madrid (BBDO) decided to auction a political campaign within the reach of all budgets and suitable for any party just at the beginning of the career to the local and regional elections being held in May.