4 - Internationalist

R E T U R N T O R O B U S T A D M A R K E T
What shifts are you seeing that are
particular to the German market?
Michael Dunke, Universal McCann: In Germany
there are currently two major developments. The first is the
shift of ad investments from press (magazines,
newspapers) to digital media. Digital media means with
focus to online and increasingly to mobile. Today digital
media is no longer an exception, but a basis for nearly all
communications planning. The second is a big challenge
specific to Germany, and that is the fundamental change in
the TV offer systems caused by law. The German Anti-trust
Agency has defined the country’s TV market as duopolistic.
As a result, media practice has changed, and the current
situation is insecure for all market partners.
Bob Breen, GWP/Handelsblatt: Technical
developments are the main catalyst in German media —
whether it’s traditional TV or radio being upgraded from
analogue to digital or new mobile applications for the
market. The trend toward media convergence is
unmistakable. Some of the media communications
solutions in the new media and new facilities are still in
the test phase, especially with community advertising.
Micro-targeting and higher efficiency are the characteristics
of future “integrated/cross media campaigns.
Michael Monheim, Axel Springer: Although the
German consumer is not an early adapter, the shift towards
online is a pronounced trend in terms of media
consumption, advertising and integrated cross media
marketing. Print is still an important communication
channel, although it is losing shares in younger target
groups. Print publishers also increasingly try to shift their
competence from print to the web. Consumers take the
internet for granted in terms of media usage, especially
since flat rates for higher and faster internet connections
have made it accessible to everyday-life.”
How are media solutions different now?
Luc Samama, DAVINCI SELECTWORK: Integration is
developing and finally moving from a buzzword into
reality. And the growth of online is universal. But Germans
are still ‘Bean Counters.’ ROI and effectiveness/efficiency
measurement are becoming of paramount importance.
Elaborate analytical tools are being launched, and
McKinsey is selling more “MSE” (Marketing Spend
Effectiveness) analyses to big corporate clients than ever.
With media becoming more measurable and accountable
than other disciplines, media suppliers’ certainly have
much resting on their shoulders.
The agency markets seems to be getting a little shaken up,
as antitrust regulations now make rate calculation
advertiser-dependent, rather than buying networkdependent.
Plus, more clients are looking for better
integrated communications solutions, which allows for
many newer or smaller shops to take on larger roles.”
Andrea Holzschneider, SPIEGEL-Verlag: On
principle it can be found that media spending has
recovered again since the collapse in 2000/2001. By 2006,
figures had once again reached, and even surpassed, the
level of 2000. According to Nielsen Media Research, gross
spending for 2006 was distributed as follows: television:
45%, print: 42% (newspapers: 22%, magazines: 18%,
specialist journals: 2%), radio: 6%, online: 4% and outdoor
advertising: 3%. The Nielsen advertising statistics are the
most common source of data in Germany. However it
should be noted that they are based entirely on gross
scores, and that some online organizations, such as
Google, do not report their figures.”
“Germany feels good about itself. We are World Cup
Champions, Field Hockey World Champions, Ladies’ Soccer
World Champions, Handball World Champions, Export World
Champions, Nobel Prize Winners and Pope. That is all good
atmospheric stuff for consumer spending and ad spending.”
Bob Breen, International Business Director
GWP media-marketing GmbH/Division of Handelsblatt, Düsseldorf
r.breen@vhb.de
www.internationalistmagazine.com
27