Media&Marketing/Emmet Oliver: Competition for major corporate PR accounts is set to intensify with a new company, Q4, entering the market from today.
Jackie Gallagher, a former adviser to Taoiseach Bertie Ahern and the former general secretary of Fianna Fáil, Mr Martin Mackin, are behind Q4.
Eircom's former director of corporate and financial communications, Mr Gerry O'Sullivan, joins them. The shareholding in the company is shared equally among the three and Eircom is already one of its clients, although the company is maintaining an internal press service.
The three have offices on St Stephen's Green and will specialise in corporate strategy, financial communications, investor relations, crisis management, media training and speech writing.
Mr Gallagher set up a PR agency before when he combined with another former journalist Mr Declan Kelly to establish Gallagher and Kelly. It was sold in 2001 to Cordiant Communications for € 9 million and became part of the worldwide PR firm Financial Dynamics.
Ironically, Cordiant is now in serious financial trouble and Financial Dynamics, its main PR arm, is set to be sold, most likely to a consortium which includes Mr Kelly, now based in New York.
The price paid by Cordiant to Gallagher & Kelly surprised some observers, but in PR the assets that matter are the people and the contacts and judged on those criteria, the new firm would seem to be a serious proposition.
A considerable number of former advisers to the Taoiseach/Tánaiste are now earning a living in PR. They include Mr Marty Whelan, a former adviser to the Taoiseach and Mr John Murray, a former deputy government press secretary.
RTÉ appointment
A Dubliner with experience of British and American media, Múirne Laffan, is to become executive director of RTÉ Publishing, The Irish Times understands.
The publishing division comprises the RTÉ Guide; Aertel Digital; RTÉ online and various businesses relating to SMS and mobiles generally.
The division employs more than 70 staff and has an annual turnover in excess of €15 million based on advertising, sponsorship and content sales.
Ms Laffan joined RTÉ in April 2001. She previously worked in a variety of media roles in the advertising industry in Britain and the US. Prior to joining RTÉ she was with Universal McCann in New York.
Sky's the limit
Sky's main channels in the Republic - Sky One and Sky News - will this month allow Irish companies to sponsor individual programmes.
The channels have been accepting Irish ads for some time, but the move into the sponsorship arena will put pressure on TV3 and RTÉ who already operate in this area. In the summer sponsorship will also be available on Sky Sports channels with the Ryder Cup and the Premiership in 2003 likely to prove attractive.
Among the programmes to be made available on Sky One will be Buffy, Stargate SG1, Scrubs, WWF and Daytime Strand.
The costs range from €50,000 to €250,000 for what amounts to 40 seconds of airtime per episode of the selected programme. The sponsorship comes via programme credits (before and after each episode) and during breaks.
Knockout deal
Following the link-up between Esat BT and Today FM's the Last Word, comes a sponsorship deal for NewsTalk's the Right Hook show, believed to be worth about € 100,000 for one year. Presented by George Hook the programme is locked in a major battle for listeners with the Last Word, presented by Matt Cooper.
In the summer JNLR figures will reveal which show has managed to establish the stronger presence in the notoriously competitive drive time market. RTÉ's Five-Seven Live is the other programme competing in this segment, although 2FM has recently moved Dave Fanning into a new earlier evening slot.
Own brand grows
With German retailers Aldi and Lidl sending shockwaves through the Irish retail sector with their huge range of own label brands, Irish owned retailers such as SuperValu are getting in on the act, albeit in a different price bracket.
The Musgraves-owned chain is investing € 1.5 million in the redevelopment of its own-brand range and the introduction of 70 new individual products.
Own-brand retail sales in SuperValu stores make up 10 per cent of the group's €1.6 billion annual turnover.
The new drive is designed to grow own-brand sales to about 20 per cent of turnover.
Not surprising, considering the expansion of Aldi and Lidl, value for money is usually the main trigger for consumers when buying own-brand products. However, SuperValu hopes its Irish ownership will also play a part.
Among the suppliers of SuperValu brands will be Kerry Foods, Green Isle, Avonmore, Boyne Valley, C&D Petfoods, Chivers, Dairygold, Dawn Farm and Fyffes.
SuperValu's own-brand category manager Ms Edel Frost said there was a growing acceptance of own-brands by consumers, and that any stigma of "yellow-pack" beginnings had faded.
Day and night ads
The outdoor media specialists, JC Decaux, is offering advertisers billboard ads which change between day and night time hours, for the first time.
Using a technology known as chameleon, the company offers a form of printing with two designs on one display - one image seen during the day and another image seen at night.
