After a long review Intel has dumped Universal McCann and Starcom in a global shakeup of their $300 million dollar advertising and marketing account. The move was expected. Omnicom Group's OMD has won media-planning and -buying duties on the global account with the new media agency expected to take over in Australia within the next few months.
Review started in December
According to Ad Age "Each of the finalists impressed us, but OMD gave us a stronger sense of possessing world-class media-industry leadership and state-of-the-art business intelligence and analytics," Nancy Bhagat, Intel's VP-Sales and Marketing Group and director-integrated marketing, said in a statement.
Intel started the review in December. Other early contenders for the business were WPP Group's Mediaedge:cia and Publicis' Zenith Optimedia. The review was handled by Ark Advisors in the USA.
Boost for network
Universal McCann won the Intel business in March 2005 in a holding-company consolidation. Sibling McCann Erickson still handles creative on the account and there are no plans to review that assignment, a spokesman for Intel said. The loss is a blow for Universal McCann, which has faced a new-business drought in recent months.
A spokeswoman for Universal McCann could not immediately be reached for comment.