Four agencies line up for ITV 5m media buying as Motive bows out
Four media agencies are pitching for ITV’s 5m media buying business this week after the account was turned down by Motive last week.
M&C Saatchi, which won the creative business (MW last week), is in talks with incumbent MediaCom, CIA Medianetwork, The Network, and Optimedia, which handles M&C’s BA media account.
Motive, which pitched with parent Bartle Bogle Hegarty for the full-service business, turned down the media buying because M&C will have responsibility for media planning.
Motive managing director Mark Cranmer says: “While we were extremely flattered to be offered the media buying, we felt it was too high profile an account to handle without input on media planning.”
As well as press and poster campaigns, M&C is known to be planning the first agency-created programme promotions for ITV.
Programme promotions have in the past been put together by broadcasters. ITV now wants them to look more like ads. More advance planning will be given to getting the contribution of stars for on-screen promotions.
“We will be trying to bridge the divide between the quality of ITV programming and the public’s perception of it,” says Nick Hurrell, joint chief executive of M&C.
