Sony Ericsson appoints European marketing chief
Lennard Hoornik, chief European marketer at Sony’s mobile phone division, will take charge of marketing across Europe and the Middle East for the launch of electronics giant’s handset joint venture with Ericsson.
Hoornik will report to Mike van der Wallen, Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications’ (SEMC) sales and marketing chief for the region. Van der Wallen previously headed Sony’s European telecommunications business. Both he and Hoornik are based in Germany.
SEMC, which began operating on October 1, has a global marketing team headed by Philip van Houtte. But it is thought that decisions on how advertising budgets are spent will rest with the regions, with plans being implemented on a country by country basis. Former head of Sony Mobile’s UK business unit Peter Marsden will become SEMC’s UK marketing head (MW last week).
Prior to the establishment of SEMC, Sony managed its mobile phone business on a regional basis, while Ericsson had a global marketing team with national marketing units for consumer products.
SEMC has confirmed that Bartle Bogle Hegarty will handle its global creative account, but it is not clear what media buying arrangements SEMC plans to adopt in the long term. Until new products bearing the Sony Ericsson brand logo are launched next year, media planning and buying for Sony-branded products will be handled by OMD in the UK. Ericsson will use a combination of The Media Edge and Media Planning Group.
