COI Communications expected to launch £41m press buying review ‘within weeks’

COI Communications is to kick-start its £41m press buying review within the next three weeks. The incumbent on the business is MediaCom.

COI Communications is to kick-start its &£41m press buying review within the next three weeks. The incumbent on the business is MediaCom.

Official notice of the press buying review is expected to be posted on the Official Journal of the European Communities in the next fortnight, sparking a battle among a host of agencies.

The press buying review will be swiftly followed by a media strategy review.

Meanwhile, a decision on the &£20m radio buying contract is expected to be announced in the next few weeks. The shortlist for the brief includes Carat, MindShare, Starcom, Zenith Optimedia and incumbent OMD.

Earlier this year, COI awarded its &£70m television buying contract to Carat after a tense two-month review (MW April 14). Carat handles planning and buying for the Department for Transport.

Carat won a hard-fought pitch against Starcom MediaVest, which had held the account for 13 years, MediaCom and Zenith Optimedia.

Separately, the COI has shortlisted five pairs of agencies to pitch for the Treasury’s &£4m stakeholder pensions campaign.

They are Delaney Lund Knox Warren and Starcom Group, M&C Saatchi and Naked, Mother and PHD,