Philips Electronics appoints Omnicom as global PR partner

Philips Electronics is adding more stir to the corporate communication industry announcing a new global partner for their public relations.

Philips has selected a newly-formed multiagency team from Omnicom Group called One Voice that will work exclusively on their account as its global agency.

The PR responsibility, that changes hands on July 1, was earlier handled globally by Publicis Groupe's MS&L Worldwide.

One Voice is an amalgamation of various units of Omnicom, including two of its largest PR agencies Fleishman-Hillard and Ketchum. Other companies that are under the One Voice umbrella are health-care specialists CPR Worldwide and the recently merged Kreab and Gavin Anderson to handle financial communications.

Concluding what may be the biggest PR pitch of the year at an estimated value of $10 million (Dh36.73m) to $20m range according to industry estimates, Philips conveyed the news in an official email saying: "After an extensive review, we have decided to partner with the Omnicom agency combination of Ketchum, Fleishman-Hillard, CPR Worldwide and Kreab and Gavin Anderson."

The email, that appeared in AdAge web portal elaborated on the decision said: "Together, they will serve the needs of Philips worldwide, commencing on July 1. We have made this decision based on their demonstrated ability to meet the challenges of Philips and its three business sectors."

Three of the main sectors that One Voice will be focusing on include healthcare, lighting and consumer lifestyle. In addition, Philips will also be emphasising on their corporate social responsibility, as their new route to reach out to their consumers, and as one Philips executive said the company has its sights set on becoming a leading example for corporate social responsibility.

"Philips' ambition is to be the leading health and well-being company in the world," a Philips Executive told Ad Age in a phone interview. "To accomplish that, we need strong media, stakeholder and government communications. Media is going to be an important part of it but not everything. In addition to speaking with consumers, the company is also focusing on business influencers and the people who make key healthcare decisions."

The Philips spokesperson said the decision in no way represented any displeasure with the work of MS&L Worldwide and its other former agency, Text 100. "We have worked with MS&L and Text 100 as our aligned PR agencies for over five years," he said. "And throughout this time we have made great strides and markedly changed as an organisation. We thank both organisations for their support. In the period from March until July 1 all activities will transfer from MS&L and Text 100 to the new One Voice team." (With inputs from agencies)

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