Brand Marketing Panasonic Hires UM for Aussie Media By Matt Eaton|March 11, 2010 Share By Matt Eaton|March 11, 2010 Share Panasonic Australia has handed its media account to Universal McCann after a final three-way pitch with Ikon and OMD to handle all aspects of its media business. Essence Media had handled. A key focus of the review was to clearly map the future for Panasonic in Australia as well as to evaluate the communications potential of all media to reach consumers effectively and accelerate the brand’s presence and appeal. “UM most clearly demonstrated the synergies that can be created in leveraging the Panasonic brand across a gamut of media channels,” Gemma Lemieux, director, market communications for Panasonic, said. “In particular, the agency’s understanding of how to command earned, paid and owned media to make Panasonic a more holistic brand, in a very crowded marketplace, was most impressive. This is a significant year for Panasonic where we are looking to build on the market success on sub-brands such as Lumix cameras, as well as introducing 3-D TV to Australian consumers for the first time. Henry Tajer, CEO of UM Australia and president of UM Asia Pacific, said the Panasonic win was a major development for the agency. “We have been building capabilities that not just match, but are ahead of today’s dynamic media communications environment,” Tajer said. “The shape and scope of the agency’s operations have changed dramatically over time so we can bring truly new and effective solutions to our clients. The work in Australia is worth an estimated $10-12 million in annual media spending. Marketing Magazine Asia Adweek Adweek