The move comes as OMD wins buying and planning duties for PSA Peugeot Citroen’s US$50 million media business, previously handled by Optimedia.
In addition, OMD China deputy MD Winnie Lee has been promoted to head of OMD China. Last month, Mark Heap joined from MindShare to lead PHD in China.
According to Ip, the focus will be on turning PHD China into a viable operation. “All media agencies claim they do very good strategic planning, but at the end of the day, it’s all volume and media discounts that clients are exploiting,” said Ip.
“Clients want excellent planning ability, but they are not willing to pay higher fees. PHD can ride on the competitiveness of OMD buying, targeting the number two and three spenders in each category that need to outsmart, if not outspend.”
The PSA Citroen business moves following a review that included the incumbent, GroupM, and Carat.
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