It is believed TBWA will be the prime beneficiary of the review, while other agencies in the frame include M&C Saatchi, Leo Burnett, Ismail & Associates, Bloomingdale and incumbents Naga DDB and Spencer Azizul. In addition, an advertising agency headed by Prime Minister Ahmed Badawi's sister-in-law, Datuk Noni Said, has also entered the fray. Twenty-seven agencies initially presented credentials in October 2004 for the brief, which was previously split between Naga DDB and Spencer Azizul, along with a number of small local shops handling individual above- and below-the-line projects.
As Media went to press, Naga DDB had reportedly retained part of the international business along with new appointments for TBWA, M&C Saatchi and Burnett.
The exact division of the business, however, remains unclear. While early indications pointed to Naga retaining the lucrative China business, this is now subject to doubt.
Much of the domestic business, meanwhile, is tipped to be split between Spencer Azizul and Ismail & Associates.
At the pitch, agencies were asked to present a brief to roll out a 'Visit Malaysia' campaign set for 2005/2006. It is believed to have been precipitated by the appointment of Datuk Dr Leo Michael Toyad, who took over the tourism portfolio from Datuk Paduka Abdul Kadir bin Haji Sheikh Fadzir, now minister of information.
A source involved in the process said: "These are highly political accounts and there is always a lot of lobbying going on. The process has to be approved by a number of different Government departments like the ministry of finance and it can take time." Additional reporting by Amy White