Hakuhodo's I-Dac retains Telkomsel's digital contract

Indonesia's largest mobile telecom operator, Telkomsel, has reappointed Hakuhodo's I-Dac as its digital agency.

Campaign Asia-Pacific understands that the shop beat Dentsu-owned Isobar and local agency OIrange to the punch.  

Hakuhodo and I-Dac's association with Telkomsel stretches back over a decade. Hakuhodo earned split creative duties with Leo Burnett back in 2010, while local shop Narrada handled digital duties for much of the past decade.

Marketing consultancy R3 managed the review, which the client called in December. R3 declined to comment for this article.

This time around, the contract is for two years and is valued at $4 million. Telkomsel continued its deal with iDac primarily because it demonstrated superior technical know how and offered a compelling commercial proposition, according to Campaign's sources. 

I-Dac will be tasked with raising the bar for Telkomsel’s digital creative. Incidentally, the agency was part of a clutch of shops that worked on Telkomsel's rebranding exercise, announced in June this year. iDac worked with the VCCP network to implement creative campaigns in Telkomsel’s digital space.

UPDATE

I-Dac's parent Hakuhodo declined to comment on this deal, when reached, an Olrange spokesperson said the agency was a finalist, but offered no further details.Campaign hasn't heard back from Isobar or its parent Dentsu or Telkomsel yet.