JWT wins $6m rail deal after Burnett resigns account

HONG KONG: J. Walter Thompson has won the Kowloon-Canton Railway Corporation (KCRC) account, worth around HK$50 million (US$6.4 million) over two years. The Government-controlled corporation's business was formerly with Leo Burnett, which resigned the account. A formal pitch did not take place; instead several 4As agencies were asked to submit tenders to the KCRC. JWT was the agency for Hong Kong's other major rail service, the Mass Transit Railway (MTR), between 1985 and 1998. "We have some expertise in the transportation area," said Hong Kong chief executive William Lau. The advertising account just covers promotion of the company's routes to consumers in Hong Kong, although some of the routes promoted go into mainland China. JWT will initially promote specific routes, but Lau said it would be moving onto producing corporate branding work in the near future. "We're trying to humanise the railway a bit. Generally, with public transport, people just see it as hardware, and often they take it for granted. We'll be trying to introduce something more emotional." The KCRC is currently going through a period of massive expansion, developing its Light Rail service into West Rail, and linking it up with its other line, East Rail.

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