TBWA Philippine affiliate beats 13 in congress race

<p>MANILA: TBWA Santiago Mangada Puno beat 13 rival agencies for the </p><p>biennial Philippine Advertising Congress account ahead of the year-end </p><p>event in Cebu. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>Multinational contenders included J. Walter Thompson, Leo Burnett, </p><p>D'Arcy Jimenez, Ace Saatchi & Saatchi, DDB, Lintas and AMA-Publicis. Six </p><p>local agencies also pitched for the business. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>TBWA's newest affiliate agency is looking to boost attendance targets - </p><p>from 1,800 delegates two years ago - to between 2,000 and 2,500 </p><p>participants at this year's gathering. Despite the weaknesses in the </p><p>domestic economy, organisers are confident of surpassing previous </p><p>attendance targets. </p><p><BR><BR> </p><p>DDB Philippines deputy executive creative director Roger Pei said this </p><p>year's AdCongress expects to tackle issues such as technology and its </p><p>use in developing creative advertising. Pei, who is also vice-president </p><p>for the Creative Guild of the Philippines, said the highlight of the </p><p>congress will be the awarding of the 'Ad of the Year" prize. There will </p><p>be awards in 30 other categories, including automotive, consumer </p><p>durables and corporate. </p><p><BR><BR> </p>