Publicis Groupe’s first half organic growth was 5.4 percent, which chairman and CEO Maurice Levy characterizes as “very good,” though he acknowledges the company was adversely affected by the Healthcare sector.
Without healthcare, growth would have been 7.1 percent, he says (via MarketWatch).
Taking into account the impact of currency fluctuations and acquisitions, performance was basically flat compared to the first six months of the previous year; still, the company beat most analyst estimates.
“In a somewhat depressed world economy, and against a backdrop of financial unease, we have every reason to believe that we can better resist [a backslide] by virtue of our strong positions in high-growth markets and sectors,” Levy is quoted as saying in Adweek.
Digital businesses and emerging markets continue to drive growth.
Earlier this week, rival Omnicom posted a strong first half, with revenues up more than 11 percent.
In commemoration of the 45th anniversary of the March on Washington and the ‘I Have a Dream’ speech, Clear Channel has 38 local stations nationwide collaborating on a radiothon on Thursday, Aug. 28.
The radiothon, in conjunction with the Washington,…
The popular evangelical pastor Rick Warren - author of The Purpose-Driven Life - is said to be in talks with Reader’s Digest Association about a magazine, possibly called Purpose.
Of the magazine, editor Joe Treen, former editor at People and…
Google and Verizon Wireless are reportedly on the verge of a deal that will make Google the official search engine for all Verizon-powered cell phones.
The deal gives Google and its advertisers 68 million wireless customers who would see Google…
The broadcast nets will finish the summer up from last year in terms of ratings, with the Big Four up a total of 17 percent in total viewers, and up 10 percent in 18-49s, mostly thanks to NBC’s airing of…
The Onion has launched a local site that will provide event listings and restaurant information for Chicago - in essence, a competitor to CitySearch.
More cities will be unveiled in coming months, writes TechCrunch.
The site, Decider, is a “straight” site, without…
The paper catalog is still the largest revenue generator - nearly 50% of sales in both 2007 and 2008 - among all channels used by companies that sell goods to consumers and businesses from a remote location, though web sales…