In January, a small group of advertising agencies pitched proposals to Telefonica on how they would market Movistar as the company’s single trademark in Latin America and Spain. The agencies convened ranged from Spanish shops (Shackleton and Mrs. Rushmore) and Spanish subsidiaries of international groups (DDB, Young & Rubicam and Publicis), to agencies without a presence in Spain (Crispin Porter and Wieden & Kennedy).
News got out last November (although the company made no official announcement), that beginning in 2010 Telefonica would be known by the brand name Movistar, while the Telefonica name will continue to be used in the company’s dealings with shareholders and employees, its foundation and in its corporate governance. From 2010 forward, all company services will carry the Movistar name: Movistar Fija (landline telephony services), Movistar Banda Ancha (internet connection and ADSL), Movistar Movil (mobile telephony services) and Movistar Television (pay TV services, currently known as Imagenio). There will be only a few exceptions to the new name rule, such as O2 in several European countries and Vivo in Brazil, since Telefónica’s operations there are associated with Portugal Telecom. Other names that will remain unchanged are those of Internet portal Terra and Atento customer service.
The new communication campaign will be launched between spring and autumn of this year, with the change beginning in Spain in May. As stated last November by Belen Amatriain, Telefonica Global Marketing Director, this will not be a big bang change but rather a gradual process which will address the needs of each country. The name change will require replacing everything from signage and billing forms to advertising and retail shop look. Changes will include a newly redesigned company logo, with softened lines for the green M in the Movistar name.
At the same time, Telefónica will create the position of a brand guardian, who will be responsible for monitoring that its trademark is used correctly. Six brand guardians will be assigned by geographic area in Brazil, Colombia, Argentina, Mexico, Spain and the United Kingdom.
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