Portada asked Media, Marketing and Advertising Executives how the new regulations in Brazil and the restrictions by Televisa on the airing of cable networks in Mexico will affect the panregional advertising sector.
Several executives think the news will somewhat limit growth going forward.
According to Natalia Vasco (photo), Client Service Director Latin America, Havas Media “the panregional market will experience both growth and contractions at the same time, depending on what media we are looking at. The new laws regulating cable TV commercialization in countries like Mexico or Brazil will definitely impact the growth this media has experienced during the recent years. But at the same time, the penetration of this media is growing at important rates in the rest of the region.”
Helber Diaz, Director Miami & Magna LatAm of Mediabrands also said: “The growth scenarios are complex, keeping in mind the protectionist policy in Brazil and the current media value changes in Mexico.”
Other Challenges
Guido Conterno (photo), Executive Director of GDA notes that the challenge for panregional ad budgets “is the migration of budgets to the region, which is increasing due to tax reasons (value added taxes) as well as local budgeting vs. panregional budgeting among global brands.” Carolina Sintes, Marketing Manager for Latin America of Sony Pictures Television Ad Sales sees challenges in the local country laws and in the new regulations for the cable.
According to Roberto Ricossa, Marketing VP and Channel Director of Avaya the global economic environment is the main challenge to continue growing in any region. But Ricossa says that “Latin America is also a great opportunity for us and it is something that Latin American businesses are already leveraging.”
Like Roberto Ricossa, Beth Uyenco Shatto (photo), Global Research Director of Microsoft Advertising thinks the main challenge is the economy and to sort the pessimism among advertisers. However, the strength of the Latin American economy is a big asset: “Emerging markets in the region showed resilience vis-à-vis of the global recession while multinational corporations and global investors sought refuge in them. The main challenge to advertising in Latin America would be a deepening of the global recession that could affect the advertising budgets of multinational corporations. In such a case, media could seek more local advertisers (small and medium sized corporations operating locally) to make up for the retreat of the bigger accounts, ” says Matias Comella, Manager, B2B Online Marketing – Latin America & Caribbean, Symantec Corporation .
Fernanda Mariano (photo), Business Development Manager in Multimediausa, said “The main challenge is resistance to change. Since digital hasn't been around as long as traditional media, it can sometimes be put aside by companies who may be relying on the habitual practice of solely valuing print or TV because of their familiarity with it. Since digital is constantly changing, it's important to stay updated on current trends and practices so that it can constantly evolve.”
Digital and Mobile, Big Growth Drivers
While the new regulations do not bode well for cable in Brazil and Mexico. The growth of cable in other countries and, particularly, digital and mobile advertising may more than make up for losses of cable advertising in Brazil and Mexico. As Jose Costa (photo), VP, Marketing, Latin America and Caribbean, Burger King Corporation says “The biggest opportunity for marketers in the region is to capitalize on the growing adoption of digital and mobile platforms. Consumers are increasingly connecting with brands around the clock and it's critical to communicate in a relevant, differentiated and timely manner. At Burger King(r) we are leveraging consumer insights and technology to develop online and mobile tools that enable us to build a more authentic brand experience with our guests.”
Paul Suskey, CO-CEO, at Media 8 agrees: “Digital will continue to uptick across all countries Digital will continue to uptick across all countries”.
