Starcom Scoops COI Radio Account As TV Boss Swaps Sides

Starcom has beaten heavy competition to scoop the COI radio buying account from incumbent OMD, bringing an end to an intensive five-way tussle for the account, worth an annual £20 million.

The win will dash the hopes of Carat, Mindshare and ZenithOptimedia, who also pitched for the business, following an unnerving delay by the COI in announcing a winner – a move which further fuelled speculation that OMD had lost control of the account.

The buying account was made available following a review by the COI of all of its media buying accounts. Starcom’s win follows its loss of the COI’s television account, worth around £77 million a year, which changed hands to Carat earlier this year.

Carat has since poached Kevin West, Starcom’s TV buying director, to head up the account, building on his 12-year relationship with COI having overseen the account at the previous incumbent.

The bidding process for the COI’s press buying account, comprising operations in both national and local newspapers, is expected to begin later this year, while a separate review of its media strategy account is to follow.

Starcom Motive: 020 7453 4444: www.starcommotive.com