Network Ten has appointed Universal McCann to handle the media buying for advertising of its new digital sport channel, One.
The account was given to Universal McCann without a competitive pitch following what CEO of Universal McCann, Henry Tajer calls, “discussions” and “suggestions” between Universal McCann and the network last year.
The main Ten media account is handled by Starcom MediaVest and is worth an estimated $12.3m in main media spend (for the year to December 2008) according to Nielsen AIS.
Network Ten CEO, Grant Blackley, said: "We chose Universal McCann for this significant assignment based on the quality of the agency’s creativity and their ability to deliver integrated and lateral communications strategies to support the launch of One."
The appointment comes after the announcement that four sponsors have signed up for One in group deals through media agencies OMD and Universal McCann.
The 12 month deals are estimated to be worth $1.5m each, with another six to ten sponsors in negotiations with the network.
It is believed the network is also in negotiations with Mitchells Communications for a similar deal.
One will have six to seven minutes of ads per hour, whereas Ten’s main channel has 11 minutes per hour. It will carry some simulcast programs such as the AFL games and Formula One races, but most of its content will be original. Buckley said the network had so far secured about half of its required unique content so far.
The One brand and marketing budget has not been revealed, and the strategy has been created by Ten executives and brand consultancy FutureBrand.
The 24-hour sports channel will commence broadcasting on Thursday 26 March at 7.30 pm.
