Etisalat has reactivated the dormant creative advertising review it originally initiated in September last year.
An RFP has been sent out to agencies, with the account covering all of Etisalat’s UAE operations, including its subsidiaries e-Vision, the Etisalat Academy, and the Etisalat Foundation. The winning agency, or agencies, will be responsible for all of the telco’s above, below and through-the-line advertising, including print, TV, digital and direct marketing, with the account to be run on a fixed retainer basis.
The incumbents on the business are Impact BBDO and Lowe MENA, both of whom are pitching for the business. Sam Husaini, managing director of Impact BBDO Abu Dhabi, said: “We are still the lead incumbent agency. We have been invited by Etisalat to this pitch and we have confirmed our participation.”
No one at Etisalat was available for comment. In January this year the Etisalat Group, which looks after all of the telecommunication company’s international operations, also called a pitch for its creative advertising account. It is not known whether that review has moved forward.
Etisalat is one of the largest telecommunications companies in the world and is headquartered in the UAE. It operates in 18 countries across Asia, the Middle East and Africa, servicing more than 100 million customers out of a total population of approximately 1.9 billion. In February this year, Etisalat reported net revenue of $8.4 billion and net profits of $2.078 billion.