Zenith on alert as BAA reviews account

by Andrew McCormick, Media Week 20-May-08

BAA Group, the airports operator, is searching for an agency to handle its £1.6m media planning and buying account.

BAA is set to kick off a statutory review this week due to European
Union regulations determining the review of contracts run by BAA.

The account is currently held by ZenithOptimedia, a Publicis Groupe

agency. Under EU regulations, agencies will be asked to submit proposals

through the organisation's Tenders Direct tool.

A spokesman for BAA said: "It's true that we're reviewing. We are
governed by EU regulations that cover the review of all major
contracts."

BAA employs 15,000 staff and runs some of Britain's busiest airports,
including Heathrow, Gatwick, Stansted, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen.
In February, 10.2 million passengers passed through its UK airports. BAA
also runs Naples airport in Italy and owns the Heathrow Express and
World Duty Free, which it claims is the largest travel retailer in the
world.

The operator has recently come under scrutiny by the Competition
Commission, as a result of which BAA may have to sell off one of the
airports it runs in the South East of England, probably Gatwick.

BAA spent £1.6m on media, including press, radio and outdoor, in
the past 12 months, according to Nielsen Media Research figures. The
airport operator uses a range of ad agencies, including Saatchi &
Saatchi, St Luke's and Delaney Lund Knox Warren.