Jack of all trades, master of none?

SPECULATION AROUND THE FUTURE OF DDB RAISES KEY QUESTIONS ABOUT THE FUTURE OF LEGACY ADVERTISING FIRMS

- CHRISTINA MONIZ

OVER THE PAST week, speculation has been rife about the fate of Omnicom’s 76-year-old advertising and communications network, DDB. As the Omnicom Group and Interpublic Group prepare to merge by the end of this year, industry rumours suggest that the former may phase out the legacy DDB agency, at least in some countries.

Naturally, the news has sent shockwaves across the industry. After all, this is an agency that redefined advertising in the latter part of the 20th century with memorable work on brands like Volkswagen, McDonald’s and Johnson & Johnson. Omnicom soon after shared a statement saying that it is “undertaking a rigorous and considered process to ensure we have the very best solutions for the future for us and for our clients.”

But the uncertainty hanging over the future of DDB raises more important questions for the advertising industry at large. Are global legacy agencies dying a slow death? It was just two years ago that WPP terminated its legendary Wunderman Thompson brand. Other major networks such as Publicis Groupe also announced the merging of Publicis Worldwide and Leo Burnett into the newly formed Leo entity.