Y&R and its sister agency Mediaedge:cia have won the advertising and media accounts for Lebanese mobile phone operator Alfa following a competitive pitch.
It is the second time that the advertising account has changed hands within the past 14 months, having moved to Leo Burnett from Intermarkets in April last year.
The advertising side of the business will be fully integrated, although the initial work will be above-the-line, said Nassib Boueri, chief executive officer at Y&R and Wunderman across the Middle East and North Africa.
The move marks the return of Alfa’s marketing business to the Menacom group, of which Y&R, MEC and Intermarkets are all a part. “It is good to bring Alfa back home to the Menacom group,” admitted Boueri. “Alfa is a great client and we love working with them.”
Egyptian telecom group Orascom took over control of Alfa from Fal Dete Telecommunication in February last year, leading to the moving of the account to Leo Burnett. Leo Burnett went on to create work that won silver awards at this year’s Dubai Lynx, while
its ‘Hijacked’ radio campaign for Alfa was shortlisted at this year’s Cannes Lions festival.
Alfa is the brand name of one of two Lebanese mobile networks owned by the Republic of Lebanon.
