Sprint Nextel, the nation’s No. 3 telecom provider, has narrowed the contenders vying for its $1.2 billion advertising account to two, eliminating WPP Group’s Y&R, a spokesman for the company said today.
The two remaining agencies are Omnicom Group’s Goodby Silverstein & Partners, San Francisco, and WPP’s Ogilvy & Mather, New York.
Review began in January
Sprint Nextel announced a review in January, citing a need for “fresh thinking.” Omnicom Group’s TBWA/Chiat/Day, New York, its longtime consumer advertising agency, and Publicis Groupe’s Hal Riney & Partners, San Francisco, which handled business-to-business work, dropped out of the review late that month, which left three agencies up until today’s cut.
Media, handled by WPP’s MindShare, is not part of the review.
Sprint Nextel Chief Marketing Officer Mark Schweitzer is leading the review. No consultant was hired. Goodby and Ogilvy are scheduled to meet with top Sprint Nextel marketers this week. Chris Doherty, the telecom’s spokesman, said the company is on track to make a decision by the end of the month.
Lisa Sanders is a reporter for Advertising Age, a sister publication to RCR Wireless News. Both publications are owned by Crain Communications Inc.
