Starcom and MediaCom await the results from presenting idea proposals to P&G

Sources close to the news said that “it is not a pitch” and there won’t be any consolidation to one agency in the short-term.

In China, Starcom currently handles P&G’s TV media buying and majority of the media planning, while MediaCom is handling P&G’s non-TV media buying and some media planning for its personal cleansing business and half of its haircare business.

Reported on 27 February, McDonald promised to deliver $1 billion (£632 million) in savings throughout the next five years by more efficient marketing, while stressing "we are not looking to make significant cuts in marketing support behind our brands".

On January 27, P&G announced that it would have to eliminate 1,600 non-manufacturing jobs, including marketing positions—primarily through attrition and “selective hiring”. Its CEO Bob McDonald said that the FMCG manufacturer would moderate its advertising budget — which was up 8 per cent last year — by moving to a marketing mix that focuses on digital. 

As Tony Chen, Group M's China interaction managing director pointed out that the: “Eyeballs area is shifting fast from TV to online video. For example, the P&G-sponsored hit show “China’s Got Talent” had 34 million TV viewers and 30 million online video viewers last July. Video can bring marketers plenty of eyeballs, and help marketers reach younger people in China, some of which do not even own TVs."

In China, P&G, a worldwide partner of the International Olympic Committee (IOC), has launched a "Thank You, Mom" campaign and announced its partnership with the Chinese Olympic delegation this week.

Under the agreement, the leading P&G China brands, including Pantene, Rejoice, Head & Shoulders, Safeguard and Olay will take part in the campaign to celebrate the unsung heroes behind the athletes and will provide support to the mothers of Chinese athletes.

P&G's brands will also sponsor China's world-class athletes, who will be featured in both advertising and retail campaigns. They include multiple world badminton champion Lin Dan, gymnastics star Chen Yibing and diving great Wu Minxia.