LONDON: In a deal that could add up to $100 million (€68.08m; £48.62m) in annual income* for WPP Group, the UK-headquartered marketing conglomerate has won Dell Computer's global account.
Marketing spending is predicted to reach $4.5bn over the next three years.
According to Mark Jarvis, Dell's cmo, WPP will set up a dedicated company to handle the business, which is currently spread across as many as 800 separate agencies worldwide.
Says Jarvis: "By combining our agencies, we can invest in the long-term, in the people and tools to unlock far greater results than a patchwork quilt. We believe this is the first time a global client and agency have come together to redefine the 'agency' on such a scale."
While Dell's vp of global marketing Casey Jones confirmed that a major priority for the new entity is to support the ailing computer maker's push into retail stores.
*(According to a note circulated in September by Wachovia Capital Markets analyst John Janedis.)
Data sourced from Financial Times; additional content by WARC staff
