NEWAD Action Gets Reaction
Gail Chiasson, North American Editor
Our August 13/09 article on Montreal-based NEWAD’s objections to Rouge Media and Chapter 66 becoming members of the Canadian Outdoor Measurement Bureau has drawn a no-holds-barred, swift response from Rouge Media’s President Martin Poitras, also in Montreal.
“NEWAD feels threatened in view of our success and is panicking,” says Poitras. “NEWAD has taken legal proceedings against us and the case will be heard in the fall of 2010. From our point of view, these are gag proceedings and, as a matter of fact, certain clients have asked their legal counsel before signing our contracts to ensure that they would not be infringing upon their obligations towards NEWAD.”
NEWAD referred to a recent judgment that it has obtained on a similar matter against Power Media. However, a statement from Rouge Media notes, it was a judgment by default against a company which, for all intents and purposes, had ceased its operations several months before the judgment was obtained without opposition. (We haven’t yet been able to confirm that, Ed.)
“This is a hollow victory which shows that NEWAD is completely at a loss in view of our success,” says David Vance, director of sales for Rouge Media Group in Toronto, who, like Poitras, cannot understand the ‘aggressiveness’ of Newad.
“We are all the more surprised by the aggressiveness of the various attacks NEWAD has come at us with, considering that we offer a different product than the one which has made it famous,” says Poitras. “In this regard, its main competitor is Zoom Media, with whom it cohabitates in several locations.”
Rouge Campus has a solid presence nationally in colleges and universities as does Chapter 66 in the nightclub and bar communities, and the company statement says that these have exclusive rights to install vinyl mural advertisements of many sizes. They have long term agreements with each of their network members and are now known as Rouge Media Group, which also includes Red Cat Media.
Rouge Media Group continues to prosper and to innovate and will continue to provide quality media products to its clients who are greatly respected and would not jeopardize the privileged relationships that it has built over the years, the statement adds.
The application of Rouge Campus and Chapter 66 to join COMB is following its course as per the procedure established by the Bureau.
In less than six years, Rouge Media Group has experienced success within three key youth markets: high schools, university and college campuses, and resto-bars. The company offers its partners access into Canadian high schools to carry out 360° marketing programs and reach the 13-17 age group. Rogers Wireless, Saputo and Maritime Dairy are examples of its numerous clients using ‘Red Cat’.
At the university, cégep and college level, giant 7′ X 10′ banners are placed in high traffic areas in order to maximize the impact of campaigns. ‘Rouge Campus’ holds exclusive rights to Big Banners in more than 60 Canadian institutions, and has more than 500 sites. Clients include: Rogers Wireless, Sony, Merck Frost and Telus Mobility. (The network plans to launch two new products within the upcoming months.
Chapter 66 offers an extensive network within the resto-bar environment: 5′ X 7′ vinyl Big Banners are installed in various venues across Canada. Molson, Toyota, Honda, Diageo and Bell are among the company’s many clients. The network also plans an expansion of its product line, which will be announced shortly.
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