KEY POINTS:
Advertising agency Colenso BBDO is taking a high-stakes bet that it can win the Lotteries Commission account and still hold on to competitor SkyCity.
Industry players were poker-faced yesterday as Lowe - the beleaguered incumbent - announced the odds were too great and it had given up on Lotto.
Now Lowe is concentrating defending its other big account - Vodafone.
Vodafone has made no decision but the double whammy is a major challenge for Lowe.
Of the Lotteries Commission, Lowe's managing director Cameron Harland said: "We are disappointed but we have taken the decision based upon a clear understanding that Lotteries are committed to a change."
That leaves the ad industry giants - Colenso BBDO, Saatchi & Saatchi and DDB. Saatchi & Saatchi held the account for 16 years and sources say it is pulling out all stops to get it back.
The Lotteries Commission is by no means the biggest advertising spender, but its high profile makes it the the most sought after by advertising agencies.
Colenso BBDO general manager Brent Smart insisted that the agency could potentially hold both accounts and would deal with issues with Sky City. "We would not be pitching if SkyCity did not agree."
SkyCity New Zealand marketing manager Jill Birch yesterday played down the company's concerns about its marketing secrets being held by the same agency as Lotto and said they were aware that Colenso was on the short list.
But an insider said SkyCity was "very unhappy" its account was being put at risk for the chance of winning Lotteries and the experience - even if Colenso failed to win the account - would have tarnished the relationship between agency and client.
"It's not a good look," said a senior industry source not involved in pitching for the business.
Meanwhile, Colenso BBDO ( part of the Clemenger Group) and the local arm of global giant JWT Advertising are frontrunners for the Vodafone account.
Vodafone spokesman Paul Brislen said any statement about its advertising business was "weeks away".
