Philips and OneVoice Win Silver PR Lion at Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity

NEW YORK and CANNES, France, June 21, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Philips and OneVoice, a consortium of Omnicom public relations agencies led by Ketchum and Fleishman-Hillard, were honored with a Silver PR Lion in the Technology and Manufacturing category for the "Parallel Lines" campaign at the Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, the world's leading celebration of creativity in communications.

Out of a record-high 819 entries in the 2011 PR Lions competition, Ketchum's work in partnership with its clients was shortlisted in four categories: Best Integrated Campaign Led by PR, Best Use of Media Relations, Corporate Communication, and Technology and Manufacturing.

"The Cannes Lions is the world's premier creativity festival, and Ketchum is proud to be a sponsor at this year's event and to stand among the ranks of the most creative agencies in the communications business," said Raymond L. Kotcher, Ketchum senior partner and chief executive officer. "Winning this PR Lion on behalf of the work we've done in collaboration with Philips and our partner agencies is a testament to how public relations is increasingly introducing innovative, game-changing ideas to the global marketplace."

The Cannes Lions Festival was established in 1954 and has evolved into one of the most important professional meetings in the global communications industry. A Ketchum delegate has served on the Cannes Lions jury since 2009, the first year public relations was included in the competition. In 2009, Ketchum was honored with one of the first-ever PR Lions for its "Haagen-Dazs Loves Honey Bees" campaign in the Corporate Responsibility and Environmental Issues category.

In 2011, Ketchum is the exclusive sponsor of the second annual Cannes Lions Young Marketers Competition, which recognizes in-house marketers, age 30 or under, from around the world and gives them the opportunity to showcase their work in front of industry leaders at the Cannes Lions Festival. The competition kicks off Wednesday, June 22, and the winners will be announced on Saturday, June 25, in Cannes.

The Silver PR Lion is the latest in a series of top honors recently awarded to Ketchum for its client work. Earlier in the year, Ketchum took home three PRWeek Awards, including an unprecedented third consecutive best-in-show Campaign of the Year Award for its work with Mattel, after winning with Dreyer's Ice Cream in 2010 and IKEA in 2009. At that award ceremony, Ketchum also received an honorable mention designation for Large Agency of the Year. In May, Ketchum led the Holmes Group's North American SABRE Awards with 12 award wins; it then won six awards at the EMEA SABRE Awards in Prague. Ketchum and its clients took home nine Silver Anvil awards from the Public Relations Society of America in early June, and Ketchum now holds more Silver Anvils than any other agency in history. Also a recent recipient of two Clio Awards, the agency has won more Clios than any other public relations firm.

About the 58th Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity, Cannes, France

The International Festival of Creativity – Cannes Lions – is the world's leading celebration of creativity in communications. As the most prestigious international annual advertising awards, over 24,000 entries from all over the world are showcased and judged at the Festival. Winning companies receive the highly coveted Lion trophy honoring the most creative film, print, outdoor, interactive, radio, film craft, design, sales promotion and activation and integrated advertising, as well as the best media, direct marketing, PR, titanium and creative effectiveness ideas. The Festival is also the only truly global meeting place for advertisers, advertising and communication professionals. Over 8,000 delegates from 95 countries attend seven days of exhibitions, screenings, as well as over 50 high-profile seminars, 30 workshops and master classes presented by renowned worldwide industry leaders. As the networking and learning opportunity of the year, Cannes Lions is the must-attend event for anyone involved in brand communication.

About Ketchum

Ketchum is a leading global communications firm with operations in more than 70 countries across six continents. Named 2010 Large PR Firm of the Year (Holmes Report and PR News) and the winner of an unprecedented three consecutive PRWeek Campaign of the Year Awards, Ketchum partners with clients to deliver strategic programming, game-changing creative and measurable results that build brands and reputations. For more information on Ketchum, a unit of Omnicom Group Inc. (NYSE: OMC), visit www.ketchum.com.

SOURCE Ketchum