Two Irish advertising agencies, QMP D'Arcy and CDP Associates, are in talks regarding an alliance. It is not yet known whether the talks will result in a buyout, merger, or affiliation but it is yet another example of consolidation in the Irish market.
Both agencies are linked to the BCom3 Communications Group which owns D'Arcy and Leo Burnett, two major global advertising and communications organisations. D'Arcy International owns 17 per cent of the QMP D'Arcy Group and CDP has Dentsu, the world's largest advertising agency, as a partner and 5 per cent shareholder. Dentsu also has a 20 per cent shareholding in BCom3.
Mr Conor Quinn, who heads up QMP D'Arcy, says "the talks are to establish a stronger presence for BCom3 in Ireland".
A merger between the two agencies seems unlikely as there would be some conflicts of interest in terms of existing clients and both are actively competing against each other for new ones.
Both agencies are tight-lipped about the deal, however, the engine driving it is likely to be media planning and buying, and links directly to BCom3's media strategy - the development on a global scale of its Starcom media company.
CDP is one of the few Irish agencies that still has an in-house media department. Most have established separate companies for media purposes. The QMP D'Arcy Group includes MediaVest, a media buying and planning shop. Both MediaVest and Starcom are owned by BCom3.
bharrison@irish-times.ie
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