Ma. Stella F. Arnaldo / Special to the BusinessMirror
THE Department of Tourism (DOT) is standing pat on its new “Sights” ad, despite criticisms from netizens that it was copied from a tourism ad for South Africa.
This developed as the McCann Worldgroup Philippines said in a statement that it “takes full responsibility [for the ad], as all ideas and storyboards were conceptualized by [the company]”. The statement was read by Niña Terol, director for corporate affairs for McCann, in a hastily called news conference by the DOT on Tuesday.
“However, we underscore that there has never been any intention to copy others’ creative work. McCann Worldgroup Philippines has always strived to adhere to our guiding principle, ‘Truth Well Told’, in everything we do. We stand by the integrity with which this campaign was developed,” she stressed.
The advertising firm added: “We acknowledge the feedback that the way this story was told may have similarities with the South African tourism campaign. It is unfortunate that the DOT has been called out and accused of plagiarism for work we have done to highlight the testimonial of a real retiree.” For his part, DOT Spokesman and Assistant Secretary Frederick M. Alegre said “we stand by McCann,” and that the DOT would still run the ad “in key retiree markets, like Japan and South Korea…for about a quarter [three months]”.
He cited government data that show about 27,000 foreigners have secured retirement visas in the Philippines. Having been in media and advertising prior to his appointment to the DOT, Alegre explained there are some ads that have “similar creative executions but with unique propositions. It’s something that’s accepted in the advertising industry.”
A published report (not in the BusinessMirror) showed the similarities in the DOT’s new television commercial (TVC). and an ad for South Africa, which showed tourists enjoying the destinations in each country. Both end in the revelation that the featured tourist is blind.
A DOT source, meanwhile, told the BusinessMirror, the province of Quebec in Canada last year also came out with a similar ad featuring a blind tourist. “Canadians also criticized Quebec for copying the South Africa ad,” the source added. In the Quebec ad, however, the tourist’s blindness was introduced in the beginning of the ad.
This is not the first time the DOT has been accused of copying or plagiarizing tourism ads of other countries. In November 2010 the DOT, under then-Secretary Albert Lim, came up with the “Pilipinas Kay Ganda” slogan, with the help of Campaigns & Grey. Netizens discovered the font and color scheme used for the logo appeared to have been lifted from Poland’s own tourism logo.
In January 2012 the DOT led by Secretary Ramon R. Jimenez Jr., unveiled the “It’s More Fun in the Philippines” country slogan, created by BBDO Guerrerro. It was later found to have been similar to a tourism ad in the 1950s for Switzerland (“It’s More Fun in Switzerland). The new TVC of the DOT, likewise, reaped criticism for what netizens described as a “lame” or “unimaginative” slogan, preferring the more catchy “It’s More Fun…” Some have also pointed out that tag itself is similar to the Bengali ad that enjoins tourists to “Experience Bengal”.
The DOT earlier stressed it would still be keeping the “It’s More Fun..” country slogan but is using the “Experience” tag for the new TVC due to the safety concerns of foreign tourists. (See, “New DOT ad enjoins foreigners to ‘Experience the PHL’,” in the BusinessMirror, June 8, 2017.) It also said the ad was based on a true story of a Japanese retiree in the Philippines, and highlights the destinations in northern Philippines.
The new “Sights” ad is the second in a series for the DOT’s year-long advertising campaign, pegged on the theme “When with Filipinos”. The first, which premiered in January during the Miss Universe campaign, showed a travel writer Jack Ellis, enjoying snacks offered by a motherly local at the Enchanted River in Hinatuan, Surigao del Sur. She proceeds to call him Anak (child), which hypes on the Filipinos’ unique brand of hospitalty that treats every visitor like family. A third ad is already under development, Alegre said.
The rest of the McCann statement is as follows: “In working with the [DOT], we have been inspired by the many stories we have seen and heard, about why foreigners choose to visit the Philippines. Many of them have spoken about our innate warmth, the genuine friendships they have developed here, our hospitality that extends to a sense of family, and the many reasons it is the Filipino people that truly make it more fun in the Philippines.”
“Our research has also shown that, of the millions of visitors who visit the Philippines, thousands of foreigners from over 100 countries have chosen to live and retire here.”
Image credits: Stella Arnaldo
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