MARCIO SALEM NAMED 2008 CANNES LIONS DIRECT JURY PRESIDENT

London, 22 January 2008 – Marcio Salem, President and Creative Director of Salem inSão Paulo, Brazil, has been appointed the Direct Lions Jury President for the 55thedition of the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival. Marcio has won numerous national and international awards such as Echos, Caples,Direct Lions in Cannes and a series of national awards that have ranked himundisputedly as the most awarded direct marketing creative in Latin America. After setting up his agency 15 years ago, the company now operates with a staff of140, working with clients such as Mercedes-Benz, IBM, Carrefour, MasterCard and ABNAMRO Bank. Marcio was on the first Cannes Direct Lions jury in 2002 and in 2006 he was theyoungest professional to be inducted to the Direct Marketing Hall of Fame in Brazil.In 2007, Marcio was honoured with the prestigious Irving Wunderman Award, thehighest accolade for creative talent in direct marketing, presented to an individualwho has produced exceptional direct response work for a minimum of 10 years.Philip Thomas, Festival CEO, commented, “Marcio is a talented creative visionary whois helping shape the future of Direct Marketing. No stranger to collecting DirectLions in Cannes, Marcio will this year draw on his expertise to help hand them out.We very much look forward to working with him.” “For me, the International Advertising Festival in Cannes is about creativity. Andthis is what I will be looking for in all the campaigns we are going to judge. Ibelieve that direct marketing has to be judged like the other categories in Cannes.The best creative work with the best execution,” said Salem on his appointment.Launched in 2002, Direct Lions honour the best DM work in strategy, creativity,execution and results. - Ends -The 55th International Advertising Festival will be held 15-21 June 2008 in Cannes,France.The International Advertising Festival - Cannes Lions - is the largest gathering ofworldwide advertising professionals and advertisers as well as the most prestigiousannual advertising awards. Each year, over 10,000 visitors from the advertising andallied industries attend this event to celebrate the best of creativity across allmedia mix, discuss industry issues and network with one another. Over 25,000 adsfrom all over the world are showcased and judged at the Festival. Winning companiesreceive the highly coveted Lion trophy, honouring the most creative TV/cinema,print, outdoor, interactive, radio, sales promotion, integrated advertising, as wellas the best media and direct marketing solutions. A Design category is beinglaunched in 2008. A unique programme of high-profile seminars, workshops and keynotespeakers, organised by some of the biggest names in the industry, are alsopresented.For further information, please visit www.canneslions.com