Channel 4 is trawling for a new sponsor for its top-rating series,
Friends, following Wella’s decision not to renew its pounds 5m deal.
The decision, which was first mooted in Marketing, came just weeks after
the haircare company struck a pounds 500,000 sponsorship deal with Sky
Television.
Sky has secured the rights to broadcast the new series of Friends
(Marketing, December 18).
Heather Cooper, marketing group manager at Wella, confirmed the deal
would not be renewed. However, she declined to say whether Wella plans
to sponsor another Channel 4 series.
Channel 4 first announced the Wella deal a year ago. It was put together
by the haircare firm’s media agency Drum PHD and it remains the biggest
sponsorship deal the station has struck so far.
The deal covered promotion of Wella’s shampoo and conditioner brand,
Experience, and the haircare giant planned a series of off-air
promotions.
However, it is understood that Wella was unable to exploit the
association off-screen as much as it had anticipated. It is also
considering cutting back substantially on its above-the-line spend.
The last series of Friends on Channel 4 ended just before Christmas.
The next series will be screened in the summer, by which time Channel 4
is expected to have a new sponsor in place.
Before the Friends deal, Wella sponsored Baywatch on ITV.
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