Agency

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filed a civil injunctive action in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York charging six former executives of StarMedia Network, Inc. with securities fraud and two former executives with other securities law violations. StarMedia was an Internet portal directed at Spanish and Portuguese speaking communities in the United States and Latin America. In spite of the problems that existed in the past with the former executives of Starmedia Networks Inc., today the company and Internet portal is a new, dynamic, profitable company with a prominent position in the U.S. Hispanic market and Latin America. This new Starmedia, created in July, 2002 does not have anything to do with the management of the former team that has been charged by the SEC.

The Fifth Third Bancorp selected New York-based Hispanic advertising agency Latinvox as its agency of record for all Hispanic initiatives.

Latinvox will work with Fifth Third Bank’s marketing and executive teams to expand the company’s Hispanic business plan and to develop fully integrated and culturally-relevant marketing campaigns for the Hispanic community.

Some of the proposals in immigration legislation under consideration in the U.S. Congress would distinguish between unauthorized migrants of long standing and those more recently arrived.

The cell phone has become an integral and, for some, essential communications tool that has helped owners gain help in emergencies. Fully 74% of the Americans who own mobile phones say they have used their hand-held device in an emergency and gained valuable help.

At last week’s Association of Hispanic Advertising Agencies conference in Los Angeles, besides the changes at the helm, the awards, the vendors and the panels. One panel titled ‘NTI AND THE UPCOMING UPFRONTS’ was the key element that will dictate the future of the US Hispanic Market.