In a final rally off against Saatchi & Saatchi, DDB Worldwide last week were announced the new holders of the Tourism Australia account. Other agencies who put forward pitches included Publicis Mojo, Singleton Ogilvy & Mather and M&C Saatchi, who previously held the account with the poorly-received “Where the bloody hell are you?” campaign, which was even dubbed a “rolled-gold-disaster” by Prime Minister Kevin Rudd.

DDB will take heave of the marketing opportunities that lie ahead with the new Baz Luhrmann movie Australia, starring Nicole Kidman and Hugh Jackman by undertaking cross-promotion in the lead up to its release.

Marty OHalloran, CEO and chairman DDB Australia and New Zealand, said: This is a tremendous win for DDB and we are really looking forward to working closely with the Tourism Australia team to build an energetic and dynamic brand”.

Rick Allert, Tourism Australia chairman, stated: In appointing DDB Worldwide, we have chosen an agency partner that not only provides the requisite international network and infrastructure credentials, but is also, most importantly, at the top of the creative game globally.