TLDR: Plain talk. The new head of media at Unilever, Arne Kirchem, in office for a year, gives HORIZONT a highly interesting interview in which he addresses the issues that .companion has been working on for years. Kirchem's statements are refreshingly unequivocal. It is well worth the look in any case.
Here are some quotes:
About possible shifts in the media mix
"It's already the case that young brand managers today are asking the question of whether you shouldn't rely much more radically on Facebook, search and your own website. (...) These internal discussions with brand management are much more intense today than they used to be."
About the lack of will to integrate in the "parallel society online
"In TV, advertisers know pretty much where they stand, whereas in digital, people are still wondering what the real advertising impact is behind key figures like page impressions or click rates. I can't understand why the online industry is so resistant to the development of a convergence currency. I think it's a big mistake strategically."
On targeting quality and advertising impact
"If you look at the hit rates of online campaigns, they are really off the charts at times. It's quite irritating. "
On the relevance of digital advertising
"An important task in the digital business is to separate the wheat from the chaff. There are a lot of things that sound cool at first, but in reality don't bring much. In terms of Germany, this means that the number of consumers we reach with a measure must ultimately already be in seven figures."
About Facebook as Paid Media
"It was quite naïve to believe that you could get a lot of fans with practically no advertising costs. The dream of virals spreading by the millions is also an illusion. In this respect, Facebook has simply become more honest when it comes primarily to high reach in clearly defined target groups today."
On automated media buying ("programmatic")
"At the moment, I'm still happy as a lark to have an agency for this. The question is, what happens when automated purchasing becomes commonplace? If it's something a salaried Planner can handle at my company."
On the possible disruption of the media business
"I can well imagine that there will be a disruptive change in our industry at some point. We're nowhere near that point yet, but theoretically I don't think there's anything to stop media platforms emerging and the existing system toppling very quickly. We are familiar with such developments in other areas."
The entire interview in the print edition 10/2015, in excerpts here: http://ow.ly/KbHiL