iconannual 2018

Issue 2018 

Official Magazine of iconvienna _ The European Business and Investment Forum 

presented by 2018 

GLOBAL

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T.: +43 1 532 1000 52 | F.: +43 1 532 1000 30 

E.: office@europeanbrandinstitute.com

iconvienna 

Editorial 

INNOVATION NEEDS 

BRANDING _ BRANDING 

NEEDS INNOVATION 

DI Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek 

President iconvienna 

Editor 

Auf den Konferenzschwerpunkt Branding 

fokussiert, inspiriert der iconvienna 

Brand Global Summit seine Teilnehmer 

mit dem diesjährigen Thema 

„Innovation needs Branding – Branding needs 

Innovation”, und bietet die Möglichkeit Erfah-Focusinrungen und Erfolgsmodelle zum Thema Marke Global Summit will inspire its participants 

on branding, the iconvienna Brand 

auszutauschen und interessante Diskussionen with this year's theme, "Innovation needs 

zu führen. 

Branding—Branding needs Innovation" 

Das diesjährige Forum hat in den letzten and offers the opportunity to exchange experiences 

and models of success on the topic of trade 

Jahren seine Horizonte von Nord- und Lateinamerika 

über West-, Zentral- und Osteuropa and to hold interesting discussions. 

bis nach China erweitert. In diesem Sinne This year's forum has in recent years 

freuen wir uns, wieder zahlreiche Vertreter expanded its horizons from North and Latin 

von Ost bis West willkommen zu heißen. America to Western, Central and Eastern 

Mein besonderer Dank geht auch dieses Europe and China. With this in mind, we are 

Jahr wieder an die Stadt Wien und den Bürgermeister 

Dr. Michael Häupl für seinen Ehrenresentatives 

from East to West. 

pleased to once again welcome numerous repschutz. 

Ich möchte mich auch bei unseren weiteren 

Partnern Wirtschaftskammer Wien und of Vienna and the Mayor Michael Häupl for 

I would particularly like to thank the city 

Österreich, Ministerien und Botschaften, Vertretern 

von Regionen, Städten, Unternehmen, other partners, the Austrian Federal Economic 

his patronage. I would also like to thank our 

Medienpartnern sowie bei allen unseren Beiratsmitgliedern 

und dem European Brand Ins- 

Industry, the Latin American and Caribbean 

Chamber, Vienna Chamber of Commerce and 

titute für die gute Zusammenarbeit bedanken. Countries, ministries and embassies, representatives 

of regions, cities, companies, media 

Für die Zukunft wünsche ich Ihnen gute 

Beziehungen. Nutzen Sie dieses Magazin ganz partners as well as all our advisory board members 

and the European Brand Institute for the 

nach unserem Motto „MAKE CONTACTS TO 

CONTRACTS”! 

good cooperation. 

For the future I wish you successful relationships! 

Use this magazine according to our 

Viel Spaß beim Lesen! 

motto "MAKE CONTACTS TO CONTRACTS"! 

Foto: Katharina Schiffl 

Enjoy reading! 

The European Business and Investment Magazine iconannual 3

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INNOVATION NEEDS BRANDING _ BRANDING NEEDS INNOVATION 

Forewords 7 

Greetings 20 

Embassies of Argentinia, Bolivia, Bulgaria, China, Costa Rica, Cuba, 

the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Italy, 

Nicaragua, Panama, Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Uruguay, and the USA 

City, Regions, Cluster 56 

European Commission 

Central European Initiative 

Austrian Institute of Technology 

Austrian Association of Cities and Towns 

Kommunalkredit 

Innovation 66 

Municipal Dep. 23 -Economic Affairs, Labour and Statistics 

ASFINAG 

IST Austria 

Novomatic 

ÖBB Infrastruktur 

Kapsch 

Leitbetriebe Austria 

Wigma 

Carbotopia 

Initiatives 85 

cashback world 

Sports for Life 

iconvienna 

Women Leadership Forum 

Brands 100 

Coverfoto: istockphoto.com 

Lansky, Ganzger + partner 

Summerlight Capital Partners 

Brand Global Council 

China Council for Brand Development 

European Brand Institute 

EBI Global 

Brand Life Award 

Certified Brand 

Austrian Standards International 

ELK 

Finanzfuchs 

Contacts 130 

Imprint: Publisher/Proprietor: maX iconvienna GmbH | 1010 Wien | Börsegasse 9 | A-1010 Vienna | Tel +43 1 532 1000 23 | Fax +43 1 532 1000 30 | Email office@icon-vienna.net | www.icon-vienna.net; 

Design & Layout: „Der Herr Bertl“ OG | 1220 Wien | Maria-Tusch-Straße 8/1/14 | office@derherrbertl.at; Print: DI Hans A. Gruber KG, Gumpendorfer Straße 5/8, 1060 Vienna; 

Responsible for the content: maX iconvienna GmbH; Disclaimer: The publisher assumes no liability for the accuracy of the contents and the copyright to the photos. Typesetting and printing 

errors reserved. iconannual is the official medium of iconvienna and supports the networking concept of this platform. 


www.advantageaustria.org 

ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA is the official Austrian trade promotion 

organisation of the Republic of Austria. With its more than 100 

offices in over 70 countries, provides a broad range of intelligence 

and business development services for both Austrian companies 

and their international business partners. Our 800 employees 

around the world can assist you in locating Austrian suppliers 

and business partners. We organize more than 1,200 events every 

year to bring business contacts together. Other services provided 

by ADVANTAGE AUSTRIA offices range from introductions to 

Austrian companies looking for importers, distributors or agents 

to providing in-depth information on Austria as a business location 

and assistance in entering the Austrian market.

iconvienna 

Foreword 

Make contacts 

to contracts! 

Dr. René Alfons Haiden 

Chairman iconvienna 

Ich freue mich, dass auch in diesem 

Jahr zahlreiche Teilnehmer und 

Teilnehmerinnen den iconvienna 

Brand Global Summit besuchen. 

Das Forum hat sich zu einer renommierten, 

hoch geschätzten Plattform 

für Top-Level Networking entwickelt, 

wo jedes Jahr internationale hochkarätige 

Entscheidungsträger aus vielen 

Bereichen aufeinander treffen. 

Zum 14. Mal lädt der iconvienna 

Brand Global Summit zum Erfahrungsaustausch 

und zur Diskussion 

aktueller Themen und Trends. 2018 im 

Zeichen von Innovation und Branding. 

Auch die diesjährige Ausgabe des 

iconannual bietet wieder interessante 

Einblicke in ausgewählte Themenbereiche. 

Neben diversen Fachbeiträgen, 

handelt das Magazin unter anderem 

von internationalem Business, immateriellen 

Vermögenswerten, Regionen 

und Cluster als Knotenpunkte für 

Wachstum und vielem mehr. 

Ich wünsche allen Partnern und 

Teilnehmern der iconvienna viel 

Erfolg und gute Unterhaltung! 

Iam pleased that this year many participants 

are again attending the 

iconvienna Brand Global Summit. 

The forum has become a prestigious, 

highly valued platform for 

top-level networking, where every 

year high-profile international decision-makers 

come together. 

For the 14 th time, the iconvienna 

Brand Global Summit invites to 

exchange experiences and discuss current 

topics and trends. 2018 with the 

main topic innovation and branding. 

This year's edition of the iconannual 

also offers interesting insights 

into special topics. In addition to various 

articles, the magazine deals with 

international business, intangible 

assets, regions and clusters as hubs 

for growth and much more. 

I wish all partners and participants 

of iconvienna a successful 

forum! 

Foto: Haiden 


8 iconannual The European Business and Investment Magazine 

Foto: istockphoto.com

City of Vienna 

Foreword 

Willkommen in Wien! 

Welcome to Vienna! 

Dr. Michael Häupl 

Bürgermeister und Landeshauptmann von Wien 

Mayor and Governor of Vienna 

Foto: Stadt Wien/PID, Fotograf Ian Ehm 

Die iconvienna 2018 als 

wichtiger Beitrag zur wirtschaftlichen 

Zusammenarbeit 

in Europa findet bereits 

in „vierzehnter Auflage“ als European 

Business und Investment 

Forum statt. Ziel des Kongresses 

ist es, den Kontakt zwischen Führungskräften, 

Unternehmern und 

Projektpartnern im Raum CEE und 

Russland zu fördern. Wien steht 

bei dieser Wirtschafts- und Informationsplattform 

gleich doppelt 

im Fokus: einerseits als Veranstaltungsort 

im Herzen des „neuen 

Europa“ und andererseits als Vertreter 

einer zukunftsträchtigen 

Wirtschaftsregion des Kontinents. 

Hier an der ehemaligen Grenze 

zwischen Ost und West – eine Position, 

die Wien durch viele Jahrzehnte 

zum Ort von Begegnungen 

machte – liegt eine Wirtschaftsregion 

mit viel Potential für die 

Zukunft. Diese Dialogdrehscheibe 

für Ost-West-Kooperationen ist 

unsere Stadt geblieben. Denn nur 

durch gemeinsames Zusammenwirken 

kann die Zukunft Europas 

nachhaltig abgesichert werden. 

Als Bürgermeister und Gastgeber 

für die Stadt Wien freue ich 

mich sehr über die abermalige 

Wahl unserer Stadt als Veranstaltungsort 

dieses hochkarätigen 

Forums. Ich wünsche allen Teilnehmerinnen 

und Teilnehmern 

interessante aber auch informative 

Tage in Wien – und bitte genießen 

Sie auch unsere schöne Stadt. 




Federal Chancellor 

Foreword 

Challenge innovation _ 

Take business 

opportunities 

Sebastian Kurz 

Federal Chancellor 

Foto: Andy Wenzel 

I 

am very pleased to welcome you 

to Vienna. 

We are living in times of profound 

changes in technology, 

society and business. This presents 

challenges in some regards, but 

also great opportunities. We must 

not forget that all great inventions 

initially were ideas on how to push 

borders. That is why we need to 

support innovation as a means for 

enhanced competitiveness, stronger 

economic growth and increased 

wellbeing of our people. 

The government’s clear goal for 

Austria is to become an innovation-leader, 

making it one of the 

most innovative countries and leading 

business location in Europe. 

I am deeply convinced that we 

need to actively use Austrian potential 

to position ourselves internationally 

as a pioneer of innovative 

entrepreneurship. We need more 

readiness to take risks and conviction 

for our national ideas to extend 

and grow Austrian as a regionbrand 

for economic success in all 

fields. 

The forum's main issues are 

innovation and regional development; 

focusing on the role of branding 

as link and indicator for investments 

and growth. 

As an integral part of future-oriented 

thinking and by connecting 

executives, project partners 

and entrepreneurs from different 

regions, the forum makes us all 

better prepared to face future challenges 

and recognize upcoming 

opportunities. 

I therefore warmly thank and 

congratulate the organizers of the 

14th International Business and 

Investment Forum for their active 

engagement and wish them and 

the participants all the best and an 

inspiring event. 



Fotos: istockphoto.com

Federal Ministry for Digital and Economic Affairs 

Foreword 

iconvienna _ Veranderung 

braucht Vision, 

Innovation und Mut 

: 

Dr. Margarete Schramböck 

Bundesministerin für Digitalisierung und Wirtschaftsstandort 

Federal Minister for Digital and Economic Affairs 

Veränderungen sind ein Grundprinzip 

unserer Welt. Sie eröffnen Zukunftschancen, 

inspirieren zu neuen Handlungsmaximen 

und geben Impulse 

für innovative Entscheidungen. Im Moment 

erleben wir eine Phase der guten Konjunktur 

und die Prognosen sind nach langer 

Zeit wieder erfreulich. Der Erfolg von heute 

überträgt sich aber nicht automatisch auf 

morgen. Dazu braucht es Vision, Innovation 

und Mut. Die erfolgreiche Verknüpfung von 

Digitalisierung und Wirtschaft wird eine 

tragende Rolle spielen - denn beide Bereiche 

sind entscheidend für die Entwicklung 

unseres Landes und unserer Zukunft. 

Was wir bislang im Zuge des digitalen 

Wandels erlebt haben, macht deutlich, wie 

sehr sich die Welt in den letzten Jahren 

verändert hat. Diese Entwicklung ist 

zugleich Auftrag an die Politik, aber auch 

an alle Unternehmen und Entscheidungsträger, 

Österreich und unsere Wirtschaft 

an die veränderten Rahmenbedingungen 

anzupassen. 

Mein Ziel als Bundesministerin für Digitalisierung 

und Wirtschaftsstandort ist, 

Österreich gezielt als Standort für internationale 

Konzerne, innovative Start-ups und 

kreative Köpfe zu platzieren und die Herausforderungen 

der Zukunft zu meistern. 

Ich bin davon überzeugt, dass nur Innovationen 

sowie der Blick nach vorne die Welt 

verändern und positiv weiterentwickeln 

werden. Ob die Digitalisierung eine Erfolgsgeschichte 

wird, ist nicht nur eine Frage der 

Technik, sondern vor allem des Mindsets. 

Als Plattform für internationale 

Top-Entscheidungsträger verkörpert die 

iconvienna die Grundidee „Make Contacts 

to Contracts“ und schafft impulsgebenden 

Austausch. Sie ist ein Platz für Visionen 

und neue Perspektiven und bietet Gelegenheit 

zur Vernetzung nationaler und internationaler 

Entscheidungsträger. 

Ich wünsche allen Teilnehmerinnen und 

Teilnehmern spannende und informative 

Tage in Wien bei der 14. iconvienna unter 

dem Motto "Innovation needs Branding - 

Branding needs Innovation". Nutzen Sie 

ihren Aufenthalt in Wien - um gemeinsam 

neue Visionen und Pläne zu diskutieren, 

um unsere Zukunft positiv zu gestalten. 

Foto: Christian Lendl 




Lower Austria 

Foreword 

Niederosterreich ist 

ein guter Boden, um 

wirtschaftlich tatig 

: 

: 

Foto: BMI/Alexander TUMA 

zu sein 

Mag. Johanna Mikl-Leitner 

Landeshauptfrau von Niederösterreich 

Governor of Lower Austria 

Der niederösterreichische Wirtschaftsmotor 

läuft auf Hochtouren, überall 

im Land sind die Auftragsbücher 

voll: Im Vorjahr lagen wir mit einem 

Wirtschaftswachstum von 2,9 Prozent deutlich 

über dem Österreich-Schnitt von 2,2 

Prozent, das Exportvolumen für das erste 

Halbjahr 2017 betrug 11 Milliarden Euro, 

eine Steigerung von 9 Prozent, womit Niederösterreich 

im Bundesländervergleich 

im Bereich der Zuwachsrate auf Platz zwei 

liegt. Bei der Kaufkraft liegt Niederösterreich 

sogar auf Platz eins. 

Niederösterreich ist also ein guter Boden, 

um wirtschaftlich tätig zu sein, Unternehmen 

zu gründen, Betriebe anzusiedeln oder 

bestehende Betriebsstätten zu erweitern - 

nicht umsonst wurde unser Bundesland im 

Vorjahr als „Europäische Unternehmerregion“ 

ausgezeichnet. Das zeigt, dass unsere 

Konzepte die richtigen sind und dass man 

auch als kleines Land den Wettbewerb mit 

den Großen nicht scheuen braucht. 

Auf diesen Erfolgen dürfen wir uns 

aber nicht ausruhen – wer in die Zukunft 

blickt, muss die Standortqualität weiter 

ausbauen. Zur Weiterentwicklung des Wirtschaftsstandortes 

sind dabei insbesondere 

Maßnahmen in den Bereichen Digitalisierung, 

Deregulierung und Dezentralisierung 

unumgänglich. Und dafür brauchen wir das 

Knowhow möglichst vieler Experten, so wie 

sie hier bei der iconvienna versammelt sind. 

Als Landeshauptfrau von Niederösterreich 

darf ich daher alle Teilnehmerinnen 

und Teilnehmer dieses Business-Forums 

recht herzlich begrüßen und Sie einladen, 

sich mit ihrem Pionier-, Innovations- und 

Unternehmergeist einzubringen, Kontakte 

auszubauen und das Motto „Contacts to 

Contracts“ mit Leben zu erfüllen. Von 

diesen Inputs profitiert nicht zuletzt auch 

der Wirtschaftsstandort Niederösterreich. 

So wünsche ich der iconvienna 2018 

einen spannenden und informativen Verlauf. 

Wenn es Ihre Zeit zulässt, würde 

ich mich freuen, Sie im Anschluss in Niederösterreich 

begrüßen zu können. Sie 

werden sich dabei von einer unserer ganz 

besonders großen Stärken überzeugen 

können - dem Miteinander des Landes mit 

den Wirtschaftstreibenden, den Unternehmerinnen, 

Unternehmern und Betrieben. 



Foto: WKO

Austrian Federal Economic Chamber 

Foreword 

iconvienna − 

The highlevel 

Branding event 

in Vienna 

Dr. Christoph Leitl 

President Austrian Federal 

Economic Chamber 

Foto: Doris Kucera 

Few other events can measure up to the 

level of iconvienna, which has established 

itself over the years as one of the 

key conferences for leading decisionmakers. 

I am proud that the fourteenth edition 

of this prestigious forum is again taking 

place at the premises of the Austrian Federal 

Economic Chamber. 

Due to its geographic location, Austria– 

and particularly the city of Vienna–has 

always served as a meeting point and hub for 

companies and institutions from all over the 

region from the West to the East and Southeast 

of Europe. 

The aim of iconvienna is the effective promotion 

of branding in different applications 

in public and private cases. In this context, 

this year’s focus on Innovative Entrepreneurship 

covers such important issues as financing 

measures, regional development and 

cooperation. Moreover, the programme brings 

high potentials and entrepreneurs from Central 

and Eastern Europe together on one table. 

It offers them a unique opportunity to discuss 

recent developments, bring in new ideas. 

Another topic of iconvienna 2018 is how 

brands create economic growth, which I consider 

to be one of the most crucial arguments 

for establishing internationally protected 

brands and Know-how. Information Communication 

Technology, Big Data and innovative 

apps enhance the globalization and promotion 

of brands and Know-how and creates the 

necessity to develop innovative approaches 

and cross-border solutions. 

Undoubtedly, iconvienna offers knowledge 

update, high-level presentations and topnotch 

expert discussions. Hardly anywhere 

else can one connect with so many international 

experts and business people, develop 

international business relations and create 

cross-border friendships. 




Vienna Chamber of Commerce and Industry 

Foreword 

Internationales Netz 

enger knupfen 

DI Walter Ruck 

Präsident der Wirtschaftskammer Wien 

President Vienna Chamber of 

Commerce and Industry 

Foto: G. Weinkirn 

Wir leben in einer dynamischen 

Zeit. Wirtschaft, 

Arbeitsplätze, Wachstum 

und Wohlstand sind 

in einem engen Kreislauf miteinander 

verbunden – nicht nur national, 

sondern längst global. Umso 

wichtiger ist es, das internationale 

Netz enger zu knüpfen. Iconvienna 

- das Europäische Business und 

Investment Forum - hat sich als 

verbindende Plattform bewährt. 

Als Präsident der Wirtschaftskammer 

Wien freut es mich besonders, 

dass unsere schöne Bundeshauptstadt 

wieder Experten aus aller 

Welt begrüßen darf. Österreich 

liegt im Herzen Europas und ist die 

Drehscheibe in den Osten. Umso 

wichtiger ist es für uns als kleine 

Volkswirtschaft die Kontakte zwischen 

heimischen und internationalen 

Firmen zu verbessern und 

unseren eigenen Standort noch 

besser zu positionieren. 

In diesem Sinne wünsche ich 

allen Teilnehmern interessante 

Tage bei iconvienna 2018, spannende 

Vorträge und vor allem viele 

neue Kontakte nach dem Motto 

„make contacts to contracts“. 



Foto: Embassy of Argentinia Foto: istockphoto.com

Argentinia 

Greetings 

Argentina today _ 

seize the moment 

H.E. Rafael Mariano Grossi 

Ambassador of Argentinia to Austria 

It is a great pleasure for the Argentine 

Republic to participate again in Central 

Europe’s prominent investment 

forum iconvienna. 

The Argentine economy is once 

again on the path to sustainable 

growth. The more than 43 million 

inhabitants of the world’s eighth-largest 

country generate a GDP of approx. 

550 billion USD. The country offers a 

modern infrastructure as well as major 

investment opportunities in all regions 

and economic sectors. 

Argentina is one of the world’s leading 

food producers, featuring amongst 

the world’s largest producers of lemons 

and limes, corn, soybeans, soy meal 

and soybean oil, sunflower, sorghum, 

barley as well as wheat. 

Argentina enjoys abundant natural 

reserves, amongst them the fourth-largest 

shale oil and the second-largest 

shale gas reserves. Alongside its natural 

resources, Argentina has a vibrant 

industrial sector. Beverages, food 

processing, chemical and pharmaceutical 

products, coke fuel, oil refining, 

motor vehicles and automotive components 

as well as nuclear fuel manufacturing, 

appear as the most important 

ones. 

Above all economic indicators, 

Argentina is proud of its highly qualified 

human capital: every year, approx. 

110.000 students graduate from Argentine 

universities. The country ranks 

first in Latin America’s Human Development 

Index. 

President Macri’s administration 

has undergone a series of reforms to 

stabilize the economy and opening it to 

the world, providing a solid foundation 

for growth and inversions. 

We invite you to be part of this 

transformation! 

Foto: Embassy of Argentinia 



Fotos: Embassy of Bolivia

Bolivia 

Greetings 

Dear readers! 

H.E. Dipl. Ing. Victor Alfredo Veltzé Michel 

Ambassador of Bolivia 

to Austria, Croatia, Hungary and Slovakia 

B 

olivia has, during the Presidency of Mr. Evo 

Morales in 2006, experimented a radical structural 

change (Proceso de Cambio). Before Bolivia 

was the poorest country of the Region. Natural 

resources have been exploited since colonial occupation 

in 1525. Alone from the richest Silver Mountain “Cerro 

de Potosi” 40,000 Million ounces of Silver have been 

extracted and sent to Europe in 250 years. At the Republican 

time, since 1825 the natural resources, mostly Tin, 

Gold, Silver and Gas were controlled by Multinational 

Companies leaving Bolivia in a complete misery. The 

first decision of President Morales in 2006, (elected with 

54%) changed the rule of the game. The Oil and Mine 

Companies were taken 80 % of the revenues and 20 % 

for Bolivia. He changed to 80 % for the Government and 

20 % for the Companies. Suddenly Bolivia became rich 

and started to develop programs mainly for the sake of 

the poorest. 

Another grave situation was the invasion of the Chilean 

army guided by British interests and the loss of the 

Atacama Province in 1869 (The richest zone in the world 

for Cooper.) and our access to the Sea. Numerous negotiations 

and suggestions by World Personalities during 

130 years have been made without solution. President 

Morales than presented a demand to the International 

Court of Justice in 2013. A decision is expected this year, 

hopefully to restore the land lock situation. 

The Bolivian economic model is, growing fast economy 

in the region, represented in the social programs, 

health and wealth distribution, infrastructure building, 

industrialization of the natural resources. Lithium, natural 

gas, iron, petrochemicals will be developed. Bolivia 

will be a major player of South American energy production. 

Ten million hectares by 2025 to increase agricultural 

and cattle production. Extreme poverty was 

reduced from 62.9% to 9.9%. Built more than 12,000 

schools, lowest unemployment rate in the region 4,48%. 

Access to drinking water and electricity; Illiteracy been 

eradicated; and second in the world on gender equality 

in the Government. With a permanent growth of 5% 

annual till 2020. 

Tourism is part of the economic engine: The Dakar 

Rally, the most unique Salar de Uyuni (Salt Lake) .Lake 

Titicaca, the Amazon, the savannah, Chaco, Carnival of 

Oruro. The Colonial Cities: Potosi, Sucre, Dinosaur Park. 

The new Project of President Morales is the construction 

of the Bi-Oceanic Railway between the Atlantic and 

Pacific Ocean passing through Brazil – Bolivia – Peru, 

The Cable car constructed in La Paz by the Austrian 

Doppelmayr has become the Star Project in Latin America. 

Bolivia is beautiful and expect that more Austrian 

companies get engaged with the Bolivian projects and 

host more Austrian tourist. 

Foto: Embassy of Bolivia 




Bulgaria 

Greetings 

United We Stand Strong! 

H.E. Dr. Ivan Sirakov 

Ambassador of the Republic of Bulgaria to Austria 

It gives me great pleasure to address 

you on the pages of iconannual at 

the same beginning of 2018. As from 

the 1st of January 2018, for first time 

since it became a Member of the EU 

in 2007, Bulgaria took over the Presidency 

of the Council of EU. It is a big 

challenge but also a great responsibility 

for my country and its administration. 

I am sure that with its firm 

commitment to consensus, compromise 

and understanding among the 

Member States, Bulgaria will master 

this important task. 

The main focus of our Presidency 

is placed on several issues we consider 

essential for the future development 

of the Union: the European perspective 

and connectivity of the Western 

Balkans; the Future of Europe and the 

young people – economic growth and 

social cohesion; security and stability 

in a strong and united Europe; digital 

economy and skills needed for the 

future. 

Bulgaria’s Presidency runs under 

the motto: “United We Stand Strong”. 

As an ambassador I am very glad to 

see this principle fully shared in the 

framework of intensive cooperation 

with Austria, which will take over the 

Presidency of the EU Council in the 

second half of the 2018. 

The joint aim we have will very 

soon find an unexpected expression 

in the form of an impressive art project 

in the city center of Sofia named 

“The Bronze House”. The author of 

the 14 meter high sculpture of about 

70 tons of bronze elements is a Bulgarian 

artist, the installation, supported 

by the Austrian side and the Sofia 

municipality, is to remain until the 

end of 2018. 

Let me take the occasion to wish all 

of you a Happy New Year, well-being 

and prosperity to Austria and Bulgaria 

in a united Europe. 

Foto: Romanian Embassy 




China 

Greetings 

Werte Leserinnen 

und Leser! 

H. E. Li Xiaosi 

Ambassador of the People's Republic 

of China to Austria 

Die EU und China sind wichtige Partner 

in Handels-, Investitionzusammenarbeit. 

Beide Seiten haben 2017 eine Handelsbilanz 

in Höhe von 616,9 Mrd. USD erzielt. 

Das Kapital, die Technologie und die Managementerfahrungen 

aus Europa helfen China bei 

der Industrialisierung; die chinesischen Produkte 

verschaffen europäischen Konsumenten 

neue Auswahlmöglichkeiten, der chinesische 

Markt bringt 16,000 europäischen Unternehmen, 

die in China investiert haben, Gewinne 

und chinesische Unternehmen schaffen in 

Europa viele Arbeitsplätze. 

Seit 40 Jahren der Einführung der Reformund 

Öffnungspolitik ist China die zweitgrößte 

Volkswirtschaft der Welt geworden und hat 

in den letzten 5 Jahren jährlich über 30% des 

Weltwirtschaftswachstums beigesteuert. In den 

nächsten 15 Jahren wird China voraussichtlich 

Waren im Wert von 24 Billionen USD importieren, 

2 Billionen USD Investitionen aus dem 

Ausland erhalten und genauso viel im Ausland 

investieren. 

China ist der fünftgrößte Handelspartner 

Österreichs und der Handelsaustausch stellte 

2017 mit 8,4 Mrd. USD einen neuen Rekord 

auf. Die chinesischen Unternehmen haben in 

Österreich mit mehr als 40 Projekt über 800 

Mio. USD investiert. Österreichs Investitionen 

in China betragen ca. 2 Mrd. USD und wickeln 

dabei 1,200 Projekte ab. Finanzinstitute beider 

Länder haben mehrere Kooperationsabkommen 

unterzeichnet. Nach Bank of China wird 

nun auch das größte chinesische Geldinstitut 

ICBC eine Filiale in Österreich eröffnen. 

China ist bereit, mit Österreich in Bereichen 

wie Highend-Industrie, Energieeffizienz, 

Umweltschutz, Wintersport, Biolandwirtschaft, 

internationalem Online-Handel, „Belt 

& Road“ enger zu kooperieren. Dank unserer 

gemeinsamen Anstrengungen können wir 

die chinesisch-österreichischen und chinesisch-europäischen 

Beziehungen, insbesondere 

unsere Zusammenarbeit in den Bereichen Wirtschaft, 

Handel und Investition auf ein neues 

Nivaeu heben. 

Foto: Embassy of the People's Republic of China 

Ich wünsche dem 14. European Business & 

Investment Forum viel Erfolg! 



Fotos: Embassy of Costa Rica

Costa Rica 

Greetings 

Costa Rica: 

much more than its 

famously natural beauty 

Foto: Embassy of Costa Rica 

H.E. Pilar Saborio de Rocafort 

Ambassador of Costa Rica to Austria 

Costa Rica provides ideal conditions 

for long-term and low risk investments 

across different business sectors. 

Public and private trading partners 

throughout the world have discovered 

the competiveness of Costa Rica as one of 

the most stable and reliable economies in 

Latin America. 

Our country stands for sustainable, 

responsible and high quality production, 

and offers industrial parks and a robust 

infrastructure. Costa Rica holds a strategic 

position in international trade thanks to its 

close proximity to the US, and its preferential 

access to many other markets in the 

world. Companies and investors benefit 

from our human capital and the targetted 

educational programmes to fit the need of 

each industry. 

The country enjoys a leading position in 

the advanced manufacturing and life science 

sectors, which is based on a well-established 

educational system and qualified 

workforce, a key component of Costa Rica’s 

success in developing a thriving high-tech 

industry embedded in the Global Value 

Chains. As a result, Costa Rica is at the 

forefront of production-process sophistication, 

and its manufacturing is distinguished 

by its high level of complexity and 

the diversity of products. The manufacturing 

sector has grown significantly since 

2000. The numbers of companies and the 

employment rates have doubled since, and 

productivity has increased by 40%. 

By fostering scientific research, Costa 

Rica has established a solid life-science 

and pharmaceutical industry with more 

than 3500 direct employees. Over 90% 

percent of companies’ shares are owned by 

public institutions that support an exceptional 

free public healthcare system. The 

industry has grown over 280% within the 

last decade, and medical devices are the 

number one export good, accounting for 4% 

of the national GDP. 

In short, Costa Rica is a top investment 

destination thanks, amongst other factors, 

to its proven track record, stability and 

investment incentives, which range from 

fast track immigration procedures, and 

transparent, expedite online customs services 

to the most attractive tax incentive 

package in Latin America. 



Foto: Cuban Embassy

Cuba 

Greetings 

Foreign investment 

opportunities in Cuba 

H. E. Juan Antonio Fernández Palacios 

Ambassador of the Republic of Cuba to Austria and Permanent 

Representative to the United Nations Office at Vienna and the 

International Organizations based in Austria. 

Transforming the economy and achieving 

a prosperous, efficient and sustainable 

society is Cuba’s aim. In order to do 

so, foreign investment is a fundamental 

source of development and an essential part of 

the country’s current strategy. 

Last November, at the 35th Havana International 

Fair, was presented the latest edition 

of the Cuba’s Portfolio of Foreign Investment 

Opportunities 2017-2018, which contains 456 

project proposals representing about $11 billion 

in potential foreign investment into sectors 

such as tourism, biotechnology, construction, 

energy, agriculture, and mining. 

The touristic sector includes 152 projects 

about building and marketing top-quality 

villas and hotels in various regions; hotel management 

and commercialization contracts; 

marina management agreements. 

The energy sector includes 13 projects 

based on the development of renewable energy 

sources. Among them are wind farms, 11 bioelectrical 

plants, and 100MW photovoltaic 

solar farms, with 50MW accumulation. 

The pharmaceutical industry and biotechnology 

sector includes 15 projects: production 

of vaccines for cancer treatment; plants for 

blood-based products, biomaterials, cytostatic, 

oral contraceptive pills and hormones, and 

avian vaccines. 

The health sector includes 2 projects: quality 

of life services, the creation of an international 

clinic for sports medicine, anti-doping 

control and education. 

The Mariel Special Development Zone 

(ZEDM) provides a world-class production and 

logistics platform for the establishment of companies, 

whose productions and services can be 

traded in the domestic market or exported. 

The Cuba´s Portfolio of Foreign Investment 

Opportunities details the country’s investment 

advantages, legal structures, and expectations 

from foreign investors. Each investment 

proposal includes information on the 

project’s location, estimated costs, nature of 

partnership with Cuban parties, and contact 

information. 

Foto: Cuban Embassy 

The doors to Cuba are opened. Welcome. 



Fotos: Embassy of the Dominian Republic

Dominican Republic 

Greetings 

The Dominican Republic, 

an investment destination 

H. E. Lourdes Victoria-Kruse 

Ambassador of the Dominican Republic to Austria and Permanent 

Representative to International Organizations 

I 

would like to thank the European Business and 

Investment Forum iconvienna 2018, chaired by Dr. 

Gerhard Hrebicek and their outstanding team for 

their kind invitation to participate in this important 

event, which provides us the opportunity to promote 

our countries from a cultural, touristic and above all, 

commercial perspective. 

The Dominican Republic, in addition to being the 

leader of the Caribbean and one of the main countries 

of Latin America in the field of tourism, also wishes 

to be recognized for its development and advances 

in terms of innovation. While it is true that tourism 

and free zones represent the main locomotives of the 

Dominican Republic’s economy, innovation and technology 

have been fortified in a fast and competitive 

diversified manner, an action that has contributed 

greatly to consolidate our economy as one of the fastest 

growing economies in the American continent 

over the last decades. 

Through its publications “Doing Business”, related 

to business opportunities, the World Bank has emphasized 

the Dominican Republic among one of the fastest 

countries in the process of electronic connections 

and the least expensive tax payments. We have combined 

electronic and information technology in order 

to make the production processes more effective, 

which has led to major progress. The Cybernetic Park 

in Santo Domingo has greatly aided this development 

and after two decades it has become the main innovation 

and knowledge center in the Caribbean. Currently, 

this institution is recognized as the “Caribbean 

Silicon Valley” and it is fostered by the best talents of 

the educational, corporate and governmental sectors. 

Today, the Dominican Republic continues to 

develop and diversify its growth in order to keep and 

increase its competitiveness in the region and the 

continent, facing the future with a productive inclusion 

in the labor market, skilled and equitable human 

resources and greater connections between foreign 

investments and the domestic economy in pursuance 

of all the public, private, social and academic global 

actor’s integration. 

On behalf of the Dominican government I wish the 

greatest success for this event! 

Foto: Embassy of the Dominian Republic 



Fotos: Embassy of Ecuador

Ecuador 

Greetings 

Ecuador, a country 

of opportunities 

H.E. Carlos A. Jativa 

Ambassador of Ecuador to Austria and Permanent 

Representative to International Organizations 

It is with great pleasure that I extend my 

congratulations to the organizers of the 

new edition of iconvienna, as an important 

forum for promoting entrepreneurship 

and investment. 

As the President of Ecuador, Lenín 

Moreno, has said "we must just not produce 

to create wealth… we must produce 

to promote well-being". 

The capabilities developed in recent 

years have allowed Ecuador to become 

first for the quality of its highways, and 

one of the top three countries in the 

region with the best infrastructure for 

ports and airports, according to the World 

Economic Forum. 

90% of our electricity comes from 

renewable sources thanks to the eight 

hydroelectric megaprojects that have been 

built in 9 years with an investment of 5,5 

billion dollars. Ecuador not only produces 

energy efficiently; it also exports it to Peru 

and Colombia. 

Ecuador is currently negotiating 

agreements with its major partners. An 

important step was the entry into force 

in January 2017 of the Multiparty Trade 

Agreement with the European Union. 

The treaty has contributed for more clarity, 

transparency and predictability to our 

economic relations. As a result, Ecuadorian 

exports to the EU have increased in 

more than 15% in the last year. 

Why then you should invest in Ecuador? 

A dollarized economy contributes 

to economic stability and low inflation. 

Political, legal and tax stability, investments 

contracts, tax incentives, developed 

logistics and a growing highly 

skilled human talent in a country rich in 

natural resources (mining, hydrocarbons, 

water, agriculture, aquaculture), all serve 

the purpose of attaining the objective of 

transitioning from an exporter of commodities 

to an exporter focused on the 

entire value chain. For more information 

please visit http://investecuador.ec 

Foto: Embassy of Ecuador 



Fotos: Embassy of El Salvador

El Salvador 

Greetings 

El Salvador: 

Great like our people 

H.E. Lucía Rosella Badía 

Ambassador of El Salvador to Austria and 

Permanent Representative to UNO Vienna 

EL SALVADOR: GREAT LIKE OUR 

PEOPLE (MarcaPaisElSalvador @pais_ 

marca) is El Salvador’s new country 

brand, launched in 2017, promoting the 

country as the starting point of great projects, 

led by its most valuable asset: its people. With 

this initiative, El Salvador has a brand that 

represents Salvadorians in all their roles, and 

in all the positive traits they have and want the 

world to be known about. 

I look forward to this year’s iconvienna 

Brand Global Summit. Branding is essential 

for countries and companies, and strong 

brands have to be supported by good practices, 

always. The government of El Salvador 

has been working on this overall concept in 

order to promote identity, history, culture and 

opportunities for international business. 

Located in the center of the Americas, El 

Salvador is an exceptional location as a business 

hub. Beside our strategic location, our 

trade agreements allow preferential access to 

44 countries and around 1,200 million consumers. 

Also, El Salvador’s modern infrastructure 

interconnects the main cities in the region 

and enables efficient logistical operations. 

The World Bank’s Doing Business Indicators 

rank El Salvador as the 6th easiest country 

to do business in Latin America and 2nd 

in Central America. The current government 

worked in 2017 on improving construction 

permit procedures, availability of cost-efficient 

electricity rates, tax incentives and ease 

of trading across borders in order to create an 

even more friendly business atmosphere. 

In 2017, Private and Foreign Direct Investment 

increased mainly in the areas of energy, 

communications, construction, real estate 

and trade. We have developed a legal framework 

and incentives for investments, facilitating 

and guaranteeing their protection, in 

order to develop a long term relationship with 

our partners. 

Want to get to know El Salvador better? 

Visit us this November and attend El Salvador’s 

International Fair (@CIFCOSV), a networking 

platform for countries and companies 

interested in doing business not only in El Salvador, 

but in the region. 

Make sure to leave some free time to visit 

our tourism routes: sun and beach (high ranked 

surf spots), archaeological sites (Nahuat – Pipil 

inheritance) and volcanoes! 

Foto: Embassy of El Salvador 




Guatemala 

Greetings 

Guatemala _ the 

logistics and services 

center of the region! 

Foto: Embassy of Guatemala 

H. E. Antonio Roberto Castellanos López 

Ambassador of the Republic of Guatemala to Austria, 

Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia and Hungary 

As Ambassador of the Republic of Guatemala, 

the largest economy in Central 

America I have the honour to invite 

you to celebrate yet another year of 

iconvienna Magazine success. in promoting 

business and trade in Austria and central Europe. 

Guatemala's economic stability, steady 

growth and foreign investment promotion policies, 

offer significant opportunities for European 

Union business in sectors such as banking, clean 

energy, health, infrastructure and education. 

Facilitating access to the Meso-America 

Initiative, a market with a population of about 

70 million and a large regional economy, Guatemala 

has signed free-trade agreements with 

numerous countries in the American continent 

and overseas, including the Agreement of 

Association on Political and Economic Matters 

with the European Union 

The agricultural sector continues to grow 

together with other important industries, 

including sugar, textiles and clothing, furniture, 

chemicals, petroleum, metals and rubber. 

The energy sector presents important opportunities 

and attracts around 32 percent of the 

total investment in the country and now interlinked 

to SIEPAC (Central American Electrical 

Interconnection System), Guatemala has become 

an important energy exporter to the sub-region. 

There is still significant potential for 

investment in power generation and electricity 

distribution in rural areas and Guatemala 

also continues to produce biofuels, given the 

country's high yields of sugarcane and palm 

oil efficiently. 

Guatemala is the logistics and services center 

of the region, thanks to its road network and 

efficient ports on the Pacific Ocean and Caribbean 

Sea, along with renewed airport facilities. 

The Multimodal Plan of Works of Priority 

Infrastructure, contemplates the development 

of infrastructure by air, land and optic fiber to 

interconnect the country with the world. Guatemala 

is attracting more than US$1.3 billion 

in investments through a portfolio of six Public-Private 

Partnership infrastructure projects 

that will see the construction of an industrial 

park on the border with Mexico. 



Fotos: Italienische Zentrale für Tourismus ENIT/Wien

Italy 

Greetings 

Italy _ a strategic 

gateway 

H.E. Sergio Barbanti 

Ambassador of Italy to Austria 

Foto: Embassy of Italy 

As Ambassador of Italy to Austria I am 

glad to offer you an overview of the 

investment advantages in Italy. 

Italy is the 3 rd largest economy 

of the Eurozone and 9 th largest in the world. 

It has a 2017 GDP of over 1.9 trillion dollars, 

bigger than Russia, and a population of over 60 

million with a per capita GDP of 31,000 USD. 

Italy is a strategic gateway to 420 million 

consumers in the E.U., after Brexit, and 270 

million in northern Africa and the Middle 

East. It links Southern Europe to Central and 

Eastern Europe. 

Italy is the 2nd largest manufacturing 

economy in Europe after Germany, and the 

8th largest globally. Italy has top positions 

for trade surplus in 899 products out of 5,117 

marketed goods. Research and innovation 

are key elements of Italian excellence. 

The following recent reforms have further 

improved this excellent basis: 

• Tax credit schemes for companies: 25% 

to 50% tax credit for investments in R&D, 

15% tax credit for investments in machinery/capital 

goods. Tax credits for employing 

technical and scientific researchers. 

Further public incentives for new investments 

in manufacturing and R&D, especially 

in the South. 

• Strict control on the public finance with 

deficits under 3% 

• Civil justice reforms to make it smoother 

and faster 

Multinational companies do well in Italy: 

they employ 11% of workers, produce 20% 

of the domestic turnover and export 26% of 

national exports. They have a higher presence 

in high-tech sectors, high-level services, 

and among the largest companies. The FDI 

Confidence Index, Italy ranked 16th in 2017 

(19th in 2016). 

The Italian Trade Commission (ITA) is 

a lead agency for all major investments, 

responsible for promoting Italy as a business 

location and attracting FDI. 

For any further requests, please contact us 

in Vienna (vienna@ice.it) or in Rome (coordinamento.ide@ice.it). 



Fotos: Embassy of Nicaragua

Nicaragua 

Greetings 

Nicaragua _ an excellent 

investment and tourist 

destination 

H. E. Álvaro José Robelo González 

Ambassador of Nicaragua to Austria, Liechtenstein, 

San Marino, Greece, Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates 

The Embassy of Nicaragua expresses its appreciation 

and gratitude for the possibility to participate 

once again in iconvienna, the European Business 

and Investment Forum. 

In the recent years Nicaragua has become a country 

of international attraction due to the favourable conditions 

offered to ease investment and to the sustained 

economic growth that has resulted from disciplined 

management of fiscal, financial and monetary policies. 

There is a constant effort of the Nicaraguan Government, 

to collaborate with the private sector in order to 

improve macro-economic policies, promote entrepreneurship 

and boost commercial activities. This is why 

I invite you to explore Nicaragua, one of the most captivating 

countries in Central America for investors. 

A clear advantage for investors is the fact that over 

the last years Nicaragua has consolidated itself as the 

safest country in Central America and that it has become 

an active participant of the global market while being 

member of different organizations, such as the World 

Trade Organization (WTO) and also through a variety of 

agreements like the Multilateral Investment Guarantee 

Agency of the World Bank (MIGA). All these arrangements 

and norms regulate the commercial relations 

between Nicaragua and the world, making the country 

a favourable destination for investments and economic 

development allowing better business opportunities. 

In 2016 total exports accounted for US$4.84 billion 

and the influx of foreign direct investment totalled 

US$1.44 billion. As it is well known, education 

is a primary source of development and the 

Nicaraguan Government has allocated approximately 

22% of the gross domestic product to invest in primary, 

secondary and higher education. 

Nicaragua's population is characterized as flexible, 

with good working habits and low rates of absenteeism. 

This has allowed Nicaragua to be one of the most competitive 

and productive nations of the region in terms of 

human capital. 

In addition to being a country with great business 

opportunities and high safety, I would like to draw the 

attention to the potential of my country as a holiday destination. 

Nicaragua is a beautiful nation with wonderful 

beaches, lakes and volcanoes providing an excellent 

experience for those living there. The state compromises 

720km of coastline in the Pacific and Atlantic, 28 volcanic 

formations, more than 10,000km2 of lakes, lagoons 

and rivers, with the second largest lake in Latin America, 

which holds appealing islands within that lake. It 

has more than 22,088km2 of natural reserve and colonial 

cities of great cultural richness, among which Granada 

stands out, being one of the oldest cities founded in the 

Americas. The tourism sector has experienced strong 

growth, turning it into one of the most dynamic economic 

segments of the country's economy. 

The combination of these features, along with 

high public safety levels make Nicaragua an 

excellent investment and tourist destination to 

be discovered and enjoyed. 

Nicaragua is unique! 

Foto: Embassy of Nicaragua 




Panama 

Greetings 

Panama, the great 

connection 

H.E. Paulina Franceschi Navarro, Ph.D. 

Ambassador of the Republic of Panama to Austria 

We are proud of contributing to 

iconvienna 2018. It’s an opportunity 

to promote our countries and 

share with you our heritage, history, 

potential and culture. 

Panama will lead the economic growth in 

the region in 2018, projected to be 5.6% according 

to World Bank estimates, more than double 

the regional average, complemented by less 

than one percent of inflation, with a dollarized 

economy and a political stability of three 

decades. We are the natural gateway that connects 

you to the Latin American market, our 

geographic location is the keystone of our value 

proposition; having two of the most active ports 

of the region, each moving more than 3 million 

TEU, some of which are filled with our famous 

“Geisha” coffee, number one in the world. 

Tocumen International Airport connects you 

to more than 100 cities around the world. In 

your next business travel to Latin America, most 

likely you will stop in Panama to reconnect via 

COPA Airlines to countries in the region. 

The Panama Canal, an engineering masterpiece 

that has been called "The Eighth Wonder 

of the World", provides the highest level of maritime 

routes. Seven submarine cables of optical 

fibre cross the country through which 100% 

of the regional and 97% of international voice 

traffic goes through, and 90 % of electronic data 

is transmitted. 

Panama portrays itself as “The great connection,” 

and it opens the door to a market of more 

than 500 million people. Logistics and government 

incentives have helped Panama to attract 

more than 122 multinational corporations to 

set their headquarters in the isthmus, many of 

them European companies. But we are more 

than movement of cargo, planes and data: we 

also move people, ideas and cultural exchange. 

Panama has a lot to offer: history, culture, 

biodiversity, tropical forests, beaches, mountains, 

exquisite gastronomy, stable and open 

market tailored for your investment, and a melting 

pot of native and multi-ethnic people who 

embrace challenges. 

We divided our territory to unite the world! 

Foto: Embassy of Panama 



Foto: istockphoto.com Foto: Romanian Embassy

Romania 

Greetings 

Romania _ a dynamic 

business environment! 

H. E. Bogdan Mazuru 

Ambassador of Romania to Austria 

Congratulations to iconvienna for bringing 

together investment and business 

ideas through this platform of cooperation. 

We cannot speak about investments 

without mentioning the word innovation. 

The European Union and the member 

states cannot lag behind in a world where 

competition becomes fierce. We should 

innovate more and invest more, at home and 

abroad. We should become an active global 

investor. There is no time to wait or to waste. 

Romania encourages a dynamic business 

environment through state subsidies granted 

to start-ups, small and medium enterprises, 

state aid schemes for big investments, fiscal 

facilities for companies. Exemption from 

income tax for reinvested profit, exemption 

from income tax for profit obtained in research 

activities, exemption from income tax 

for employees working in IT or research 

fields are some of the fiscal facilities available 

to companies investing in Romania. 

In the past years, Romania became a key 

investment destination for the IT, automotive 

industry and services (Business Process 

Outsourcing and Shared Service Centers). 

Over the next years, we expect this trend to 

continue. Romania’s labor force in this field 

is highly qualified. This is one of our competitive 

advantages in the region. 

During the first half of 2019, Romania 

will hold, for the first time, the Presidency 

of the Council of the EU. It represents an 

opportunity to promote initiatives to foster 

investment and innovation. The incentives 

for the business environment will be one 

of our main goals during the Presidency. 

Conditions and state policies for start-ups, 

small and medium enterprises need to be 

developed in order to have a sustainable economic 

growth in the European Union. The 

European Union plays an essential role in 

fostering investments. The economic cooperation 

among the EU member states brought 

prosperity to the European citizens and lay 

the foundations for the start-ups and technological 

innovation, which is the future of our 

economies. 

Foto: Romanian Embassy 




Russian Federation 

Greetings 

Dear readers! 

H. E. Dmitry Lyubinskiy 

Ambassador of the Russian Federation to Austria 

On behalf of the Embassy of the Russian 

Federation in Austria I am delighted to 

welcome the participants of the 14th 

European Business and Investment 

Forum, which has been known for many years 

as an important platform for developing business 

ties, securing investments and expanding 

contacts network. 

The Russian Federation, despite certain 

challenges in the past several years, once again 

achieved by the end of 2017 economic growth 

and an increase in industrial production while 

maintaining a low level of inflation. In order 

to grasp the significant progress of the Russian 

economy it is necessary to consider the pace 

of the changes: since the year 2000 the GDP 

has increased by 75%, industrial production – 

by 60%, the average income of the citizens has 

more than tripled. The vast opportunities for 

foreign investors are defined by the diversity 

of spheres of our economy, varying from agriculture 

and extraction of mineral resources to 

sophisticated IT-services and space exploration. 

Russia has always been a reliable business 

partner of the European states. Just last year, 

despite the imposed sanctions, we achieved a 

24,2% growth of the bilateral trading of goods 

with the EU. Russian-Austrian relations serve 

as an example of what can be achieved when 

there is a mutual will to cooperate. By the end 

of the first half of 2017 the amount of Russian 

investments in the Austrian economy totaled 

at $22,9 billion, Austrian partners invested 

$4,7 billion in our economy. There are more 

than 1200 companies from Austria currently 

doing business in and with Russia. 

These positive trends along with Russia's 

rightfully earned reputation as a reliable business 

partner have been recognized by the 

international community as well. Our country 

received an honor to host the Winter Olympic 

Games in 2014 and is fully prepared to welcome 

this year football fans from around the 

globe to FIFA World Cup, which will take place 

in 11 Russian cities. Events of such scale contribute 

to further development and modernization 

of the infrastructure and provide endless 

opportunities for investors. 

We also welcome new foreign business 

partners and wish them a successful start in 

Russia! 

Foto: Richard Pobaschnig 


Ideas 

that 

work 

An idea that became a success. The most advanced navigation system Sygic GPS 

Navigation, trusted by an incredible 150 million users around the world, comes from 

Slovakia. This leading navigation software contains the latest innovative functions that 

make travel easy. Every day it has hundreds of thousands of new users. Drive straight 

to your destination in safety – that’s a Good Idea! 

Nápad premenený na úspech. Najpokročilejšia navigácia Sygic GPS Navigation, ktorej dôveruje 

neuveriteľných 150 miliónov používateľov po celom svete pochádza zo Slovenska. Špičkový 

navigačný softvér obsahuje najmodernejšie inovatívne funkcie, ktoré sa starajú o komfort 

cestujúcich. Denne mu pribúdajú státisíce nových užívateľov. Ísť vždy bezpečne a priamo 

za svojim cieľom – to je dobrý nápad! 

Making Ideas 

Happen 

The childhood dream of a flying car has come true! An autonomous hybrid 

vehicle capable of flying has been developed by Slovak company AeroMobil 

and will soon be commercially available. Investing in ideas in Slovakia 

pays off - Good Idea Slovakia! 

Detské sny o aute, ktoré dokáže lietať sa menia na skutočnosť! Hybridné vozidlo 

s možnosťou letu a perspektívne už aj s autonómnym riadením, ktoré vyvíja slovenská 

firma AeroMobil má byť už čoskoro komerčne dostupné. Investovať do nápadov 

na Slovensku sa oplatí - Good Idea Slovakia! 


PHOTO: THE EUROPEAN UNION

Slovakia 

Greetings 

Good Idea Slovakia! 

H. E. Mr. Peter Mišík 

Ambassador of the Republic of Slovakia to Austria 

T 

his year, for the first time as the Ambassador, 

it is an honor for me to congratulate 

iconvienna on the success of the Forum, 

which is a unique platform for business 

network providing excellent opportunities for 

investment and business in key sectors. 

Within this year’s headline “Innovation 

needs branding – Branding needs innovation” 

allow me to emphasize that building a successful 

brand is about quality, service, innovation 

and differentiation. 

Let me attract your attention by presenting 

Slovak Brands, for which Branding means Innovation. 

ESET, one of the world´s biggest IT security 

companies, has been developing its own technologies 

since 1987 and has evolved into a full 

IT security solutions provider, whose products, 

from consumer antivirus software to corporate 

endpoint and data security solution, are used in 

180 countries. 

Sygic, popular navigation system. Today its 

GPS software, available in more than 30 languages, 

is on sale in 80 countries. 

AeroMobil, Slovak company, which has 

introduced its flying car prototype AeroMobil 

3.0. in October 2014 at the Pioneers Festival in 

Vienna. Today is AeroMobil just a step away 

from production, making this vehicle a real 

groundbreaker in the field. 

Slovak companies have entered the path of 

innovation by developing globally competitive 

products and services in various segments closely 

linked with the automotive industry, such 

as software development, mechanical and electrical 

engineering, industrial automation or 

material research. 

Global companies, many of them from Austria, 

are already reaping the rewards of their 

decision to invest in our country. Except strategic 

location Slovakia offers advantages to 

foreign investors, the Common European currency, 

steadily growing infrastructure and one 

of the highest GDP growths in the EU. 

Slovak Investment and Trade Development 

Agency works on implementation of its strategy 

under the recently adopted national branding of 

the SR “Good Idea Slovakia” in order to attract 

foreign direct investment with high added 

value potential while offering foreign investors 

wide range of free customized services. 

Foto: Slovakian Embassy 



Foto: istockphoto.com Foto: Embassy of Uruguay

Uruguay 

Greetings 

Uruguay, destination 

chosen to invest 

and reinvest 

H.E. Bruno Javier Faraone Machado 

Ambassador of Uruguay to Austria, 

Czech Republic, Hungary and Slovakia 

Stability, transparency and international 

competitiveness. These characteristics 

transform Uruguay into the best destination 

to invest in Latin America and one 

of the most reliable and attractive in the world. 

Recognized international rankings are evidence 

of its strong political, legal and social stability as 

well as its democratic soundness. 

In 2017 Uruguay reached the longest period 

of economic growth in its history, consolidating 

15 years of expansion at an average annual rate 

of 4.3%. Uruguay occupies a strategic position as 

the gateway to Mercosur. The country has an FTA 

with Mexico, reasons that make it a gateway to a 

potential market of 400 million people. 

Moreover, its time zone located between the 

US and Europe makes it a great complement for 

the provision of global services to the region and 

the world. Uruguay leads the Development of 

ICTs in Latin America (ITU) index. In turn, it is 

the country with the highest download speed in 

the region thanks to its modern infrastructure 

(Akamai 2016) 

In Uruguay, Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) 

has reached record levels, which has allowed the 

country to position itself among the main recipients 

of FDI in terms of GDP, in South America. In 

addition to being a large recipient of FDI, it is one 

of the leading countries in Latin American earnings 

reinvestment. This reflects the confidence of 

investors in the country, based on the profitability 

obtained and the good business climate. 

Uruguay is a country with investment grade, 

ratified by the main credit rating agencies: 

Moody's, Standard & Poor's, Fitch Ratings and 

DBRS. 

The legal conditions that protect the investor, 

the free market of changes and a unique tax 

system for the entire territory, are some of the 

conditions that make Uruguay an attractive and 

safe destination for doing business. 

Uruguay has a wide range of incentives 

adapted to the different business activity areas to 

be developed in the country, whether industrial, 

commercial or services. 

Montevideo also has the best quality of life in 

Latin America (Mercer, 2017) and Uruguay is the 

country with the highest income and the best distributed 

in the region. 

Foto: Embassy of Uruguay 



Foto: Quintin Doroquez

United States of America 

Greetings 

US _ Austrian Business: 

Common Goals and 

Mutual Benefit 

Eugene S. Young 

Chargé d'Affaires a.i. of the United States of America 

to the Republic of Austria 

Congratulations to the European Business & Investment 

Forum on the 14th edition of iconvienna! 

This conference is a key platform for investment, 

entrepreneurship, and economic cooperation, 

and we at the American Embassy are proud to be your 

partner in that endeavor. 

We are experiencing a renewed trade and investment 

boom between Austria and the United States, and we 

expect the upward trend to continue. Austrian firms are 

showing increased interest in investing in and doing 

business with the United States. 

I would like to highlight some of the top reasons for 

that development: 

1. World’s Largest Market: With a GDP of $18 trillion 

and 325 million consumers, we are the world’s largest 

single-country market. U.S. consumers account 

for nearly 1/3 of global household consumption. 

2. Ease of Doing Business: With a streamlined regulatory 

environment that is particularly conducive to 

starting and operating a business, accompanied by 

dramatically lower corporate tax rates, the U.S. is 

consistently top-ranked internationally for ease of 

doing business. 

3. Nexus of Innovation: A recognized R&D leader, the 

U.S. registers more international patents than any 

other country. Innovators enjoy robust intellectual 

property rights protections, as well as access to 

world-class research universities and incubators. 

4. Workforce Talent: Our diverse, skilled, innovative, 

and mobile workforce is among the most productive 

in the world. 

Under the banner of SELECTUSA, a program administered 

by the U.S. Department of Commerce, we stand 

ready to support investment in the United States. Led 

by our Foreign Commercial Service, we at the Embassy 

will redouble our engagement with the American and 

Austrian business communities, as well as with the 

new Austrian government, to further strengthen our 

economic cooperation. 

We believe the success that companies, large and 

small, are having in U.S. and Austrian markets is 

critical to boosting economic growth on both sides of 

the Atlantic. Together, we will continue to strive for 

a broadened and deepened European and American 

trade and investment partnership, a partnership of 

prosperity now in its seventh decade. 

I, and the entire American Embassy team, look 

forward to continued success with our partners and 

friends in Austria. 

Foto: U.S. Embassy 


European Commission 

Cohesion 

policy in action 

_ in each and every region of Europe 

Europe is experiencing an unprecedented period 

of change. Globalisation, new technologies and 

digitalisation are radically changing our societies, 

both socially and economically. It is thus crucial 

for the EU to support regions in adapting to these 

profound changes, enabling local economies to become 

more resilient and ensuring that the benefits of globalisation 

reach each and every corner of the Union. 

Cohesion policy is Europe's key ally in achieving 

this. The aim of cohesion policy is exactly to reduce 

disparities between regions, promote balanced and 

sustainable development and increase economic, social 

and territorial cohesion. It is the EU's main investment 

policy, a 'win-win' policy for every region and country 

in the EU. They all reap large benefits from it, thanks to 

the direct effects of investments and/or indirect effects 

like increased trade. Take a careful look around you 

and you will definitely notice a school, a bridge, a hospital, 

a port or any other project that benefitted from 

EU funding and has made a real difference in your life. 

An independent expert evaluation found that cohesion 

policy investments in the period 2007–2013 had 

substantial and tangible results. These range from 

job creation, new products launched on the market, 

positive impact on reducing regional disparities and 

increase in Gross Domestic Product (GDP). For example, 

the evaluation showed that 1 euro of investment 

in 2007–13 is estimated to generate 2.74 euros of additional 

GDP by 2023. This indicates that cohesion policy 

will be responsible for nearly EUR 1 trillion of additional 

GDP by 2023. The effect is of a similar scale to 

the entire EU budgets for 2007–13 (EUR 975.8 billion) 

and 2014–2020 (EUR 908.4 billion). 

And these results were achieved despite challenging 

times, as Europe was hit by the deepest economic 

and financial crisis in 80 years. While this crisis 

dramatically limited public investment, cohesion 

policy remained a lifeline for Europe's regions and 

cities. And although regional convergence was modest 

over that period, the evaluation also suggests that, 

without cohesion policy, EU regions would have faced 

divergence instead of convergence. 

The figures speak for themselves. More than 

1 200 000 jobs were created through cohesion policy 

investments up to end 2015. Close to 120 000 research 

and innovation projects were supported. 121 400 startups 

received financial support through the 2007–2013 

programmes, as well as an estimated number of 400 000 

small and medium enterprises. 

Several measures have been introduced to improve 

the quality of investments in 2014–2020. First of all, 

a new set of preconditions were introduced which 

Member States have to fulfil in order to receive support 

from cohesion policy. The aim is to make sure that 

Member States have the right conditions for investments 

in place, so that the funding achieves the great- 

56 iconannual The European Business and Investment Magazine

City, Regions, Cluster 

Foto: KobusArt 

Corina Cretu 

European Commissioner 

for Regional Policy 

est impact. Part of these pre-conditions, regions need 

to develop 'smart specialisation' strategies, to enable 

each region to identify and develop its own competitive 

advantages, to be able to compete and thrive in 

the world economy—and to boost growth and jobs in 

Europe. And, last but not least, the current rules which 

govern the investments made until 2020 have a stronger 

focus on results, where our programmes set clear 

and specific objectives, with clear results that Member 

States need to achieve. 

Today, more than 120 smart specialisation strategies 

are in place in the EU and they have made a real difference 

in the way European regions and Member States 

design their innovation strategies. They are reinforcing 

cooperation within their innovation eco-systems, 

breaking silos between researchers and businesses and 

seeking complementarities with other regions. 

But many more challenges loom ahead, in this journey 

to make our regions more competitive through 

investments in innovation. The European Structural 

and Investment Funds will mobilise in 2014–2020 over 

EUR 65 billion for innovation. Funding will be focused 

on the type of innovation that is relevant for each region, 

its industries and citizens. Other European instruments 

such as Horizon 2020 and the EU programme for the 

Competitiveness of Enterprises and Small and Medium-sized 

Enterprises (COSME) are available to complement 

these efforts of cohesion policy. 

The 2014–2020 funds plan to support 1.1 million 

small and medium enterprises, leading directly to the 

creation of a further 420 000 new jobs. They will help 

more than 7.4 million unemployed people find a job 

and—another 2.2 million people find a job within six 

months after they completed training co-funded by the 

programmes. In addition, they will enable over 8.9 million 

people to gain new qualifications. 

Moreover, investments in transport will remove 

bottlenecks, reduce travel times and promote sustainable 

mobility, through more urban trams and metros, 

for instance. Under cohesion policy programmes, 

on the trans-European transport network, more than 

4 600 km of railway lines will be renovated, 2 000 km 

of new roads will be built. 750 km of new or improved 

tram and metro lines will be put in use. 

Cohesion policy is also making a substantial investment 

in social infrastructure. Some 6.8 million children 

will gain access to new or modernised schools and 

childcare facilities, and 42 million people to improved 

healthcare services under the investments made in the 

period 2014–2020. 

In parallel, under territorial cooperation programmes 

(Interreg) 240 000 people will participate in 

cross-border mobility initiatives and 6 900 businesses 

and 1 400 research institutions in research projects. 

The figures above show what significant and concrete 

results cohesion policy brings to Europe through 

just one seven-year cycle of programmes. And yet they 

are just a sample of what cohesion policy can do. Its 

effects are countless and growing over time. I assure 

you that I will continue to do whatever I can in my 

capacity as Commissioner to help all regions take full 

advantage of the numerous investment and growth 

opportunities that arise in the framework of the World's 

largest internal market: the European Union. 



Foto: CEI 

CEI 

Austria, Italy, Hungary and the former Yugoslavia 

established the Central European Initiative 

(CEI) in 1989, immediately after the 

Berlin wall came down. Since its inception, 

the CEI has taken root, grown and finally blossomed 

into the largest and oldest regional intergovernmental 

forum, committed to supporting European integration 

through cooperation among its Member States and the 

European Union (EU). Currently counting eighteen 

Member States 1 , the CEI has become a recognised promoter 

of EU/non-EU-country partnership and regional 

cooperation. 

The CEI strategic objectives, outlined in the CEI 

Plan of Action 2018-2020, are focusing on supporting 

its Member States on their path towards European 

integration; promoting the alignment of the CEI 

Member States to EU standards; implementing small 

and medium-sized projects and converting constructive 

ideas into innovative results. In order to offer 

a solid contribution to European integration the CEI 

combines political dialogue (multilateral diplomacy) 

and project management, both as donor and recipient, 

while also bridging European macro-regions. 

Through its project-oriented working method, the 

CEI is also a flexible basis for regional cooperation 

of its Western Balkan countries and the three Eastern 

Partners (Belarus, Moldova and Ukraine). The 

CEI is paying special attention to its non-EU Member 

States’ need for capacity building through knowhow 

transfer and exchange of experience with its EU 

countries, thus also providing sound evidence of the 

permanent validity of its mission in these difficult 

times of political turbulence and economic crisis. 

Its unique geographical position makes the CEI 

the only regional international organisation connecting 

the Baltic, the Danube, the Adriatic-Ionian, 

the Black Sea and the Alpine regions. It is the only 

organisation providing a peer-to-peer environment 

for bridging experience and synergising the new 

added values of the macro-regional approach to the 

complexity of transnational governance and programming. 

Funds, Instruments & Figures: 

The CEI is a well-functioning intergovernmental 

machinery, our strong operational character and 

project-oriented approach, our manifold activities in 

various areas and initiatives to create a good business 

environment as well as our investment in a 

knowledge-based economy have served and are going 

to continue serving to increase the economic, social 

and territorial cohesion within our regional scope. 

In order to meet the strategic objectives for the benefit 

of its Member States, the CEI makes use of a variety 

of Funds and Instruments covering ten main areas of 

cooperation 2 : 

1 CEI Member States and accession date: Albania (1996), Austria (1989), Belarus (1996), Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992), Bulgaria (1996), Croatia (1992), Czech Republic (1993), Hungary (1989), Italy (1989), 

Macedonia (1993), Moldova (1996), Montenegro (2006), Poland (1991), Romania (1996), Serbia (2000), Slovakia (1993), Slovenia (1992), Ukraine (1996) 

2 Transport and Logistics, Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Climate and Rural Development, SMEs and Business Development, Research and Innovation, Life-long Education and Training, Information 

Society, Intercultural Cooperation, Media, Civil Society 



Botschafterin Dr. Margot Klestil-Löffler 

Alternate Secretary General 


a strategic approach 

to regional cooperation 

Foto: Vojtech Vlk 

Our 20-plus-year partnership with the European 

Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) 

is a real success-story in this regard, significantly 

contributing to strengthening CEI’s project-oriented 

dimension. The CEI Fund at the EBRD, towards 

which the Italian Government has solely made a total 

contribution of €38.5 million, mainly provides granttype 

assistance for specific components of Technical 

Cooperation (TC) projects. Since its inception, the 

Fund has provided more than €23 million for funding 

more than 130 TC assignments, mobilising €4.8 

billion of international investments in the countries 

of operations. For one euro spent on CEI Technical 

Cooperation, €215 had been invested by the EBRD 

and other IFIs. 

Since 2004, the CEI Fund at the EBRD has also 

contributed a total of more than €2.1 million to the 

Know-How Exchange Programme (KEP) supporting 

75 projects. 

As of 2007, the KEP has been also financed by 

Austria through an agreement with the Austrian 

Development Agency (ADA): it has so far committed 

around €730.000 for 26 projects. 

Poland had also contributed with €50.000 to co-financed 

projects. 

To achieve the objectives outlined in its multi-annual 

Plan of Action 2018-2020, the CEI is also promoting 

result-oriented projects by participating in 

EU-funded programmes. We are proud of our records: 

29 EU-funded projects, where the CEI operates both 

as Lead Partner and as a reliable, effective partner in 

key sectors of transnational cooperation, e.g. transport, 

science and innovation, renewable energy, cultural 

heritage, capacity building. This operational 

participation in the implementation of the EU policies 

is also the mainstream of our concrete ties with 

the European Commission as mandated by our Foreign 

Ministers. 

The CEI Science and Technology Network with 

universities is also a proven and effective tool for 

promoting regional cooperation in the academic 

and scientific fields. The contacts established over 

the years with renowned universities and Centers 

of Excellence of the entire region are contributing 

to fostering mobility of scientists, professors and 

graduate and post-graduate students as well as to the 

development of tangible programs and projects. 

This CEI expertise in the implementation of 

transnational projects is also very important in view 

of pursuing the goals of the EU macro-regional strategies 

and of the Eastern Partnership, where most of 

our countries are included. All macro-regional strategies 

have a role to play for the benefit of the CEI 

non-EU Member States. Bringing them closer to the 

European Union in a very consistent way to reach 

the strategic goal driving our activity. We are active 

in the EU Strategy for the Danube Region (EUSDR), 

we are contributing to the EU Strategy for the Adriatic 

- Ionian Macro-Region (EUSAIR) and to the just 

announced Strategy for the Alpine Region (EUSALP). 



Innovationscluster 

als Chance fur den 

Wirtschaftsstandort 

: 

Die europäischen Klimaschutzziele können nur 

durch den Umstieg auf erneuerbare Energien 

und die Steigerung der Energieeffizienz erreicht 

werden. Das stellt vor allem für die produzierende 

Industrie eine enorme Aufgabe dar, denn 

immerhin ist dieser Industriesektor für rund 30 

Prozent des österreichischen Energieverbrauchs 

verantwortlich. 

Große Herausforderungen wie die Dekarbonisierung 

der Industrie können nur in enger 

Zusammenarbeit zwischen Wissenschaft, 

Technologieanbietern und produzierenden 

Unternehmen gelöst werden. Die vom Klima- und 

Energiefonds geförderte Vorzeigeregion „NEFI – New 

Energy for Industry“ vereint diese Player in einem 

Innovationscluster, um die Energiewende in der 

Industrie zu ermöglichen, internationale Sichtbarkeit 

der Partner zu erreichen und den Wirtschaftsstandort 

Österreich zu stärken. 

Innovationscluster aus Wirtschaft und Forschung 

Im Vorjahr wurde „NEFI – New Energy for Industry“ 

als eine von drei Vorzeigeregionen ausgewählt, um 

Energieinnovationen in Österreich voranzutreiben. 

Es soll demonstriert werden, dass eine vollständige 

Dekarbonisierung und der Einsatz von bis zu 100 

Prozent erneuerbarer Energie in der Industrie mit 

Innovationen aus Österreich machbar, wirtschaftlich 

sinnvoll und ökologisch vorteilhaft ist. Da Energie 

eine breite Palette an Industriesektoren betrifft, 

ist der vom AIT koordinierte Cluster mit seinen 

über 80 Unternehmen entsprechend breit aufgestellt: 

Technologie-KMUs sind ebenso vertreten wie große 

produzierende Unternehmen aus den Branchen 

Lebensmittel, Maschinenbau, Chemie, Zement, Stahl, 

Kunststoff und Tourismus. Dazu kommen 14 Forschungseinrichtungen 

und fünf öffentliche Institutionen. 

Durch die rasanten Entwicklungen im Bereich der 

Digitalisierung, Stichwort Industrie 4.0, eröffnen sich 

völlig neue Chancen zur Flexibilisierung des Energiesystems 

und industrieller Prozesse. 

Im Vordergrund steht ein systemischer Ansatz, 

in dem das Unternehmen wichtiger Teil eines integrierten 

Energieverbundes ist. In zahlreichen Einzelprojekten 

werden daher in den kommenden acht 

Jahren in einem offenen Innovationsprozess Energietechnologien 

mit Leuchtturmcharakter entwickelt 

und demonstriert. Die Schwerpunkte reichen von 

der Einbindung innovativer Prozesstechnologien in 



Foto: shutterstock/stockphoto mania 

Foto: Johannes Zinner/AIT 

Mag. DI Dr. Brigitte Bach, MSc 


Head of Center for Energy und 

Leiterin NEFI Innovationscluster 

„Der Innovationscluster 

NEFI soll zeigen, dass 

innovative Technologien 

‚made in Austria‘ einen 

wesentlichen Beitrag 

zur Energiewende 

und zur Stärkung des 

Wirtschaftsstandorts 

Österreich leisten 

können.“ 

industrielle Systeme über industrielle 

Abwärmenutzung und Speichertechnologien 

bis hin zur Einrichtung 

unternehmensübergreifender Energiegemeinschaften. 

Win-Win-Situation für Clusterpartner 

und Wirtschaftsstandort 

NEFI erfüllt gleich mehrere Vorgaben 

der österreichischen „Energie 

Forschungs- und Innovationsstrategie“, 

die im Vorjahr vom Bundesministerium 

für Verkehr, Innovation 

und Technologie und dem Klimaund 

Energiefonds präsentiert wurde. 

Als entscheidend für die erfolgreiche 

Positionierung österreichischer 

Energietechnologieanbieter werden 

dort die Umsetzung großformatiger 

Demonstrationsprojekte, die aktive 

Vernetzung und Kooperation sowie die strategische 

Bündelung von einzelnen Stärken zu umfassenden 

Lösungsangeboten in Form von Clustern genannt. 

Heimische Technologien, die im Zuge von NEFI entwickelt 

und demonstriert werden, können so auch 

auf den Weltmarkt ausgerollt werden und erhöhen 

damit die Wettbewerbsfähigkeit der am Cluster beteiligten 

Technologieanbieter. Immerhin haben sich die 

Umsatzerlöse mit Öko-Innovationen in den vergangenen 

Jahren österreichweit vervierfacht und werden 

weltweit rund zwei Billionen Dollar jährlich in 

Energietechnologien investiert. Auch die heimische 

produzierende Industrie profitiert durch niedrige 

Energiekosten, die einen wichtigen Standortfaktor 

darstellen. Energieinnovationen haben daher große 

Bedeutung für die nachhaltige Sicherung des Wirtschaftsstandorts 

Österreich, zählt die Industrie hierzulande 

doch knapp 380.000 Beschäftigte mit einer 

Wertschöpfung von mehr als 87 Mrd. Euro. 

Foto: Lukas Lang 


Austrian Association of Cities and Towns 

Smart City, 

Science City: 

City Brands work _ 

if the city works on its brand... 

DI Melanie Dobernigg-Lutz, BSc 

More than ever, Innovation, Cooperation and 

Branding are important fields of activity for 

cities and urban regions. „Smart City“ is a significant 

political statement, that works inside 

and outside the city: to the outside (e.g. investors) it 

shows the innovative and future oriented attitude of 

the public actors—within the city it is a clear development 

parole. Thanks to Austrian funding programs like 

„Smart Cities/Smart Urban Regions“ (Austrian Climate 

and Energy Fund) and „Stadt der Zukunft/City of the 

Future“ (Ministry of Transport, Innovation and Technology) 

continuous financing of intelligent new strategies 

and research projects for cities is ensured. Such 

efforts led to the establishment of more than 40 “Smart 

Cities & Regions” and „Smart Grids Model Regions“. 

Since 2015 the Austrian Association of Cities and Towns 

(AACT) has used the chance to present some of their 

„smart“ members on the Expo Real in Munich. Starting 

in 2015 with the Smart Cities Leoben, Bruck/Mur, 

Graz, Vienna and Innsbruck, this year the Smart Cities 

Salzburg and Villach were invited to present their initiatives 

at the „Intelligent Urbanization Forum“. Under 

the title „Innovative Cities : Made in Austria“ best practices 

of and within Austrian cities were shown at the 

Expo Real, Europe's largest real estate and investment 

trade fair: 2,003 companies, cities and regions from 35 

countries exhibited at the show and more than 40,000 

participants from 75 countries visited the Expo. 

With their success the Smart Cities Salzburg and 

Villach inspire other cities to engage in Smart City projects 

and strategies. The exhibition showed a vary of 

the most interesting and innvoative research results as 

well as flagship projects when it comes to technological 

development for optimizing and modernising buildings, 

integrated energy systems and infrastructures for 

the necessary change to prevent urban heat (effects). 1 

The new research centre in Itzling, Salzburg, for example, 

is the core element of the „Science:City Salzburg“ 

and boosts the Smart City Salzburg with projects like 

"Smart Itz Goes" and "Itz Smart". Amongst other key 

aspects of activity, Villach is in close cooperation with 

the technology experts of Infineon, working together 

on new mobility solutions for the urban future. Furthermore 

Villach is part of the federal „Silicon 

Austria“ strategy, where techonological innovation in 

the micro-electronics sector shall be pushed further by 

a substantial funding programm. 

1 For more information see: www.smartcitysalzburg.at and https://www.villach.at/stadt-service/energie/smart-city-villach 



The team of the Smart City Salzburg 

(starting on the right): Dr. Andreas 

Schmidbaur, Head of Urban Planning 

Department, Alexander Schrank, Head 

of Building Department, Franz Huemer, 

Coordinator of Energy and Smart City, 

and their collegues Irina Brunner and 

Julia Rafetseder 

Foto: Markus Mayr/Lichtkammer 

Foto: Heiko Stahl 

Foto: PostAuto Schweiz 

Foto: AACT 

Great success for the Austrian Smart Cities exhibition 

at the Expo Real 2017 in Munich 

The „5 th Austrian Urban Region Day“ in Lienz intensely discussed 

the benefits of Urban-Rural-Partnerships 

(Smart) Functional Urban Regions 

Smart Cities don't act at their best if they don't cooperate 

with their surrounding municipalities. Especially 

the challenges of supply demand a regional solution. 

It is important to force, foster and fund such actions. 

In Austria this—again—is ensured by a funding program 

of the Climate and Energy Fund, that already led 

to 99 „Climate and Energy model regions“ and—quite 

recently—the „Climate Adaption Model Regions“. 

The most urgent challenges of our time will better be 

solved together – no matter if we talk about a metropolitan 

area like Vienna or a smaller town that functions as 

a regional center for its surroundings: The „Stadtregion+/The 

City Region+“ in and around Vienna or the 

„Grazer Zentralraum/The Central Region of Graz“ are 

well established and work on concrete city-regional 

solutions concentrating on mobility, sustainable spatial 

and settlement development and the safeguarding 

of recreational areas in growing agglomerations. Also 

smaller urban regions like the „Zukunftsraum Lienzer 

Talboden/The Futurespace Valley of Lienz“ with its 15 

communities engage ambitiously in common projects 

like a communal fiber-optic network for the region, its 

enterprises and inhabitants. They presented this and 

other successful projects at the „5 th Austrian Urban 

Region Day“ 2 in Lienz, an annual event where innovative 

cooperation projects of and within urban areas 

are presented and discussed, to force further and new 

cooperations for a better future in our prospering urban 

hot spots throughout Austria. 

More than ever, Innovation, Cooperation and 

Branding are important fields of activity for cities and 

urban regions - to fulfill the increasing load of public 

tasks and to present an attractive and singular location 

profile. 

2 Read more here: www.stadtregionen.at 


Kommunalkredit Austria AG 

demand 

Significant 

for investments in 

Infrastructure by its very nature is essential 

Infrastructure investments can serve as a 

powerful tool for answering social needs and 

fundamentally increasing the general well-being 

of communities. They create the basis for prosperity 

and a high quality of life. Modern infrastructure 

is an indispensable prerequisite for the 

sustainable use of resources and for a successful 

approach to deal with climate change. 

The European Investment Bank (EIB) forecasts 

spending required to reach the targets of the 

Europe 2020 strategy at EUR 150bn to EUR 

200bn per year. 1 Investment demand is particularly 

high in the sectors of energy (especially renewable 

energy), transport, social infrastructure and 

communications technology. 

As the financial latitude of the public sector is 

decreasing on account of the high level of government 

debt and budget caps, a shift from classic budget 

finance to project finance continues to occur thanks 

to private funding. In 2017, more than 60% of all 

infrastructure schemes in Europe were implemented 

through project finance. 2 Commercial banks continue 

to be a main source of debt for infrastructure projects. 

However, a host of other funders and products have 

appeared given the increasing acceptance of infrastructure 

as an asset class in its own right. For institutional 

investors seeking stable long-term cash flows 

from a sustainable asset class, this offers an opportunity 

for real return enhancement in the current lowyield 

environment. 

Kommunalkredit’s business model 

Kommunalkredit contributes to the sustainable success 

of infrastructure projects that improve the quality 

of people’s lives. The bank provides tangible benefits 

to the community in terms of economic dynamism, 

job creation, social cohesion, urban development and 

climate change. 

By combining in-depth industry expertise and 

structuring know-how with the financing ability of a 

bank and strong relationships with international clients 

und investors, Kommunalkredit achieves strong 

impact for its clients and generates sustainable value 

for its stakeholders. The bank enables the implementation 

and operation of infrastructure, bridging the 

needs of project sponsors and institutional investors. 

Backed by two international and long-term oriented 

shareholders, Kommunalkredit positions itself 

as a leading market player in the European infrastructure 

market, concentrating on energy & environment, 

social infrastructure & communications technology 

and transport. 

1 European Investment Bank, The Europe 2020 Project Bond Initiative – Innovative Infrastructure Financing, January 2017. 

2 Infrastructure information platform “Inframation”. 



infrastructure 

to the efficient functioning of society. 

In 2017, Kommunalkredit 

managed to close 26 projects in 

13 countries with commitments 

worth EUR 635.2m. The new 

business portfolio was highly 

diversified in terms of product, 

region and asset class with attractive 

risk/return profiles. It was 

distributed across various asset 

classes, with the energy & environment 

segment accounting for 

39% of the total volume, transport 

for 38% and social infrastructure 

& communications technology 

for 23%. Kommunalkredit provided 

finance for both brownfield 

projects and greenfield projects. 

Collaboration between 

public entities and private 

partners as an efficient form of procurement 

Against the background of the limited financial latitude 

allowed to public budgets, the collaboration 

between public entities and private partners offers an 

efficient and transparent form of procurement for the 

public sector. In such a cooperation the private partner 

Foto: Petra Spiola 

Mag. Alois Steinbichler 

Chief Executive Officer of 

Kommunalkredit Austria AG 

(usually a special purpose company 

with significant private-investor participation) 

agrees to deliver a public 

infrastructure project and service 

under a long-term contract. The private 

partner assumes various project 

risks, notably with regard to designing, 

building, operating and financing 

the project. In practice, two 

models are widely used: The public 

authority either pays an availability 

fee to the private partner as soon as 

the infrastructure is available (availability-based 

model) or gives the 

private partner the right to generate 

revenues from the provision of the 

infrastructure (concession-based 

model). 

The conditions for the European 

infrastructure market are unlikely to 

change significantly in 2018. Kommunalkredit expects 

demand for European infrastructure assets to remain 

high in 2018. The bank foresees numerous transactions 

in markets such as Germany, France, Spain, the UK 

and Scandinavia. 

www.kommunalkredit.at 


Municipal Department 23 _ Economic Affairs, Labour and Statistics 

Vienna 

An Innovative 

Metropolis 

Mag. Elisabeth Unger - Research, Technology and Innovation Section 

Municipal Department 23 – Economic Affairs, Labour and Statistics 

Vienna City Administration 

When it comes to quality of life, infrastructure and 

innovation, Vienna is among the most successful 

cities of the world. The metropolitan area of 

Vienna is not only a location for the headquarters 

of numerous Austrian and international corporations, 

it is also a place where research and development 

activities converge at universities as well as 

in extramural research institutions and enterprises. 

Building on the first RTI (Research, Technology, 

Innovation) strategy “Wien denkt Zukunft” 

(“Vienna Looks to the Future”, 2008) and “Smart 

City Wien”, the framework strategy adopted 

in 2014, the strategy “Innovative Vienna 2020” was 

developed in a far-reaching participatory process and 

adopted by the Vienna City Council in 2015.. 

From the perspective of a growing metropolis, future 

urban challenges require comprehensive systemic solutions. 

This is also reflected in the objectives of “Innovative 

Vienna 2020”: Vienna as a “city of opportunity”, 

with an “innovative city administration” and “Vienna 

as a place where different people meet”. The definition of 

innovation applied in this context is deliberately broad, 

going far beyond technological innovation. Social, 

organisational and artistic innovations are included 

and open innovation is very important in view of 

demand-side involvement in innovation processes. 

Vienna – A Service-Oriented City Administration 

By pursuing the strategy “Innovative Vienna 2020”, 

the city not only set itself the goal of creating optimum 

conditions so as to help the enterprises and universities 

in the metropolitan area to realise their full innovative 

potential – it also committed to the role of the city in 

shaping, buying and using innovations. 

Along with the innovation strategy, a follow-up 

process for its implementation by the year 2020 was 

adopted. An annual work programme, which is presented 

at the innovation conference every year, defines 

the respective objectives and projects. The 2017 work 

programme comprised more than 40 specific measures 

in eight action areas. Here are a few examples: 

Promote Start-ups 

Every year, Vienna plays host to one of the biggest conferences 

for entrepreneurship and future technology in 

Europe - the Pioneers Festival. Participants from more 

than 70 countries – including more than 1000 start-up 

founders and 120 speakers, 2500 visitors, numerous 

sponsors and partners turn the annual festival into a topnotch 

event. Continuing the tradition of long-standing 


Innovation 

New York, Paris, Shanghai and Tel Aviv are participating 

cities at present. 

cooperation, Vienna Business Agency ran a stall and 

contributed to the conference programme. 

The teams winning the “Vienna Start-up Package 

2017” were also presented on that occasion. The “Package” 

involves bringing international start-ups to Vienna for 

two months so they can develop their business ideas on 

site and explore the Austrian and European markets. The 

young entrepreneurs benefit from paid travel, accommodation, 

working place and coaching as well as a large network 

and extensive contacts with the start-up scene. 

In 2017 Vienna followed the London and Berlin 

models by publishing “Start-up Guide Vienna”, which 

contains relevant data and details about the ecosystem. 

Vienna Business Agency and the Economic Chamber of 

Vienna acted as community partners. 

In the framework of the “Start Alliance”, cooperation 

regarding start-ups was agreed upon between Berlin 

and Vienna in November 2017. Founded in 2015, “Start 

Alliance” is a point of contact for young entrepreneurs 

from various cities, aiming to expand their network of 

connections. Apart from Berlin and Vienna, London, 

Foto: MA23/ Christian Jobst 

Foto: WienTourismus / Christian Stemper 

Vienna Research Groups for Young Investigators 

The Vienna Science and Technology Fund seeks to 

strengthen Vienna as a location of research and innovation 

by recruiting excellent young researchers abroad in 

a targeted way. In cooperation with Vienna-based universities 

and research institutions, they can create their 

first own research groups in areas of research which are 

particularly relevant for the city. 

The group leaders receiving such a grant are already 

given a long-term career outlook when they apply (associate 

professor contract for an indefinite term; career 

position) 

Expat Center 

The Expat Center of the Vienna Business Agency is an 

initial point of contact for expatriates and their families 

as, and even before, they arrive in Vienna. As an 

additional service to international corporations based 

in Vienna, expatriates receive customised advice in all 

matters of daily life and support as they get started in 

Vienna (e.g. residence permit, apartment search) and 

beyond. Advisory services are free of charge and available 

in several languages. 

Co-Creation Lab Vienna 

Established companies and public sector organizations 

may submit so-called “challenges”. Subsequently, technology 

companies, research institutions and innovative 

start-ups develop specific solutions to meet these. In 

the Co-Creation Lab, Vienna Business Agency finds the 

best matches for partner enterprises which will then 

find tailor-made solutions. 

Vienna has always excelled in bringing together 

cultural, technological and social innovations. Today’s 

societal, technological and economic changes are an 

ongoing challenge to politics and administration alike; 

after all, great quality of life and participation for everyone 

are to be ensured for the future. Vienna has set itself 

the goal of making every citizen of Vienna benefit from 

progress, and “Innovative Vienna 2020” is an important 

contribution to this end. 

Austria’s capital city is well prepared in many aspects. 

At the same time, Vienna also has the enormous skills it 

takes to respond to the key challenges of the future. Continuing 

to develop these will be the task of the years to 

come so Vienna will remain the most livable city of the 

world. More information: viennabusinessagency.at 


Stay up to date with the smart ASFINAG App! 

Your mobile cockpit with realtime information. 

• Up to date traffic information 

• Route planner 

• Travel time 

• Live webcams 

The app that takes you further! 

Download now for free! 

Important note: while one the road 

make sure to use your smartphone 

solely with an appropriate hands-free 

equipment.

ASFINAG 

Innovation 

Smart mobility 

of the 

future 

Foto: Wolfgang Simlinger 

Connected infrastructure is 

one top priority of ASFINAG 

One great challenge for 

ASFINAG as a modern 

motorway operator is the 

question of how to handle 

future mobility in ways of being ecologically 

sustainable and socially 

responsible. We think today about 

the mobility of tomorrow. 

A pivotal topic: As well developed 

infrastructures are decisive for economic 

growth connected infrastructures 

are important to meet mobility 

needs in the long term. Thus we 

need to combine the various modes 

of transport in order to create an 

efficient, fully intermodal transport 

system. Optimum management of 

existing infrastructure will continue 

to grow in its importance and 

will reduce the need for new construction. 

This transition inevitably 

requires a fundamental rethink by 

all parties – from infrastructure 

providers to individual travelers. 

As a responsible motorway operator 

we are planning to pinpoint 

public transport alternatives. We 

see this interlinking with public 

transport as the mobility of the 

future. And we already prioritized 

networking with public transport in 

our vision statement and thus have 

made it a firm feature of our future 

concept for mobility in Austria. 

We will take you 

to the future! 

Let us take motorways and highways 

to the next level: connected 

infrastructures, higher driving 

comfort, sustainable technologies 

and of course enhanced road 

safety. Modern information and 

communication technology make 

a key contribution in this context. 

ASFINAG already delivers a full 

range of best plans and measures 

in class of technical innovations 

for a safe road infrastructure of 

tomorrow. 

As well as offering interconnected 

transition points for commercial 

transport and comfortable passenger 

transfers we also provide 

efficient information and routing 

services. In the future, all relevant 

road traffic information will be 

transmitted directly into our customers' 

cars to quickly provide them 

with information about the traffic 

situation on the motorways. 

iconvienna makes an important 

contribution by bringing together 

senior policy-makers and facilitating 

intensive discussion on these 

topics. 


Institute of Science and Technology Austria 

IST Austria 

An ecosystem for 

science and career 

development 

The Institute of Science and Technology Austria (IST 

Austria) is a PhD-granting, interdisciplinary research institution 

dedicated to cutting-edge research in the physical, 

mathematical, computer, and life sciences. Scientists come 

from all over the world to the Institute: over sixty nations 

are represented on campus, creating a diverse, creative, 

and open environment that fosters independent research. 

Curiosity and open minds 

Scientists and their curiosity define which fields are 

pursued on campus, and a world-class, interdiscipli nary 

environment provides the resources and opportunity 

for them to conduct research without boundaries or predefined 

topics. Effective recruiting allows this strategy 

to succeed: research excellence and promise are the key 

criteria for hiring scientists at all levels at IST Austria, 

rather than specific area of study. During its annual open 

call for new professors, the Institute accepts applications 

from all areas of science—biology, chemistry, computer 

science, mathematics, neuroscience, and physics—and 

welcomes applications from researchers whose projects 

cross traditional discipline boundaries. 

Training the next generation 

Educating PhD students is a core mission of IST Austria. 

Its US-style Graduate School offers an interdisciplinary 

PhD program that supports students in becoming experts 

in their fields while fostering communication and collaboration 

across research groups and disciplines. For 

postdocs, IST Austria provides the faculty and facilities 

to help broaden their experience and deepen their expertise. 

The EU supports PhD students (ISTScholar*) and 

postdocs (ISTplus*) through the Horizon 2020 research 

and innovation program. The Institute also offers yearround 

opportunities for undergraduates and master’s 

students to intern with a research group. During their 

time at IST Austria, PhD students, postdocs, and interns 

all receive the training and support to succeed in their 

next steps elsewhere, whether they decide to stay in 

research (academia or industry), take on management 

positions, or enter the public sector. 

A growing campus for a growing community 

As additional buildings are designed and erected, the 

Institute seeks to strike a balance between two goals: 

first, to foster interdisciplinarity by mixing groups with 

different research focuses within buildings, and second, 

to allow the needs of the scientists to inform the shape 

and facilities of the buildings. Preparation has started 

for the construction of the next scientific laboratory 

building, and planning has begun for a future Visitor 

Center and another laboratory building. In addition, five 

companies rent space on campus, anticipating a move to 


Innovation 

*These projects have received funding from the 

European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation 

programme under the Marie Skłodowska- 

Curie grant agreements Nos 754411 and 665385. 

Fotos: IST Austria/Nadine Poncioni 

Investing in innovative ideas 

In 2017, IST Austria and an external investor took a significant 

step towards improving the situation in Austria 

for young tech-based founders by partnering to set up 

IST CUBE, a new investment platform that will support 

the creation and development of tech startups. With an 

initial investment of EUR 5 million, IST CUBE will support 

advanced technology companies, many of which 

are derived from academic research, and will help 

founders develop their ventures with the goal of becoming 

global leaders in their fields. 

the IST Park—a future technology park across the road 

from IST Austria which is currently under development. 

As an institute of technology as well as science, IST 

Austria invests in new facilities and instruments to 

increase its research capabilities and remain at the state 

of the art. Recent developments include the opening of a 

nanofabrication facility for semiconductor physics, and 

the Institute will also invest in a cryo-electron microscopy 

setup on campus. 

IST Austria was established by the federal government of 

Austria and the state government of Lower Austria, and the 

campus opened in 2009. Following the implementation of 

an ambitious development plan, around 90 research groups 

and over 1000 employees will be working in a state-of-theart, 

interdisciplinary environment by 2026, modeled after 

international examples such as the Max Planck Institutes, 

ETH Zurich, and the Weizmann Institute of Science. The 

president of IST Austria is Thomas A. Henzinger, a leading 

computer scientist and AAAS, ACM, and IEEE Fellow. More 

information at www.ist.ac.at. 


EUROPEAN YOUTH AWARD 

DIGITAL CREATIVITY IMPROVING SOCIETY! 

Europe’s flagship contest for innovative young people, social entrepreneurs and 

start-ups founders using digital technologies to improve society! 

BECOME A MENTOR 

of one of the most 

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Novomatic 

Innovation 

NOVOMATIC 

showcases latest 

innovations at 

International 

Casino Exhibition 

Foto: Thomas Meyer 

Harald Neumann, CEO of NOVOMATIC AG 

As Europe’s leading gaming technology group, 

NOVOMATIC once again wowed visitors this 

year with the largest stand at the International 

Casino Exhibition ICE Totally Gaming in London. 

Across a surface area of approx. 4,700m 2 NOVOMATIC 

unveiled its latest product innovations set to drive the 

industry forward in 2018. A total of 25 group companies 

presented the 360° NOVOMATIC product portfolio, 

including exciting and important product innovations 

such as a new line of gaming cabinets, linked progressive 

jackpots, electronic table gaming solutions, as well 

as single, licensed and multi-games. 

“With this trade show appearance, NOVOMATIC 

continues to prove that as a full-service provider, we 

are among the world’s leading gaming technology 

groups”, said Harald Neumann, CEO of NOVOMATIC 

AG, at a press conference at ICE in February. “High levels 

of innovation continue to remain a central component 

of the Group’s future prospects. Over the past 3 years 

NOVOMATIC has invested more than 250mn Euros in 

R&D of new technologies“, he added. 

For international casino markets, NOVOMATIC 

revealed brand new cabinets and new slot titles such 

as the international, omni-channel release of the 

blockbuster From Dusk Till Dawn. Starring George 

Clooney and Quentin Tarantino as the Gecko brothers, 

Salma Hayek as Santanico Pandemonium, as well as 

Harvey Keitel, Juliette Lewis and Danny Trejo, players 

are taken on an explosive journey to Mexico. 

During the trade show, NOVOMATIC announced 

the latest collaboration of its Interactive Division, 

Greentube, with Hard Rock International and Seminole 

Gaming. Players at any Seminole or Hard Rock-branded 

property will be able to access a customized free-play 

social casino where the front end is designed to replicate 

the look and feel of the physical venue. A range 

of multi-channel promotions as well as linked reward 

programs will be offered to players all over the world. 


OBB _ Infrastruktur 

Foto: Österreichisches Foto: ÖBB-Infrastruktur 

Patentamt 

INNOVATION 

UND TRADITION _ 

WEICHEN FUR DIE ZUKUNFT 

Bei einer Marke wie den ÖBB ist nicht das Logo entscheidend oder der Name, 

sondern das, was sie bedeutet. Das, was mit ihr assoziiert wird. Eine Marke ist 

der Wertvermittler außer ge wöhn licher Leistungen. Die Werte, die KundInnen und 

potentielle KundInnen mit der Marke verknüpfen, sind vermittelte Leistungen. So ist 

das Kernbedürfnis der Menschen nicht etwa die Telefonie, sondern Kommunikation. 

Und es ist nicht die Bahn, die den Transport erfolgreich macht, es ist der Fahrplan. 

Marke als Deutungsund 

Bedeutungssystem 

Um zu funktionieren, müssen Marken daher vor allem 

eines leisten: Sie müssen beziehungsfähig sein. WAS 

eine Marke in Zukunft, also in der vierten industriellen 

Revolution (Mensch, Maschine, Objekt tauschen 

Informationen aus) können muss, sind diese vier Dinge: 

• ORIENTIERUNG geben 

• VERTRAUEN bilden 

• QUALITÄT versprechen und einhalten 

• ANZIEHUNGSKRAFT emotional ansprechen 

Marke ist ein Führungsinstrument – 

nach innen und außen 

Jenseits von Standardbehauptungen wie Kundenorientierung, 

Leidenschaft, Mitarbeiterorientierung und 

Nachhaltigkeit, müssen auch die ÖBB als österreichweite 

starke Traditionsmarke ihre Markenidee ständig 

neu abfragen und an der Realität der KundInnen, des 

Marktes abmessen. Kundenbefragungen, Mitarbeiterbefragungen, 

Customer-Journeys, Sitzplatztests zielen 

alle letztlich auf die zentralen immer wiederkehrenden 

Fragen ab: Was wollen die KundInnen? Wie kann ich 

sie begeistern? Und auf welche einfache Art und Weise? 

Allein diese klare Leitlinie, durchgehend in der Wertschöpfungs- 

und Kundenerlebniskette multipliziert, 

schafft eine starke Marke – nach innen und außen. 

Markenarbeit ist dauerhafte 

Beziehungsarbeit 

Und weil es eben nicht immer so ist, dass eine einmal 

positionierte Marke auf Dauer von alleine ihre Orientierungsarbeit 

bei MitarbeiterInnen und KundInnen 

leistet, sehen wir Markenarbeit als konsequente Beziehungsarbeit 

an. Die Schlüsselfragen der ÖBB sind gar 

nicht mal so viel anders, als für andere komplexe Organisationen, 

die sich dem Wandel der Digitalisierung 

stellen müssen: 

• Wie gelingt es uns, das Unternehmen auf die 

Zukunft auszurichten, obwohl wir nicht immer 

genau wissen, wohin die Reise geht? 

• Wie schaffen wir die Balance zwischen notwendiger 

Stabilität und dynamisierender Innovation, 

zwischen Konzentration auf Kernkompetenzen und 

globale Marktdynamik? 


Innovation 

aber heute schon können, ist Mobilität durch ganz neue 

Augen zu betrachten. 

2016 haben die ÖBB ihrer Innovationsstrategie 

einen neuen Boost gegeben und sich mit dem Open 

Innovation Lab gezielt in alle Richtungen des Mobilitätsangebotes 

geöffnet: Bahn, Bus, Flugzeug, PKW, 

LKW, Fahrrad, Scooter… Alles was Menschen und 

Orte, Waren und KundInnen, Zeit und Distanzen miteinander 

verbindet. Die Vernetzung von innovativen 

Menschen und ihren Projekten. 

Die ÖBB-Infrastruktur AG steht auch für barrierefreie Bahnhöfe – 

ein sehr wichtiges Versprechen an unsere Kunden. 

• Wie können wir die Balance zwischen Effizienz der 

Prozesse gestalten – und zugleich der Komplexität 

der immer individueller werdenden Kundenwünsche 

gerecht werden? 

Eines ist sicher: Wir wissen es nicht so genau und 

müssen auch Antworten im Gehen entstehen lassen. 

Daher geht es darum, die Organisation auch auf das 

Unvorhersehbare vorzubereiten. Mit dem Ziel: Immunisierung, 

Resilienz und Robustheit im Wandel. Gerade 

in Zeiten des Umbruchs zeigt sich, dass starke Marken 

in hohem Maße resilient sind: weil sie überleben. 

Die Mobilität von Übermorgen ist 

ungewiss aber gestaltbar 

Niemand kann heute genau sagen, wie sich die Fortbewegung 

der Zukunft genau gestalten wird. Was wir 

Innovation entsteht nicht zufällig 

Ideen sind der entscheidende Funke, der ein Unternehmen 

nach vorne bringt. Und Ideen sind Ergebnis guter 

Kommunikation und funktionierender Beziehungen. 

Das ist auch das Geheimnis, die Erfolgsformel 

hinter der Transformation des österreichischen 

Staats unternehmens ÖBB von der schwerfällig anmutenden 

Behörde, zum kundenzentrierten, modernen 

Mobilitätsdienstleister. Aus einem stark gebeutelten, 

in seinen Leistungen unterbewerteten und von Vorurteilen 

(Subventionsbetrieb, Frühpensionierungsparadies, 

ständige Unpünktlichkeit usw.) getriebenes 

6-Milliarden-Unternehmen wurde ein wertvoller 

Arbeitgeber und Industriepartner einer stolzen und 

traditionsreichen Bahnindustrie. Die ÖBB wurde ein 

Leistungserbringer für 500 Millionen Fahrgäste pro 

Jahr, ein Konjunkturmotor mit Spitzenleistungen im 

Infrastrukturausbau (etwa die Hochgeschwindigkeitsstrecken, 

Hauptbahnhof Wien, Streckenausbau in den 

Süden) und, so ganz nebenbei: Die pünktlichste Bahn 

in der EU. 

Die kommunikative Übung gelang, ganz besonders 

durch die Analyse und den Rückhalt durch das vorhandene, 

aber in den vergangenen Jahren verschüttete 

und paralysierte „Wir-Gefühl“ der Eisenbahner. Es 

galt und gilt, den Stolz auf die Markenwerte, auf den 

Markenkern (Zuverlässigkeit, Sicherheit, Pünktlichkeit) 

bei den 40.000 MitarbeiterInnen zu aktivieren. 

Denn Kommunizieren heißt im Dialog entlang der 

Customer-Journey zu bleiben – mit den SteuerzahlerInnen, 

den BahnkundInnen, der Industrie, Politik, 

MitarbeiterInnen, Interessenvertretungen und vielen 

anderen. Die tägliche Vermittlungsleistung braucht 

motivierte Menschen, die ihr Kundenversprechen 

geben und halten. 

Die Marke ÖBB gehört mittlerweile zu den fünf 

wertvollsten Marken Österreichs, sie hat ihren Markenwert 

(heute 1,9 Milliarden) seit 2010 nahezu verdoppelt 

und ihren Rang von Platz 9 auf Platz 5 verbessert. 


Kapsch Group 

Challenging limits. 

Since the company’s inception in 1892, Kapsch has been dedicated to its role as an innovator and technology 

pioneer. To live up to this claim and to continue providing leading mobility, communications 

and digitization solutions, the companies of the Kapsch Group are constantly breaking new ground. 

Kapsch TrafficCom is a provider 

of intelligent transportation 

systems in the fields of 

tolling, traffic management, 

smart urban mobility, traffic safety 

and security, and connected vehicles. 

In 2017, the company launched 

a new program as part of its open 

innovation strategy: 

Factory1 

Factory1 is an equity-free startup-accelerator 

that supports entrepreneurs 

working on the next big ideas in the 

mobility sector. It has been designed 

to create long-term partnerships 

and to enable win-win situations. 

Benefitting from the required tools 

and resources, the startups selected 

are able to build successful proofof-concept 

projects as a foundation 

for future collaboration. This helps 

Kapsch TrafficCom to identify disruptive 

technologies early and to keep 

Kapsch at the forefront of innovation. 

Factory1 received 285 applications 

from 61 countries, covering six 

areas of innovation: 

• Connected & Autonomous 

Driving 

• Big Data Analytics & 

Deep Learning 

• Smart Mobility 

• Security & Privacy 

• Infrastructure 

• Payment & Transaction Processes 

The Winners of Kapsch Factory1 


Innovation 

Fotos: Kapsch 

Kapsch Group 

Founded as a precision mechanics 

workshop for Morse and telegraph 

equipment in 1892, Kapsch today is 

a global technology company and 

leading provider of mobility solutions 

and communication services. The 

only constant in the always familyrun 

business is change: Kapsch has 

always been committed to its role 

as a technology pioneer, quickly 

recognizing trends and responding 

with market-oriented solutions. 

>>> www.kapsch.net 

After thorough scrutiny, 30 

entrepreneurs were invited to pitch 

their ideas. In the next round, 15 

startups met in Vienna for a kick-off 

boot camp, where 7 winners were 

selected to enter the accelerator. 

Closely involved with the program, 

experienced Kapsch-experts 

from technology, sales and business 

development mentored the startups 

throughout the whole six months of 

the proof-of-concept projects. 

The application phase for 2018 

starts in June. All the information 

about the program and the winners 

of 2017 can be found here: 

www.factory1.net 

Impact Room at Kapsch BusinessCom 

Innovation workshops in a 

brand-new Impact Room 

As a leading partner in the digital 

transformation, Kapsch BusinessCom 

both supports companies 

as they take their business performance 

to the next level and in 

the development of new business 

models. The company operates as a 

consultant, system supplier and service 

provider. 

On the fifth floor of the headquarters 

of Kapsch BusinessCom, 

based in Vienna’s 12th district, 

digital transformation has become 

a reality, with the analog and digital 

worlds united in the brand-new 

Impact Room. In numerous innovation 

workshops, use cases have been 

completed successfully, using agile 

prototyping with the help of data 

virtualization, platform management 

and the expertise of a leading 

ICT service provider. 

In the analog area of the room, 

whiteboard markers and magnetic 

clips are employed in business-model-canvas 

and design-thinking sessions. 

Camera technology transfers 

this input onto the digital wall in the 

adjoining room in real time. Using 

an electronic pen, new bullet points 

can then be added or be rearranged. 

But it does not stop there: this creative 

playing field on the digital wall 

can be extended to participants outside 

the room via video-screen. For 

example, international experts and 

innovators can easily be connected 

for impulse lectures during the 

workshops. 

Innovative camera- and smartboard-technology 

enables 

interaction 

The Impact Room is designed as 

a creative and interactive playing 

field: the drive and inspiration experienced 

by the participants helps 

them to find use cases during the 

one-day discovery-workshops or 

to develop new business models in 

development-workshops in the next 

step. 

Kapsch BusinessCom draws 

from long-term experience gained 

in numerous digitalization and 

business development projects 

across various industries. As digitalization 

gains pace – evidenced 

by prominent buzz-words such as 

Industry 4.0 and Internet of Things 

– it has become more and more 

important to bring together uses 

cases and technology components 

from diverse fields. With leading 

mobility, communications and digitalization 

solutions, the companies 

of the Kapsch Group offer a full 

spectrum of possibilities. 


Leitbetriebe Austria 

Innovations 

drive economic 

development 

For a long time innovation was a selective event. A 

company developed something here, a research 

lab something else there. Once a break-through 

was made, it could guarantee companies years 

of stable income. In the modern economy, however, 

the pace of innovation is at an absolute all-time high 

at both the global and Austrian levels. Innovation is 

not a singular event anymore, but has developed into 

a key part of every business process, affecting practically 

all companies across all industries, countries 

and company sizes on an enormous scale. This opens 

up great opportunities on the one hand and creates 

equally great pressure to innovate and compete on 

the other. “Innovation should not be something special 

anymore, but should rather be seen as “business 

as usual”. Today businesses—big or small—have to 

continually innovate in every aspect: in products 

as well as their own processes and even their entire 

business model", says Leitbetriebe Austria managing 

director Monica Rintersbacher. “Therefore my vision 

for the future is: “a day without innovation is a day 

lost.” 

DIGITISATION TRIGGERS INNOVATION 

The momentum in innovation triggered by digitisation 

is unparalleled in economic history. Digitisation 

has even more effect on the economy—and especially 

on the individual—than the industrial revolution had 

in the 1800s. Thus, comparably to building roads and 

railroad tracks during the industrial revolution, connecting 

company locations to global data networks has 

become a major driver of innovation in the era of digitisation. 

In developing new areas of business, data lines 

must be granted a level of priority that is at least as high 

as that of the electricity and road and railway network, 

business experts agree. “This is the only way to ensure 

that successful Austrian companies will continue to 

play a leading role in global competition in the future”, 

says Rintersbacher. 

MODERN WORKING ENVIRONMENTS 

BOOST INNOVATION 

In order to be truly innovative, innovation has to be 

an integral part of company’s culture. “Good ideas 

need to come from the whole workforce, not just the 


Innovation 

Foto: Sabine Klimpt 

Andreas Gnesda—chairman of the Advisory Board of Leitbetriebe Austria 

Monica Rintersbacher—managing director Leitbetriebe Austria 

R&D department", says Rintersbacher, calling attention 

to the importance of in-house innovation and the 

creative potential among employees. Each employee 

should not just be viewed as a worker, who keeps the 

daily business running, but an innovator, who shapes 

the company’s future. “This also requires a new concept 

of the work environment. Office design, office 

organisation, working time arrangements, hierarchical 

structures and much more need to be rethought 

and redesigned in many areas in light of the new challenges”, 

explains Andreas Gnesda, founder and CEO 

of teamgnesda, the leading Austrian consulting firm 

in the field of office design and Chairman of the Advisory 

Board of Leitbetriebe Austria 

Office design, for example, can play a key role in a 

company’s ability to create innovations. “Innovations 

are seldom generated in an old-style single-person 

office, but require team effort and open communication. 

Thinking outside the box is often literally equivalent 

to thinking outside one’s own office”, Gnesda 

explains. “Designing an office using open communication 

zones with an inspiring atmosphere, that 

ABOUT LEITBETRIEBE AUSTRIA 

Leitbetriebe Austria is an independent business network 

that spans across all industries. It distinguishes and connects 

outstandingly successful companies within the 

Austrian economy. Sustainable corporate success, innovation 

and social accountability are the main criteria for 

accepting companies as networking partners of Leitbetriebe 

Austria. 

Under the common roof of the mutual brand, the network 

accompanies its partner companies and reinforces their 

efforts through targeted communication strategies. Leitbetriebe 

Austria renders the platform where companies 

showcase their leadership and interact with other top 

performers. Furthermore it promotes the interests of Austrian 

businesses by its lobbying activities. 

facilitates team work, rather than individual offices 

is an important reflection of a company culture that 

encourages innovation. 

Although many leading companies have already 

developed and implemented exemplary solutions on 

a broad front, these approaches have yet to take root: 

"Austrian companies are among the global leaders 

in the field of technical innovation. If we succeed in 

reorganising our working environments in line with 

the challenges and opportunities of the digitised 

industry, it will bring another boost to innovation. Or 

in other words: smart minds + inspiring environment 

= ideas + innovation", Gnesda sums up. 


Bahnhof hat Zukunft 

Hier kommt man gerne an. 

Fotocredit: ÖBB/Roman Bönsch 

MEHR KOMFORT UND KÜRZERE FAHRZEITEN FÜR GANZ ÖSTERREICH: 

• Rund 15,2 Mrd. Euro werden bis 2022 in den Ausbau von Schienennetz und Bahnhöfen investiert 

• 90% der Reisenden profitieren bis 2025 von modernen, barrierefreien Bahnhöfen 

• Bereits 38 Bahnhöfe in Österreich mit Hochleistungs-WLAN ausgestattet 

• Rund 200 Bahnhöfe wurden seit 2010 modernisiert 

• Highlights der Bahnhofsoffensive: Wien Hauptbahnhof, St. Pölten Hbf, Linz Hbf, 

Salzburg Hbf, Innsbruck Hbf, Dornbirn, Klagenfurt Hbf, Graz Hbf 

oebb.at/infrastruktur

WIGMA 

Innovation 

Integrated 

Online Business 

Service 

Modern information and communication technologies have 

become an essential part of our life. Small business owners and 

individual entrepreneurs tend to optimize their work with the 

help of new technologies in order to reduce costs and improve 

the quality of customer service. 

There are services that allow 

you to create your own website 

business card or an 

E-Commerce website, send 

out newsletters, keep a list of contacts 

and to-do lists. However, your 

contacts are stored in separate software, 

so you lose time while manually 

compiling the mailings in a 

newsletter tool. Your website visitors 

may apply for newsletters but 

someone has to enter their data into 

the CRM-system. Many entrepreneurs 

face similar challenges. 

The new integrated online business 

service Wigma combines the 

features of creating a website without 

programming skills, maintaining a 

client database and sending newsletters. 

The combination of web-technologies 

and cloud data storage provides 

the visitors with additional 

advantages of self-registration for 

events and online booking. Your 

website becomes really interactive. 

The built-in Wigma-website 

builder is simple and flexible in 

use. Colorful thematic templates, 

matching your business, offer an 

opportunity for a quick start. 

Wigma - E-Commerce service 

allows you to expand the sales audience 

and increase the sales results. 

To-do lists linked to the client database 

improve the efficiency of your 

customer relationships management. 

The Wigma service stores all 

client data in a secure storage on 

the territory of Austria. 

To meet Wigma choose a Promo 

package. You can test the basic 

options of the website-builder; e.g., 

to create a website business card. 

Our startup package allows you 

to create advertising websites, organize 

events and publish news. 

Our business package is suitable 

for most small businesses. It combines 

the best opportunities to engage 

with clients at a reasonable price. 

Our premium package is created 

for those who do not bear any 

restrictions; it opens access to all 

Wigma features. 

TRY NEW OPPORTUNITIES 

FOR YOUR SUCCESS! 


Monitoring systems 

for user-friendly short and long-term measurements 

HBM offers a complete solution for your measurement task. 

For choosing and installing the individual measurement technology components or for planning and starting 

up the measurement setup, including suitable training – HBM is your partner. 

Transducers 

■ 

■ 

■ 

■ 

■ 

■ 

■ 

Displacement, strain, crack width 

Oscillation, acceleration 

Tilt, sinking 

Temperature, humidity 

Analog current / voltage sensors 

Digital inputs / outputs 

Fiber-Optic Sensor Technology 

Measurement signal conditioning with QuantumX 

■ Stand-alone data recording 

■ 

■ 

Scalable as a group of devices, allows for flexible setup and 

works synchronously 

Can be used in stationary or mobile applications 

■ Offers high measurement quality by compensating for line 

lengths and interference frequencies as well as high EMC 

stability and cyclical auto-adjustment. 

■ 

Threshold monitoring 

Further information: www.hbm.com/civil-engineering 

HBM Test and Measurement ■ Tel. + 43 1 865 8441-0 ■ info@at.hbm.com ■ www.hbm.at ■ www.argos-systems.eu

Carbotopia 

Innovation 

The Race to 

Excellence 

Keep Carbon Circular 

When we look at excellence as performing and 

undertaking deeds in an exceptionally good 

way, some people perceive it just competitive. 

But in a year of Winter Olympics we should 

also look beyond the one on one out-competing each other 

at the honorable Olympic idea of being part of one and the 

same games for all participants! Or have you heard of any 

athletes opposing against Olympic Games due to fears of 

losing? 

Over the last three decades China has progressed 

remarkably to a top three global economy player! A country 

having been used by the world’s leading economy as a 

manufacturing bench for outsourced productions evolved 

into the world’s biggest factory helping it to diminish poverty. 

Today Chinese economy has built the biggest middle 

income group within itself turning the country into the 

world’s biggest consumer market. So now, everybody 

wants to be there and participate. 

Most people perceive China difficult to understand 

though. But the reality is that China is the most predictable 

country in the world now. Because it just works for 

its own people’s best interests. Which for a leading Communist 

Party’s policy shouldn’t be that surprising. The 

probably most important point is therefore that in China 

nothing is forbidden that couldn’t potentially turn into a 

threat to its people. And in contrary to Western societies, 

corruption starts where someone uses his powers to 

take advantage over partners or compatriots – in Olympic 

Games one would call it disqualification! 

In the interest of protecting its consumers China 

recently also rigorously executes on Intellectual Property 

violations. In an economy that widely depends on 

e-tailing, brands, patents and copy rights are the only 

guarantees consumers can rely on. Previous subcontract 

manufacturers now can also sell internationally via the 

internet winning all the trade margins for China’s GDP 

driving qualitative growth of the country. Paired with a 

lot of freedom to try out new digital solutions China is 

rapidly developing Artificial Intelligence in a very comprehensive 

organic way. 

Excellence is 

always built on learning 

through training 

Stefan Petters 

Founder & President of the things we like to 

Carbotopia Syndicate do. Like a little child, 

doing a puzzle over 

and over again or an athlete exercising his discipline 

under constant feed-back. Looking at deep machine 

learning, we can see that rebuilding human neuronal networks 

for image processing works best. So Sony having 

been a leader in audio visual computer games for years 

could recently take a lead in it. But besides its laboratories 

in Paris it also establishes collaborations in the uprising 

Pearl River Delta, Hong Kong – Macao – Guangdong Bay- 

Area attracting word’s best talents. 

So the race for excellence has already turned into a 

contest of education-systems. Building Social skills on 

the basis of culture, stimulate curiosity, mentor individual 

talents and motivate the self-discipline to go wild on 

the subjects of individual ambitions able to serve society. 

Training perception and learning several languages 

during pre-school age, i.e. by multi-lingual memory with 

audio functions could do miracles. Building strong characters 

who will find their own ways, not shy to circumvent 

regulations without causing damage to others are 

the profiles needed to succeed. 

Exploration is the best head-start towards excellence. 

Particularly when it comes to using tools alike Artificial 

Intelligence. It builds skills like climbing up an Archimedes-Spiral 

instead of keeping abilities frozen by linear 

exploitation until they become obsolete by the contemporary 

innovations. It is such a waste of human talents. 

Like any linear eco-system squanders its resources. If you 

want to know economies of scale, check out Carbotopia 

Circular Carbon Economy on Twitter or Facebook! A lot of 

education and innovation seed money could be found in 

what is blown into air for waste today! The way societies 

treat waste is equally a measure of the level of their civilization 

as the investments in their buddings’ education! 

Both leaving a lot of room to further excellence! 


Cashback World 

Initiatives 

One 

Shopping 

Community 

for the 

entire world 

Foto: istockphoto.com 

Foto: istockphoto/Martin Dimitrov 

The international Shopping 

Community Cashback World 

offers consumers attractive shopping 

benefits – from Cashback and Shopping 

Points to valuable lifestyle information. 

Cashback World disposes of an 

ever-growing Loyalty Merchant 

network, which covers 

an array of different sectors 

and offers a wide range of shopping 

opportunities to the Cashback World 

Members. When it comes to selecting 

Loyalty Merchants, the focus is 

placed on obtaining a well-balanced 

mix of chain stores, online shops 

and SMEs. The latter are particularly 

important to Cashback World: 

Strengthening the economy in the 

regions is a key objective for the 

Shopping Community. 

Cashback World is now active in 

47 countries. The 8 million Members 

can shop at 80,000 Loyalty 

Merchants and make use of attractive 

benefits: For they will receive 

up to 5% Cashback and can also 

collect Shopping Points for every 

purchase made at a Cashback 

World Loyalty Merchant. These 

Shopping Points can then be 

redeemed for exclusive Loyalty 

Merchant offers. For its White 

Label Solutions, Cash back World 

uses the advantages of having a 

pool of millions of potential cus- 

tomers. These tailor-made fan and 

customer loyalty programmes give 

clubs and organisations with a 

large member base, as well as large 

companies, the chance to offer 

their own members, fans, customers 

and employees the Cashback 

World benefits, which in turn 

allows them to benefit with every 

purchase they make. 

Registering to Cashback World 

as a shopper is completely free of 

charge as well as non-binding. Further 

information can be found at 

cashbackworld.com. 


Sports for Life 

an initiative of 

SPORTS 

FOR LIFE _ 

SPORTS 

FOR GOOD! 

Fotos: David Zirngast 

SPORTS FOR LIFE! is an initiative of former footballers 

and sportsmen aiming to promote football 

to society, especially to kids who are socially 

disadvantaged! 

Players like Christopher Dibon and the camp coaches take a lot of time 

for the kids. Autographs and certain morning rituals are a standard feature. 

Unlike years ago it is very important today to 

lead our children from indoor to outdoor activities 

in order to get them in good trim. Sports 

encourages the youth and connects them – it 

doesn’t matter which ethnic or social group they 

belong to. Team sports are very important because 

they teach children self-confidence and support them 

learn a lot about respect, teambuilding and other 

important traits that will help them in their future 

social and working life. 

The cooperation between the SPORTS FOR LIFE!-Foundation 

and several sponsors as well as local associations 

throughout Austria ensures a variety of benefits 

for children. 

Austria’s trade union for football players (Vereinigung 

der Fußballer, VdF) hosts the Bruno-Gala, an event 

Bruno Gala 2017 

where footballers and trainers are being honored. In 

terms of this exclusive event, donations enable disadvantaged 

families free access to the camps. Together 

with SPORTS FOR LIFE! the VdF is aiming to boost 

sportive activities in Austria. 


Initiatives 

STARCAMPS 

Since mid of 

2017, the new 

SPORTS FOR 

LIFE!- Cashback 

Card is 

available – get 

back your money 

from shopping 

whilst supporting 

disadvantaged 

kids to join a 

Starcamp! The 

card came into 

being through 

the cooperation 

with cashback 

world. 

Owing to its unique concept and the support of many sponsors 

and communities, the STARCAMPS can offer attractive 

prices starting from 119 € for a whole week, which enables 

access for nearly everyone. This is the most favorable price 

for a comparative camp offered in Austria, mixed with the 

know-how of well-educated and professional trainers. 

The main goal of the initiative is to make sports a 

part of children daily life on the one hand, and 

to provide them with the benefits of teamwork 

and social contacts on the other. This way the 

foundation attracts many children (7-14 years) and 

gives them the opportunity to join the beautiful game 

of football. In 2017 around 750 children took part in 31 

camps! This year 33 camps are planned and we expect 

over 800 participants! 

It’s not just about football at Sports For Life! as we 

are also found playing golf. As a partner, we participate 

in charity tournaments of the VdF and Rotary 

Klosterneuburg, such as the Rotary Golf Charity at 

Golfclub Schloss Schönborn. The net proceeds of the 

charity tournaments benefit socially disadvantaged 

and sports-loving children who can participate in one 

of the Starcamps! 

Several professional football players of the Austrian 

Bundesliga already took part in different exercises in 

terms of the STARCAMPS’ trainings. The children have 

the great chance to train with them and ask individual 

questions – an interesting experience for everyone! 

Beside the reasons listed above, creating fun and 

future prospects for children is SPORTS FOR LIFE!’s 

main ambition. Each year at least one professional player 

spends a part of his day with the children at the camp. 

Since 1998 the VdF is highly engaged in the promotion 

of young football players. Therefore they have been 

successfully promoting the camps for years. With lots 

of specific camps and finally with the STARCAMPS 

(since 2006) the VdF managed to fill the gap with high 

quality offers and fair prices. All this became possible 

thanks to the support of many authorities and professional 

footballers. 


iconvienna 

iconvienna 

an initiative of 

Brand Global 

Summit 

2018 

Brands function as an essential asset especially 

in times of attention economics. Therefore, 

innovation and corporate branding becomes 

one of the biggest key factors in the digital 

communication society. The transformation of products, 

services, cities, regions and countries to brands 

require proper comprehension of brand connotation 

and denotation. Understanding legal protection of 

intellectual property, value and virtue of brands and 

the holistic management of all components is key to 

develop and grow future lead brands. 

iconvienna specializes on the latest trends and has 

yet set another benchmark with 2018 topic on "Innovation 

needs branding - Branding needs innovation". 

Our field-experts inspired and granted valuable 

and practical insights in „Branding and innovation“-How 

to brand your latest innovation and the 

importance of a branding process|“International 

clusters, regions and branding“- Best practice in 

branding to develop regions and clusters|“Economies 

of brands“-How investments in brands create 

economic growth. 

iconvienna 

in brief 

Launched in 2005 the event is held in April 2018 

for the 14 th time, gathering participants and 

partners thought various fields of interest and 

from around the world. 

iconvienna-The European Business & Investment 

Forum established itself as an exclusive Business 

& Networking Event, promoting business contacts 

between Austrian and international companies and 

regions encouraging project and investment business. 

Following the motto “Make Contacts to Contracts”, 

top-level national and inter national decision makers 

from politics and economy, international experts 

and representatives of regions meet at the forum. We 

deliver value to participants and partners through 

personal contacts with executives, entrepreneurs, 

government officials, project partners, as well as concrete 

business opportunities at the forum. 


Initiatives 

H.E. Ramon Quinones and spouse, Nathalie Peña Comas, Gerhard Hrebicek 

Fotos: Katharina Schiffl 

Gerhard Hrebicek welcomes the guest at 

iconvienna Cocktail Reception 

Expertise 

During the day, national and international 

experts present and discuss 

contemporary key issues that 

are vital to brand integration, management 

and development. 

Hannes Jarolim, Alois Steinbichler, Gerhard Hrebicek, Julian Jäger, Ralph Vallon, Stefan Linsinger 

Entertainment 

The Cocktail Night at the Vienna 

City Hall is an excellent occasion 

for easy initial contacts and thus 

promote networking and knowhow 

exchange, offering participants 

the opportunity to introduce 

themselves to potential business 

partners, investors and decision 

makers. 

Project Exhibition 

Enterprises and regions present 

best practice projects and opportunities. 

Gerald Ganzger, Michael Otter, Bobby Calder, Edgar Baum, Gerhard Hrebicek, 

Monika Poeckh-Racek, Carlos Chanduvi 


iconvienna 

Carlos Chanduvi, UNIDO 

Alois Steinbichler and Zlata Šipošová 

Keynote speaker Wilhelm Molterer 


Gerhard Hrebicek with Chinese Delegation 

Klaus Müllner, Wilhelm Molterer, Gerhard Hrebicek 

High Ranking Participants 

CEOs, entrepreneurs, top politicians, representatives 

of regions, international organizations and science 

meet at the iconvienna forum. Including side events, 

participants from approximately 40 different countries 

join the conference. 

Mission 

iconvienna offers an appealing, promoting and effective 

environment including the features of the city of 

Vienna such as: 

• Vienna as a secure hub for the international Project-Businesses 

for representatives from politics 

and economy 

• a mix of new and effective business and social 

events for regions and companies including 

amongst others exhibitions, presentations, lounges, 

contact areas, panel discussions and keynote 

speeches, dinners and receptions, as well as 

• cooperation with public institutions, business 

incorporations, media and business partners 

from the East and West 

iconvienna provides an effective and efficient contact 

platform, in which 

• targeted contacts to experts and decision makers 

can be established, 

• the attractive side events offer an ideal atmosphere 

to establish a cooperation network including 

targeted contacts to business partners, 

• the international business network can be of use 

year-round and 

• equity financing, growth capital and advancing 

across partners can be provided. 


Initiatives 

An inspiring conference 

day at the 

Austrian Federal 

Economic Chamber 


FACTS AND FIGURES 

Values 

Respect and Confidence 

Our cooperation bases on reliability, veracity, transparency 

and open communication. We respect the 

cultural and social usage and differences of the 

countries in and with which we are working. 

Expertise 

Professional competence, innovation, quick decisions 

and flexibility affect our work and the work of 

our partners. 

Customer Focus 

We and our partners concentrate on the individual 

requirements of our customers and provide efficient 

and effective support to strengthen your competitive 

position and productivity. 

Corporate Responsibility 

Through responsible exposure to the resources of our 

customers, as well as the adoption of our employees and 

partners talents we create long-ranging cooperations. 

Patronage: 

Dr. Michael Häupl, Mayor and 

Regional Governor of Vienna 

Chairman of the Advisory Board: 

Dr. René Alfons Haiden 

President: 

First Forum: 2005 

DI Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek, MBA 

Target Groups: CEOs, entrepreneurs, top politicians, 

representatives of science, media, regions 

and international organizations 

Motto: 

Make Contacts to Contracts 

FOCUS 2018: Branding needs Innovation – 

Innovation needs Branding 

Previous Focus Areas: 

• Brand Together (2017) 

• International Summit on Innovative Entrepreneurship (2016) 

• East-West Summit on Regional Cooperation through 

Innovation and Entrepreneurship (2015) 

• East-West Summit on Innovation and Smart Cities (2014) 

• Find out more on www.icon-vienna.net 


Impressions 

of iconvienna 

2017 

Chinese Delegation at iconvienna Cocktail Reception 

Foto: Gregor Turecek 


Foto: Alice Schnuer-Wala 



Monika Benarik-Belan, Sonja Kato, Lisa Cichoki, Nuo Huo, Renate Altenhofer 

A good atmosphere faciliates multi-lateral exchange 


iconvienna Gallery 



Nathalie Peña Comas spreading opera feeling and Latin American atmosphere 


Dominican Republic providing our guests with local specialties 

Maria Rauch-Kallat, former Federal Minister for Health and Women 

Foto: Gerhard Fally 

Foto: Gregor Turecek Foto: Gregor Turecek 

Colombian hospitality at the iconvienna Cocktail Reception 

Heidemarie Kipperer, cashback world, Gerhard Hrebicek 


Gerhard Hrebicek and Pinguin Liu, China Council for Brand Development 

Gerhard Hrebicek, Patrick Sagmeister, Konstantin Bekos 



An Initiative of 


EDUCATION IS 

WOMEN LEADERSHIP FORUM was 

initiated by European Brand Institute to 

promote Women Leadership in the fields 

of economy, science & research, public 

institutions, society as well as to connect 

successful women and powerful men with 

the purpose of strengthening innovative 

and economic power in Austria. 

FEMALE! 

According to the motto „FRAU. MACHT. 

BILDUNG“. European Brand Institute 

invited to the 5 th Women Leadership 

Forum at the Novomatic Forum on September 

19, 2017. In cooperation with the US 

Embassy, ÖBB, Novomatic and cbw cashback 

world the event focused on the topic „The Educated 

Power Woman – Educated for the Future?” 

Following the tradition Eugene Young, 

Charge d'Affaires of the US Embassy in Austria 


Elke Freytag fashion show

Initiatives 

(left to right) 

Renate Altenhofer, Eugene Young, 

Monika Poeckh-Racek, Pamela Rendi- 

Wagner, Barbara Feldmann, Martina 

Flitsch, Sonja Kato, Patricia Steniek, 

Wolfgang Ebner 


Markus Reisner, Karoline Resch, 

Sonja Kato, Renate Altenhofer 

"Funded education is always the basis for 

a successful career. Soft skills are what 

make successful women stand out in order 

to assert themselves 

in their professional 

environment and to 

be respected as a 

permanent leader." 

Foto: Dietmar Kump 

Heidemarie Kipperer 

Managing director 

myWorld Austria GmbH 

"For professional advancement in an 

executive position, political skill is essential. 

It requires the expertise of how one's own 

abilities, behaviors and qualities can be used 

effectively. Important 

basic factors for this 

are network capability, 

consistency and 

enjoyment of the activity." 

Foto: Novomatic/ Sebastian Philipp 

Monika Poeckh-Racek 

CEO ADMIRAL Casinos & 

Entertainment AG 


"Military leadership is hierarchical, 

formalised, ritualised and strongly 

masculine gendered. Nearly 20 years after 

the opening of the Austrian Armed Forces 

for female soldiers, women in leadership 

positions are still rare. 

The challenges this 

situation show can serve 

as a useful advice in a 

civil environment." 

Foto: KK 

Karoline Resch 

first female major in the 

General Staff Service of the 

Austrian Armed Forces 




Sonja Kato, Pamela Rendi-Wagner, 

Renate Altenhofer, Eugene Young 


Sophie Martinetz, Lisa Cichocki, 

Beatrix Hausner, Andrea 

Schmorantzer-Jaberek, Rassa Seyedi, 

Elke Guenther, Gabriele Koltringer 

(left to right) Valerie Höllinger, Sophie Martinetz, Christoph Trost, 

Katharina Apliez, Marlene Auer 

held the welcome remarks, emphasizing that equality 

signifies "common sense" for him. The opening 

was conducted by Women Leadership Forum initiator 

Renate Altenhofer and Wolfgang Ebner (Novomatic 

Forum) while Sonja Kato led through the conference 

day. 

This year’s star guest was former federal minister 

for health and women Pamela Rendi-Wagner who 

pointed out in her opening speech that she „is not 

here as a politician, but as a woman with a career 

that knows the given problems. Education is a key to 

equality, but it needs a keychain." 

Top Profiler Patricia Staniek gave very interesting 

insights in her impulse statement: which qualities 

women should bring with them in the work-related 

environment of the future - "take over control otherwise 

there will be somebody who does". 

Big excitement among the audience as Austria's 

first General Staff Officer Lieutenant Colonel Dr. 

Karoline Resch and Lieutenant Colonel Markus 

Reisner entered the stage. The participants were 

"We have to give women 

the courage to take 

the positions they are 

offered!" 

Martina Denich-Kobula 

Chairwoman 

Frau in der Wirtschaft Wien 

"Social media is leading to a decisive 

democratization of education, but especially 

in times of digitization it must be the task of 

modern educational institutions to convey 

the new fourth core 

competency - the digital 

authority - so social media 

can be used not only for 

entertainment but also for 

information.“ 

Valerie Höllinger 

Former managing director 

BFI Wien 




Initiatives 

"Education is the engine of our knowledgebased 

society and of a flourishing economy. 

In Austria education is female! Across all 

areas of education, women are at the top. 

But although women 

nowadays are often better 

educated than men, it still 

doesn‘t mean equal career 

opportunities." 

Foto: European Brand Institute 

Renate Altenhofer 

Initiator Women Leadership 

Forum, managing partner 

maX iconvienna 

"With the women's quota of 30 percent on 

supervisory boards, an important step has 

already been taken to bring more women 

into management and decision-making 

positions in the future. 

That's important for 

women, the economy, 

and last but not least 

our country." 

Pamela Rendi-Wagner 

Former Federal Minister for 

Health and Women 

Foto: Andy Wenzel 

"Only those who get to know technical 

jobs practically know which exciting and 

promising professions there are in this 

area. That‘s why at AIT, as the largest nonuniversity 

applied research 

institute in Austria, it is 

very important for us to 

give schoolgirls a first 

insight into our fascinating 

world." 

Foto: KK 

Pharmacist Corinna Prinz-Stremitzer, Valentina Prinz, Yuvell Fine 

Aesthetics, Gabriele Schwarenthorner and Raya Samedi, IBM 

"Digitalisation demands a change in 

child care and education to give today's 

children opportunities for leadership 

positions of tomorrow. It is necessary 

to establish learning 

sessions already at 

kindergarten age in 

order to raise the 

children’s awareness 

for the technology of 

the digital world." 

Foto: Ian Ehm 

Marlene Auer 

Editor in Chief Horizont 

Elke Guenther 

Head of Center for Health 

& Bioresources AIT 

given a fascinating dialogue on "pure leadership – 

what we can learn from military education”. In 

addition the audience was given a personal insight 

into the everyday life of a lieutenant colonel. 

Decision makers and trendsetters like Marlene 

Auer, editor in chief Horizont, Valerie Höllinger, 

managing director BFI Vienna, Sophie Martinetz, 

founder and managing partner Seinfeld Professionals, 

Katharina Aplienz, instructor Montessori Academy 

and Christoph Trost, founder UNIspotter app, 

explained the influencing factors and challenges of 

the 21st century. They also complained about the 

impact of modern educational institutions compared 

against social media on the "Digital Native 

Generation". Most importantly: adaptability, curiosity 

and digital fitness! 


maximize your business communication! 

award conception I brand communication & consulting 

event management I marketing outsourcing 

public relations I ratings & studies 

Our initiatives 

www.icon-vienna.net 

www.europeanbrandinstitute.com/forum/ 

www.womenleadership.at 

maX iconvienna GmbH 

Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Wien 

office@maxcc.at


Initiatives 

How to attract more women in research and technology 

was discussed by panel chair Sophie Martinetz 

together with Lisa Cichocki (IST Austria), Elke 

Guenther (AIT), Rassa Seyedi (IBM Austria), Andrea 

Schmoranzer-Jerabek (L'Oréal Luxe) and Gabriele Költringer 

(Technikum Wien). 

NEWS editor-in-chief Esther Mitterstieler, chaired 

the panel with corporate leaders Veronika Zügel 

(ÖBB-Holding AG), Heidemarie Kipperer (myWorld 

Austria), Monika Poeckh-Racek, (ADMIRAL AG), Karoline 

Resch (BMLV) , Martina Denich-Kobula (FidWW) 

and leadership coach Karin Weigl discussing "The 

Educated Power Woman: overeducated - undervalued?", 

the company-internal education opportunities 

and what skills women need in the C-Suite to be successful. 

A fixed female quota in companies was seen 

diverse by the panelists. 

At the following cocktail reception Valentina 

Prinz, managing director of Yuvell Fine Aesthetics 

gave away the secret of how to make the skin glow and 

Austro- designer Elke Freytag raised a cheer from all 

participants for her exclusive fashion show in cooperation 

with the action artist Billi Thanner. 

"At ÖBB we have set ourselves the goal of 

continual increasing the share of women - 

including management positions. Our claim 

is to be perceived as a 

role model company even 

beyond the country's 

borders." 

Veronika Zügel 

Head of corporate human 

resources, ÖBB-Holding AG 

Foto: KK 

"Personally, I am still fascinated by the natural 

sciences and the professional environment 

that an institute for basic 

research has to offer and 

where the limits of our 

knowledge are being 

expanded day by day." 

Foto: Lisa Cichocki 

WOMEN LEADERSHIP FORUM 2018 

FRAU.MACHT. INNOVATION 

SEPTEMBER 18, 2018 

NOVOMATIC FORUM WIEN 

www.womenleadership.at 

Lisa Cichocki 

Visits, Marketing 

Communication 

IST Austria 

"Women have to become even more visible 

and noticeable in the future. „Woman“ 

needs a better navigation 

system in the future 

to break through the 

jungle of power and 

manipulation." 

James F. Photography (Wolfgang Bauer) 

Patrica Staniek 

CEO Int. Consulting & Profiling 

"Education has changed more in the 

last five years than it has in the last 2000 

years before. With a digitization rate of 

3%, education is one of the few ultraindustries 

which are still facing a serious 

technological transformation. The five 

trends digitization, 

personalization, 

privatization, 

automatization and 

globalization will shape 

this transformation.“ 

Christoph Trost 

Co-Founder UNIspotter 

Foto: KK 



legally 

How to 

protect 

Ideas cannot be protected, but trademarks certainly can. Trademark protection is getting increasingly 

important all over the globe. Companies are becoming more and more aware of the value of trademarks. 

If a trademark is successfully registered and capitalized, the idea behind it will be identified 

with this trademark and therefore it will be more difficult for imitators to copy the idea. 

By citing YouTube or Google as examples, there 

would be a variety of possible alternatives. It 

is not possible to protect the idea of uploading 

videos to a platform and watching them there or 

searching for certain keywords on the internet. Therefore 

a third party cannot be prohibited from establishing 

the same products on the market. Nevertheless, 

YouTube and Google managed to become market leaders. 

This is mainly due to the fact that their trademarks 

acquired international brand awareness. Hence trademark 

protection is to be considered at the very beginning 

of a project. 

A comprehensive trademark analysis is absolutely 

advisable in international projects and international 

start-ups. Work for proper legal protection of a trademark 

has to be done already before the launch of a 

project. This article outlines a potential trademark 

protection process in Austria, the EU and other relevant 

international markets. 

TRADEMARK REGISTRATION IN AUSTRIA 

If you chose a phrase, a logo or the combination of a 

text and a logo for your project, you can register it at the 

Austrian Patent Office (ÖPA). Words are to be registered 

as wordmarks, pure graphics as figurative marks and 

the combinations of words and graphics as figurative 

marks containing word elements. Moreover, there are 

also rather unusual variants of marks, such as colour 

marks, sound marks, hologram marks or 3D marks. 

With the pace of technical progress, further categories 

of marks will certainly be added in the future. 

In Austria you have to expect a fee of at least EUR 

284.00 for a trademark registration at the moment. 

This fee includes the registration in up to three 

classes. The registration in each additional class sums 

up to EUR 75.00. In addition, costs for legal consultation 

may be incurred. 

The term “classes” describes the systematization 

of goods and services according to the “Nice Agreement”. 

This classification globally systemizes goods 

and services according to specified classes. Therefore 

it is necessary to decide which goods and services 

your trademark has to be identified with before the 

registration. Goods and services are then to be listed 

in a register of goods and services. After the trademark 

has been successfully registered, the protection 

extends only to registered goods and services. Therefore 

they should not be set too narrow, otherwise protection 

of goods and services going beyond the registration 

is not provided. Too broad protection is also 

not recommended, as it allows competitors to cancel 

unused goods and services from the register. 


Brands 

your brand 

Such a register of goods and services has to be 

attached to the trademark application. Before registering 

a trademark, it is therefore recommended to seek 

legal consultation on which goods and services are 

relevant and hence, which classes are to be included 

in the application. If done without legal assistance, 

this is the area most prone to errors in the course of a 

trademark application. 

In 2017 the ÖPA also introduced 

the possibility of online 

trademark registration and the 

accelerated “fast track” application. 

The advantage of online 

registration is a reduced registration 

fee, and the advantage 

of the fast track application is 

a shorter processing period. 

Currently, regular registration 

procedures last about 3 

to 5 months, depending on the 

complexity. This registration 

period can be shortened with a fast track application. 

Fast track applications can only be applied with predefined 

goods and services. That is how the detailed 

and time-consuming examination of goods and services 

by the ÖPA can be omitted. 

EUROPEAN TRADEMARK REGISTRATION 

National trademark registrations only give protection 

in the respective national territory. Therefore the European 

Union established the European Union Intellectual 

Property Office (EUIPO), which allows trademark 

registrations providing protection within the whole 

EU. The registration procedure is similar to the one in 

Austria. The EUIPO also offers “fast track” registrations. 

However, the registration fees differ significantly. The 

fee for a trademark registration at the EUIPO amounts 

to at least EUR 850.00 at the moment and contains only 

one class. The registration in the second class will cost 

EUR 50.00, whereas the registration fee in each subsequent 

class sums up to EUR 150.00. 

Just like the national 

procedure, the EUIPO also 

allows the holders of older 

trademarks to file objections 

against new trademark applications. 

The trademark holder 

must argue that the new trademark 

application is identical 

or similar to an existing trademark. 

However, the European 

trademark proceedings provide 

an opportunity for both 

the holders of older European 

trademarks and the holders of 

older national trademarks from each member state to file 

an objection. When registering an EU trademark, the risk 

of an opposition is therefore considerably higher than in 

the case of a national trademark registration. 

Consequently it is advisable to first apply for a national 

trademark and then extend it to an EU trademark. The 

advantage is that the priority date of the national trademark 

can be transferred to the EU trademark within six 

months from the registration of the national trademark. 

Upon successful registration, the trademark will be protected 

beginning from the date of application (“priority”). 

This approach provides national trademark protection, 

even if problems occur in the EU trademark proceeding. 

"The protection of trademarks 

is an important issue for every 

company. Trademarks are a core 

value for companies, more and 

more companies have become 

aware of the value of trademarks. 

Registering a trademark is the 

easiest way to secure this value 

for the company." Gerald Ganzger 


Thinking outside the box 

is not just a phrase, 

but rather our approach 

to legal advice. 

“Grow your market share. Leave protecting your business to us.” That is what lawyers usually say. 

At LANSKY, GANZGER + partners we do not limit ourselves to presenting legal issues. 

Native language experts, lawyers and advisors from more than 20 nations bring the necessary 

skills to the table to solve a wide range of problems in day-to-day business life. Our geographic 

reach extends to Southern Europe, into the CIS area, and Asia. Our network includes local partner 

firms in over 50 countries worldwide. 

Successful legal advice means more than simply knowing and applying the law. 

We Lansky, provide Ganzger advice + on: 

partner, one of the leading law firms in Austria and the Slovak Republic, 

• has Company longstanding formation and profound M&A 

experience that enables it to deliver an all-encompassing, 

• inter Setting disciplinary up sales structures 

and cross-regional service of the highest level. 

• Labour law issues 

• Lansky, Market Ganzger launch of + products partner and closely services 

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and a worldwide network 

companies have, over the past years, relied on 

• of Private consultants international and local law 

advisers. This ensures 

the firm’s extensive expertise. The all-inclusive 

• that Public the decision-making firm able to offer processes 

individual, strategic 

approach of Lansky, Ganzger + partner clearly 

• and European pragmatic law, all-in-one subsidies, solutions antitrust and to their competition national law 

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Many renowned national 

a conventional, solely legal consultancy. 

LAnSky, GAnzGeR + partner 

Attorneys at Law 

Biberstrasse 5 

a-1010 Vienna (austria) 

W: www.lansky.at 

T: +43 1 533 33 300 

F: +43 1 532 84 83 

e: office@lansky.at 

Vienna – BraT isL a V a – Baku – asT ana


Brands 

The advantage of an EU trademark is obvious: 

Trademark applicants do not have to go through the 

cumbersome process of national registrations in all 

the member states, but can obtain trademark protection 

in all the member states of the EU with a single 

application at the EUIPO. In terms of legal protection, 

an EU trademark, in principle, has the same status as 

a national trademark in a member state. 

The upcoming Brexit brings uncertainties in this 

context. It might be possible that an EU trademark 

remains in effect in the UK after Brexit. It is also conceivable 

that legal protection will cease to exist in the 

UK. Therefore a separate application in the UK would 

be necessary after Brexit. 

INTERNATIONAL TRADEMARK 

REGISTRATION 

These days, a good idea will seldom remain local. In the 

digital age, it will rapidly spread globally. In order to be 

able to exploit the potential of a certain digital product, 

a rollout on an international scale is often intended. 

However, despite all the euphoria, companies should 

not forget about the international trademark protection. 

Certainly it is possible to choose the tedious way 

and engage a lawyer or a patent attorney in each country 

where a company would like to break into the 

market. This is a time-consuming and a cost-intensive 

way and in many cases it is therefore not advisable. 

Especially in cases where companies plan a rollout in 

many different countries, it is advisable to follow the 

path through the World Intellectual Property Organization 

(WIPO), which is based in Switzerland. For 

an international trademark registration at the WIPO 

a basic registration is needed, for instance a national 

trademark or a European Union trademark. 

A trademark can be registered in approximately 100 

member states within the WIPO. It is only necessary 

to translate the list of goods and services either into 

English or French. The fee for the registration at the 

WIPO can differ from country to country. Approximately 

CHF 750.00 (including three classes), this equals 

approx. EUR 640.00, is charged per country for the registration 

of a trademark. WIPO itself does not carry out 

the registration process. Instead it centrally forwards 

the application to the national trademark offices. The 

benefit of the registration through WIPO is that applicants 

can centrally manage all the international trademark 

registration procedures. Furthermore, the information 

on a successfully registered trademark is stored 

in the “Global Brand Database” managed by WIPO, and 

can easily be accessed worldwide through an online 

search system. The visibility of a trademark alone 

already offers a certain protection and has a deterrent 

effect against imitation. 

Nevertheless companies should not underestimate 

the procedure of international trademark registrations 

since, in most countries, the application and registration 

procedure is often not as quick as one expects. In 

some cases it is necessary to submit additional statements 

and documents to the national trademark offices, 

whereas this often needs to be settled through national 

partner law offices. Especially in countries with the 

Anglo-American legal system, registering a trademark 

is only possible with a confirmation either that the 

trademark has already been used or that companies 

intend to use the trademark in the future (“Intent-to- 

Use” statement). Experienced attorneys can successfully 

guide companies through the complex procedure 

of international trademark registrations. 

The member states of WIPO comprise such significant 

markets like the USA, Russia, Japan, India or 

China. Unfortunately, not all important markets are 

WIPO member states. That is why help of a national 

attorney or patent attorney might be unavoidable. This 

is the case with e.g. Canada, Brazil or Argentina. 

BRAND MANAGEMENT 

After the registration is successfully completed, the 

protection process is not over yet. Upon registration, it 

is recommended to establish a proactive and efficient 

brand management. It is necessary to monitor a brand 

and resolutely send cease-and-desist letters to those 

who infringe trademark rights. 

Trademark monitoring is offered by specialized companies 

and such monitoring results should be reviewed 

by lawyers or legal experts. If cases of infringement by 

third persons are not pursued consequently, the best 

trademark protection will be in vain. 

Foto: K.K. 

Mag. Oliver Peschel 

is an associate at Lansky, 

Ganzger + partner in 

the litigation and 

IP/IT department. 


SummerLight Capital Partners 

Private Equity Partners 

Während Ihr Unternehmen Finanzierung für Betriebsmittel und 

Arbeitskapital erwerben kann, ziehen bis dato Markeninvestitionen 

selten das Interesse der Finanzwirtschaft auf sich. 

Die Zukunft Europas hängt 

allerdings am geistigen 

Eigentum und hier besonders 

an den vielen starken und 

wertvollen Marken, die noch viel 

besser vermarktet werden müssen. 

Aber wie lassen sich Markeninvestitionen 

finanzieren? Durch 

alternative Finanzierungsformen 

wie etwa Private Equity, Venture 

Capital oder spezialisierte Markenfonds, 

wird hier ein großes Potential 

geschaffen. 


fokussiert sich auf Unternehmen in 

Europa, die eine schnell wachsende 

Marke im Einzelhandel, Dienstleistungssektor 

und in der Konsumgüterindustrie 

besitzen. Mit dem 

European Consumer Brand Fund 

schaffen wir Möglichkeiten, die es 

bisher in Europa nicht gab. Unsere 

gemeinsame Aufgabe ist es, das 

Wachstumspotential Ihres Unternehmens 

durch Branding auszuschöpfen. 

Jede Investment Situation ist 

unterschiedlich und ein individueller 

Ansatz vonnöten. Das 

Markenunternehmen wird vorab 

genau analysiert und es werden 

Strategien über die zukünftige 

Ausrichtung des Unternehmens 

und dessen Marken entwickelt. In 

den meisten Fällen führt dies zu 

einer Anteilspartnerschaft (Private 

Equity), aber auch Markenfinanzierungsprogramme 

können in Verbindung 

mit Private Equity oder 

Stand-Alone umgesetzt werden. 

Die Entwicklung der operativen 

Ergebnisse und KPIs und die dazu 

notwendigen Instrumente, sind 

eine Voraussetzung für eine positive 

gemeinsame Markenentwicklung. 

Durch die Wiederbelebung von 

„Heritage Brands“ und mit nachhaltigen 

Investitionen in bestehende 

Marken, die in Europa vor 

allem durch viele Klein- und Mittelbetriebe 

vorhanden sind, haben 

wir hier ein immenses Marken-Potential. 


bieten Kapital und Know-how zur 

Markenentwicklung und ermöglichen 

damit die Wertsteigerung für 

ihr Unternehmen. 

Gehen wir gemeinsam den Weg zu 

neuen Nummer 1 Marken. 


Brands 

While your company can obtain 

funding for growth and working 

capital, brand building investments 

do not attract interest from the 

funding community that much. 

Klaus Müllner 

Founder & Chief Investment Officer 

Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek 

Founder & Chief Brand Officer 


Europe’s future depends on intellectual property 

and in particular on the many strong and valuable 

brands that should be marketed even better. 

But how can brand investments be financed? 

Great potential is created through alternative financing 

such as private equity, venture capital or specialized 

brand funds. 

SummerLight Capital Partners focus on companies 

in Europe with a fast-growing brand in the retail, 

services and the consumer goods industry. With the 

European Consumer Brand Fund, we are creating 

opportunities that have not yet existed in Europe. Our 

mission is to establish your business’ growth potential 

through Branding. 

Each investment situation is different and an individual 

approach is required. A potential company is 

precisely analyzed and discussions are conducted 

about the company’s orientation. In most cases, the 

results lead to a private equity partnership, but brand 

financing programs can also be considered in connection 

with private equity or stand-alone. The development 

of the operating results and KPI’s and the necessary 

tools are a prerequisite for a positive brand 

development. 

By reloading “Heritage Brands” through sustainable 

investment in existing brands, which we find in 

many small and medium-sized enterprises in Europe, 

we can raise an immense brand potential. 

SummerLight Capital Partners provide capital and 

know-how for brand development and therefore enable 

value creation for your company by brand-led growth. 

Let’s start a journey together to build new number 1 

brands! 



Alternative 

From an organization’s viewpoint, 

a strong brand is a valuable 

asset. It is, however, an 

intangible asset. Its value to the 

company ultimately depends 

on the value of the brand to 

consumers, reflected by the 

extent to which they rely on 

the brand to make decisions. 

For this reason it has historically 

been difficult for organizations 

to evaluate brands, 

give them a financial valuation 

and invest in them. 

Financing 

for Brands 

Opportunity versus Challenge 

BACKGROUND 

We have experienced many changes in the last years 

and decades in the way business is conducted. The digital 

area has brought a complete new mind set, new companies 

to the consumers and has introduced a change 

in consumer behaviour and business processes. By 

introducing Web-shops and Web-platforms, but also the 

integration of different Business Channels (B2C, B2B, 

Web-shops), they are influencing 

our way of working 

significantly. Complete new 

job profiles have been created, 

the Supply Chain Management 

has been significantly 

adapted and Social Media 

and other Online-Platforms 

created transparency in the 

process, whilst also replacing 

and changing the traditional 

advertisement and communication strategies. Furthermore 

geographic boundaries are less and less important, 

and the concept of “Territory Penetration” or neighbourhood 

shops, have to be adapted as many products 

are available with one Mouse Click, worldwide. Therefore, 

most of the retailers and Consumer Companies are 

"Alternative Financing for 

Cluster/Lead brands is pivotal 

for companies to take the next 

step of their growth journey 

either domestically, regional 

or globally and to exploit the 

full potential of the Brand." 

trying hard to develop new strategies to stay in the game 

in order to not lose control of distribution and pricing. 

For consumers it is getting harder and harder to 

understand the different platforms, products and offers 

in the “Digital Jungle”. What has remained during this 

time, and now even more so, is the desire to buy a product, 

which the consumer can identify and associate a 

certain DNA with – in simple 

words, TRUST. 

NEED FOR ALTERNA- 

TIVE FINANCING 

The understanding of Brands 

and Consumer behaviour 

leads to the opportunity and 

necessity of providing Alternative 

Financing to such 

Consumer Companies with 

strong brands. The new business environment has created 

opportunities but also challenges for SME and 

Midcap Consumer Brand companies. While big-sized 

consumer companies have the structure and financing 

to phase global and structural changes – the smaller 

companies have to adapt to these structures, processes. 


Brands 

Quality Brand 

Growth & Values 

Brand Valuation 

Financial 

Structuring 

Market & 

Consumer 

Risk Valuation 

They have to invest in people with global thinking and 

train them as well as investing in product labelling, 

marketing, I.T, and strengthening the brand etc., which 

demands fresh capital – to participate in these new 

opportunities in order to not fall behind. 

Most of the SME and Midcap companies, which 

are often family-owned, have spent their cash reserve 

to stay in business during the recent financial crisis. 

To receive bank loans, without sufficient collateral, 

remains a challenge, especially if the investments 

are not solely fixed asset driven. Additionally, these 

companies require not just capital but also know-how 

on how to perform these necessary adaptions and an 

understanding of the new way of working, other markets 

and how they should develop their Brand. 

MORE THAN MONEY 

Apart from the capital needs, companies might also 

need the guidance towards changing and adapting. 

Some specialized Private Equity Funds have realized 

the need to have the financial skills is not enough, 

but also emphasize the importance on team members 

with operational experience, who can help the companies 

to accelerate the full potential. Companies will 

very carefully analyse which potential operational 

experience “partners” they require and will also 

make sure that the “chemistry” and entrepreneurial 

attitude will harmonize. 

What makes the real difference is to additionally 

have a fund partner, which is specialised in Brand 

issues. To focus on the Brand development is not just 

simplifying the growth strategy and entering new markets 

however creating other brand related opportunities 

and downside protection of the investment for the fund. 

SummerLight Capital calls this the TRIPLE PLUS 

strategy (traditional Private Equity, Brand Instruments 

and Downside Protection). With the specific 

team structure, with specialists in financial/Private 

Equity, operational and Brand issues, SummerLight 

Capital provides a unique offer to companies and has 

its own USP over other Funds, which focus on a more 

generalist approach. There are many possibilities 

involving Brands, from a Brand Valuation and Certification, 

which might even allow for a collateral and 

balance sheet usage. Furthermore an unbundling the 

brand from the operational business and allowing for 

licencing for new product areas and the reactivation 

of dormant or sleeping brands. 



Brands create 

prosperity for 

economies. 

Brands are one of the most significant but 

least understood assets for companies and 

economies. 

Brand Global Council is a global council of countries, 

organizations and professionals working to improve and 

communicate to all stakeholders the value of brands 

and their contribution to overall economic and societal 

wellbeing and inclusive, sustainable development. 

Consumers buy brands, not products. The best 

brands today are meaningful in the lives of consumers. 

They are much more than products, 

names, advertising, etc. 

Brands create prosperity for economies. Strong 

brands create wealth, jobs and growth and should be 

viewed as an economic asset. 

The world has come online and there are many new 

markets and a growing middle class in countries like 

India, China, Brazil, Russia, South Africa, Nigeria, Indonesia 

and many more places. 

As brands play an important role in economic development 

BGC will assist smaller and medium-sized organizations, 

cities and destinations to be able to utilize the 

benefits of brands. 

As an NGO and global think-tank, the BGC represents 

the interests of brands, the most important assets 

for businesses and economies, with the aim of communicating 

and promoting the business and social value of 

brands and their contribution to prosperity. The goal is 

to help organizations realize and increase the value of 

their brands. 

In addition, it creates an important link to international 

brand-related organizations. The location with 

Vienna as headquarters was deliberately chosen due to 

the geopolitical situation between America and Asia, 

the neutrality and security of Austria, existing locations 

of international organizations such as UN, OPEC, OSCE 

as well as the resulting experience in international congress 

tourism and the historical bridging function. 

As the first standard worldwide for brand valuation 

was developed in Vienna, this underlines the leadership 

of this City of the subject. Therefore BGC is dedicated 

to the implementation of international standards for 

brands especially those for brand valuation and evaluation 

and will cooperate and liaison with other international 

organizations to achieve this purpose. >> 

Activities of BGC 

The BGC's main areas of activity include the development 

and introduction of brand standards and certifications, 

the development of international events and management 

training, as well as the promotion of alternative 

forms of financing for brand companies and cooperation 

initiatives between and within the regions. 

The Brand Global Council, serves as global forum for 

coordination, know-how exchange, idea generation and 

development of collaborative initiatives and projects. 

All activities are directed to enabling organizations to 

report and benefit from the value of their brands and to 

making brand value a means of economic development 


Brands 

• European Initiative 

• Russian Initiative 

• Asian Initiative 

America 

Europe 

Africa 

Asia 

• Chinese Initiative 

• African Initiative 

North America 

Latin America 

& Caribbean 

EU & CEE 

Russia 

South Africa 

China 

India, Korea, 

Japan, etc. 

• North American 

Initiative 

• Latin America & 

Caribbean Initiative 

© 2018 BRAND GLOBAL Council 

Initiatives 

Increased concern for and understanding of brand value 

can be a tool for the economic development of smaller and 

medium-sized organizations, cities and destinations and 

economically underdeveloped regions. In order to create 

awareness and assist organizations around the world, 

regional brand initiatives will be developed. They are 

meant to communicate and demonstrate both the business 

and societal value of brands. Through these actions, 

the BGC will become both a top-down and a bottom-up 

organization representing nearly all of the world. 

INITIAL 

MEETING 

BGC 

On 26 th of April 2017, the 

World IP Day, the first 

meeting of the "Brand 

Global Council for Value 

and Sustainable Growth", 

which was founded to 

promote the business and 

social value of brands, 

took place at Novomatic 

Forum in Vienna. 

Carlos Chanduvi, Bobby Calder, Gerhard Hrebicek, Pingjun Liu, Klaus Müllner 



Why Brand Standards 

Everyone recognizes that 

brands are important. 

But why is the implementation 

of standards for brand value 

and brand management so 

important? 

BRANDS CREATE VALUE 

To start with, we must realize that since the 1990s 

investment in intangible assets (such as- R&D, software, 

human resources and brands) has exceeded that of tangible 

assets. The intangible asset value component of the 

S&P stock index grew from 17 percent in 1975 to 87 percent 

in 2015. 

Intangible assets are now the key to economic growth 

and increasing corporate value. Unfortunately, as with 

intangible assets generally, it has historically been very 

difficult assign a value to brands or identify the metrics 

for brand management and reporting. 

How can you create more value with a strong brand? 

The Trend is moving from 

tangible to intangible 

assets 

Therefore a different/ 

additional way to 

manage your balance 

sheet is required 

Have the brand as one 

of your cornerstones in 

your strategic thinking 

Intangible Assets 

COMPONENTS OF S&P 500 MARKET VALUE 

83 % 

17 % 

68 % 

32 % 

32 % 

68 % 

Tangible Assets 1975 1985 1995 

Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek 

Chairman Brand Global Council 

BRANDS EXIST 

IN THE MINDS 

OF CUSTOMERS 

Names, symbols and 

the like are just ways of 

referring to brands, ideally 

in a way that itself 

influences how consumers think about the brand. The 

brand, however, is the ultimate meaning, or the idea, of 

the product in the consumer’s head. It is how the consumer 

thinks about the product, what he or she believes 

to be true about it. 

A brand is thus subjective, not objective. The key 

point to realize is that it is the consumer 

who owns the brand. The 

brand exists in the consumer´s mind. 

Although brands are created by 

tangible investments in advertising 

20 % 

13 % and other marketing activities, the 

resulting brand is the idea or meaning 

that is created in the consumer’s 

mind. It is an intangible asset. Beyond 

80 % 

87 % this, and unlike software or patents, 

a brand only exists as a subjective 

2005 2015 

state in the consumer mind. From a 

company’s point of view, the question 

becomes, how do you assess the value 

of a brand when brands are so intangible 

as to be essentially subjective. 


Brands 

Implementation 

is important 

PHENOMENON BRAND 

IDENTIFICATION 

DIFFERENTIATION 

USP—UNIQUE 

SELLING 

PROPOSITION 

PROTECTION 

PSYCHOLOGICAL 

ECONOMICAL 

Brands are in people's minds 

Brands influence behaviour and attitude 

Brands develop experiences and emotions 

Brands create orientation, trust and loyalty 

Brands create a competitive edge 

Brands create profitability 

Brands create growth 

Brands reduce risks 

THE LATEST INTERNATIONALS STANDARDS 

set rules for the assessment of brand management and 

the monetary valuation - for something that exists in the 

consumer’s head. 

To do this we have to first evaluate the strength of the 

brand according to the latest international standards. 

These standards specify the different kinds of indicators 

of brand strength that can be used to evaluate the power 

of the brand idea or meaning in the consumer’s mind. 

Many indicators have been developed by marketers and 

used to measure brand strength. A simple one would be 

to ask consumers which brand in a category they would 

pick if they could have any of them regardless of price. 

The final step in determining the value of a brand 

is to relate the evaluation of the brand to one or more 

metrics of financial performance. The performance on 

financial cash flow determines the monetary valuation 

of the brand. 

The value of a brand for a company can thus be measured 

even though brands are inherently intangible and 

subjective. For such measurements to be accepted and 

implemented, however, standards must be implemented 

so that measurements are consistent and comparable 

across organizations and over time. 

The implementation of these international standards 

is the key to being able to treat brands as intangible 

financial assets so that they may be fully taken into 

account in corporate governance and in transactions 

among companies as well as in investment decisions. 


China Council for Brand Development (CCBD) 

Standards lay 

foundation for 

brand _ building 

CCBD is mainly engaged in brand theory study, formulation of 

international and national standards, publicity of brand evaluation, 

professional and technical training, international cooperation, etc. 

To be scientific, impartial, 

transparent and admitted 

China Council for Brand Development (CCBD) is 

the only national brand-related organization that 

has acquired permission from State Council and 

approval from Ministry of Civil Affairs of the PRC 

and is under the direct administration of General 

Administration of Quality Supervision, Inspection 

and Quarantine of the PRC (hereinafter referred to 

as “AQSIQ”). Adopting the system of council, CCBD 

is a non-profit social organization constituted voluntarily 

by enterprises, public institutions, social 

groups and individuals that are relevant to brand 

development. Mr. LIU Pingjun, member of the 

national committee of CPPCC and former deputy 

director of AQSIQ, acts as the president of CCBD. 

CCBD is mainly engaged in brand theory study, 

formulation of international and national standards, 

publicity of brand value evaluation, brand 

fostering consultation, professional and technician 

training, brand exhibition, international cooperation 

and exchange, etc. 

CCBD has been focusing on brand evaluation, 

which is currently its important undertaking, in 

the principle of “To be scientific, impartial, transparent 

and admitted”. 

Brand evaluation is an important action to generate 

positive energy for Chinese brands, improve 

their international influence and propel them to go 

global. 

Standards lay foundation for 

brand-building 

One of “the three transformations” in brand activities 

is transforming Chinese products to Chinese 

brands. This process requires correct understanding 

of brand connotation, meaning the quality, style 

and virtue of a brand and denotation, referring to 


Brands 

Fotos: Ülle Baum 

ISO Plenary Meeting 2017 in Vienna 

cultivation, marketing and evaluation of 

brands. For achieving these goals standards 

should be recognized and applied as the basis 

and embodiment of a brand. These standards 

determine the quality of brand products and 

services leading to a progressive and operable 

approach in standardization. 

CCDB pays attention to the development 

and implementation of standards for brand 

products and services so as to consolidate 

the foundation of the brand and make them a 

symbol for the brand. Along with the development, 

standards need continuously revision 

in terms of brand innovations and development, 

so that the brands and standards 

enter the market synchronously. 

Pingjun Liu, Bobby Calder, Gerhard Hrebicek 



European 

Brand Institute 

Europas unabhangige Marken _ 

und Patent _ Bewertungsexperten 

: 

Das European Brand Institute (EBI) ist Europas 

führendes Forschungsinstitut für die Bewertung 

und Evaluierung von immateriellen 

Vermögenswerten. Unsere Schwerpunkte 

liegen in der Bewertung von Marken- und Patenten. 

Durch unsere Forschung und Mitarbeit in der 

internationalen Standardisierung der Marken- und 

Patentbewertung und insbesondere der neuen ISO 

zur Markenevaluierung, sowie unserer Beratungsund 

Consultingleistungen, tragen wir zu einer 

nachhaltigen Entwicklung in Europa und weltweit 

bei. 

Markenwert - Warum ist eine starke 

Markenführung heutzutage so wichtig? 

Marken sind Qualitätsmerkmale und Wertfaktoren 

und es ist längst kein Geheimnis mehr, dass Marken 

von größerer Bedeutung sind, als die Produkte und 

Dienstleistungen selbst. Laut unseren Forschungen 

liegt der Anteil des Markenwerts bei rund 40% des 

Unternehmenswerts – Tendenz steigend! 

Viele Unternehmer wissen gar nicht, dass sie 

selbst bereits eine Marke sind bzw. haben. EBI hat 

sich unter anderem das Ziel gesetzt, das Bewusstsein 

für eben jene immateriellen Vermögensgegenstände 

zu steigern. Das gilt für große, mittlere und kleine 

Unternehmen. Eine gut geführte Marke schafft Vertrauen, 

Selbstbewusstsein und Kundenloyalität, 

bleibt in den Köpfen der Verbraucher und kann zum 

Symbol eines speziellen Lifestyles werden. 

Europe’s independent brand 

& patent valuation experts 

and consultancy. 

The European Brand Institute (EBI) is Europe’s 

leading research institute for the evaluation 

of intangible assets. Our key activities 

emphasize on brand value and patent value. 

Through our research and participation in the 

international standardization of brand and patent 

valuation and especially the new ISO on brand evaluation, 

as well as our advisory and consulting services, 

we contribute to a sustainable development 

in Europe and globally. 

Value to brands - 

Why is branding so important today? 

Brands are quality features and value factors. It’s 

not a secret anymore that brands are more important 

than the products and services themselves. 

According to our researches, the brand value is 

worth about 40% of the company value – and the 

trend is rising! 

Many entrepreneurs do not even know that 

they have brand. One of the objectives of EBI is to 

increase awareness of those intangible assets. This 

is valid for large, medium and small businesses. A 

well-managed brand creates trust, confidence and 

customer loyalty, remains in the minds of customers 

and can become a symbol of a specific lifestyle. 


Brands 


Welchen Vorteil ziehen Unternehmen daraus, 

den Wert ihrer Marke zu kennen? 

Der Trend der Entwicklung der Werthaltigkeit von 

Vermögensgegenständen in Unternehmen heute, 

geht weg von den materiellen und hin zu immateriellen 

Vermögensgegenständen. Das wertorientierte 

Management sollte daher vor allem auf immaterielle 

Vermögensgegenstände – also auf die Marke – ausgerichtet 

sein. Verbraucher haben keine Beziehung 

zu einem Produkt, sondern sind der Marke treu! 

Als immaterieller Vermögensgegenstand wird der 

Wert der Marke auch zu einer der wichtigsten bilanzrelevanten 

Kennziffern. Informationen darüber 

sind für Investoren und Kapitalgeber von zentraler 

Bedeutung, denn diese erkennen bereits zunehmend 

die Vorteile einer starken Marke: erhöhte Rentabilität 

und niedrigeres Risiko. Durch die Nutzung der letztgültigen 

ISO-Standards leisten wir einen wesentlichen 

Beitrag zur Markenwertsteigerung. 

Which advantage do companies 

derive from knowing their brand value? 

The trend of asset value development in business 

today is moving away from tangible to intangible 

assets. Value-oriented management should therefore 

focus primarily on intangible assets – as the 

brand. Consumers don’t have a relation to products 

but are loyal towards the brand! 

As an intangible asset, the value of the brand 

also becomes one of the most important balance 

sheet-relevant indicators. This information is of 

central interest for investors and financiers, who 

are already increasingly recognizing the benefits 

of a strong brand: increased profitability and lower 

risk. By using the latest ISO standards we contribute 

significantly to the growth of brand value. 



World’s 

most valuable brand 

corporations 2017 

Facebook hits global TOP 10 most valuable brand corporations (+44%), 

US _ brand corporations lead: 1. Apple, 2. Google, 3. Microsoft, LVMH Group No. 1 in Europe 

The GLOBAL TOP 100 BRAND CORPORATIONS RANKING by European 

Brand Institute – Europe’s independent brand & patent valuation 

experts, examined more than 3.000 brand corporations and their brands 

in 16 industries, according to the latest ISO valuation standards. 

Global 

Facebook, poster child for Consumer 

Engagement increases its brand 

value by +44% (EUR 54.763 bn), 

climbing up to global rank 10 (+44%) 

within 4 years. Apple slightly loses 

but remains world’s leading brand 

corporation with brand values of 

EUR 144.571 bn (-3%), followed by 

Google EUR 107.913 bn (+17%) and 

Microsoft EUR 76.867 bn (+2%). 

China Mobile EUR 55.589 bn (+5%) 

moves to global rank 8. 

Europe 

LVMH remains Europe’s most valuable 

brand corporation, representing 

brand values of EUR 49.979 bn (+15%/ 

global rank 12), followed by Belgian 

AB Inbev EUR 41.674 bn (+3%/ global 

rank 17) and Swiss No. 1 Nestlé EUR 

37.745 bn (-1%/ global rank 20). Germany’s 

Telecom EUR 25.217 bn (+2%/ 

global rank 32) replaces Volkswagen 

Group (EUR 23.363 bn/-12%) on top. 

Austrian’s Red Bull (EUR 15.247 bn) 

holds global rank 74. 

Growth 

Average growth of GLOBAL TOP 

100 shows +6,4%, TOP 10 rise by 

12,4%. Strong brands become even 

stronger and more valuable. Facebook 

shows the highest relative 

growth (+44%), followed by Adidas 

gaining +41% and KraftHeinz 

(+34%). US brand corporations, 

dominating IT & Technology, are 

leading 10 industries and are worth 

62% of TOP 100. 

Segmentation 

US brand corporations are leading 

with 49 (0) out of the TOP 100 brand 

corporations. Europe represents 34 

(1) with Germans leading, whilst 

Asia catches up with 17 (+1). 

GLOBAL TOP 100 

BRAND CORPORATIONS 

2017 Brand Value in Mio. € 

EUR 144.571 

EUR 107.913 

EUR 76.867 

EUR 71.593 

EUR 71.412 

EUR 68.793 

EUR 61.038 

EUR 55.589 

EUR 55.462 

EUR 54.763 

©2018 European Brand Institute 


Brands 


TOP 3 MOST VALUABLE 

BRAND COPORATIONS 

AUSTRIA 

CHINA 

FRANCE 

GERMANY 

JAPAN 

UNITED KINGDOM 

USA 

SWITZERLAND 


EUR 15.247 bn (+0,9%) 

EUR 3.507 bn (+2,%) 

EUR 3.169 bn (+8,4%) 

EUR 26.917 bn (+12%) 

EUR 25.529 bn (+37%) 

EUR 22.630 bn (-3%) 

EUR 49.979 bn (+15%) 

EUR 16.350 bn (+18%) 

EUR 16.335 bn (+6%) 

EUR 25.217 bn (+2%) 

EUR 23.363 bn (-12%) 

EUR 22.764 bn (-2%) 

EUR 31.998 bn (0%) 

EUR 21.887 bn (+9%) 

EUR 13.980 bn (+4%) 

EUR 29.171 bn (+8%) 

EUR 27.628 bn (-6%) 

EUR 23.781 bn (-2%) 

EUR 144.571 bn (-3%) 

EUR 107.913 bn (+17%) 

EUR 76.867 bn (+2%) 

EUR 38.733 bn (+12%) 

EUR 20.653 bn (+1%) 

EUR 9.436 bn (+6%) 

INDUSTRY LEADERS 

EUROPE 

Automotive: 

Volkswagen Group (Germany) 

Business Services: SAP (Germany) 

Consumer Goods: AB Inbev (Belgium) 

Durables: Bosch (Germany) 

Financial Services: HSBC (U.K.) 

Industry: BASF (Germany) 

Luxury: LVMH (France) 

Pharma, Health & Biotech: 

Novartis (Switzerland) 

Retail: Inditex (Spain) 

Telecommunications: 

Telecom (Germany) 

Utilities: Shell (U.K.) 

AMERICA 

Automotive: General Motors 

Consumer Goods: Coca Cola Company 

Durables: Nike 

Financial Services: Wells Fargo 

Industry: Boeing 

IT & Technology: Apple 

Logistics: UPS 

Media & Entertainment: Walt Disney 

Pharma, Health & Biotech: Pfizer 

Retail: Amazon 

Telecommunications: AT&T 

Utilities: General Electric 

ASIA 

Automotive: Toyota (Japan) 

Financial Services: 

China Construction Bank (China) 

Industry: Tata (India) 

IT & Technology: Samsung (Korea) 

Retail: Alibaba Group (China) 

Telecommunications: 

China Mobile (China) 

Utilities: Sinopec (China) 

Data based on Fiscal Year 2016 


EBI Global 

Setting New Standards 

Foto: CCBD 

Gerhard Hrebicek, European Brand Institute; Pingjun Liu, China Council for Brand Development 

Als Vorsitzender eines internationalen 

Teams hat Herr Dr. 

Hrebicek mit der Entwicklung 

der neuen ISO Norm 20671 

"Brand Evaluation" internationale 

Standards für Markenbewertung, 

-management und -reporting 

gesetzt und damit die Grundlagen 

der Zertifizierung festgelegt. 

Ein Unternehmen, das nicht 

zertifiziert ist, kann nur behaupten, 

Qualität zu besitzen. Ein Unternehmen, 

das sich zertifizieren lässt, 

kann diese Qualität belegen. Durch 

eine eindeutige und objektive 

Auflistung der Unternehmenskompetenzen 

nach internationalen 

Kriterien, zeigen Sie Qualität nachvollziehbar 

nach innen und außen. 

Zudem erhöhen Sie Ihren Stellenwert 

bei Partnern, Investoren, Konsumenten 

und in der Öffentlichkeit 

durch die Dokumentation der 

Implementierung internationaler 

Standards. So wird hohe Qualität 

zum wirtschaftlichen Vorteil, 

denn mit der richtigen Vermarktung 

wird die Zertifizierung zu 

steigenden Umsatzzahlen führen. 

As chairman of an international 

team, Dr. Hrebicek 

has set international standards 

for brand evaluation, management 

and reporting with the 

development of the new ISO 

Standard 20671 "Brand Evaluation" 

and thus defined the basics 

of the certification. 

A company that is not certified 

can only claim to own quality. 

A company that is certified 

can prove this quality. Through 

a clear and objective list of company 

competencies according to 

international criteria, you can 

demonstrate quality in a comprehensible 

way, both intern and 

extern. In addition, you increase 

your status with partners, investors, 

consumers and the public by 

documenting the implementation 

of international standards. Thus, 

high quality becomes an economic 

advantage, because with 

the right marketing the certification 

will lead to increasing sales 

figures. 


Brands 

Velux EHF 

Final4 2017 

European Handball 

goes Tech _ June 2017 

Brand expert Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek was invited to speak at European Handball goes 

Tech in Cologne and discussed together with Franjo Bobinac (President and CEO, 

Gorenje), Michael K. Rasmussen (Senior Vice President Brand VELUX) and David 

Szlezak (Managing Director EHF Marketing) "The Future of handball sponsoring". 

ISO Working Group Paris 

September 2017 

Introducing the services of 


and Summerlight Capital 

Partners to the Middle East. 

Business-appointments 

with companies and 

investors (Qatar Financial 

Center, Brand Qatar, Qatar 

Airlines) and a highlight 

meeting with H.E. Sheikh 

Faisal Bin Qassim Al Thani, 

Chairman and CEO of Al 

Faisal Holding and Austrian 

Ambassador to Qatar 

Dr. Willy Kempel. 

Qatar, December 2017 

As Chairman of the Committee for the Development of the new Standard ISO 

20671 Brand Evaluation, Dr. Hrebicek took part in the international meeting to 

finalize the draft International Standard of ISO20671. Last changes and adaptions 

were made to pave the way for an era-changing brand Standard. 

Gender Career Management 

November 2017 

Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek gave a keynote address on "Women Creating Brand 

Values" and explained why mixed gender leadership teams increase the 

brand value of a business. 


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Austrian Standards International 

Brands 

Podiumsdiskussion: 

Welche Standards 

braucht Industrie 4.0 

Das Austrian 

Standards 

Meeting Center 

Brand Evaluation: 

INTERNATIONALER STANDARD MIT 

ROT _ WEISS _ ROTEM BACKGROUND 

Österreichische Fachleute brachten 

ihr Know-how via Austrian Standards 

International ein. 

Vor wenigen Tagen endete die weltweite Abstimmung 

über den internationalen Standard ISO 

20671. Dahinter verbergen sich nicht weniger 

als die von der Fachwelt mit Spannung erwarteten 

Grundprinzipien der Markenbewertung. Der 

bisher nur schwer zu fassende immaterielle Vermögensgegenstand 

„Marke“ lässt sich damit nun materiell 

bewerten und vergleichen. 

Nicht zu übersehen: In diesem neuen Standard 

steckt eine kräftige Portion Know-how aus Österreich: 

Schon 2006 ist dazu bei Austrian Standards ein erstes 

Regelwerk erschienen. Die Erfahrungen, die man 

damit gesammelt hat, konnten nun erfolgreich in die 

internationale Standardisierung eingebracht werden. 

Wie das möglich war? Durch engagierte Marken-Experten 

auf der einen Seite und durch Mithilfe von 

Austrian Standards auf der anderen Seite. 

Die vor fast 100 Jahren gegründete, nicht-staatliche 

Organisation ist die erste Adresse, wenn es darum 

geht, Standards in einem offenen und transparenten 

Verfahren, also im Dialog und Konsens der interessierten 

Kreise, zu entwickeln. Dafür stellt Austrian Standards 

die neutrale und unabhängige Plattform zur Verfügung 

und managt Verfahren und Projekte. 

Immer wichtiger aber: die Funktion als Gateway 

zur internationalen Szene. Denn die Entwicklung von 

Standards geschieht schon lange auf europäischer 

und immer stärker auf globaler Ebene. Österreichische 

Unternehmen und Organisationen aus allen Bereichen 

haben dies erkannt. Via Austrian Standards, das Teil 

eines weltweiten Netzwerks ist, sind sie heute in fast 90 

Prozent der Komitees der International Organization for 

Standardization ISO vertreten. So können sie mit ihren 

innovativen Ideen international Standards zu setzen. 

Um noch besseren Support zu leisten, ist Austrian 

Standards stets offen für neue Kooperationen und Partnerschaften 

ebenso wie für neue Themen und neue 

Ansätze bei der Standards-Entwicklung. Dem trägt auch 

der neue Name Rechnung: Austrian Standards International 

– Standardisierung und Innovation. 


Brand Life Award 

BRAND [ LIFE ] AWARD 

CASHBACK WORLD BRAND DIALOGUE 

Launched by the European Brand Institute and powered 

by cashback world the first brand dialogue was held on 

November 20 th 2017 at Novomatic Forum. 

Dealing with the topic „Future Fit with Brand Management“ 

Heidemarie Kipperer, Director of my world Austria 

GmbH, welcomed an eager audience. 

Subsequently Gerhard Hrebicek, President of the European 

Brand Institute, gave a keynote address on the main 

topic, explaining the importance of brand management in 

the development of a company in detail. 

To deepen their knowledge Gerhard Schuller, Managing 

Partner ELK Fertighaus GmbH, Josef Wurditsch, Partner 

Consultatio and European Handball Federation President 

Michael Wiederer provided valuable and practical insights 

on their view and implementation of “Brands are valuable 

for your business success.” 

Following our experts‘ impulse statements, participants 

took the opportunity to intensify the topic within 

the framework of a Q & A and a network cocktail leading 

to the 9 th BRAND [LIFE] AWARD. 


(left to right) Elisabeth Schrenk, Iris Sageder, Monica Culen, Renate Altenhofer, Sonja Kato 


Brands 

(left to right) Stefan Krenn, Johannes Gutmann, Elisabeth Schrenk, Gerhard Hrebicek, 

Monica Culen, Michael Wiederer, Adi Hirschal, Sonja Kato, Iris Sageder, Paul Leitenmüller 

BRAND [LIFE] AWARD 

Awarding Austrian personalities for their lifetime 

achievement in successfully establishing, 

developing and managing brands and brand corporations, 

BRAND [LIFE] AWARD has reached a 

phenomenal track record of 9 ceremonies, 9 outstanding 

winners and 37 brand ambassadors. 

BRAND [Life] AWARD winner 2017 was Red Nose 

Monica Culen who received the award for her lifetime 

achievement with the social and humanitarian institution 

and brand Red Noses Clowndoctors. Amid the 

applause of the crowd, the President of the European 

Brand Institute Gerhard Hrebicek awarded Monica 

Culen the trophy; the eulogy was once again held by 

“Wiener Lustspielhaus” principal Adi Hirschal. 

In her acceptance speech Monica Culen revealed the 

importance of her institution and her overpowering for 

earning the award. “It is a blessing to run a program of 

joy and happiness, to comfort and help people in need.” 

This year’s brand ambassadors were Erich Falkensteiner, 

Falkensteiner Michaeler Tourism Group, 

Johannes Gutmann, SONNENTOR, Markus Liebl, Brau 

Union , Martha Schultz, Schultz Group and Michael 

Wiederer, European Handball Federation (EHF). The 

certificates were presented by Gerhard Hrebicek and 

Paul Leitenmüller, Opinion Leaders Network. 

The annual get-together accompanied by a wine tasting, 

provided by Weingut Münzenrieder rotweisssuess, 

ended an enjoyable event. 

(left to right) Ursula Nosal, 

Gerhard Hrebicek, Renate Altenhofer, 

Stefan Krenn, 

(left to right) Peter Löffler, Rita Löffler, Johannes Gutmann, Heidemarie Kipperer 


Certified Brand 

Was sind / What are 

Certified Brands? 

Das Certified Brand Gütesiegel ist das erste internationale 

Gütesiegel, dessen Vergabe auf einem 

objektivierten Bewertungsstandard beruht. 

Das Markenzertifizierungsprogramm wurde in 

Zusammenarbeit mit Austrian Standards International 

basierend auf den letztgültigen ISO Standards entwickelt 

und zeigt, dass die zertifizierte Marke nach 

internationalen Standards geführt wird. 

Das Certified Brand Gütesiegel basiert auf dem 

Know-How und der über 20 jährigen Erfahrung des 

European Brand Institutes und eines globalen Teams, 

die gemeinsam einen internationalen 

Standard zur Effizienzsteigerung 

des Markenmanagements 

erarbeitet haben. Die 

Erkenntnisse dieser Arbeit sind 

in der ISO 20671 manifestiert. 

Die mit dem Certified Brand 

Gütesiegel ausgezeichneten 

Unternehmen, Regionen und 

Vereine arbeiten nach den neuesten 

internationalen Standards an ihrer Zukunftsfitness 

und steigern so ihre Werthaltigkeit. 

Warum eine Certified Brand werden? 

Marken als Differenzierungsmerkmale und wesentliche 

Wertfaktoren sind sowohl für kleine als auch 

große Unternehmen, Regionen, Vereine, deren Kunden 

und Stakeholder und die Volkswirtschaft von großer 

Bedeutung. Laut 

den letzten Studien 

des European Brand 

Institutes stellt der 

Markenwert durchschnittlich 

rund 40 

Prozent des Unternehmenswertes 

dar – Tendenz 

steigend! 

Daher wurde in 

den letzten Jahren 

die ISO Norm 20671 

„Brand Evaluation“ 

zur Messung, zum 

Management und zum 

Reporting von Marken 

entwickelt. Der neue 

internationale Standard 

definiert die 

Kriterien für ganzheitliches 

Markenmanagement 

und ermöglicht es Unternehmen, Regionen 

und Vereinen effizient an der Steigerung des Markenwertes 

zu arbeiten. 

Während des Zertifizierungsprozesses werden Sie 

von geschulten und unabhängigen Auditoren begleitet, 

die einen nachvollziehbaren Qualitätsstandard 

gewährleisten und eine klare Dokumentation der 

Unternehmenskompetenzen garantieren. 

„Marke ist die Kunst Nummer 

1 in den Köpfen der Kunden zu 

sein. Markenmanagement ist 

die Fähigkeit diese Kunst in 

Werte zu verwandeln.“ 

Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek, MBA 

Foto: Schedl/APA/European Brand Institute 


Brands 

Wertvolle Markenqualität sichtbar machen 

Im Rahmen des Certified Brand Prozesses 

werden sämtliche Dimensionen des ganzheitlichen 

Markenmanagements bewusst 

und Stärken, Schwächen sowie Verbesserungspotenziale 

aufgedeckt. 

Das Aufzeigen der Stärken, Schwächen 

und Verbesserungspotenziale schafft 

wesentliche Wertsteigerungsmöglichkeiten 

und liefert wertvolle Inputs zur Stärkung 

des Leaderships. 

Die nach dem erfolgreichen Audit zur Verfügung 

gestellten Zertifikate und Gütesiegel 

steigern Ihren Stellenwert bei Partnern 

und Investoren. 

Erfolgreich zertifizierte Marken werden 

Mitglied in der Certified Brand Community 

und profitieren von einem einzigartigen 

Kompetenznetzwerk und Know-How 

Austausch auf globaler Ebene. 

Make valuable brand quality visible 

The Certified Brand Framework introduces 

the company to all dimensions of 

holistic brand management and reveals 

the strengths, weaknesses and potentials 

for improvements. 

The Certified Brand Process triggers 

improvements in brand management 

leading to value creation and provides 

valuable input to strengthen the company’s 

leadership. 

The Certified Brand Certificate and Seal of 

Approval made available after the successful 

audit increases the status among 

partners and investors. 

Certified Brands become members of the 

Certified Brand Community and benefit 

from a unique network of competence and 

know-how exchange on a global level. 

The Certified Brand Seal of Quality is the first international 

seal whose award is based on an objective 

evaluation standard. The Certified Brand 

program was developed in cooperation with Austrian 

Standards International and is based on the latest 

ISO standards. The Certified Brand Seal of Quality 

shows that the brand is managed according to the global 

framework. 

The Certified Brand 

Seal of Quality is based on 

the know-how and over 20 

years of relevant experience 

of the European Brand Institute 

and a global team of 

brand management experts. 

Together, they have developed 

an international standard for increasing the efficiency 

of value driven brand management. The findings 

of this work are manifested in the new ISO 20671. 

The companies, regions and associations awarded 

with the Certified Brand Seal of Quality work on 

their future fitness in accordance with the highest 

standards of brand management in order to trigger 

improvements and increase the value of their brand. 

”Brand is the art of being 

Number 1 in customers' 

minds. Brand management is 

the ability to turn it into value.” 

Dr. Gerhard Hrebicek, MBA 

Why become a Certified Brand? 

Brands as distinguishing features and essential value 

factors are of great importance for small as well as for 

large companies, regions, associations, their customers 

and stakeholders, and the global economy. According 

to the latest studies of the European Brand Institute, 

the brand value represents on average around 

40% of the company value 

- and the trend is rising! 

Therefore, the ISO 20671 

„Brand Evaluation“ has 

been developed in recent 

years for the measurement, 

management and reporting 

of brands. The new international 

standard is a framework 

that defines the dimensions for holistic brand 

management and enables companies, regions and associations 

to work efficiently to increase the brand value. 

During the Certified Brand Process trained independent 

auditors accompany the company, region 

or association to guarantee a comprehensive quality 

standard and a clear documentation of the company’s 

competences. 


Elk 

Markenfuhrer fur Fertighauser 

: 

ELK baut fur die 

: 

: 

: 

ELK ist nicht nur heimischer Marktführer bei Fertighäusern, das Unternehmen mit Stammsitz 

in Schrems positioniert sich auch als „Markenführer“. Als einer der Ersten wurde ELK mit den 

Marken „hanlo Häuser“ und „Zenker“ als „certified brand“ ISO 20671 zertifiziert. 

Millionen Euro investiert 

ELK, der heimische 

Marktführer bei Fertig- 

15 häusern, in den Ausbau 

der Produktion und in mehr Kundennähe. 

So setzt man etwa 

mit einem zusätzlichen 

Bemusterungszentrum in 

Graz neue Maßstäbe. „Als 

Leitunternehmen sehen wir 

es als unser Verpflichtung 

nicht nur in unserem Kerngeschäft 

zukunftsorientiert 

zu agieren“, erklärt Gerhard 

Schuller, ELK Geschäftsführer 

Finanzen: „Wir wollen die drei 

Marken ELK, Hanlo und Zenker 

auch nach neuesten Standards 

managen und so zusätzliche Wertsteigerungsmöglichkeiten 

heben. 

Die Zertifizierung war für uns deshalb 

ein fast logischer Schritt.“ 

In einem intensiven Prozess 

setzte sich ELK mit den eigenen 

„Die Marke ist für Kunden ein 

Anker, schafft Vertrauen“, ist 

Schuller überzeugt: „Deshalb 

legen wir sehr viel Augenmerk 

auf die Marke.“ 

Marken und ihrer Bedeutung 

für bestehende und zukünftige 

Kunden auseinander. So leben 

heute über 45.000 Kunden in Österreich 

in einem ELK Haus. Und 

2017 waren es wieder mehr als 900 

Familien, die sich für ein ELK Haus 

entschieden. Damit ist ELK klarer 

Marktführer auf dem heimischen 

Fertighausmarkt. Ewald Zadrazil, 

ELK Geschäftsführer für 

Marketing und Vertrieb: 

„Und das zeigt auch deutlich, 

wie wichtig die Marke 

für unsere Kunden, aber 

auch für die gesamte Branche 

ist!“ Um diese Marke 

weiter zu schärfen wurden 

zahlreiche Fokusgruppen 

mit Konsumenten, Marktanalysen 

und Brand Reporting ausgewertet. 

Höchste Qualität, günstige 

Preise, ein umfangreiches Angebot 

unterschiedlichster Häuser 


Brands 

Zukunft 

Foto:s ELK Fertighaus Gmbh 

und laufende Innovationen bei 

Modellen und Technik sind der 

Grundstein für den Markt-Erfolg. 

Der Marken-Erfolg ist dabei ein 

zusätzlicher wichtiger Baustein. 

„Und deshalb werden die Marken 

ELK, Hanlo und Zenker behutsam 

gepflegt und immer wieder 

„nachgeschärft“, erklärt Schuller. 

Rekordverdächtige sieben Monate 

Lieferzeit – von der Bestellung bis 

zur Montage des neuen Hauses – 

und laufende Verbesserung der 

Grundrisse für die immer kleineren 

Grundstücke seien genauso 

wichtig wie professionelles Markenmanagement, 

um in der Branche 

neue Maßstäbe zu setzen. 

Über die Marke ELK kommuniziert 

das Unternehmen die Erfüllung 

von Kundenwünschen – oder 

den Traum vom eigenen Haus. Und 

mit innovativen Hausmodellen wie 

etwa Smart Living erfüllt ELK das 

Markenversprechen auch im täglichen 

Leben der Kunden. 

Zusätzlich kommt ELK näher 

zu seinen Kunden. In Graz wurde 

Ende 2017 ein neues Bemusterungszentrum 

eröffnet. In erster Linie 

Kunden aus der Steiermark, Kärnten 

und dem Burgenland bekommen 

hier in unmittelbarer Nähe 

individuelle, persönliche Beratung 

bei der Bemusterung – alles rund 

um Außen- und Innengestaltung, 

sowie Haustechnik, von der Türschnalle 

bis zur Solartechnik. 

Und für jeden ELK Kunden gibt 

es alles aus einer Hand. Denn vom 

Hauskauf bis zum Einzug kümmert 

sich jetzt ein einziger Ansprechpartner, 

der sogenannte Vertrauensmann, 

um sämtliche Ihrer Anliegen, Fragen 

oder Wünsche. Dieser alleinige ELK 

Ansprechpartner koordiniert von 

der Produktion bis zur Baustelle 

sämtliche Handwerker und Lieferanten, 

die alle im Hintergrund an der 

Fertigstellung Ihres ELK Traumhauses 

arbeiten. Zadrazil abschließend: 

„Und damit erfüllt ELK sein Markenversprechen 

als Markt- und Markenführer 

in der Fertighaus-Branche.“ 


Ein ganz feiner Zug! 

170 km neue Bahnstrecke, 80 km neue Tunnel und 150 neue Brücken errichtet die 

ÖBB Infrastruktur bis 2026 entlang der Südstrecke. Damit unsere Fahrgäste in Zukunft 

noch schneller und bequemer mit der Bahn reisen und Güter kostengünstiger und 

schneller ihr Ziel erreichen. 

FAHRZEITVERKÜRZUNGEN 

WIEN – GRAZ 2017: ab 2h 35 min 2026: 1 h 50 min 

WIEN – KLAGENFURT 2017: ab 3h 55 min 2026: 2 h 40 min 

GRAZ – KLAGENFURT 2017: ab 2h (Bus) 2024: 45 min 

infra.oebb.at/suedstrecke

Finanzfuchs Guppe 

Brands 

VERSICHERN, 

VORSORGEN, VERANLAGEN 

und FINANZIEREN: 

DIE FINANZFUCHSGRUPPE BIETET MASSGESCHNEIDERTE LOSUNGEN 

Eine auf individuelle Bedürfnisse abgestimmte 

und ausführliche Beratung steht für die 

FINANZ FUCHSGRUPPE an oberster Stelle. Nach 

einem umfassenden Erstgespräch erarbeiten die 

Experten der FINANZFUCHSGRUPPE einen maßgeschneiderten, 

individuellen Finanzplan – „Jeder 

bekommt bei uns das, was er wirklich braucht und will“, 

so der geschäftsführende Gesellschafter der Finanzfuchsgruppe 

Christian Mattasits. Ganz nach dem Motto: 

„Schlau vergleichen, schlau ermöglichen“ bieten wir so 

unseren Kunden österreichweit spürbare Mehrwerte. 

Sowohl bei Gewerbekunden als auch bei Privatkunden, 

wie der klassischen, modernen Familie vom Neusiedlersee 

bis zum Bodensee sind die Bedürfnisse und 

Wünsche hinsichtlich versichern, vorsorgen, veranlagen 

oder finanzieren sehr unterschiedlich. 

„Das Schaffen von erfreulichen Mehrwerten für 

unsere Kunden beginnt nicht erst mit der Beratung. 

Eine sorgfältige Auswahl an Produkt-, Netzwerk- und 

selbständigen Partnern, fundierte Aus- und Weiterbildungsmöglichkeiten 

und ein fokussiertes Markenmanagement 

gehören grundlegend dazu“, so Mattasits. 

: 

„Manchmal ist es besser, eine Stunde über sein Geld 

nachzudenken, als eine Woche dafür zu arbeiten.” 

Andre Kostolany 

Im Rahmen des Markenprozesses mit der Firma luna. 

agency wurde erkannt, wie wichtig die Marke für das 

eigene Unternehmen und deren Kunden ist und welche 

wesentlichen Wertsteigerungsmöglichkeiten ganzheitlich 

ausgebaut werden können. 

Zudem wird die FINANZFUCHSGRUPPE als anerkanntes 

Unternehmen mit ausgewählten Zertifizierungen 

ausgezeichnet, die die Qualität der Marke bestätigen. 

Mit dem „Certified Brand Gütesiegel“ des European 

Brand Institutes ist die FINANZFUCHSGRUPPE das 

erste Unternehmen in ihrer Branche. Dadurch soll eine 

Vorbildfunktion erzielt werden, um alle Partner des 

Unternehmens dazu zu ermutigen, vermehrt auf ihre 

Markenqualität Wert zu legen. „Durch die Zertifizierung 

sind wir nun in der Lage sämtliche Markendimensionen 

unseres Unternehmens ganzheitlich zu managen,“ so 

Mattasits abschließend. 


Contacts 

AIT Austrian Institute of Technology Donau-City-Straße 1, 1220 Vienna, Austria www.ait.ac.at 

ASFINAG Rotenturmstraße 5-9, 1010 Vienna Austria www.asfinag.at 

Austrian Association of Cities and Towns Rathaus, Stiege 5, 1082 Vienna, Austria www.staedtebund.gv.at 

Austrian Federal Economic Chamber Wiedner Hauptstraße 62, 1045 Vienna, Austria www.wko.at 

Austrian Standards International Heinestraße 38, 1020 Vienna, Austria www.austrian-standards.at 

Brand Global Council Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.brandglobal.org 

Brand Life Award Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.europeanbrandinstitute.com 

Bundeskanzleramt Ballhausplatz 2, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.bundeskanzleramt.gv.at 

Carbotopia, guo-Business Development Weidlichgasse 12, 1130 Vienna, Austria www.carbotopia.org 

Cashback world Grazbachgasse 87-93, 8010 Graz, Austria www.cashbackworld.com 

Central European Initiative Via Genova 9, 34121 Trieste, Italy www.cei.int 

Certified Brand Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Wien, Austria www.certified-brand.com 

China Council for Brand Development 

No 18, Bei San Huang dong Lu, 

Chaoyang District 100013, Beijing, China 

www.brand-intl.cn 

City of Vienna Rathaus, 1082 Vienna, Austria www.wien.gv.at 

ELK Building Systems GmbH Karl-Farkas-Gasse 22/Top 61, 1030 Vienna, Austria www.elkbuildingsystems.com 

Embassy of Argentina Goldschmiedgasse 2/1, 1010 Vienna, Austria entria.cancilleria.gov.ar 

Embassy of Bolivia Waaggasse 10/8 and 10/4, 1040 Vienna, Austria embajada-bolivia.at 

Embassy of Bulgaria 

Schwindgasse 8, 1040 Vienna, Austria 

Embassy of Costa Rica 

Wagramer Straße 23/1/1/2-3, 1220 Vienna, Austria 

Embassy of Cuba Kaiserstrasse 84, 1070 Vienna, Austria www.cubadiplomatica.cu/austria 

Embassy of Ecuador 

Goldschmiedgasse 10, 1010 Vienna, Austria 

Embassy of El Salvador Prinz-Eugen-Straße 72/2/1, 1040 Vienna, Austria www.rree.gob.sv 

Embassy of Guatemala Prinz-Eugen-Straße 18/Top 7, 1040 Vienna, Austria www.embaguate.co.at 

Embassy of Italy Rennweg 27, 1030 Vienna www.ambvienna.esteri.it 

Embassy of Nicaragua 

Ebendorferstraße 10/3/12, 1010 Vienna, Austria 

Embassy of Panama 

Goldschmiedgasse 10/403, 1010 Vienna, Austria 

Embassy of Romania Prinz-Eugen-Straße 60, 1040 Vienna, Austria www.viena.mae.ro/de/ 

Embassy of Slovakia Armbrustergasse 24, 1190 Vienna, Austria www.mzv.sk/vieden 

Embassy of the Dominican Republic 

Prinz-Eugen-Straße 18, 1040 Vienna, Austria 

Embassy of the People’s Republic of China Metternichgasse 4, 1030 Vienna, Austria www.chinaembassy.at 

Embassy of the Russian Federation Reisnerstraße 45-47, 1030 Vienna, Austria www.rusemb.at 

Embassy of Uruguay 

Mahlerstraße 11/2/2, 1010 Vienna, Austria 

Embassy of the United States of America Boltzmanngasse 16, 1090 Vienna, Austria at.usembassy.gov/de/ 

European Brand Institute Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Wien, Austria www.europeanbrandinstitute.com 

European Commission BERL 09/399, 1049 Brussels, Belgium www.ec.europa.eu 

European Youth Award Leopoldskronstrasse 30, 5020 Salzburg, Austria eu-youthaward.org 

Federal Ministry for Digital and Economic Affairs Stubenring 1, 1010 Vienna, Austria https://www.en.bmdw.gv.at 

Finanzfuchs Gruppe Bahnhofstraße 5/1, 4600 Wels, Austria www.finanzfuchsgruppe.at 

HBM GmbH Lemböckgasse 63/2, 1230 Vienna, Austria www.hbm.com 

Institute of Science and Technology Austria Am Campus 1, 3400 Klosterneuburg, Austria www.ist.ac.at 

Kapsch Group Am Europlatz 2, 1120 Vienna, Austria www.kapsch.net 

Kommunal Kredit AG Türkenstraße 9, 1092 Vienna, Austria www.kommunalkredit.at 

Land of Lower Austria Landhausplatz 1, 3109 St. Pölten www.noe.gv.at 

Lansky, Ganzger + partner Biberstraße 5, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.lansky.at 

Leitbetriebe Austria Mariahilfer Straße 124/15, 1070 Vienna, Austria www.leitbetriebe.at 

Max iconvienna GmbH Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.icon-vienna.net 

Municipal Department 23 – 

Economic Affairs, Labour and Statistics Meiereistraße 7, Sektor B, 1020 Vienna, Austria www.wien.gv.at/kontakte/ma23 

Novomatic Wiener Strasse 158, 2352 Gumpoldskirchen, Austria www.novomatic.com 

ÖBB Infrastruktur Elisabethstraße 9, 1010 Vienna Austria www.infrastruktur.oebb.at 

Perfect Eagle Waldsteingartenstraße 135, 1020 Vienna www.perfect-eagle.com 

Peter Affenzeller Oberweitersdorf 7, 4211 Alberndorf, Austria www.peter-affenzeller.at 

Sports for Life Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.sports-for-life.net 

SummerLight Capital Partners Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Wien, Austria www.summerlight.eu 

Vienna Chamber of Commerce and Industry Stubenring 8-10, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.wko.at/wien 

Wigma 

www.wigma.com 

Women Leadership Forum Börsegasse 9/8, 1010 Vienna, Austria www.womenleadership.at 


THE INTERNATIONAL SEAL OF 

QUALITY FOR VALUABLE BRANDS 

TRIGGERS IMPROVEMENTS IN BRAND MANAGEMENT 

LEADING TO VALUE CREATION. 

www.certified-brand.com

VALUE TO 

BRANDS 

Foto: fotolia.com 

Europe’s independent brand & IP institute 

www.europeanbrandinstitute.com

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