Did 'Ad Age' kill the name "Synarchy"?

You may have seen yesterday that the new name for WPP Group's Dell-dedicated agency is Enfatico, instead of Synarchy. Now the question is, "Did the name change because of what happened after the name was leaked, or was it never all that definite anyway?" Fortunately for Ad Age, its initial story did leave an out, stating, "WPP could change direction if the name doesn't pass legal muster or translate well into the various international locales in which it operates." What it didn't say, of course, was that the company might also steer clear of the name if it was linked to something, like, say, Nazis, a connection that I believe was first made by the writers of that story, who pointed out that the term synarchy's Wikipedia entry, " ... quotes from a book on Vichy France that had an account of French industrialists who saw Nazi Germany as alternative to Communism." The blogosphere noticed, and now, the unit has a new name, Enfatico.

Good God! Not Agency 3.0!

So, a couple of my friends on Twitter were going on this morning about an agency that plans to call itself Agency 3.0 and is underwritten by the William Morris Agency. For some great press release gobbledy-gook, read on: "The new agency combines WMA’s deep entertainment expertise with the award-winning creativity and experience of the founding team to assist clients in designing, implementing and monetizing their digital media strategies. One part digital technology leader, one part next generation marketing agency, one part strategic content developer, Agency 3.0 is designed to go beyond the scope of traditional agencies by serving clients in this new world of mobility, convergence and digital entertainment." Wondering if we could add "one part bullshit" into that sentence and whether anyone would notice. Anyway, the new shop's founder is Peter Adderton, who looks like a Ford model, but apparently led the bankrupt Amp'd Mobile and Boost Mobile. Now, about this name, Agency 3.0, do you think the blogosphere can kill it the way it seems to have hobbled Synarchy? The name Agency 3.0 just reeks of hubris, although, happily, there's no connection to Nazis! Just to hedge his bets, Ian Schafer, CEO of Deep Focus, went out this morning and bought the URL http://www.agency4-0.com. Good one, Ian. LOL. UPDATE: So, for the record, Greg Johnson, a former Digitas and IPG Emerging Media Lab exec who will also be part of the agency, says Agency 3.0 is a "working title." I'm just telling you what I read in Adweek.

It's not anarchy, it's Synarchy

I kind of knew that George Parker would have a much better take on the name of the new WPP Group Dell agency than I would. It's called Synarchy. Go read George's post; don't waste your time here.