Fed: Blockbuster to help Australian tourism through crisis

AAP General News (Australia)
12-05-2008
Fed: Blockbuster to help Australian tourism through crisis

By Jessica Marszalek

BRISBANE, Dec 5 AAP - The movie Australia will help the tourism industry break through
the global financial crisis in a stronger position than ever, the federal government says.

Tourism Minister Martin Ferguson has appealed to the industry not to pocket its advertising
dollars during current tough times.

Mr Ferguson said it was essential Australia continued to be marketed to the world to
ensure it crisis-proofed itself ready to capitalise on future international growth.

If not, it would be even harder to claw back key markets such as the US, UK, Japan,
Germany, New Zealand, China and India.

"Whilst we've got a global economic crisis confronting us we've actually got to continue
to work on those markets to lay the foundations for the future to grab whatever tourists
we can," Mr Ferguson told a Queensland Tourism Industry Council (QTIC) function on Friday.

He said advertising piggybacking off the Baz Luhrmann film Australia was encouraging
people to take a break from life's stresses Down Under.

But Tourism Australia hadn't put all its eggs in one basket with the film.

"Tourism Australia is using the film Australia in an opportunistic way to fill in the
period whilst the new creative advertising agency, DDB Worldwide, works out a new way
forward following the mixed success of its previous campaign `Where the bloody hell are
you?'," Mr Ferguson said.

And positives were already being seen, with the film causing a dramatic increase in
hits to Tourism Australia's UK website.

Mr Ferguson also announced Tourism Australia would meet with employer groups next week
to convince them to shed some of the 121 million days of accrued annual leave on the books
of Australian businesses.

He said encouraging their employees to take an Australian holiday benefited everyone.

"I actually think it's smart because they come back to work with greater energy and
satisfaction in their lives," Mr Ferguson said.

Mr Ferguson said the tourism industry was strong and had survived September 11, the
Ansett collapse and the threats of bird flu and SARS.

"Just like things have been tough in the past, they will be tough in the immediate
future," he said.

"One way or another we'll get through it and we will then position ourselves to maximise
the growth opportunities as we come out of this global financial crisis in the next 12
to 18 months time."

AAP jmm/pjo/mn/de

KEYWORD: TOURISM FERGUSON

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