Edelman EMEA CEO Robert Phillips told the Holmes Report that the agency had been retained by News International’s management and standards committee, which has been set up to oversee its response to the unfolding crisis.

The committee is comprised of News International GM Will Lewis, corporate affairs director Simon Greenberg, and general counsel Jeff Palker. The trio report into Joel Klein, the News Corp lawyer that has been charged with clearing up the hacking allegations, the police criminal inquiry into phone hacking and the range of civil actions that beset the UK arm of Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp.

Phillips told the Holmes Report that Edelman’s support was primarily “logistical”. “Edelman is working with the management and standards group of News Corp on general comms support and public affairs counsel,” he said.

Phillips declined to elaborate further. The News Corp crisis has continued unabated, despite the company’s  dramatic decision to shut down the News of the World tabloid last week. Earlier today, News Corp shelved its bid for full ownership of BSkyB.

News Corp deputy chairman Chase Carey said that the bid had become “too difficult to progress in this climate”.

News Corp’s decision came as MPs were about to debate a motion supported by all major parties – calling on Murdoch to scrap the bid. The motion was approved without a vote.

When I started this blog, I never really expected it to amount to much. But once I started using it to break news, while the Holmes Report site was being redeveloped, traffic steadily rose – and now I have more subscribers than I ever dreamed of. I am hopeful that all of you will join me over at my new home, and at my new blog.

I will be doing everything that I’ve done here over at the new website, and a few more things too. Unsurprisingly, your comments, interaction and eyeballs will be even more critical as we continue developing the Holmes Report’s content platform. Thanks!

The news comes as long-term IF client Sony confirmed that it had moved the bulk of its business with the agency back in-house. Sony EMEA director of corporate communications Nick Sharples said that the company would continue to work with IF on “more strategic social media consultancy , such as issues and crisis management training incorporating full social media integration, rather than the normal day-to-day PR implementation”.

IF founder and MD Katy Howell said that her firm had spent the last 12 months departing from the type of social media PR work that she believes is being turned into a commodity by rampant competition from different types of agencies.

“If you are a PR agency you are going to sell blogger relations,” said Howell. “If you are a media agency you are going to sell paid-for blogger space and online ads. If you are a digital agency you are going to sell apps and build.

“We don’t have mouths to feed,” added Howell. “We still have a relationship with Sony, we’re just not going to do the day-to-day tactical stuff. That belongs in-house – it’s commoditised if it goes to an agency.”

Instead, Howell said that IF is helping companies understand how to integrate social media into its overall architecture, a ‘social business’ approach that has been pursed to great effect by US consultancy Altimeter Group.

Immediate Future now counts around nine staffers, said Howell. “The cost base is roughly the same – salaries are higher when you come to consultancy.”

“The digital and PR agencies are beginning to achieve those social media skills where delivering a blog campaign or a widget is part of an expansion to what they do,” continued Howell. “As a pure-play social media agency, where do we fit? I could wait until we are squeezed, or we could slip upwards.”

Howell declined to provide details of current clients, other than Sony, but noted that the work involved helping all aspects of a business understand social media and develop an “engagement blueprint”. “The value is in developing an integrated view of social that has no channel agenda.”

“We’re ahead of the curve,” added Howell. “We’re quite used to being in that dangerous place. I can see a future that isn’t marginalised or commoditised.”

The win comes after Weber Shandwick’s successful campaign on behalf of Sochi’s bid to host the 2014 Winter Olympics. Weber Shandwick also handled successful campaigns by Beijing 2008 and Turin 2006, and also recently supported England’s bid for the 2018 World Cup.

“The agency’s ability to develop impactful international campaigns, expertise and experience in Olympic and sport bidding, geographical spread we need and strong presence in Munich have been the decisive factors to select it as our international public relations partner and we have been happy with its support around major Olympic events to date,” said Bernhard Schwank, MD of the Munich 2018 Bid.

Weber Shandwick EMEA CEO Colin Byrne added that his firm will “bring to bear the best bidding and campaigning experts we have in our roster to support this effort.”

South Africa has called in new PR counsel as it bids to sustain the global reputation uplift it experienced from last year’s successful staging of the Fifa World Cup.

The Holmes Report understands that Hill & Knowlton has been appointed by the country’s International Marketing Council (IMC), to oversee the global ‘Brand South Africa’ programme. The agency displaces incumbent MSLGroup Johannesburg, which won the £1 million account less than two years ago.

According to sources, some of the key markets forming the core of the assignment include the US, UK, Russia and Africa, although it is understood that broader global support is also required.

“It’s a mix of investment, tourism and nation branding,” said one source.

The IMC is also currently tendering for an agency to handle its global media monitoring, including social media reputation analysis.

The IMC was established in 2002 to help create a positive and compelling brand image for South Africa. The country has struggled to shake off a reputation for lawlessness – with media stories rising to a crescendo in the run-up to last years Fifa World Cup.

However, the successful staging of the event is expected to boost efforts to attract investment and tourism to the country. A research study found that the country’s international reputation rose after the World Cup.

The account is required by law to tender every two years, and is understood to have attracted pitches from several international agencies. Hill & Knowlton will work alongside its affiliate Meropa Communications, which is already the IMC’s existing domestic agency.

IMC representatives did not respond to request for comment as this story went live, while Hill & Knowlton declined to comment.

The Kingdom of Bahrain has called in fledging public affairs firm Potomac Square Group to handle US public relations as unrest continues to rock the Middle Eastern nation.

Potomac Square Group – a new firm headed by ex-Wall Street Journal journalist Chris Cooper – was appointed in February to provide strategic PR counsel to the Embassy of Bahrain in the US.

Earlier this week, the Holmes Report revealed that Edelman’s US assignment on behalf of Bahrain’s Economic Development Board (EDB) had been suspended.

Potomac Square Group was launched in February this year. Its Bahrain contract is worth $20,000 per month.

Cooper told the Holmes Report that he is working for Abdul Latif al Zayani, Bahrain’s special envoy to the US.

“I help him communicate to Washington – its institutions, reporters and academics,” said Cooper. “He believes, as do I, that the Crown Prince’s heart is in the right place and that he truly wishes to address the unrest in bahrain through national dialogue.”

Potomac Square Group joins Qorvis Communications as another agency retained by Bahrain in the US; the latter firm is subcontracted by Bell Pottinger to handle work for Bahrain’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, according to FARA filings.

Prior to founding the Potomac Square Group, Cooper was an SVP at Rasky Baerlein Strategic Communications.

The Holmes Report earlier analysed the roles played by PR firms that represent Middle Eastern governments.

Backed by Saudi troops, Bahrain’s security forces have quelled the uprising that began on 14 February. Human rights groups say the death toll has reached 20, with as many as 100 people still missing. According to the FT, attempts to launch talks between the two sides appear to have been overtaken by the Bahrain’s government’s crackdown on largely peaceful protests.

Vodafone has instead called in Freud to handle specific projects for the mobile company’s corporate communications team.

In a statement, Vodafone head of external communications Richard Wray said that the company’s requirements had changed over the course of the last year.

“Paratus has delivered strong results, but we have decided to change the type and structure of the agency support required,” said Wray.

Vodafone has also turned to Ideas Network to run its devices loan programme, while Tavistock Communications will add corporate support.

Wray also said that a separate agency will be appointed to handle Vodafone’s enterprise PR business.

Paratus will continue to work with Vodafone on its World of Difference CSR programme,

Vodafone’s selection of Paratus last year surprised some observers, given the relatively unique model operated by the firm. Paratus employs just 12 full-time staffers, using a network of freelancers to supplement its services.

Prior to appointing Paratus last year, Vodafone worked with Shine and Harvard PR.

Huntsworth – the PR and healthcare communications group that owns Grayling, Citigate, Huntsworth Health and Red – has reported that its revenues dipped by 0.7 percent in 2010, following a major restructuring of the business.

The group has also revealed it has acquired highly-rated US technology and digital agency Atomic PR, providing a much-needed boost to Grayling’s North American footprint. Previously, Huntsworth operated a joint venture with Atomic PR, which oversaw the brand’s European operations. Red Consultancy’s US operations have been transferred into Atomic, which will eventually be combined into Grayling North America.

Huntsworth has also confirmed that Grayling has taken lead agency duties on British Airways’ global PR account, as first revealed by the Holmes Report. It is understood that this business will be worth approximately £1.5 million in fees per year, and will be operated in conjunction with Action Global and Meropa.

While like-for-like revenues dipped, profit before tax was up 14.4 percent on 2009. 2010 marked the first year of Huntsworth’s operations since it whittled down its 26 brands into four, in a bid to better compete for global clients. There are signs that the move is paying off: Global and multi-office clients now represent 44 percent of group revenues, with four global clients delivering fees of more than £3 million per year – or 10 percent of group earnings.

In his note, Huntsworth chief executive Lord Chadlington said that the increase in global clients would take time to filter through to revenues and profits in 2011 and beyond.

The group was adversely impacted by the loss of £2 million in UK public sector fees, and low financial PR transaction fees. The UK declined by 1.5 percent, while Continental Europe was down 5.3 percent. The US grew 3.8 percent, and the remainder of Huntsworth’s global operations declined by 3.4 percent.

Overall, Grayling accounted for 48 percent of Huntsworth revenue in 2010, and declined by two percent during the year. However, the agency “returned to modest growth during the second half of the year,”  after dropping by almost five percent in the first half of the year.

Citigate saw the biggest decline, contracting by 4.2 percent, while Red Consultancy – after several years of double-digit growth – increased by just 0.8 percent, a victim of the public sector downturn. Huntsworth Health was the star performer, growing by 3.3 percent thanks in part to surging digital income.

The group has forecast seven percent revenue growth in 2011, which it believes will be bolstered by strong growth in digital.

Japanese electronics company Ricoh is rethinking its engagement strategy in EMEA, calling an agency pitch as it seeks to expand its corporate PR activity in the region.

The pitch comes two years after Burson-Marsteller won the six-figure mandate. The agency is believed to be defending the brief, with budgets expected to rise.

The Holmes Report understands that Ricoh has invited several international PR agencies to take part in the London-based pitch.

A source familiar with the situation said that the review reflected an increasing boardroom focus on the power of PR. “There is an increased desire to do bigger, and more, corporate communication.”

Burson-Marsteller’s brief encompassed stakeholder engagement, international business media relations, digital comms and pan-EMEA coordination. The account does not include in-market activity.

Javier Diez-Aguirre heads Ricoh corporate communications in EMEA. Diez-Aguirre did not respond to request for comment.

Ricoh specialises in digital offices solutions, including printing, copying and scanning equipment, and also makes cameras. The company’s key rivals include HP and Xerox.

Based in Bedford, New Hampshire, JitterJam provides a blend of social analytics and CRM – with a particular focus on digital influencer marketing. Meltwater Group CEO and founder Jorn Lyseggen said the purchase was part of an overall strategy to grow the company’s social media revenues to $100 million within the next three years.

JitterJam’s seven employees will join Meltwater Group, and its platform will eventually be integrated with the Meltwater Buzz social media monitoring service.

“What we have done mostly up until this point is really more listening and analytics,” Lyseggen told the Holmes Report. “With JitterJam, we are really entering into the engagement space as well.”

Lyseggen pointed to JitterJam’s CRM software, which combines database marketing with social media analytics, as a particular attraction. He also said that the social CRM space offered more opportunity, as opposed to buying a pure digital marketing or online creative agency.

“Engagement alone, without a context, does not really convey a lot of meaning,” explained Lyseggen. “Social media can be used for so many different applications – all of them require very different types of engagement, and engagement should also be a function of who you engage with.”

“And secondly, what context you are engaging in? If you really want to engage in social media you very quickly start to think in terms of CRM principles. You need a CRM solution tailored specifically for a social media crowd.”

The Gartner Group forecasts that by 2013, spending on social software to support sales, marketing and customer service processes will exceed $1 billion worldwide. The firm also predicts that over the next two years, 30 percent of leading companies will extend their online community activities to enhanced processes such as social CRM.

Last year, Meltwater bought social media monitoring firm BuzzGain. The latest acquisition is one of many examples of consolidation among social media agencies and software suppliers. Earlier this month, rival monitoring company Radian6 bought its UK licensee 6Consulting.

“It’s not going to stop anytime soon,” said Lyseggen of the trend towards consolidation. “Whenever we see a good fit that will strengthen our existing social media offering, we will consider it very seriously.”