Publicis Groupe 90th anniversary benefits 90 digital start-ups

To take part, projects can be submitted via the Publicis90 platform (www.publicis90.com). Whether you are a student, a new start-up, a successful entrepreneur or a Publicis Groupe employee anywhere in the world, you are welcome to put forward your idea and apply for support from the Groupe. The goal is to provide entrepreneurs with the support they need to bring their projects to life, or to take them to the next level.

Projects will be pre-selected by region (Africa, Asia-Pacific, Europe-Middle-East and the Americas), with a first round of votes open to all employees (all projects submitted remain anonymous). A regional jury will then draw up a short-list from the pre-selected projects, before a prestigious global jury will make the final selection of the 90 most promising projects or start-ups.

Publicis Groupe experts in marketing, communications, management and technology will mentor the selected projects. They will also receive funding in the form of an investment ranging from €10,000 for projects about to be launched to €500,000 for start-ups that are already ramping up. As for selected projects submitted by the group's employees, they will have the benefit of a special internal incubation scheme.

The holders of the 90 selected projects will be invited to participate at Viva Technology Paris (www.vivatechnologyparis.com), the first forum in France to bring together the people who matter most in digital throughout the world with over 5000 start-ups. This event - created by Publicis Groupe and Groupe Les Echos - will be held from 30 June-2 July 2016 at the Paris Expo Exhibition Centre at Porte de Versailles. The 90 selected projects will be honoured at an awards ceremony held during Viva Technology Paris.

Maurice Lévy, chairman and CEO of Publicis Groupe, declared, "Publicis90 is very much in line with the philosophy of Publicis Groupe and its founder, Marcel Bleustein-Blanchet. The idea is to help young entrepreneurs achieve their goals. Not just through investment but also by putting Groupe resources at their disposal for a year. Rather than look back and pat ourselves on the back for 90 years of history, we have taken the forward-looking approach of extending a helping hand to young entrepreneurs."