Citi Yanks Millions in Ad Dollars

To boost stockholder satisfaction, Citi will be pulling as much as $120 million in spending from magazines, the web and cable for the short term. That's a considerable loss in terms of brand building from a banking giant long known for their creative campaigns. This comes only a few months after they shaved $20-30M from their direct marketing accounts.

The question is, as we head into the heavy spending months of the holidays, whether Citi discovers that bolstering their bottom line means weakening their brand. Until they resume spending in 2007, we can expect to see less Emmy Award winning spots like this one.