January 2007 Archives

by Tatiana Repkova

The New York Times Co. posted a $648 million loss for the fourth quarter as it absorbed an $814.4 million charge to write down the value of its struggling New England properties, The Boston Globe and the Worcester Telegram&Gazette. The company said the non-cash charge reflected declines in current and projected results at the newspapers, which have been hit hard by the consolidations of key advertisers in the New England area as well as greater competition from online media. The company originally paid $1.1 billion for the Globe in 1993 and $296 million for the Worcester paper in 2000. The Times reported a loss amounting to $4.50 a share for the October-December period. It earned $63.1 million, or 43 cents a share, a year ago. Results at the Times' Boston-area properties have been slumping badly in the past year, amid a tough economic climate there and the consolidation of key advertisers including the retailers Macy's, part of Federated Department Stores Inc., and Retail Ventures Inc.'s Filene's. Advertising revenues at the New England properties declined again in the fourth quarter, falling 6.1 percent in the period and 9 percent for all of 2006. http://www.finanznachrichten.de/nachrichten-2007-01/artikel-7672518.asp; January 31, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

Google's decision to censor its search engine in China was bad for the company, its founders admitted yesterday.

by Tatiana Repkova

Canada's Abitibi-Consolidated Inc. and Bowater Inc. of South Carolina said they will combine in an all-stock deal their CEOs say should create a more powerful global competitor despite a declining U.S. newsprint market. The combined company will be known as AbitibiBowater Inc. and is expected have annual revenues of about $7.9 billion and a market capitalization of about $2.4 billion.

by Tatiana Repkova

Wall Street Journal owner Dow Jones generates about 70 percentpercent of its revenue from the print side of its business, which includes publications like Barron's,but that number will shrink as the company boosts it digital offerings, Dow Jones Chief Executive Richard Zannino has said.

by Tatiana Repkova

Malaysian media tycoon Tiong Hiew King is making a bid to merge his three Chinese-language publishing groups in Malaysia and Hong Kong to create one of the world's largest Chinese media conglomerates.

by Tatiana Repkova

More U.S. teachers are using national and international online news sites in the classroom, leaving behind newspapers that fail to grasp the Internet's importance in trying to reach students, a study has found.

by Tatiana Repkova

Matin Plus, the new Paris paper by Bolloré and Le Monde is planned for February 6. There will be 20 journalists working for the fourth free paper in Paris that will count 28 pages and will be printed in the half-Berliner micro format. Initial circulation will be 350,000, and will be mostly a Bolloré-paper.

by Tatiana Repkova

After trying and failing to compete with Craigslist's free classifieds, The Tribune Company has said it will begin working with news aggregator Topix to provide free general-merchandise classified ads on its newspapers' Web sites.

by Tatiana Repkova

The FCC said 13,837 radio stations held broadcast licenses at the end of 2006, 95 more than on June 30, 2006. The year also ended with a total of 27,907 TV stations of varying power on the UHF and VHF bands compared to 27,550 six months earlier. (http://www.radioandrecords.com 1/29); The Los Angeles Times News Alert, January 29, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

The Mobile Digital TV Alliance released a white paper discussing the economic viability and consumer adoption of mobile TV. Among other things, the industry advocate supported by Motorola and Nokia, believes it has found the right price consumers will pay for viewing TV on cell phones: a flat $20 a month.

by Tatiana Repkova

A British journalist was jailed for four months January 26 for hacking into more than than 600 messages on the mobile phones of aides to the royal family, including from Prince William.

by Tatiana Repkova

Trinity Mirror has launched five citizen journalism micro-sites as a taster of what could become commonplace across the group's news Web sites.

by Tatiana Repkova

Australian financial heavyweight Macquarie Bank has bought U.S. newspaper publisher American Consolidated Media for 80 million U.S. dollars and could further boost its U.S. interests, bank officials have said.

by Tatiana Repkova

Nova Scotia's youngest daily newspaper, The Valley Today, ceased publishing January 23, only three months after it first went to press. Based in Windsor, the independent, evening tabloid catered to readers in the Annapolis Valley, a largely rural area in western Nova Scotia. All 31 employees were given eight-weeks notice. http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/Page/document/v5/content/subscribe?user_URL=http://www.theglobeandmail.com%2Fservlet%2Fstory%2FRTGAM.20070123.wpaperfolds0123%2FBNStory%2FBusiness%2Fhome&ord=32053151&brand=theglobeandmail&force_login=true; January 23, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

After 10 years of intensive effort and lobbying on the part of American Business Media (ABM) and industry members, Congress has passed postal reform legislation, which will provide rate stability.

by Tatiana Repkova

Publishers are focusing on doing a better job of going after readers they've always had: America's mothers, who make most of the buying decisions in their households, and are therefore very important to retail advertisers.

by Tatiana Rrepkova

As of January 30, readers in the city and province of Bologna will find Corriere di Bologna on their news stands, a veritable second newspaper sold as part of Corriere della Sera. This is development stems from a publishing decision taken by RCS Quotidiani ten years ago designed to create stronger ties between the Via Solferino daily and local areas.

by Tatiana Repkova

Talks and discussions are on to merge the country's two readership surveys, IRS and NRS. Individually, these surveys are two of the biggest in the world and the merger will make the emerging product perhaps the biggest readership survey in the world.

by Tatiana Repkova

The first newspaper for Europe to come from Germany, The German Times, will launch simultaneously with the German EU-Parliamentary Presidency. The circulation of the English-language newspaper is 50,000 and each month it will reach all 7,265 parliament members of the EU's 27 member states. Additionally, The German Times will go to all national governments, all members of the European Parliament, the EU Commission and Europe's top business decision makers. Some 1,000 parliamentarians in Switzerland, Norway and Turkey will also receive the newspaper.

http://www.earthtimes.org/articles/show/news_press_release,46183.shtml; 18 January 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

An Irish language newspaper backed by the British and Irish governments was launched January 17. Lá Nua will be produced in west Belfast and the Donegal Gaeltacht and will be published five days a week. It will also offer podcasts, an online version and an entry on YouTube.com.

by Tatiana Repkova

The number of people reading Internet blogs on the top 10 U.S. newspaper sites more than tripled in December from a year ago and accounted for a larger percentage of overall traffic to those sites. Unique visitors to blog sites affiliated with the largest Internet newspapers rose to 3.8 million in December 2006 from 1.2 million viewers a year earlier, tracking firm Nielsen//NetRatings said.

by Tatiana Repkova

A report on the representation of women in print media in six Eastern European countries was published by Mediacentar, Sarajevo. The report contains analysis of research conducted in Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Macedonia and Serbia.

by Tatiana Repkova

Swiss publisher Ringier launched a free daily in the Serbian capital of Belgrade in Sept. 2006. The daily 24 sata (24 hours) is similar to other Ringier free dailies in eastern Europe: 24 Hodin (Czech Republic) and Compact (Romania). In Switzerland, Ringier publishes free dailies Heute and Cash Daily.

by Tatiana Repkova

Turkey's third English-language newspaper was launched January 16 in what its editors described as a response to increasing foreign interest in the country and an attempt to clear "unfair" perceptions of Turkey in the world. Today's Zaman, headquartered in Istanbul, Turkey's largest city, is published by the moderate Islamist Zaman media group. Zaman means "time" in Turkish. The 28-page colour broadsheet, whose front-page logo reads, "Your way of understanding Turkey," will compete with two other English-language dailies, the Istanbul-based Turkish Daily News and the Ankara-based New Anatolian. Turkey's troubled bid to join the European Union and its efforts to act as a bridge between east and west has recently increased international interest in this mainly Muslim, but secular, country. The foreign business community, concentrated in Istanbul, has grown in recent years; Turkey's second and third largest cities, Ankara and Izmir, are also home to flourishing foreign communities and thousands of foreigners have settled on Turkey's Mediterranean and Aegean coasts. AFP, January 16, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

Northcliffe Newspaper Group is changing its name to reflect its multimedia future, and will be known as Northcliffe Media Limited. A low-key announcement was being made to staff January 15, in a memo from group managing director Michael Pelosi.

by Tatiana Repkova

Having already gone from publishing five times a week to three times, the Houston and San Antonio editions of the Spanish-language Rumbo newspaper chain are dropping to once a week effective immediately, the chain has announced.

by Tatiana Repkova

With immediate effect, readers of the European print edition of the Wall Street Journal are to get access to its online publication via a daily login code printed in the newspaper. After initial registration, readers will be able to redeem the daily coupon from the newspaper for access to one of the web's largest paid for news site.

by Tatiana Repkova

The Asahi Shimbun on Dec. 1 made a drastic organizational reform, abolishing the conventional division-based structure of editorial departments at its Tokyo and Osaka head offices. Former divisions have been reorganized into groups and centres.

by Tatiana Repkova

TNS Media Intelligence says that advertising will dip 0.9% in 2007 from 2006 figures, and its percentage of the total spend will fall from 18.4% to 17.7%. It is the Internet that is forecast for the greatest percentage increase – 13.4% over 2006, raising its share of the total spend percentage from 6.5% last year to 7.2% this year. TNS forecasts that overall US advertising expenditure will increase by just 2.1% in the first half of the year, but it predicts things will pick up in the second half with a 3.2% gain. Overall the total US ad expenditure is expected to increase 2.6% to $153.7 billion. http://www.followthemedia.com/tickle/ticklefile08012007.htm#7; January 12, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

The Czech Republic is as good an example as any to show why western media companies have flocked to and are still very interested in investing in Eastern Europe. The advertising economy there continues to boom. Czech advertising agency ARBOmedia forecasts that the 2007 advertising spend will come close to $1 billion (€700 million), representing a growth rate of 5.7%, double the growth rate of 2006. The Internet spend is predicted to grow the most in percentage terms, 35%, to €26 million, but it represents only 4% of the total spend. TV still rules the roost and is expected to garner 48% of the market with a €333 million spend. http://www.followthemedia.com/tickle/ticklefile08012007.htm#20; January 12, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

The Sun's Web siteWeb site has claimed it netted 56 million new readers from around the world in 2006, which is almost the size of the United Kingdom's population, as it prepares to redesign and introduce further new features. It said the redesign was "imminent" but refused to be drawn on further details.

http://www.brandrepublic.com/login/News/625489/; January 11, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

Daily Record PM, the afternoon edition launched last September, is to transform into a free commuter newspaper later this month — a first for a UK national newspaper. Currently circulating in Glasgow and Edinburgh the free editions will also be launched simultaneously in Aberdeen and Dundee.

by Tatiana Repkova

A new weekly newspaper, The Sentinel, will be launched in Barbados on Friday, January 19. Publisher Trevor Thorpe said the newspaper will focus on bringing background to the major stories of the week. The publication has no political affiliation and will concentrate on highlighting community news, technology news, lifestyle and sports, as well as regional and international news with special sections targeting young people, Thorpe said. Investors also planned to launch The Sentinel in most of the Eastern Caribbean islands, he added.

http://www.nationnews.com/story/287933946644828.php; January 10, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

The ten largest media company acquisitions totaled 21.91 billion euros in 2006, according to a study released by InterMedios Europe, the corporate media information Web siteWeb site created by the Spanish company InterMedios.

by Tatiana Repkova

by Tatiana Repkova

M. DuMont Schauberg (MDS) (which publishes Kölner Stadt-Anzeiger and Kölnische Rundschau, among others) has closed its compact daily paper Direkt. The last issue came out Dec. 29, 2006. The first issue of Direkt was launched in October 2004. Direkt was a success with 10,000 copies and reached young people. The paper closed due to poor advertising development. Employees of the paper will continue to work at MDS. http://www.publicitas.com/display.asp?id=6.8&chp=6.6&foot=6.9&cpny=*&LIB2=PPNRequestNews(3)&initlib=no&PARAM1=17850&navig=no&statinfo=news; January 9, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

The editor-in-chief of a leading Georgian newspaper says prices of some Georgian newspapers have increased due to last year’s inflation and increase in prices including newspaper materials, however the price of the newspaper Resonance has stayed the same (0.5 GEL, approximately 0.29 USD).

by Tatiana Repkova

The prices of some leading Azerbaijani newspapers have increased by 50 percent since January 9 due to an increase of prices on oil products, electricity, natural air and water in Azerbaijan. In particular, the prices of Russian-language publications Zerkalo (Mirror) and Ekho (Echo) and several opposition newspapers have increased. The prices of daily newspapers have increased from 0.2 Manats to 0.3 Manats (approximately 0.35 USD), and weekly newspapers from 0.4 Manats to 0.6 Manats (approximately 0.7 USD). http://www.interfax.ru/r/B/sng/14.html?id_issue=11656775 , media.ge; January 9, 2006

by Tatiana Repkova

Metro International has closed its Polish edition, Metropol. The free newspaper, which claims 18 million readers in 20 countries, launched in Warsaw in 2000.

by Tatiana Repkova

A new Gallup survey has suggested a halt in the decline of newspaper readership in the United States. According to U.S. magazine Editor and Publisher, twice as many Americans (44 percent) rely on newspapers for their daily news as opposed to 22 percent who use the Internet for this purpose. Newspapers are the most popular source of daily news in the United States ahead of network TV news (35 percent) and cable news (34 percent).

by Tatiana Repkova

Time spent reading magazines and newspapers has remained stable over the past two years despite the growing use of the Internet, concludes a recent European survey from Jupiter Research. Based on interviews with 5,000 people in the United Kingdom, Germany, France, Spain and Italy, the report finds the average European in these countries spends three hours a week reading magazines and newspapers, the same as two years ago. This is despite time spent online doubling from two hours to an average four hours per week.

Publishing giant Singapore Press Holdings on Monday reported a 14.1 percent year-on-year rise in net profit for the first quarter ending in November. Net profit for the three months ending November 30 rose to 112.3 million dollars (73 million US) compared with 98.4 million dollars a year earlier, the company said. Revenue from the company's main newspaper and magazine operations rose 2.6 percent to 241.5 million dollars, driven mainly by an increase in print advertising and circulation revenues, it said. The 14 Singapore newspapers published by the firm in four languages include the English-language The Straits Times. Revenue in the company's property sector rose 7.0 percent to 25.6 million dollars, it said. SPH owns and manages Paragon, a retail and office complex in the prime Orchard Road area, and is developing an upmarket condominium. AFP; January 8, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

A French philosopher and an Italian media magnate are among a crew of investors that has picked up shares in France's troubled Liberation newspaper to help turn its finances around.

by Tatiana Repkova

A free sports daily Diário Desportivo will be launched January 5 in Portugal. The paper will be distributed in the Lisbon (70,000 copies) and Porto (30,000 copies) areas like the two existing free dailies in Portugal, Destak and Metro (combined circulation 250,000).

by Tatiana Repkova

Two popular Georgian sports newspapers Lelo and Sport have merged with one other to form one newspaper, now called Lelo. The founders of the newspaper are newspaper Lelo and Sportmedia Ltd., with the Georgian Olympic Foundation as a partner of the edition, as well as well known Georgian businessman Badri Patarkatsishvili. Sport has been issued since 2002, and was part of Patarkatsishvili’s media holding. Lelo is one of the oldest Georgian newspapers, first issued in 1934 under the title Sakartvelos Pizkultureli (Georgia’s Athlete). Lelo will be issued everyday except for Sundays. http://www.media.ge/eng/news_detailed.php?id_numb=1644; January 4, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

The Italian government has announced its intention to reform the publishing industry and has assigned the task to a commission that will draft new legislation.

by Tatiana Repkova

“Media Education: A Kit for Teachers, Students, Parents and Professionals” has been published in English and French by UNESCO. The kit is partly a product of the MENTOR project initiated by UNESCO and supported by the European Commission.

by Tatiana Repkova

Consumers turn to newspapers first for shopping information, according to the latest research from the Newspaper Association of America which indicates more than 50 percent of adults cite newspapers as their advertising medium of choice when deciding what to purchase. The report, "Consumer Usage of Newspaper Advertising 2006," is available as a pdf download at http://www.naa.org/advertiser/Consumer-Usage-Report.pdf. Newsletter for Directors of WAN Member Associations; January 3, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

Reading online newspapers is the fifth most used online service in Finland, according to a survey on usage that was carried out by Statistics Finland. Online newspapers were read by 60 percent of all Internet users. Around three out of four Finns aged 15 to75, or some three million persons, have used the Internet. In the age groups of under 40, the share of Internet users approaches one hundred percent. Newsletter for Directors of WAN Member Associations; January 3, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

Following the Canadian Newspaper Association's success late last year in securing an exemption for the newspaper industry from the national telemarketing law, the association undertook to establish a national code of newspaper telemarketing practices and a Web siteWeb site for consumers. The project is being developed in collaboration with senior newspaper executives who manage telemarketing. The newspaper industry won exemption in recognition of newspapers’ free speech rights and the role newspapers play in a democratic society. In return, newspapers have committed to continue upholding the highest ethical standards in telemarketing activities. The code of practice and consumer information Web siteWeb site will be ready in 2007.

Newsletter for Directors of WAN Member Associations, January 3, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

by Tatiana Repkova

The Post- och Inrikes Tidningar (Post and Domestic Newspapers), has been churning out announcements since 1645, but from now on, it will only be available online, due to a parliamentary decree. In 1645 Queen Kristina and her advisor, Axel Oxenstierna, were urged by the state to ward off rumour-mongers by starting a newspaper to cover foreign events from a Swedish perspective. At the end of the eighteenth century Gustaf III awarded the Swedish Academy the right to publish the newspaper. This principle still holds firm today, with the Academy's permanent secretary, Horace Engdahl, currently holding the position of editor. Post- och Inrikes Tidningar is the official organ of Sweden. It is also unique in that it is the country's only source of nationwide public announcements, such as bankruptcies, debt rescheduling and executive auctions, according to the newspaper's home page. As of January 1 the newspaper will be published on the Swedish Companies Registration Office Web site. http://www.thelocal.se/5969/20070102/; AFP; January 2, 2007

by Tatiana Repkova

With nearly $10 billion in announced sales, 2006 ranked as the second-most active deal year in the newspaper industry’s history, according to Dirks, Van Essen & Murray. The nation’s leading newspaper merger-and-acquisition firm said a total 76 daily newspapers changed hands last year in 25 separate transactions totaling $9.96 billion in transaction value.