Shaping the Future of the Newspaper Blog - Launches and Closures

Google to challenge Facebook with 'social' Gmail

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 17:53:51 -0600

Google is preparing to announce new Gmail features that would extend its reach into the social networking realm, the Financial Times reported today, dubbing the plans a "Facebook assault." This following last week's news that Facebook is planning to launch an e-mail service.

The search giant is looking to give Gmail users a way to aggregate contacts' updates, which can currently be viewed in Google's Chat service, within Gmail's inbox. This would create a "stream of notifications that would echo the similar real-time streams from Facebook and Twitter."

MediaNews Group to put up paywalls

Mon, 08 Feb 2010 15:16:34 -0600

MediaNews Group will begin charging for online content in May, adopting a metered paywall system similar to the one The New York Times announced it will put up, Bloomberg reported Friday. The U.S. newspaper publisher will use Journalism Online LLC to handle processing of payments for its Web sites.

The test will begin at the company's Enterprise-Record in Chico, California, and Daily Record in York, Pennsylvania. If it's successful, the paywall may be instituted at more than 50 dailies owned by MediaNews, including The Denver Post and San Jose Mercurcy News, the Denver Business Journal reported Saturday.

Image: Superchou's Flickr photostream

Will Facebook e-mail bring down Gmail, Yahoo Mail, others?

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 16:28:13 -0600

Facebook is working on an e-mail product, and may have Gmail, Yahoo Mail, AOL Mail and others in its cross hairs.

The social networking site is planning to launch a completely new e-mail product in the place of its current message product, internally known as Project Titan, TechCrunch reported today. "Tacking a real webmail product on top of those vanity URLs and Facebook connect is something even Google may shudder at," Michael Arrington wrote, adding that he doesn't think the new service will be a "Gmail killer."

Image: castortroy520's flickr photostream

Axel Springer launches paywalls on two German paper sites

Fri, 05 Feb 2010 15:13:36 -0600

Axel Springer has decided to add online paywalls on two of its German papers, the Berliner Morgenpost and the Hamburger Abendblatt, right after French newspaper Le Figaro and NYTimes.com, paidContent reported.

Monthly access to all content on morgenpost.de now costs €4.95 (£4.32/$6.79), while a premium monthly subscription to abendblatt.de is €7.95 (£6.93/$10.90).

Telegraph.co.uk tightens focus: Content, commerce, clubs

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 13:26:23 -0600

Like most content creators, the Telegraph Media Group has always focused on increasing Web traffic by directing a maximum number of users to its Web site, Telegraph.co.uk, thereby increasing digital revenues through advertising. But times are changing, online ad revenue isn't enough, and TMG has come up with a new plan.

TMG's digital editor, Edward Roussel, told MediaGuardian today that the publisher will stop chasing everyone and instead focus on the "three Cs": content, commerce and clubs, with the hope of building a more sustainable business model.

Russian-language publisher Kommersant launches blog section

Wed, 03 Feb 2010 12:16:31 -0600

Russian publishing house Kommersant has announced the launch of a blog section, Lenta.ru reported today. The blog is still working in trial mode, but already has three full-time bloggers: Oleg Kashin, Andrei Kolesnikov and Olga Allenova.

Kolesnikov and Allenova are currently in Ukraine, offering coverage on electoral campaigns. Other Kommersant journalists have blogs but that they haven't started publishing yet. According to Chief Editor Pavel Chernikov, the outlet would be adding blogs dedicated to culture, international politics and others.

Will Apple's iPad live up to expectations?

Wed, 27 Jan 2010 17:18:58 -0600

Apple CEO Steve Jobs has been compared to a real-life Willy Wonka many times, and today, with the unveiling of the much anticipated iPad, it's once again plain to see why. But will the iPad live up to all the hype it has attracted?

In a press release, Apple calls the iPad a "magical & revolutionary device at an unbelievable price." PC World's Melissa Perenson reported that she had time to play around with the iPad at the San Francisco unveiling, and was "a bit underwhelmed." She also wrote that she "can see a lot of really useful applications for the iPad, but the reality is that it looks and behaves like an iPhone on steroids. And that's not exactly a good thing."

Google's 'sister site' surfaces in China

Wed, 27 Jan 2010 15:33:09 -0600

A Google knock-off site, Goojje, has surfaced in China, two days after the Internet search giant announced it will exit from the country, according to a Reuters article posted by PC Mag.

The name of Goojje is a play on words in Chinese. The final syllable "jje" sounds like "older sister," while the "gle" syllable of "Google" sounds like "older brother."

Deseret News to launch Spanish-language newspaper

Wed, 27 Jan 2010 14:58:03 -0600

Deseret Management Corp., the parent company of U.S. newspaper Deseret News in Utah, will launch a Spanish-language newspaper called El Observador February 9, publishing three times a week, with editions on Tuesdays and Thursdays featuring hard news, while a weekend edition will focus on family-oriented features, Editor & Publisher reported.

"The Hispanic/Latino community in Utah is a very important part of our future, of our 'now,'" said Jim Wall, the publisher of Deseret News, according to a Deseret news article. "They are under-represented. They have no voice." He said in the past, other Spanish-language newspaper efforts in the area had not been credible. "When we decided we would invest in this (endeavour), it was really out of a need to have a voice of trust and credibility."

Will Apple's tablet change print media?

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 17:12:33 -0600

Apple is scheduled to introduce its tablet computer at an event in San Francisco Wednesday, and in doing so, may give the media industry "a chance to undo mistakes of the past," The New York Times reported yesterday. Apple is expected to market the tablet as a way for companies to charge for content, which could prove to be a valuable new revenue stream.

However, there is a catch. In making content available on the tablet, content creators could fall into the same trap they have with other devices, such as e-readers: losing their direct relationship with customers to Apple and having to follow pricing restrictions.

Washington Post may launch local business publication

Tue, 26 Jan 2010 16:24:33 -0600

The Washington Post may be looking into providing readers with more news and information on local business. A source told the Washington City Paper that the Post is planning to launch a business publication called Capital Business, which would be issued weekly and cost US$1.99 per week.

This comes less than a year after the Post shuttered its daily business section to "save on newsprint - an important objective in these times." However, the Business Insider pointed out today that the prototype sent out to subscribers for their input is in print, not online.

WSJ to launch travel agency

Mon, 25 Jan 2010 16:29:35 -0600

The Wall Street Journal is diversifying its business, launching its very own travel agency, called WSJTravel on Thursday. When it launches, the agency will provide planned trips to 50 destinations, including Vietnam, Tuscany and California's wine country among others, Media Post reported.

"Just as you have come to rely on The Wall Street Journal's perspective of global events, many WSJ travel vacations will let you experience a destination from a completely new viewpoint," the announcement stated, according to Editor & Publisher. The WSJ travel agency promises trips around the world for "any range of budget" and destinations "inspired by articles' from the newspaper, according to a statement.

FCC announces probe into media's future

Fri, 22 Jan 2010 12:53:23 -0600

The U.S. Federal Communications Commission has launched an initiative to examine the future of media in the digital age and to "help ensure that all Americans have access to vibrant, diverse sources of news and information that will enable them to enrich their families, communities and democracy."

"The Future of Media and the Information Needs of Communities in a Digital Age" lists 42 questions the project is seeking to answer through research and asking for input from the public. Submissions for the project closes March 8. Quoting the Knight Commission on the Information Needs of Communities in a Democracy, the project states that the "digital age is creating an information and communications renaissance. But it is not serving all Americans and their local communities equally. It is not yet serving democracy fully," according to the Huffington Post.

Condé Nast Traveler to launch in India

Thu, 21 Jan 2010 15:40:49 -0600

Following the launch in India of fashion magazines like Vogue and GQ, publisher Condé Nast is set to begin pushing one of its travel offerings in the country with the launch its Condé Nast Traveler magazine in October, Media Newsline reported Tuesday. A bi-monthly issue will be priced at Rs.100 (€1.53).

Now that both Vogue and GQ are established in India, by adding the travel magazine, "Condé Nast India now provides advertisers the perfect platform to reach the elusive affluent Indian audience," said Alex Kuruvilla, managing director of Condé Nast India, according to Asia Media Journal.

NewsCred helps users create custom online newspapers

Wed, 20 Jan 2010 16:21:07 -0600

NewsCred launched in 2008 aiming to use algorithms combined with users' votes to rank news sources by credibility. That didn't work out, and the site is now manoeuvring in another direction, this time offering users a platform to build professionally-looking customised online newspaper sites in just minutes, TechCrunch reported last week.

Users can pick topics they are interested in or choose from a list of categories provided. The stories are then drawn from popular news sites and blogs, aggregated and listed in their appropriate sections.