SFN Flash October 2005 Monthly update on World Press Trends World Association of Newspapers in Paris, France

October 31, 2005 No 7, Volume 3

Distributed by email to WAN/WEF Members Also available on SFN website www.futureofthenewspaper.com

For more details, please contact Tatiana Repkova at [email protected]

 MEDIA MARKET DATA

Media Markets & Newspapers Canada Both advertising and circulation revenues for Canadian daily newspapers showed strong growth in the first quarter of 2005, compared with the same period in 2004. Advertising revenues grew by 2.1 per cent, while circulation revenues grew by 2.4 per cent. While retail linage was down 6 per cent in the first quarter, revenues were helped by growth in national and classified lineage, particularly in the careers category. Newsletter for Directors of WAN Member Associations - N° 31, September 7, 2005

Egypt The Egyptian press is witnessing several changes, for example, the obvious fall in the circulation of government newspapers. They attempted changing top officials to regain their reputation. The new chief editors opened their doors to opposition writers within certain limits, some from the Muslim Brotherhood organisation or Islamist groups or Al Jihad organisation. This came after the independent newspapers started to pose a dangerous threat, especially the Egyptian Today newspaper. It is witnessing continued growth in its sales and effectiveness as the best independent newspaper with a wide news coverage, while keeping its objectives and achieving many scoops, as well as using writers from all political parties and giving them the freedom to express their opinion. http://www.khaleejtimes.com/DisplayArticle.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2005/September/mid dleeast_September712.xml§ion=middleeast&col; September 25, 2005

France The figures for 2004, the most recent available, show that the circulation of Le Monde, the top-selling national daily, fell by 4.1 per cent on the previous year to 330,768 and that of Le

1 Figaro, the conservative daily, was down 3.1 percent to 329,729 – even though both papers were relaunched recently with new designs. Even sharper falls were recorded by the left-wing Libération – down 7.8 per cent to just under 140,000. In all, the top nine French national newspapers sold about 1.4 million copies every day – a stark contrast with the top 10 British newspapers, which sold almost 12 million copies. French newspapers have been in decline for decades. ‘The French have never read newspapers,’ says Claude Moisé, a former general manager of the Agence France-Presse wire agency and now an analyst with Médias magazine. But the situation has deteriorated rapidly with growing competition from the internet and television. In addition, there are the new free dailies that are handed out in large numbers on the Paris metro and, increasingly, in other cities every morning. These, Moisé says, have taken away large numbers of crucial young readers. Then there is the disappearance of large numbers of newsstands from Parisian streets which, together with problems finding space on new super-fast trains for large stacks of newspapers, has posed problems for distribution. In addition, entrenched left-wing unions have effectively resisted major structural change that might have brought down costs. And then there is the simple fact that French newspapers have not, at least until now, made a great effort to attract readers. “The attitude is that if the reader doesn’t buy it, then it’s their loss,” says one recently retired senior journalist. “It isn’t of course, as we are all now finding out.” One huge issue, raised at the highest level of government, is the lack of young readers. Though according to a study in 2003, nearly three- quarters of young French people believe reading the press is essential to understanding current affairs, only 1 per cent say they get most of their information from newspapers. One remedy, considered by the government last year, was to offer subsidised subscriptions to every one of the country’s 780,000 18-year-olds for two months after their birthday. Senior editors at Le Monde and elsewhere have recognised the need for radical change, planning further design changes and relaunches and encouraging more creative editorial decisions. Libération recently filled the dead days of a French August with a series of features on “Sex, ideally between consenting partners”. Covering everything from voyeurism to sodomy, the features, over three pages in the centre of every day’s edition, were literary and salacious in equal degree and were well received by readers and critics. Editors are also looking for inspiration overseas, to the new format of some British papers, and to Italy, where, despite a poor national economic climate, about six million dailies are sold each morning and two million free papers distributed. Many Paris-based media analysts have noted that the major Italian daily, La Repubblica, has an average sale of more than 650,000 copies and is doing better than ever before. It is not all doom and gloom for the French written press, however. More specialist publications have done better with sales up for the financial Les Echos, the Communist paper L’Humanité and the Catholic La Croix. France’s bustling magazine sector, especially the major weekly news publications, is thriving. Voici, a gossip-led glossy, sold an average of 700,000 over the past two months and its new rival, Closer, owned by Emap France, sold 640,000 in the first week of August. The real motor of change may well be the new freesheets, however much they are despised by the mainstream press. The advertising revenue of Metro and 20 Minutes, which distribute as many as a million copies each day across France, has actually been responsible for a small improvement, in pure financial terms, in the balance sheet of the written press sector as a whole. Frederic Filloux, the editor of 20 Minutes, says his newspaper has been successful because it has a genuine affinity with readers between the ages of 20 and 40, seven out of 10 of whom did not read any paper at all before the arrival of la presse gratuite. “The daily press [in France] is completely disconnected from young people. It looks elitist and obsessed with politics and expensive,” Filloux said. “The success of 20 Minutes is rooted in the idea of a double appeal – what the reader needs to know and what they will enjoy discovering.” An indication of what French readers really want can be found in the sales of the sports paper L’Equipe, which outperformed everybody

2 to record a near 10 per cent increase, making it the single best-selling paper with a paid circulation in France of 351,000. “The magazines are strong because they provide everything that people think they need. There is culture, sport, national and international news, TV and movies,” says Moisé. “French people are not very serious about news and information. Football and food are the only things they take seriously – and there is no newspaper for food.” http://media.guardian.co.uk/site/story/0,14173,1562257,00.html, September 4, 2005

Germany German media giant Bertelsmann said that both sales and profits were down in the first six months of the current year, but largely as a result of one-off factors. Bertelsmann said in a statement that net profit after minorities fell by 49 per cent to €224 million ($280 million) in the period from January to June on a 1.8-per cent decline in sales to €7.9 billion. However, the group noted that its bottom line had been hit by a number of special items both in 2005 and in the previous year, while sales were negatively affected by currency effects and portfolio changes. Underlying earnings fared much better, Bertelsmann insisted, with operating profit rising by eight per cent to €644 million. “During the first half, we enhanced our position in a important segments. I am very pleased with our improved return on sales of 8.1 per cent. We are well on our way to achieving our target of 10 per cent in 2007,” said chairman Gunter Thielen. Chief financial officer Siegfried Luther said: “We have fortified with a series of transactions so that the second half of the year will see a significant expansion of sales. We still expect to increase our operating result in 2005.” AFP; September 7, 2005

Ireland The ABC Island of Ireland report shows that the compact circulation of The Irish Independent rose by 12.7 per cent in the first half of this year compared with the previous six months to 81,431. The paper’s broadsheet edition fell 17 per cent to 82,771. The total circulation fell 5 per cent. The Irish Times had a 2.6 per cent rise bringing it to 117,543 and The Irish Examiner fell 2.5 per cent to 57,331. In the Sunday newspaper market, The Sunday Tribune’s circulation fell by nearly 11 per cent in the six months to 71,187, while Ireland on Sunday fell 3.5 per cent to 139,170. Sunday Independent circulation was almost unchanged at just over 291,000, while the Sunday World’s edition in the Republic was also flat at 206,704. The main advance in circulation was recorded by The Sunday Business Post, up 6.5 per cent to 51,823. The Evening Herald’s circulation was up 6.3 per cent to 93,830, while Cork’s Evening Echo lost almost 1 per cent to 27,714. Bulk sales – free or discounted – can impact circulation figures from one period to another. http://www.finfacts.com/irelandbusinessnews/publish/article_10003095.shtml; September 1, 2005

Tajikistan Tajikistan, with its 6.6-million population, has no dailies due to the media’s poverty, but has two state-owned television and radio channels, independent radio stations, and weeklies published in Tajik, Russian and Uzbek languages. A total of 226 newspapers are registered in the Central Asian state, but in fact only some 20 are published regularly. The OSCE security and rights watchdog earlier this week called on Tajik authorities to “urgently reverse the situation”, also pointing out that new broadcasting licenses were not issued “despite numerous requests, the obvious need for more plurality”. “The authorities are always the winner in any conflict, which is what happened with the independent press,” director of the private Avesta news agency Zafar Abdullayev complained. “Tajikistan’s media have long since lost their independence. Media tycoons control several weeklies each, but those never clash with the

3 state for economic reasons,” Lydia Isamova, director of the British Institute of War and Peace Reporting said. “Their publications are moderate, carefully checked, reporters, editors and media chiefs exercise self-censorship – no one wants to be shut down,” Isamova said. AFP; September 10, 2005

United Kingdom Despite lower advertising sales and the success of free publications, market analysts say Britain’s traditional newspapers are holding up and adapting well to the winds of change. The Guardian will shift to the smaller format of France’s Le Monde and Italy’s La Repubblica on Monday to increase circulation even as a new free business daily called City A.M. hit the streets of central London last week. “Despite declining circulations, the market is in good shape,” said Mark Hughes, associate director of Carat, a public relations agency. “There are still strong allegiances to your newspaper of choice in the UK, but admittedly this is slowly eroding due to competition... and the huge growth in alternative, and often free, news sources,” Hughes said. The readership of The Daily Telegraph, Britain’s most widely read broadsheet newspaper, fell from one million in 2000 to 910,470 in 2004. In the same period, The Guardian’s circulation fell from 395,700 to 376,300. But sales of The Independent and The Times, which fell between the years 2000 and 2003, have risen to 259,800 and 657,000 copies respectively. The secret behind the sales success was the papers’ decision to adopt the compact format of Britain’s “tabloids,” which have consistently high circulation figures. The Sun sells 3.3 million copies a day, the Daily Mail 2.4 million and the Mirror 1.8 million. Now The Guardian has decided to follow suit and adopt a smaller format known as “Berliner,” after Germany’s Berliner Zeitung. The Independent and The Times “were stealing readers off from the Guardian,” said Ian Tournes, head of press at Starcom Mediavest, a communications agency. But The Daily Telegraph is sticking with the larger, broadsheet format. “There is some kind of UK snobbery where people still like to pick up a broadsheet,” Tournes said. The slump in advertising revenues has hit Britain’s other broadsheet, the Financial Times, which had circulation of 431,600 in 2004. The FT now faces competition from a free rival – City A.M. – available outside London railway stations. While City A.M. is unlikely to topple the Financial Times from its status as Britain’s leading business daily, analysts said it will find a niche among the 300,000 people working in the City of London. The success of Metro, another free publication, whose circulation has risen from 789,200 in 2001 to one million currently, could be a sign of things to come. The Financial Times has started to publish a free one-page taster for the next day’s copy with the main headlines and financial data in a bid to keep up. London’s Evening Standard which now sells 375,244 copies – a drop of 15 per cent since 2000 – began the smaller free edition ES Lite in January. “It will be increasingly difficult to charge for general information which is freely available elsewhere,” said Nik Vyas, director of Zenith Optimedia, another communications group. “In mid-term, free newspapers will start to make a growing proportion of newspaper sales,” he said, adding however that established newspapers could specialise in future since “you can charge for analysis and comments and opinion.” “One of the reasons to be optimistic is the fact that they’ve all invested a huge amount of money in new printing presses,” Vyas said of Britain’s leading publications. News International “is investing £600 million (€889 million, $1.1 billion) over the next three years. They wouldn’t invest that amount of money if they didn’t think they’re going to make some money,” he added. AFP; September 11, 2005

United Kingdom The Newspaper Society’s annual industry survey which is now in its second year, showed that the regional press is now a £4 billion industry, with overall operating profit for all regional and local press publishers estimated at £932 million. Advertising contributes 74 per cent of all

4 revenue. In 2004 regional press publishers invested more than £350 million in new printing presses and production technology, and a third of all copies of national newspapers are printed on regional newspaper presses. The Newspaper Society sent out a detailed questionnaire to all regional and local publishing groups in the UK. Replies were received from publishing groups accounting for 75 per cent of all regional press titles published each week and, based on the response, figures were then adjusted to give an estimate of the industry as a whole. http://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/behind/analysis/050901surv.shtml; September 1, 2005

Vietnam The Vietnamese government plans to have 900 million copies of assorted newspapers printed by 2010, thus supplying each citizen with 10 copies of newspapers annually to read against the current 7.5 copies. The 10-year-long information strategy has also called for an increase in the number of books, from two books per capita to five. Other targets include increasing the proportion of Vietnamese television series to 60 per cent and giving all families in mountainous areas access to audio/ video facilities. The number of Internet subscribers is to reach 8.4 per cent while the rate of Internet users is expected to reach up to 40 per cent, according to the strategy. http://www.vnagency.com.vn/newsA.asp?LANGUAGE_ID=2&CATEGORY_ID=29&NEW S_ID=166765; September 16, 2005

Newspaper Launches South Africa A new daily English-language newspaper targeting “colour-blind” readers too young and busy to care about the legacy of apartheid is to be launched in Johannesburg on September 19. South African media giant Naspers is taking a bold step in an already overcrowded newspaper industry but publisher Deon du Plessis is confident he will be cashing in on an untapped market. “It’s a very interesting market. It’s one-third upcoming middle-class blacks who are moving from the townships to the formerly white suburbs, one-third Afrikaners and one-third English speakers. “If you speak to these people with your eyes closed, you wouldn’t know whether they are black or white,” said Du Plessis, who will be publishing the newspaper for Media 24, owned by Naspers. The targeted reader for the daily called Nova is between 25 and 40 years old and doesn’t read a newspaper at the moment because there is nothing catering to his or her interests, Nova deputy editor Minette Ferreira said. “It’s the new South African. They are up and coming, they are making money, and they are positive about their future in South Africa,” said Ferreira. “Many of them were still at school when Nelson Mandela was released from prison. They don’t have the baggage of apartheid,” she added. Du Plessis said Nova readers were yuppies or what he likes to call “Cools”. “They are well educated, urban professionals. They are COOLS - career-orientated, online, out of time, living to the full and doing it in style.” Nova will be tabloid in format, aiming for a circulation of between 40 000 and 50 000 within the first few months, Ferreira said. Nova will hit the newsstands in South Africa’s richest province of Gauteng on September 19, competing with no fewer than six other Johannesburg dailies. Du Plessis became a successful player in the media industry when he launched the Daily Sun tabloid in Gauteng three years ago, targeting the township market until-then shunned by newspapers. It took the market by storm, started turning around a profit in just 18 months and became the new number one Johannesburg daily in two years, with some two million readers, more than three times higher than its closest rival The Star. Naspers is the only media house among the four big players in the country – Johnnic, Independent Newspapers and Caxton are the others – which has succeeded in

5 launching several new dailies in the past years. Besides the Daily Sun, it has also introduced a new Afrikaans paper published weekly in Gauteng and daily in Western Cape, a tabloid called Die Son (The Sun), sporting South Africa’s first page-three topless girl. http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_1771686,00.html; September 16, 2005

United Arab Emirates Two new newspapers, wanting to “shake up the Middle East media scene”, will hit the streets in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in mid-September, reports Campaign Middle East. One of the papers will be in English language and the other in Arab. Working titles of the papers are Emirates Mail for the English and Emirate for the Arab edition. Both papers plan to have 48 pages, appear in compact format from Monday to Sunday and will cost AED2 (US 50 cents). On Fridays they will include a A4-sized glossy supplement targeted at women. The papers, printed in Dubai, will start with a print run of 115,000 for the Arab edition of which 15,000 will be distributed outside the UAE and 95,000 copies for the English edition of which 15,000 will go to other GCC states. The papers are produced by the recently created Arab Media Group, which includes the Dubai Radio Network, the Arabian Radio Network and Awraq Publishing. Commercial director Gavin Dickinson told Campaign Middle East that responses from advertisers to dummies of the papers have been “sensational”. He said: “The world has changed. Publishing is smarter, more meaningful and compact. It has to fight harder to be in people’s lives. Our mantra is ‘compact and compelling’. We do not believe that the media in the region has changed to reflect modern standards.” Jason Leavy and Sami Al Reyami, the editors of the two editions, “are promising readers a fresh approach to how news is delivered in the country and claim they will ‘push the boundaries’ in what is reported.” The papers plan, for example, to have a strong human interest agenda, which the editors think is lacking in existing newspapers in the region. The new papers will enter a newspaper market that is already crowded. As Ameinfo reports the “publication of a new daily rival to Gulf News and the Khaleej Times is one of the most keenly anticipated local media events.” Campaign Middle East (September 4), Campaign Middle East (September 11), Ameinfo; http://www.editorsweblog.org/2005/09/middle_east_two.php

United Kingdom A new national sport weekly hits newsstands next month amid an apparent boom in launches across the newspaper industry. The title will arrive just weeks after the expected launch of a new daily free sheet aimed at London’s financial community. And it comes ahead of national sport and gambling daily The Sportsman which is expected to start publishing early next year. Further evidence of launch fever came as the Newspaper Society revealed a 48.5 per cent increase in regional newspaper spin-off publications and a 10.3 per cent rise in the number of local paper journalists to 13,267. Non-League Paper publishers Greenways Media are behind The League Paper, which is due to come out on Sunday, 23 October. It will be a 64-page tabloid concentrating on coverage of the 72 clubs in the Coca-Cola Championship and Leagues One and Two — with a double-page spread providing a Premiership round-up. According to Greenways, a £250,000 advertising budget has been set aside for the launch and five full-time editorial staff are to be recruited including a news editor, a reporter and a picture editor. In addition, editor David Emery, who also edits The Non-League Paper, is planning to recruit a network of stringers from across the country to provide match reports for every League club. Greenway Media commercial director Rich Coles said: “The Football League is now the fourth most supported league in Europe — watched by 16.4 million fans last season, more than Serie A in Italy — while the Championship play-off game is now the richest club game in world football, worth £35 million to the winner. The Non-League Paper was

6 launched five years ago and is published on Fridays and Sundays with a circulation of 35,000. Emery was launch editor of existing football weekly Sport First in January 2000 when it had a circulation of more than 80,000. In February 2004, it changed its name to Football First in order to concentrate on football and then in April this year changed its name again back to Sport First. The publication date was also changed, from Sunday to Friday, and the editorial emphasis switched to sport gambling. Its current ABC is 14,601 and it is unclear whether or not Football First will re-emerge now the football season is under way. http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/article/010905/footy_paper_adds; September 1, 2005

Newspaper Closures / Absorptions Kazakhstan Six newspapers that have covered an opposition candidate’s presidential campaign were prevented on September 26 from publishing their current editions, according to local and international press reports. Managers at the private printing company Vremya-Print in the financial capital of Almaty refused to explain why they would not publish Epokha, Svoboda Slova, Zhuma-taims, Apta.kz, Azat, and Soz. President Nursultan Nazarbayev and his allies routinely pressure private printers not to publish independent newspapers, and they regularly stifle critical news reporting with politicized lawsuits and criminal investigations, according to research by the Committee to Protect Journalists. “The record shows that President Nazarbayev and his allies are willing to block opposing points of view,” CPJ Executive Director Ann Cooper said. “This development calls further attention to Kazakhstan’s dismal press freedom record and raises additional concerns about the legitimacy of the coming election.” Nazarbeyev, who has ruled for 16 years, is running against Zharmakhan Tuyakbai, the candidate of the opposition alliance, “For a Fair Kazakhstan”, in the December 4 election. The six newspapers, with a combined circulation reported at 400,000, are among the few media outlets that have reported on Tuyakbai’s campaign. At least some are sympathetic to his candidacy. Editors for the newspapers said at a press conference on September 26 that other printers were also refusing them services, the Russian service of the German public broadcaster Deutsche Welle reported. http://www.cpj.org/news/2005/Kazakh27sept05na.html; September 27, 2005

* * * * * Editors of five Kazakh opposition newspapers ended a hunger strike on September 29 after reaching a deal with a new printing house that would allow them to return to business after being forced to shut down. The editors began their protest after printing partner Vremya-Print refused Monday to publish their papers. The editors alleged that authorities had pressured Vremya-Print to turn down the papers’ business in order to shut down the opposition media before the Dec. 4 presidential election. The papers support the candidacy of Zharmakhan Tuyakbai, the main opponent to the former Soviet republic’s long-ruling President Nursultan Nazarbayev. The papers signed a contract on September 29 with Daur printing house, which is run by Nazarbayev’s in-law, Svetlana Nazarbayeva. Daur initially turned down the offer. Svoboda Slova’s editor Gulzhan Ergaliyeva said Almaty-based Daur had offered acceptable prices as well as the terms proposed by the opposition newspapers. He said the papers would be back on sale next week. The opposition papers’ forced printing shutdown followed a seizure of copies across the country that have been going on for several weeks. The Associated Press; http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory?id=1170382; September 29, 2005

7 News Agencies International News and information provider Reuters Group Plc said it had acquired London-based sports photography agency Action Images. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Action Images, Britain’s largest independent sports photo agency, counts FIFA and UEFA among its clients and boasts an archive of 7 million images that stretches back five decades. Reuters, renowned for its award-winning photography, said the acquisition – its first of a photo agency in many years – would enable it to expand into the commercial market instead of selling pictures only to rival media organisations and to expand the Action Images brand outside Britain. Ten-year-old Getty Images has grown to be the world’s largest supplier of photos by buying up dozens of agencies, including Allsport in 1998. British news agency Press Association acquired Empics last year. http://today.reuters.com/business/newsArticle.aspx?type=media&storyID=nL19354381; September 19, 2005

Magazines Russia Two leading Western business magazines, BusinessWeek and The Economist, are set to launch Russian-language versions due to the West’s increasing interest in the local market, said Izvestia, a respected daily. Alexei Volin, the president of the Rodionov publishing house that would publish the Russian version of BusinessWeek, said the house’s another publication, Profil, had long been cooperating with BusinessWeek. The Independent Media publishing house, which also publishes the Moscow Times English-language daily, would soon release the Russian-language version of The Economist, Izvestia said. A number of leading Western publications already have their Russian-language editions, from Newsweek to Cosmopolitan and Vogue. Publishing Expo 2005, the first professional exhibition of Russia’s publishing sector, has been held in Moscow this week. The event gathered the leading Russian publishers and Western experts who exchanged experience during seminars on the future of the press in Russia. “The West now is very interested in the new Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin, who in the opinion of many foreign publications remains a very reserved and nonpublic person,” one of the fair organizers said. http://en.rian.ru/business/20050929/41543826.html; September 26, 2005

United Kingdom The number of stand-alone magazines and niche publications produced by British regional newspapers rose by 48.5 per cent in 2004, according to the Newspaper Society’s Annual Industry Survey. The increase demonstrates the growing trend among regional newspaper publishers to expand their reach by using portfolios of products to reach a broader range of readers. Using a wide variety of vehicles including lifestyle magazines, niche publications and websites, they tap into a range of targeted groups, which may not be traditional readers of the main newspaper. Newsletter for Directors of WAN Member Associations - N° 31, September 7, 2005

United States of America A comic strip, a humor column and a Sunday serial of fiction will appear each week in “The Funny Pages,” a new 10-page section making its debut September 18 in The New York Times Magazine. The section will offer The Magazine’s audience a new reading experience that

8 complements “The Way We Live Now,” the style section and the signature reportage for which The Magazine is known. “The Funny Pages is our own take on the traditional Sunday paper funny pages,” says Gerald Marzorati, editor, The New York Times Magazine. “We wanted a place in our pages for genre fiction –- mysteries, detective stories, and the like –- which is having a particularly vibrant moment in popular culture just now. And we wanted to make a place for the work of those creating narrative comics and graphic novels, a great new art form. We wanted to publish humor -– narrative, memoirish humor. And most of all we wanted to give our readers some new things that would bring a smile to their faces each Sunday morning, and our youngest readers a go-to destination when the paper arrives.” AFP; September 6, 2005

 ADVERTISING

Advertising Statistics United States of America Total advertising expenditures for the first half of 2005 increased 4.5 per cent, compared to the same period in 2004, to $70.5 billion, according to data released by TNS Media Intelligence (TNS MI), the leading provider of strategic advertising and marketing information. The 4.5 per cent first half growth follows a first quarter increase of 4.4 per cent, indicating that the advertising market is maintaining spending. Cable TV continued to be a strong sector, rising 15.3 percent to $7.9 billion, due to higher unit rates, increases in commercial time and larger audiences. Internet display advertising advanced 9.4 per cent to $3.9 billion, again outpacing the total market. Other strong categories were Outdoor, with a 9.3 percent increase to $1.6 billion; and Consumer Magazines, with a 9.1 per cent increase to $10.5 billion. By total dollar amount, Local Newspapers and Network TV led all media at $12.2 billion and $11.6 billion, respectively, during the first half. National media (7.4 per cent growth to $44.9 billion) outpaced local media (0.1 per cent decline to $5.7 billion) during the period. Spot TV expenditures fell 6.1 per cent due to declines in political advertising, non- domestic automotive and telecommunications. TNS Media Intelligence/USA September 6, 2005; http://www.publicitas.com/default.asp?key=6&search=y&cpny=*&lng=2

Advertising Forecasts United States of America Paid search revenues are set to outpace display advertising by 2010, according to a JupiterResearch report forecasting the next five years in the U.S. paid search market. The category accounted for 34 percent of total online ad spending in 2004, or $4.2 billion in spending. In 2009, paid search will draw even with display advertising, with both bringing in around $6.9 billion. By 2010, paid search, including paid listings and paid inclusion, is expected to equal 40 percent of the online ad spend, or $7.5 billion. “Marketers are becoming more aware of the increasing benefits of paid search in their campaign,” Sapna Satagopan, lead analyst on the report at JupiterResearch, told ClickZ News. While immediate sales is the top goal for a majority of the marketers who use paid search, the benefits of paid search in branding and purchase decision or research processes will become more evident as well.” The pace of growth is expected to increase due to new players in the search engine space, with immediate boosts from Ask Jeeves’ new paid search program and the launch of MSN

9 AdCenter. Satagopan said both Ask Jeeves and MSN AdCenter paid listings programs will take about 12 months from to gain traction and start to significantly impact the paid search. “Currently, marketers are attempting to handle the expanding campaign size in terms of search engines used,” said Satagopan. “As marketers start to better manage and monitor their campaigns across search engines, they will see the value of increasing the spending to search engines such as MSN and Ask Jeeves.” Cost-per-click is expected to increase from $.39 back in 2004 to $.58 by 2010. Cost is a major concern to marketers, the study found. “Marketers should move out of the ‘bid for top position’ method and opt instead, to measure and base their bidding on the revenue the keyword fetches,” said Satagopan. “As a campaign becomes bigger, marketers adopting tools to monitor and measure search campaigns can comparatively better evaluate and plan their bids. Sophisticated marketers, who do so, see a better ROI in their campaigns.” Forty-two per cent of sophisticated marketers plan to increase their search budget next year, said Satagopan, because they are achieving a positive ROI. http://www.clickz.com/news/article.php/3550221; September 20, 2005

Misleading / Unfair Advertising Namibia A German-language Namibian weekly is to publish an apology after an advertisement appeared in its pages celebrating the death of “the big monster” Simon Wiesenthal, the publisher said. Hans Feddersen of the Plus weekly admitted that it was “not a good idea” to publish the advertisement that drew strong reactions from readers and criticism from the German ambassador in Windhoek. “I am busy formulating an apology to appear this coming Friday in the next edition,” said Feddersen. “With joy and satisfaction, we take notice of the death of the big monster. On September 20th, the earth and its inhabitants were delivered from Simon,” said the quarter-page ad in the weekly published in Windhoek. “His biggest crime was to live 96 years,” said the ad signed by a group called International Action Against Forgetting. Wiesenthal, who survived Nazi concentration camps to become a lifelong hunter of Nazi war criminals, died at age 96 at his home in Vienna on September 20. He was buried in Israel. His targets included Nazi war criminal Adolf Eichmann, one of the foremost planners of Jewish extermination. The advertisement said “Simon” had committed “all sorts of crimes” such as “libel, kidnapping, defamation, betrayal, attempted murder and murder.” German ambassador Wolfgang Massing sent an open letter to Feddersen demanding an apology. “Please distance yourself from this shameful advertisement”, Massing wrote in the letter published in the daily newspaper Allgemeine Zeitung. “It would be appropriate for you to apologize to Jewish citizens (in Namibia)”, Massing noted. Feddersen said he had been offered more than the usual rate to publish the advertisement and that he “assumed that the source of the money” was from Germany. He said that since German hate laws prevent the publication of such advertisements in Germany, pro-Nazi groups often sought outlets elsewhere for their message. A similar controversy occurred in 1994 when an English daily in Namibia, a former imperial German colony, published an advertisement that fondly remembered prominent Nazi Rudolf Hess. The Namibian National Society for Human Rights (NSHR) said it was outraged by this “reckless publication of Nazi hate propaganda”. “While international leaders are eulogizing Wiesenthal, here in Namibia we are publishing ads discrediting this very same indefatigable fighter for justice”, said Phil ya Nangoloh, executive director of the NSHR. The group called for the prosecution of those responsible for the publication of the advertisement under Namibia’s anti-discrimination laws. AFP; September 28, 2005

10 Newspaper Advertising Poland The Polish Chamber of Press Publishers and the outdoor advertising company AMS carried out a campaign to promote press readership in which nearly 400 artists took part in a contest to design “Be wise - read press” outdoor advertising billboards. The three winning posters were exhibited in 1,500 locations in 12 cities and also appeared four times in four weeks in 73 newspapers. The campaign ran in July and August at no cost to the association. Contact: Maciej Hoffman, [email protected]; Newsletter for Directors of WAN Member Associations - N° 31, September 7, 2005

Serving Ad Clients United States of America The Newspaper Association of America has published an 11-point “Newspaper Advertising Customer Promise” which describes customer service expectations that newspapers vow to meet in dealing with advertising customers. For example: “We promise to meet your advertising needs in a spirit of cooperation and professional commitment that reflects the highest standards of a marketing partnership, that will help you build sales through your newspaper advertising.” “We promise to provide complete, timely and accurate circulation and readership information.” The full list can be found at http://www.naa.org/artpage.cfm?AID=6964&SID=1 Contact: John Sturm, [email protected] Newsletter for Directors of WAN Member Associations - N ° 31, September 7, 2005

Advertising Synergy: Print & Other Media Global Google, which built a lucrative business in online advertising, has found a new medium for its ad sales: print. The company is buying ad space in magazines and filling it with half a dozen ads from clients of its vast online system. The first incarnation of Google’s program resembles an old-fashioned business known as ad brokering, which has largely been shunned by major publishers. Google said that the program was a test and declined to elaborate. But its executives have indicated that they see their rapidly growing online advertising business extending to other media forms. And some marketers see this as a first step. “This is probably a test of whether advertisers are willing to see Google as a place to get all kinds of advertisements rather than just online,” said Kevin Lee, the chief executive of did-it.com, a search marketing firm. Google is buying ad space in several specialized publications, including PC Magazine and Maximum PC. For now, Google is charging advertisers a fixed fee to be included in the print positions, but some in the industry predict that it may ultimately experiment with auctioning off space and perhaps set rates based on the number of responses to an ad, as measured by calls to a certain phone number or visits to a Web site. Jason Young, the president of Internet and consumer technology publications for Ziff-Davis, the publisher of PC Magazine, said the program allowed the magazine to sell ads to smaller businesses than it could reach before. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/01/technology/01google.html?ex=1129435200&en=7f6e82 210b224bd5&ei=5070&ex=1126324800&en=a9597c2af0e81e05&ei=5070&emc=eta1&oref =login; September 1, 2005

11  CIRCULATION

Weekend / Sunday Editions / Supplements United Kingdom The Financial Times is joining the September format shake-up in the national press with the launch of a 16- page tabloid section in Weekend FT this Saturday, and new enterprise pages. The tabloid will be a new personal finance section, FT Money. In full colour, it will contain news, views and interviews from the world of personal finance and investment. The same weekend will see the introduction of the Enterprise page to the Companies and Markets section of the newspaper. The main article will be called “Minding Your Own Business” and will focus on a company and how it can overcome its business problems. On Mondays, the FT has launched a new page featuring business and enterprise around the UK. Every week it will profile companies and entrepreneurs, large and small, in a different region. In addition Charles Pretzlik, UK companies editor, will be writing a daily blog on FT.com about the current day’s corporate news. Last week, the FT’s seven-strong personal finance team picked up the Personal Finance Newspaper of the Year award at the ABI Financial Media Awards 2005. http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/article/220905/and_while_ft; September 22, 2005

Special Supplements / Sections / Editions / Titles / Websites; Tailored / Localised / Regional China China Daily, the country’s national state run English newspaper, will publish an East China edition and a Shanghai Edition in 2006, a source close to the situation said. Although copies of the China Daily newspaper already circulated widely in Shanghai, the paper does not have a specific publication for the city. China Daily’s entry into the Shanghai market will put it in direct competition against Shanghai Daily, the city’s incumbent English newspaper, which is published by the Jiefang Daily Group. “China Daily wants to enter Shanghai because Shanghai Daily has not done well commercially in the city,” the source said. China Daily already publishes a weekly English newspaper in Shanghai, the Shanghai Star, but management at China Daily have not been satisfied with the weekly paper’s performance, the source said. Shanghai Star will be published as a supplement to China Daily’s daily paper in the city. In 2004, Shanghai had 268.1 newspaper copies per 1,000 people and an average of 0.83 copies per household, the General Administration of Press and Publication said in a recent report. The national average for China was 75.86 newspaper copies per 1,000 people and 0.26 copies for each household. By the end of July 2005, there were 1,926 newspapers in China, the General Administration of Press and Publication said in a recent report. Guangdong Province, with 100 different newspapers, was the top regional newspaper market among all Chinese provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities. The Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region, which had just 15 newspapers, was ranked the smallest market. Newspaper sales revenues increased by around 5 per cent year-on-year in 2004 to RMB 25.29 billion ($3.1 billion), accounting for 0.19 per cent of China’s GDP last year. However, the number of newspaper has decreased as compared to 2002, when the country had a peak of 2,137 different newspapers. The Chinese government instituted reform policies for the country’s newspaper industry in 2003, during which 282 newspapers published by the Communist Party of China were closed. Chinese authorities have said they want to transform the country’s newspaper industry into a commercial, market oriented, industry. http://www.interfax.cn/showfeature.asp?aid=5503&slug=NEWSPAPER; September 8, 2005

12 South Africa Naspers’ Afrikaans daily newspaper, Beeld, has announced that it will launch an afternoon edition on Monday, September 12, writes Ron Derby in Business Day. Beeld said the launch of the afternoon edition followed research that found that as many as 50,000 Afrikaans readers and non-readers of Beeld habitually bought an afternoon newspaper to catch up on the latest news. “An afternoon, daily Afrikaans newspaper does not exist, and we are pleased that we will be the first,” Beeld GM Lucille Van Niekerk said. The paper was looking forward to luring Afrikaans readers of English afternoon titles to buy Beeld and become regular readers. Beeld’s afternoon edition will target 25- to 39-year-old current and potential readers. It will feature content with more of a focus on sports and celebrities, including a celebrity photo page and updates on the morning’s business markets. http://www.journalism.co.za/modules.php?op=modload&name=News&file=article&sid=289 7&CAMSSID=0cc3eded3a1fa5bb1bb71f1a57c7859d; 7 September, 2005

United Kingdom Almost 200 stand-alone magazines and niche publications were launched by regional newspaper publishers last year, in an effort to attract a wider range of readers. The Newspaper Society’s annual industry survey found 401 magazines or niche products were published in 2004, an increase of 48.5 per cent. This shows a growing trend among publishers to use a portfolio of products to reach targeted groups which may not read the main paper. http://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/behind/analysis/050901surv.shtml; September 1, 2005

United States of America The Wall Street Journal, the world’s leading business publication, announced that Reflejos, a weekly bilingual, Spanish-language newspaper owned by Paddock Publications, Inc., will begin publishing a Wall Street Journal Special Edition starting Sept. 18, 2005. Wall Street Journal Special Editions are bannered pages of news and articles from The Wall Street Journal, published in local language in leading newspapers around the world. The tabloid section, which will run up to eight pages per week including advertising, will focus on corporate and economic coverage, as well as selected Personal Journal content, and will be published every Sunday in the business section of Reflejos’ newspaper edition, which has an audited circulation of 80,825. Reflejos also publishes an educational journal edition for schools and second-language acquisition programs, bringing the consolidated net circulation to 96,916. Spanish-speaking residents of suburban Chicago look to Reflejos (which translated means “Reflections”) for the latest local news, entertainment, job-hunting tips and other regional issues of particular interest to the Hispanic community. Stories will be selected, translated and paginated by The Wall Street Journal Americas team at the Dow Jones Harborside office in Jersey City, N.J. Reflejos Community Newspaper & Educational Journal are Latino niche publications zoned by Latino life style demographics. Both editions were totally redesigned under the guidance of Garcia Media. http://home.businesswire.com/portal/site/google/index.jsp?ndmViewId=news_view&newsId= 20050913005699&newsLang=en; September 13, 2005

United States of America Next year, publishing consortium Garcia Miller will roll out a series of magazines to be inserted in newspapers and timed to major sporting events, Mediaweek reports. Each 45-page, 3 million-circulation glossy will be available two weeks prior to major sporting events in 12 papers, including the Los Angeles Times and the Chicago Tribune. First up will be Joe

13 Montana’s Guide to the Game, which will be distributed prior to the Super Bowl. Magazines for the Daytona 500, the NCAA basketball Championship, and the World Series are also planned. The publisher will target pharmaceutical, electronics, insurance and liquor categories – the Montana issue will boast Sony on the back cover. http://www.mediabuyerplanner.com/2005/09/26/newspaper_mags_timed_to_major/index.php ; September 26, 2005

Free Newspapers & Pick-Up Publications Czech Republic Ringier CR, publisher of the tabloid Blesk, sports daily Sport, and weeklies Reflex and ABC, is planning to launch its own free paper, striking the enemy with its own sword, as a Prague- based media buyer put it. “It’s a clever [move],” he said. “Why beat up their distributors? Just beat them with another Metro.” The Swiss publishing house wants to launch the newspaper sometime before Christmas, according to local media reports. The newspaper, whose name is still a secret, will come out five days a week and mainly target young, urban readers from the Prague metropolitan area. It will have an initial print run of 250,000 copies. It sounds like a perfect copy of Metro, a publication of Metro International, which appears in 70 cities in 17 countries worldwide. For the moment, Metro’s representatives are undaunted by the move. “[It] shows that the market for a free-of-charge distributed daily is strong and growing,” said Fred Gabrielson, managing director of Metro Czech Republic, the local subsidiary of Metro International. In February 2004, following Gabrielson’s appointment to the helm, Metro expanded to the outskirts of Prague and several towns in central Bohemia, including Kolin, Podebrady, Beroun and Benesov. Gabrielson told CBW back then that he intended to triple the readership in a matter of weeks to 600,000 readers. The next step would be to launch nationwide. Under Gabrielson, the paper hired more journalists and began adding more content from Metro’s sister publications in other cities. But the key changes were to improve distribution — hiring more people to hand out papers — as well as marketing. A nationwide launch isn’t expected soon. Gabrielson has yet to reach his readership target. But the director said the paper is on an upward trend. Readership in Prague grew by 30 per cent over the past six months, according to Mediaprojekt, the national survey conducted by GfK Praha and Median. Gabrielson said that readership grew by 50 per cent between April, when he initiated changes, and June. Circulation is now around 200,000 and ad revenues have increased. Although media buyers and observers generally praise Ringier’s plan to launch a competitor to Metro, some feel that the publishing house might be shooting itself in the foot, because such a publication would end up competing with its other publications, such as Blesk, which sells almost half a million copies daily. http://cbw.cz/phprs/2005092608.html; September 26, 2005

Estonia On September 1, free newspaper 5 Min was launched in Riga with a circulation 50,000, moving to 100,000 in the next weeks. 5 Min is published by Diena Group (Diena), belonging to Bonnier Newspapers (Sweden). Two-fifths of the content are in Russian, the rest in Latvian. Bonnier’s Stockholm City competes in Sweden with Metro. FDN Newsletter No. 10, September 2005; users.fmg.uva.nl/pbakker/freedailies

Germany German newspaper publisher Axel Springer has earmarked up to €300 million ($362 million) to counter free daily newspapers in Germany, sources familiar with the group’s planning said. “We have put aside a significant triple-digit million-euro amount in our planning,” one of the

14 sources told Reuters. Axel Springer said earlier this month it had a plan ready for its own free daily newspaper, dubbed “Gratissimo,” which it could put into action as soon as other publishers launched free papers attacking its flagship Bild tabloid. Scandinavian free newspaper moguls Schibsted of Norway and Sweden’s Metro are currently rounding up local partners for free newspaper launches throughout Germany, industry sources have said. Some analysts said that Axel Springer might be hobbled in its response because of its planned purchase of broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1 Media, for which it will take on as much as 3 billion euros of debt. But the source said Axel Springer, whose Bild mass-market daily is read by up to 12 million Germans every day and provides the lion’s share of the group’s cashflow, could launch free papers in 15 cities at the same time to counter such launches. Axel Springer confirmed its free newspaper plans, but declined to comment on the size of the possible investment. http://today.reuters.com/business/newsarticle.aspx?type=media&storyID=nL2658046&image id=∩ September 26, 2005

Hong Kong Sing Tao News Corporation of Hong Kong announced the launch of Express Post, Hong Kong’s only free weekend newspaper. Express Post, which will be launched on Sept. 17, will have their content focus on local news, tips for shopping and weekend leisure activities. An average of 300,000 copies of the paper will be distributed every Saturday morning at all Mass Transit Railway stations. This is the second free newspaper launched by Sing Tao who started to distribute Headline Daily, their first trial, in July and a positive response has been received. Chairman of Sing Tao Charles Ho Tsu-Kwok said the market of free newspapers has tremendous potential, and with Express Post Sing Tao can fully leverage on their competitive advantage of being the first and the only market player. There is another free newspaper Metro which was launched in 2002, with daily distribution of about 300,000 copies. http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-09/13/content_3485660.htm; September 13, 2005

Hong Kong The popularity of the city’s three free dailies is affecting the advertising revenue of the more established Chinese-language newspapers, according to a new survey. The newspaper scene became more crowded this summer when Sing Tao News Corp’s Headline Daily and property agency boss Shih Wing-ching’s am730 hit the streets in July. Together with the Metro, which launched in April 2002, the three free tabloid newspapers are competing for readership and advertising revenue with broadsheets such as Oriental Press Group’s Oriental Daily News and Next Media’s Apple Daily. According to the survey conducted by research firm Synovate in the first three weeks of last month, Metro, Headline and am730, achieved significant market shares of 16 per cent, 18 per cent and 8 per cent, respectively. Headline’s readership was 893,000 and Metro’s was 820,000 - both have average circulations of about 400,000 copies. Am730’s readership was 401,000 from a circulation of 260,000, the survey showed. Meanwhile, Nielsen Media research showed that the two largest dailies, Oriental and Apple, had 1.69 million and 1.32 million readers, respectively, by the end of June. These figures were down about 10 per cent compared with 2001, before Metro appeared on the scene. However, the readership of Oriental Press’ The Sun, said to be the third-largest daily, has dropped more than 50 per cent over the past four years to 221,000. Analysts attributed the fall to the increase in cover price from $1 to $6 in September 2003 and also competition from the free dailies. “The three free dailies ranked third to fifth in terms of readership, outpacing several paid dailies such as The Sun and Sing Pao Daily News,” said K. K. Tsang, the chief executive of media agent Mindshare Hong Kong. As for advertising, the revenues at the free papers had been growing even though their rates were higher than some of the second-tier

15 dailies, Mr Tsang added. Sing Tao Daily, the sister newspaper of Headline, has suffered most from the launch of the two new free papers as its advertising revenue dropped 12 per cent last month compared with the previous month. The advertising revenues of Ming Pao Daily News and Sing Pao dropped 7 per cent and 5 per cent, respectively. http://www.asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=30287; September 23, 2005

Ireland A costly newspaper war, pitting Independent News & Media against Daily Mail and General Trust (DMGT), is expected to break out in Dublin within days. The publisher of the Daily Mail is preparing to launch an Irish version of Metro, its free London newspaper, this week. The newspaper, staffed with a team of about 30, is backed by an estimated budget of €3 million (£2 million) and is aiming for a circulation of about 75,000. DMGT has teamed up with The Irish Times and Metro International, the Swedish company behind the original freesheet concept. It is unclear what their relative stakes in the venture are. Independent News & Media, which is the market leader in the Irish Republic as well as owning The Independent in Britain, is planning to retaliate by launching its own free newspaper “within 24 hours” of its rival. Neither side begins with an obvious advantage — unlike in London, where DMGT’s Metro has the benefit of an exclusive distribution contract in London Underground stations. Both publishers will have to distribute the freesheet by hand in Dublin to help to get their publications into consumers’ hands. Gavin O’Reilly, chief operating officer of Independent News & Media, said that “obviously Metro in the UK has gone ex-growth”, which is why DMGT is bringing it to Dublin. “Perhaps DMGT and its bedfellows were hoping that Independent News & Media would not respond. Well, we will respond.” DMGT has been trying to expand in Ireland for several years, but so far has struggled. Three years ago it launched Ireland on Sunday, which gained a modest circulation of 139,000, but at a cost of €51 million in accumulated losses. A special edition of the Daily Mail may follow next year. The DMGT Metro launch team has been based in the Berkeley Court Hotel, a five-star establishment that describes itself as “luxurious” and “surrounded by a tranquil garden enclave of mature timbers, which sets a relaxed tone before you reach the door”. Last week DMGT said that its flagship newspaper was hit by a weak advertising market, but Metro performed strongly with its display revenues up by 19 per cent. This month Independent News & Media said that interim profits were up 12.4 per cent, helped by a recovery in The Independent in Britain and robust advertising markets across the territories in which it operates. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,9071-1786871,00.html; September 19, 2005

Lithuania 15 Min launched on September 1 in Vilnius with an initial circulation of 35,000 – extended to 50,000 two weeks later. 15min is distributed through public transport (buses & trolley-buses) and by hand (35 per cent) in the morning and during lunch hours. Soon the paper will also be distributed in universities, hospitals, coffee shops and gas stations. According to general manager Tomas Balzekas, 11 journalists work for the 16 page-paper and another six on sales and management. Content is also derived from press agencies and freelancers. The free paper is not connected with a daily newspaper in Lithuania. FDN Newsletter No. 10, September 2005; users.fmg.uva.nl/pbakker/freedailies

Switzerland A new free newspaper, Le Matin Bleu, is hoping to corner the French-speaking market when it launches in western Switzerland later this year. But the newssheet could face competition in the shape of a French version of 20 Minuten, the best-read paper in the German-speaking

16 area. Le Matin Bleu is the latest paper from the stable of Edipresse, the Lausanne-based publishing house which produces the leading dailies Le Matin, Tribune de Genève and 24 heures. Edipresse also has a 47 per-cent stake in the other main French-language paper, Le Temps. The new daily will be distributed free to the public in the Lake Geneva area. Meanwhile, across the country in Zurich, the Tamedia publishing house is deliberating whether to launch a free French newspaper to rival that of Edipresse. “Our research indicates that the western Swiss market is receptive to this kind of publication,” said Eta Pavlovic, Tamedia spokeswoman. The secretary-general of Presse Romande, an association of newspaper editors in western Switzerland, believes it is highly likely that Tamedia will jump on the bandwagon. Alfred Haas predicts stiff competition between the two new titles. Le Matin Bleu is designed to complement its stablemate Le Matin, the most widely read paper in western Switzerland with a publishing run of 350,000. The two titles combined expect a total readership of 450,000, which will make them the most important vehicle for advertising in the region. Despite the similarity of their name, the papers will have very different styles, according to Théo Bouchat, who heads the free newspaper project at Edipresse. Like its sister paper with the orange masthead, Le Matin Bleu will offer a mixture of news, sport and features. But the newcomer will rely more heavily on agency reports, with fewer researched items and scoops. In common with the other free papers, Le Matin Bleu targets that section of the population who rarely read a daily newspaper, namely young city dwellers. But the arrival of the newssheet is still a worry for the region’s dailies. Editor-in-chief of the Tribune de Genève, Dominique von Burg, warns that the free paper will eat into the market of the established papers. If the Tamedia group also joins the fray, some titles could suffer a drop in advertising revenue, believes Christophe Zimmermann, the co-director of the Erasm research institute. “The arrival of a free sheet threatens the regional dailies,” said Zimmermann. “And in using the Le Matin name for its free paper, Edipresse risks devaluing the title in question.” According to Zimmermann, the success of the free papers stems from the crisis within the traditional media. Because a growing number of people are rejecting their commentaries and campaigns on behalf of this or that political camp. “These people prefer their information raw, as the success of teletext proves. They see this as perfectly objective information. But that is a deception as all information has to be presented somehow.” swissinfo; http://www.nzz.ch/2005/09/22/eng/article6102595.html; September 22, 2005

Switzerland The free newspaper in German-speaking Switzerland, 20 Minuten, is rapidly increasing its circulation, according to figures. A media research report published on September 13 finds that readership of other German-language daily Swiss newspapers remains fairly stable. But in the French-language area, most daily newspapers are losing readers. 20 Minuten has gradually built up its circulation area since June last year, expanding from the agglomerations of Zurich, Bern and Basel to central Switzerland. Since June it has also been available in and around the eastern city of St Gallen. The WEMF-REMP research organisation said that the newspaper now had a total readership of 948,000 compared with 782,000 a year ago. “20 Minuten is a success story. Since its launch, it has managed to achieve such increases [in readers] on several occasions. For example, between 2002 and 2003 it won 200,000 more,” Josef Trappel, a communications researcher at Zurich University told swissinfo. He said that the paper was also taking advantage of its market leader status because it acted as a kind of magnet for advertising. Trappel added that 20 Minuten was a well-made product, was very close to young people and was clever in successfully marrying its print and online versions. “20 Minuten fits in with a current trend, which is to give information that is quickly read,” commented Saverio Progano, director of the Mediaedge communications agency in Lausanne.

17 “It’s direct competition for some papers, but not for magazines or dailies offering in-depth articles,” he told swissinfo. “The publicity cake is not expanding, rather the opposite, and a free newspaper by its very nature takes advertising away from the others.” The tabloid Blick of Zurich was in second place with 717,000 readers, down by 19,000 on the same period last year. The highly-respected Neue Zürcher Zeitung came seventh in the newspaper hit parade, increasing its readership by 12,000 to 341,000. In the French-language region part of the country, the daily Le Matin of Lausanne comes out on top with 353,000 readers, an increase of 22,000. It is followed by 24 heures, La Tribune de Genève and Le Temps. In the Italian- language region of Switzerland, the free Sunday newspaper Il Caffè attracts 125,000 readers, up by 19,000. The report is based on a survey carried out in April 2004 among 23,813 people in the three linguistic regions of the country. It found that the Swiss continue to be a nation of print media lovers, with 91 per cent of the population reading a newspaper and 93 per cent browsing through a magazine. This is much higher than in most other countries of the world. http://www.swissinfo.org/sen/swissinfo.html?siteSect=106&sid=6081791&cKey=112659170 1000; September 13, 2005

United Kingdom Even as the cover price of Britain’s main newspapers stabilised, the number of free newspapers in Britain continued to grow on September 5 when the world’s first free tabloid- size business paper, called City AM, launched in London. The newspaper, with 24 colour pages and circulation of 60,000, is produced by two former executives from Metro International. The first issue ran a cover story on the digital television business and published a ranking of the City of London’s top analysts but also covered sports news and provided restaurant reviews. The London business freesheet is being distributed by hand in the City of London and Canary Wharf from 6am. The paper is aiming to grow circulation to 100,000 copies within the first three months. The company behind the paper, also called City AM, has attracted £10m worth of funding. A key investor is Blue Bull, a private investment vehicle run by Boudewijn Poelmann, who will be chairman of the company. Its progress will be watched by the Financial Times, which had already moved in April to counter the then-vague threat from freesheets with the launch of FTpm, a free double-sided A4 handout distributed in London’s financial districts. The Financial Times’ average six-month circulation was down 2.65% year-on-year in July from 436,405 to 424,849. Of this, its England, Wales and Northern Ireland circulation was 121,927 for July 2005. Its cover price is £1. AFP; http://www.brandrepublic.com/bulletins/media/article/504463/city-am-dawns-business- crowd-first-issue-today/; September 5, 2005

United Kingdom Transport for London is seeking £10 million a year for the right to distribute a new free afternoon newspaper on the capital’s Tube. TfL, which is chaired by London Mayor Ken Livingstone, is drawing up tender documents. It is waiting for the Office of Fair Trading to give the go-ahead for the afternoon newspaper, which could come as early as next month and will trigger an auction for the contract. http://news.independent.co.uk/business/news/article314875.ece; 25 September 2005

Generating & Growing / Increasing Sales / Circulation United Kingdom London’s Evening Standard has changed its distribution patterns to focus more attention on late-breaking, circulation-boosting news. The paper has dropped from five paid for editions to four. The first edition still goes at 8.30am, but the 10am “slip” edition will no longer be sold

18 by vendors — although some copies will continue to go out as bulks. The free lunchtime Lite edition remains the same, there is another edition at 1pm, the West End Final has been brought forward half an hour to 3pm and the last edition is at 4.45pm. Evening Standard managing editor Doug Wills said: “Late-breaking news is our strength. We are always striving to get the latest paper out to the reader and we found there was scope in doing that, but it would mean losing the small slip edition. In recent months, late stories including the London bombings have helped boost circulation.” On the day of the bombings, the Standard put on 100,000. Wills said the paper will be taking on new columnists and adding features. http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/article/080905/late_news_kills; September 8, 2005

Selling Online Content – Payment Channels United States of America The marquee columnists for The New York Times’ Op-Ed page including Thomas L. Friedman, Maureen Dowd and Frank Rich generate lots of interest and discussion online. Now, the paper is hoping they’ll also generate something else: cash. Beginning September 19, the Times will begin charging $49.95 a year to people who don’t get the paper delivered at home for access to those writers as well as other columnists for the Times’ business, metro and sports sections. The new service called TimesSelect will also include access to the Times’ archives, early looks at some sections of the paper and online tools for tracking and storing articles from the Times Web site. The Times will still maintain a separate premium service for its crossword puzzles. It’s a bold move for the Times since the restrictions are certain to reduce the online exposure for those columnists, whose articles are routinely among the most e-mailed items on the Times’ Web site. The Times could also see a decline in traffic to its site after bloggers can no longer link to articles by the columnists. Eliot Pierce, who oversees the TimesSelect project at the Times’ Web site, said the paper is hoping to sign up enough users and home delivery subscribers to the new program so that the Op-Ed columnists “remain part of the dialogue.” Pierce acknowledged that a number of bloggers were likely to “game” the system by illegally copying and pasting the columns onto free sites, which would violate copyright law, but he said he didn’t expect such infringements to be widespread or to last long. “I think people may be get bored” with illegally posting the Op-Ed columns on free sites, Pierce said, “but we will keep a very close eye on it.” Bloggers will still be able to quote parts of the columns, and the Times also plans to offer bloggers an arrangement under which they would sell subscriptions to TimesSelect on their own sites and take a share of the revenues they generate. Early responses to the program were mixed. http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/wireStory?id=1130736; September 15, 2005

Readership & Marketing Research / Surveys Finland According to the newest national media survey carried out by Taloustutkimus Oy, newspaper readership figures have grown slightly for the first time in the last few years. Even though the survey does not indicate any permanent change, it shows a stable trend, and at least the figures are not expected to go down. The current number of the readers of Helsingin Sanomat is 1,156,000, which is over 60,000 readers more than in 2004. The same trend applies to all the largest daily newspapers in Finland. Even the overall circulation of newspapers increased for the first time in years. “Sometimes a newspaper with a conservative image apparently holds its ground. It is also a delightful surprise that the online editions of newspapers have not decreased the readership of the printed press. On the contrary, they seem to support each other”, notes Managing Director Taisto Riski of the Finnish Newspapers’ Association.

19 The top ten list of newspapers and magazines has not changed much in the course of the last 12 months. While the house magazine for the customers of the K store chains, Pirkka, is in top spot with its over 2.5 million readers, the second is Yhteishyvä of the S store chains. Among the subscribed papers and magazines, the most popular is Helsingin Sanomat, with the comic-strip magazine Aku Ankka (Donald Duck) right behind it with some 40,000 fewer readers than Helsingin Sanomat. Donald Duck has always been an immensely successful fellow in Finland (and in the Nordic region in general), but last year was exceptionally favourable: readership went up by over 100,000. Surprisingly, the supplements of newspapers were both the biggest winners and losers of readers according to the survey. While the monthly supplement of Helsingin Sanomat as well as the weekend supplement of the tabloid Iltalehti both showed growth of over 100,000 readers, the Sports supplement of tabloid Ilta- Sanomat as well as its IS Veikkaaja (a football pools betting supplement) and the Saturday supplement of the Finnish financial daily Taloussanomat all lost readers. While no accurate reasons for the changes in readership patterns can be given, it is apparent that the advertising earnings of the printed press have grown significantly over the past few months. http://www.helsinginsanomat.fi/english/article/1101980946332

India Tathagat Satpathy, editor and publisher of the Oriya daily Dharitri, is bitter with the “so- called” non-profit research bodies that conduct surveys to estimate the readership of newspapers across the country. He has dragged the Media Research Users Council (MRUC), that conducts the Indian Readership Survey (IRS), to court and secured a temporary injunction restraining the body from “using Dharitri’s masthead or publishing the survey report in respect of the newspaper” on August 27. Dharitri’s grouse: the paper’s circulation has consistently grown but the IRS reflects a decline in its readership. “How can readership decline when there’s been a robust growth in circulation?” asks Satpathy who bought over the newspaper in 1988 when it had a circulation of 12,000 copies. Today, the newspaper’s circulation is 2.38 lakh, he claims. Of late, both IRS and the National Readership Survey (NRS), conducted by another group of advertisers, ad agencies and media houses, have been under the line of fire as newspapers have been questioning the veracity of their reports. Besides Dharitri, the Marathi daily Loksatta, Hindi newspaper Dainik Jagran and the Hyderabad based Eenadu are said to have raised several issues with the two bodies. Jagran has apparently asked MRUC how could there be more readers in a small town like Muzaffarnagar (in UP) than in Meerut which has a population of a million plus. The Hindi daily refused to comment on the issue. Some months back, even Business Standard approached the National Readership Studies Council (NRSC) for redressal as the newspaper’s readership showed a decline on increasing circulation. Ten days ago, Loksatta initiated legal action against NRSC for similar reasons. The MRUC and NRSC officials say that only losers are crying foul. “Note who is shouting hoarse about loopholes in the report. Those with high readership would say this is the most scientific and reliable survey,” remarks Sam Balsara, chairman of the technical committee of NRSC and owner of Madison Communications Pvt Ltd. However, he admits that if a newspaper has a low penetration, sampling errors do tend to occur. That’s why NRSC has decided not to publish readership estimates of 75 such publications including Business Standard. The financial daily’s president Akila Urankar says that the paper had requested NRSC to abstain from releasing its readership figures for the second round. “When our circulation was 55,000, the NRS showed a readership of 85,000. But it dropped to 33,000 when the circulation touched 70,000,” she points out. On their part, the readership survey bodies defend their studies. IRS argues that it puts out the Average Issue Readership (AIR) which takes into account the fact that a certain number of people may not have read the newspaper despite subscribing to it. So the average issue readership is

20 bound to be lower than the total readership. Ashok Das, managing director at Hansa Research Group, which does the field work for IRS, adds that the relationship between circulation and readership need not be linear: “With newspapers becoming cheaper, people who were reading borrowed copies earlier may now be buying their own. So there may be a rise in circulation but not in readership.” Balsara is more ballistic. “Media houses often resort to dumping. We all know there’s a definite amount which goes directly to the raddi,” he scoffs. But the newspaper owners are unrelenting in their criticism. They gripe about the content of the reports too. The market penetration and readership numbers are critical to attract advertising. “The research bodies need to understand this and probe reading habits better. Analysing issues such as content, cover price, readership recall of advertising and reader fatigue would be more useful for us,” observes Shankar Rao Shinde, group brand head, at Express Publications. Media companies say that instead of looking at these issues, readership surveys focus too much on gauging the consumption patterns of the readers and their houshold products. The advertisers and ad agencies that sit on the technical committees of the two bodies lead the research to meet their own professional needs, media experts allege. http://www.agencyfaqs.com/news/stories/2005/09/14/12647.html; September 19, 2005

United Kingdom The Sun and The Daily Mirror’s estimated readerships are down 14 per cent and 15 per cent respectively for the first six months of 2005 compared with a year ago, according to the National Readership Survey figures. The Sun has lost 1,280,000 readers a week falling to 7,940,000, while the Daily Mirror is down 766,000 to 4,234,000, according to the report. This is despite the tabloids recording a marginal increase in circulation in the latest set of Audit Bureau of Circulation results. The National Readership Survey figures measure the estimated readers of a publication as opposed to the number who buy a paper or magazine, as recorded in the ABCs. While the majority of papers suffered a loss in readers according to the NRS, the tabloids were hit the worst in the survey. The Daily Star lost 11 per cent to reach 1,820,000 and The Daily Record was down 12 per cent to 1,260,000. The Guardian’s estimated readership shot up by a whopping 21 per cent to reach 1,238,000 readers, compared with 1,0245,000 the year before. The news will give the Guardian Media Group further reason to celebrate as its new Berliner format launched last week to a mainly positive response with sales rising by as much as 40 per cent on its first day. The Times was the only other weekly paper to prosper, with the NRS recording a 10 per cent hike in estimated readers from 165,500,000 a week in 2004 to 182,100,000 between January and June 2005. The Sunday papers fared better than the weeklies in the survey. The Guardian Newspapers-owned The Observer added 24 per cent or 248,000 readers to reach 1,282,0000 – the highest climb of any paper in the survey. The Independent on Sunday recorded a 15 per cent boost to 777,000 estimated readers overall. The Sunday Times also performed well, adding 11 per cent, while the Mail on Sunday and Sunday Mirror added 3 per cent. The worst performance came from The People, which lost 19 per cent of its estimated readers. The NRS is a continuous survey based on interviews with 36,000 UK adults annually. http://www.brandrepublic.com/bulletins/media/article/517449/readers-desert-tabloids-despite- abc-rises/; September 19, 2005

United States of America The average American spends more time using media devices —television, radio, iPods and cell phones — than any other activity while awake, says a new study from Ball State University. The Middletown Media Studies 2 (MMS2), the most comprehensive observational media use study ever undertaken, also found participants are adept at managing their use of two or more types of media at the same time. Researchers from Ball State’s Center for Media

21 Design (CMD) unveiled the key findings Sept. 26 in New York as part of Media Magazine’s Forecast 2006 program. The research team includes Mike Bloxham, CMD director of testing and assessment; Robert Papper, telecommunications professor; Mark Popovich, journalism professor; and Michael Holmes, communication studies professor spending this semester as a CMD faculty research fellow. “As a society, we are consumers of media,” Papper said. “The average person spends about nine hours a day using some type of media, which is arguably in excess of anything we would have envisioned 10 years ago.” Research team members spent the last several months shadowing about 400 people — collecting and analyzing data on 5,000 hours of media use — in Muncie and Indianapolis. Recording information every 15 seconds, researchers measured participants’ use of 15 media including television, books, magazines, cell phones, the Internet, instant messaging, e-mail and radio. Bloxham said the subjects in the study were ordinary people, not a group of “media sophisticates who define themselves by the use of the latest media gadgets.” Key findings of the research include: • About 30 per cent of the observed waking day was spent with media as the sole activity versus 20.8 per cent for work activity, while an additional 39 per cent of the day was spent with media while involved in some other activity. • In any given hour no less than 30 per cent of those studied were engaged in some way with television, and in some hours of the day that figure rose to 70 per cent. • While television is still by far the dominant medium in terms of the time average Americans spend daily with media at 240.9 minutes, the computer has emerged as the second most significant media device at about 120 minutes. • About 30 percent of all media time is spent exposed to more than one medium at a time. • People ages 18 to 24 spend less time online than any other age group except those older than 65. • Levels of concurrent media exposure were higher among those 40 to 65 than people 18 to 39. • Women spend more time multitasking with two or more types of media than men. • Use of the Web, e-mail and phones is substantially higher on Fridays than any other day of the week. http://www.bsu.edu/news/article/0,1370,7273-850-36658,00.html; September 23, 2005

Online Audience Research & Measurement United States of America Traffic to the multilingual network of sites Wikipedia has grown 154 per cent over the past year, according to research firm Hitwise. It is set to overtake The New York Times on the web, the Drudge Report and other news sites. Wikipedia recently attracted 22.3 per cent of users searching for information on Gaza Strip, tying the CIA World Factbook. It has drawn five times more US traffic than Google News, Yahoo News or BBC, according to Hitwise. New York University professor Clay Shirky said the site has outgrown its roots as an encyclopaedia to become a model of collective publishing on the web. ‘Its users have come to understand the value of group-editing, of being formally committed to a neutral point of view and of rapid updating’ as new information becomes available, Shirky said. But by relying on the power of community, Wikipedia (http://www.wikipedia.org) poses a stark contrast to the top-down editorial approach at Yahoo News or the computer-driven story selection of Google News, not to mention traditional media. http://money.cnn.com/2005/09/06/technology/wikipedia.reut/index.htm?cnn=yes - CNN; EJC MediaNews of 09 September 2005

United States of America Nielsen//NetRatings, a global leader in Internet media and market research, reported that online readers in nine out of the top 10 local markets were loyal to the city’s top newspaper Web site in July 2005. On average, the top local newspaper Web sites reached 19.5 per cent of a city’s active Internet audience across the top 10 local markets. The findings were derived

22 from the new Nielsen//NetRatings MegaView Local service. The MegaView Local report ranked the No. 1 newspaper Web site within each of the top 10, out of approximately 100, local markets available in the service. The report compared each newspaper site’s local and national reach, or site penetration in the active Internet universe. WashingtonPost.com reached 30.1 per cent of the D.C. area Internet users, followed by Boston.com and AJC.com capturing the attention of 28.3 per cent and 26.4 per cent of their local Internet audiences, respectively. NYTimes.com and ChicagoTribune.com rounded out the top five, attracting 21.9 per cent and 21 per cent of the area’s Web surfers, respectively. Philadelphia was the only exception to the trend, where USATODAY.com, a national newspaper site, reached the most online news readers, with 9.6 per cent of the local active Internet audience. Philly.com, the site for Philadelphia Inquirer, was the second top newspaper site viewed, attracting 9.2 percent of the local audience. http://www.netratings.com/pr/pr_050922.pdf; September 22, 2005

PR of Newspapers / Event Marketing / Sponsorship Greece Aimed at a bid for the Guinness Book of Records, the newspaper titled “Chillout” and first published on September 14, is 2.10 metres high and 2.95 metres wide (84 inches by 118 inches), the Athens News Agency (ANA) reported. Four thousand copies of the giant paper will be distributed free of charge in the western town of Chania, Crete Island, every Wednesday, ANA said. ‘Chillout’ will cover cultural and social news. According to the Guinness Book of Records website, the record for the largest special edition of a newspaper is held by the Belgian Het Volk published in Ghent on June 14, 1993. The newspaper measured 1.42 metres by 0.995 metres (56 inches by 39 inches). It sold 50,000 copes. http://uk.news.yahoo.com/14092005/323/greek-island-town-rolls-metre-newspaper-guinness- record-bid.html; September 14, 2005

Audit Bureau of Circulations / Standards Australia An in-principle agreement struck last week following an industry-wide review involves doubling the frequency of circulation audits to four a year, transparency in the types of sales, greater clarity on the eligibility of sales, and a new audit inspection role. Members of the Audit Bureau of Circulations, comprising publishers, advertisers and agencies, will take a final vote on the planned changes in three months. Bureau chairman Stephen Hollings says members will work through the details over the next four to six weeks to consider the rules and their interpretation. This will be followed by a test audit period. The new rules, which he says will improve the integrity of the audit process, will apply to newspapers, newspaper- inserted magazines and weekly magazines with sales of more than 25,000. Under the plan a breakdown of the circulation figure for the first time will make clear four different types of sales: copies sold to hotels and airlines, those sold to schools and universities, event sales, and multiple-publication sales. A percentage breakdown of these sales will be shown separately from pure retail sales, where consumers buy a newspaper or magazine from a newsagent or through subscription. Dr Hollings says the area that is most contentious and misunderstood is “event sales”, where copies of newspapers are sold as part of an admission price to a public event, such as Sydney’s Royal Easter Show. These will be disclosed separately and capped at 1 per cent of the total net paid sales. Multiple publication sales, where typically two magazines are sold together in a special offer, will no longer be capped at 1 per cent but will also be broken out in the circulation results. Another category, “other sales”, will not be

23 included in the net sales figure but can beshown on the circulation statement. This could include bulk sales or association subscription sales. “There isn’t going to be a rule on how cheaply publishers can discount, but there will be a rule around the fact that discount subscriptions ... have to be obvious to the marketplace,” says Dr Hollings. “If a publisher wants to reward loyalty for signing up for 12 months or 24 months with a discount that’s fine, as long as it is obvious.” Dr Hollings, who is also strategic development director of advertising at News Limited (publisher of The Australian), says the new inspection role will add another set of teeth to the audit process: “They will work with the auditors but they will also do spot checks, find out if there are areas of concern, do secondary audits and handle any challenges.” He says the review involved robust debate and all parties had made compromises. He does not expect it will lead to dramatic changes in circulation figures, although it “may well affect different publications in different ways”, such as in marketing strategies. Australia is not the only country where circulation has come under fierce scrutiny. In the US a two-year scandal over inflated audited figures for the Chicago Sun-Times last week forced publisher Hollinger International to pay $US20 million ($26.1 million) to settle class action lawsuits. The newspaper has agreed to pay $US7.7 million in cash and provide $US7.3million in free advertising or discounts, as well as paying up to $US5.6 million for the complainants’ legal fees. http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/common/story_page/0,5744,16677911%255E7582,00. html; September 22, 2005

Pricing Policy Myanmar In the September 7 issue of the “New Light of Myanmar,” the News and Periodicals Corporation announced that they would increase the price of newspapers published by the corporation starting October 1. The English and Burmese editions of “New Light of Myanmar” (NLM) will be hiked to Ks. 50 from current Ks. 10 starting October 1, the announcement said. The price rise is due to increasing costs of newsprint and other related publishing and printing costs, which is happening in a global scale, they said. Ma Thuzar Myint, receptionist from “Ngwe In Zaly” (Accounting and Consultancy service in Rangoon) told Mizzima over telephone: “We subscribe to the English edition of NLM and Burmese edition of “The Mirror”. At home, I subscribe only to the “The Mirror”. “We cannot get the papers at face value, and receive them only at a premium. So I subscribe to only one paper. It does not mean I don’t read NLM. I just read the paper my news vendor supplies,” she added. A government employee said, “We subscribe to NLM English edition and The Mirror. These papers present a variety of domestic news. We need to read the news. We must continue our subscription despite the price hike. The Mirror is more popular in Rangoon. Since I do not have so much spare time, I cannot read the journals and papers published by private publications.” Besides newspapers, prices of essential commodities are also rising. http://www.mizzima.com/mizzima/archives/news-in-2005/news-in-sept/09-Sep-05-20.htm; September 8, 2005

Newspaper Wars United Kingdom A price “war” between rival British newspapers battling for higher circulation figures ended on September 5 when The Times increased its cover price, even as a free business paper was launched in London. The price of The Times, which went as low as 20 pence (29 Euro cents)

24 during the price war with rivals such as The Guardian, The Independent and The Daily Telegraph, rose to 60 pence (87 euro cents) on September 5. Media tycoon Rupert Murdoch bought the prestigious publication in 1981 and unleashed a battle with other British newspapers in September 1993 when he slashed the cover price by 30 percent to boost falling sales. After further price cuts, sales of The Times bounced back from circulation of 400,000 copies per day to as high as 880,000, forcing other newspapers to follow suit. A rival newspaper, The Independent, lost a third of its readers as a result of Murdoch’s move. “It is no exaggeration to say that Rupert Murdoch’s reduction of the Times’s cover price was the most momentous development in modern British journalism,” said Stephen Glover, media expert for The Independent. The price war also led to changes in the size and content of broadsheet newspapers, with more papers adopting a tabloid format and giving space to celebrity, petty crime and fashion news, British media experts say. AFP; September 5, 2005

Distribution Ways & Channels Republic of Korea The government has started setting up newspaper distribution centers under the enforcement ordinance of a compromised Newspaper Law that went into effect on July 28. But not content with that, the Ministry of Culture also wants the centers to move into private-sector domains like wholesale and retail of books and magazines, delivery services, and even “quick service” businesses to maximize the centers’ earnings. A ministry report made public by Grand National Party lawmaker Lee Jae-woong suggests the service should not confine themselves to the printing and delivery of newspapers, magazines and periodicals, as delineated in the Newspaper Law, but also handle other for-profit jobs. The report suggests that in accordance with independent plans for 710 newspaper distribution centers nationwide, the centers could handle delivery of regional government newsletters, advertising and flyers from local public institutions, and quick service jobs connected with them. “It’s hard to understand why the newspaper distribution centers, established by the government with public money, should engage in profit-making business in competition with private businesses,” Lee said. “If the centers are tasked with delivering even government newsletters to boost earnings, there’s going to be a lot of concern that the independence of the centers will be compromised.” According to the report, the newspaper distribution operation will have a 100-man headquarters and 710 regional distribution centers, including 295 in Seoul and the metropolitan area and 207 in other cities. Including the cost of establishment, the system is estimated to need W117.8 billion (about US$117 million) from 2006 to 2009. When next year’s budget was being framed, the Ministry of Culture asked the Ministry of Planning and Budget for W15 billion and plans to support the centers with W93 billion from the public coffer until 2009. A company called Korea Newspaper Service, which was founded in 2003 after the Hankyoreh Shinmun, Kyunghyang Shinmun, Munhwa Ilbo, Kookmin Ilbo and Segye Ilbo each chipped in W100 million, started a trial joint-newspaper delivery system in 2003 in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi Province, but this proved a damp squib. Chung Tae-ki, the president of Korea Newspaper Service and also president of the Hankyoreh Shinmun, then joined the heads of four other papers – the Kyunghyang Shinmun, Munhwa Ilbo, Seoul Shinmun and Segye Ilbo – in lobbying Culture Minister Chung Dong-chae for W165.1 billion in public support to establish the distribution centers. http://english.chosun.com/w21data/html/news/200508/200508300032.html; August 30, 2005

United Kingdom The viability of hundreds of small newsagents and publications could be at stake following meetings this week to discuss the future of newspaper and magazine distribution in the UK.

25 The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) believes the current arrangements – which give wholesalers regional monopolies in return to delivering to all outlets at the same price – break EU anti- competition regulations. In a preliminary decision the OFT has ruled the present arrangement is suitable for newspaper distribution, but not for magazines. The OFT will make a final decision by late summer but critics fear it could mean the death knell for rural newsagents and small publications. The present system of distribution for the print media plays a crucial role in giving people across the UK the possibility of buying a range of newspapers and magazines. An OFT document shows the number of independent wholesalers has reduced from 70 in 1993 to 22 today, with three wholesalers having a dominant role: WH Smith News, Menzies Distribution and Dawson News. The OFT also notes that the current tender process “may not be working perfectly” because, when contracts to appoint wholesalers within an exclusive territory were re-tendered, in over 50 per cent of territories they were uncontested. But a coalition of groups fears if magazine distribution is opened to free competition then big magazine retailers, such as supermarkets, will take the opportunity to sign cheaper, exclusive, distribution deals with wholesalers. That, says the Periodicals Publishers Association (PPA), would leave independent news retailers to pay more for their smaller deliveries to more out-of-the-way places. Supermarkets Tesco, Asda, and Sainsbury’s have all seen their share of the magazine sales market increase over the past five years. The PPA fears under any new deal supermarkets like Tesco will only take the brand-leading magazine for a hobby like angling, rather than the three or four an independent retailer may take under the present arrangement. It says 1,000 magazines could face closure due to lack of widespread distribution in any new system, as well as 20,000 outlets going to the wall. However, a Tesco spokesman said: “We are interested in the consumer and getting magazines they want, when they want.” http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/4693351.stm; July 20, 2005

Postal Issues / Tariffs United Kingdom An industry body is continuing its fight to protect discounted mailing of newspapers amid fears of the extra pressure full-price postage could have on subscriptions. The Royal Mail’s new size-based pricing system is due to come into force from September 4, 2006. It means that rolled-up newspapers will fall into the higher “packet” pricing band whereas those that are folded or sent out flat come under the lower-priced “large letter” classification. As a direct result, many publishers are facing a massive price hike – up to 50 per cent in postage costs. The Newspaper Society will be raising the issue of increased charges with the Royal Mail, which recently withdrew its Newspaper Registration Service. The Newspaper Registration Service was set up in the mid-1800s to enable publishers to reach readers living in remote areas, and by registering their newspapers with the Royal Mail, users got first class deliveries for second class rates. The Newspaper Society fears an adverse effect on regional newspapers, 90 per cent of which relied on the service. A spokesman said: “These new charges are likely to impact further on regional newspapers, particularly those serving rural areas whose readers are heavily dependent on postal subscriptions.” http://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/news/2005/09sep/050905post.shtml; September 5, 2005

26  PRINTING & PRODUCTION SYSTEMS

Printing Market Canada Media group Quebecor Inc. said it would invest C$110 million to build a new press for its Ontario newspapers. Quebecor said it plans to consolidate printing of its Toronto Sun and London Free Press dailies and its 24 hours free paper in Toronto. That will result in 320 job cuts, but 200 jobs will be created at the new facility, it said. The Montreal-based company said it plans to converge the Toronto Sun, newly named SUN TV, 24 hours and the Canoe Web portal to offer a mix of styles and formats. SUN TV staff would join their colleagues at the Toronto Sun’s Toronto offices. The new presses would also print other contracts, including directories for Yellow Book, which recently signed a US$900 million contract with Quebecor unit Quebecor World Inc. Quebecor said the Toronto 1 television station, acquired in December, has been renamed SUN TV. Last week, Quebecor said it would spend more than C$110 million to modernize and relocate printing facilities for its Le Journal de Montreal French language daily. http://ca.today.reuters.com/news/newsArticle.aspx?type=businessNews&storyID=2005-08- 29T213213Z_01_KWA977514_RTRIDST_0_BUSINESS-MEDIA-QUEBECOR-C- COL.XML

China Norwegian forest products firm Norske Skog has seen the future, and it’s in China. Catching flak at home for seeking to shut down a paper plant in Skien, the company basked in the glare of TV lights in China, where it has opened the world’s largest newspaper production facility. Norske Skog chief executive Jan Oksum could enjoy some positive reinforcement around him, instead of the criticism he’s had in Norway. His company’s new plant 280 kilometres south of Beijing, in Shijiazhuang, will produce 330,000 tons of newspaper print to Chinese customers. “China is the world’s third-largest consumer of newspaper print, and the market is growing by 7-8 percent a year,” Oksum noted. Built on a former cornfield, the Hebei plant will make Norske Skog the world’s largest producer of newspaper in the world. It’s owned by PanAsia, in which Norske Skog holds 80 per cent and Hebei Longteng Paper Corp of China holds 20 per cent. It’s expected to generate revenues of NOK 1.2 billion a year, and analysts were as pleased as Oksum and his colleagues. Thomas Lie of DnB NOR Markets thinks Asia will be the most important market for Norske Skog in the future. Moreover, none of Norske Skog’s competitors have gained a foothold in the Chinese market yet. “The Chinese authorities are much more pro-business than the Norwegian authorities,” Lars Marius Furu, an analyst at Fondsfinans, told newspaper Aftenposten. http://www.aftenposten.no/english/business/article1123326.ece; September 27, 2005

Broadsheet / Tabloid Formats Belgium Het Nieuwsblad & Het Volk will switch to the smaller and handier compact-format as from Monday October 3. Previously the change of format was already applied for the weekend- supplement PlaZa and the Sunday Edition of Het Nieuwsblad. Extensive research on surveys with the readers of the Sunday edition of Het Nieuwsblad, proved that readers are very much in favour of the smaller format. The traditional pilars of Het Nieuwsblad and Het Volk - i.e. Sports, regional news and Life (lifestyle, youth & TV pages) - will each have a separate

27 section in the form of removable booklets in the main paper. The change of format follows the various restyling initiatives that gave a new dynamic image to Het Nieuwsblad and Het Volk over the past two years: the launch of the Sunday Edition “Het Nieuwsblad op Zondag”, the lifestyle magazine supplement “Cãtchy “, the new PlaZa weekend supplement, the daily lifestyle section “Life”, the extended regional news section . . . The new look will be supported by an extensive media-campaign. VUM/Belgium, September 8, 2005; http://www.publicitas.com/default.asp?key=6&search=y&cpny=*&lng=2; September 9, 2005

China Shanghai Daily, mainland China’s English-language newspaper under the Wenhui-Xinmin United Press Group, has announced it will cut down the size of its broadsheet in half and increase its number of pages to around 40 to 48 in its Monday to Saturday editions. These changes will take effect on October 8. “An edition update not only means a change in the size of the newspaper but is also aimed at improving the newspaper’s content quality”, said Zhang Chiyun, Chief Editor of Shanghai Daily. The newly updated Shanghai Daily will add more reports on local news in Shanghai as well as more national economic news. http://www.chinaknowledge.com/news_detail.asp?cat=general&ID=1011; September 9, 2005

Germany Effective September 5, 2005, the German publisher Axel Springer will start a new regional edition of its compact daily Welt-Kompakt for Hamburg. Welt-Kompakt was started in May 2004 as the compact edition of the national daily die Welt. Today Welt-Kompakt is issued in about 30 big cities from Monday to Friday for a copy price of €0.50. According to the latest circulation figures certified by IVW (German Audit Bureau of Circulations), the combination of die Welt and Welt-Kompakt sells an average of 234,905 copies every day. Axel Springer; September 1, 2005; http://www.publicitas.com/display.asp?id=6.8&chp=6.3&foot=6.9&cpny=*&PARAM1=149 48

The Netherlands After the successful launch of Trouw as a compact daily, the newspaper has invested further in its online site. Trouw.nl is no longer a copy of the daily newspaper, but uses a maximum of the interaction and the services. Relaunched last August 29, , the site has doubled its frequency reaching more than 200,000 visitors per week. PCM Uitgevers/The Netherlands September 6, 2005; http://www.publicitas.com/display.asp?id=6.8&chp=6.3&foot=6.9&cpny=*&PARAM1=150 37; September 14, 2005

United Kingdom The Guardian is to launch its new, mid-sized format on Monday 12 September. Guardian Newspapers, which has spent £80 million (€116 million) on the move including new presses in east London and Manchester, said the new-look Guardian would be the only full-colour national paper in the UK. “Our challenge was to remain true to our journalism, now attracting a record worldwide audience online, while at the same time finding a modern print format for a new generation of readers in this country,” said Alan Rusbridger, the editor of the Guardian. “We believe we have found it with the Berliner format, which combines the portability of a tabloid with the sensibility of a broadsheet.” The Observer will also switch early next year to the new format, which is used by several mainland European titles including Le Monde but has never before been adopted by a national newspaper in the UK.

28 http://media.guardian.co.uk/presspublishing/story/0,7495,1560523,00.html - Guardian Unlimited; EJC MediaNews of 2 September 2005

* * * * * The Guardian officially claims its sales had an average 30 per cent uplift during the first week of its life as a Berliner. Industry sources put the average increase at some 80,000 copies (about 23 per cent) and said the first Saturday’s sales were a hefty 570,000 - up 60,000 week on week. In contrast, the sources said The Independent was down about 10 per cent and The Times one per cent. The Times, however, claims these estimates to be wide of the mark and that the newspaper increased sales by 4.16 per cent in the week The Guardian launched. The Guardian did not promote the Saturday issue, whereas its rivals ran promotions, but it intends to do so this weekend. The newspaper is already soliciting more sales by handing out money- off vouchers at London mainline stations. Valid until the week ending Saturday 26 November, weekday vouchers knock 20p off the 60p price, while Saturday vouchers reduce the price by half to 60p. But some Guardian readers, just coming to grips with the paper’s new shape and the vari-sized supplements, were disappointed this week to find parts of the paper missing - the Review section on Saturday had disappeared in some places, while on Monday there was a dearth of MediaGuardians. A Guardian spokeswoman maintained there had been few complaints, just some “hiccups”, and the operation had gone smoothly. But the switchboard said there had been “loads of calls” and the problem line set up especially to deal with complaint calls described the losses as experienced nationwide. Readers won’t have to wait long before they are getting the full Monty, though. The newspaper anticipated there might be some obstacles when the paper relaunched and chose to phase in mechanical insertion. It arranged for some of the sections to be hand-inserted by retailers, paid 2p an insert. Full mechanical inserting will be in place by the end of the month. http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/article/220905/guardian_says_berliner; September 22, 2005

United Kingdom Telegraph Group executive vice chairman Jeremy Deedes has hinted that his paper may follow The Guardian to midsize Berliner format. Deedes told the British Journalism Review: “It is going to be very interesting to see what happens when the Berliner-size Guardian comes out. I personally think it will really suit The Guardian, even though it’s a shape alien to British readers. “Maybe that’s the way forward for The Telegraph - maintaining the essence of a serious newspaper with a convenience in size for people who don’t read their newspapers at the kitchen table.” Deedes moved to his current nonexecutive role at The Telegraph in October after returning from retirement to guide the company through its sale as chief executive. Deedes also told the BJR of his confidence in Daily Telegraph editor Martin Newland whom he described as “exactly the right kind of person to edit The Telegraph for today”. http://www.pressgazette.co.uk/article/010905/telegraph_to_follow; September 1, 2005

United Kingdom The Observer could be set to make the switch to the Berliner format before Christmas, following sister title The Guardian in making an early format switch and beating rival the Independent on Sunday to the punch. The Observer had been due to change format early next year, but with The Guardian move out of the way, speculation is that Guardian Newspapers wants to move ahead the Sunday change early. However, with an Independent on Sunday move to compact format also expected in the new year, The Observer could go early. The Observer, which is a £10 million-a-year cash drain on owner The Scott Trust, has seen its circulation slip in recent months, dropping again in August by 4.49 per cent to 425,737. Last

29 year, it was selling around 441,193. GNL rushed forward the move to Berliner for The Guardian by as much as a year, having first said that it would change the paper’s format at some point in mid 2006. Media buyers believe that the earlier the switch comes, the quicker circulation problems can be arrested. The Guardian’s circulation fell 4.65 per cent last month to 341,698 although August is a typically a poor month all round for newspaper circulation. There have been speculative reports earlier this year about the move to the Berliner format not being favoured by Observer editor Roger Alton. Earlier this year, there were reports that the Guardian Media Group was considering selling off its Sunday newspaper to protect it from continuing losses at the title. GMG has invested an estimated £50 million in the relaunch of The Guardian in its switch to a mid-size Berliner shape, which is used by many European papers including Le Monde in France. GNL has denied there is any truth to the speculation. http://www.brandrepublic.com/bulletins/media/article/516781/observer-set-move-berliner- format-christmas/; September 14, 2005

 ONLINE / DIGITAL PUBLISHING

Online Auctions United Kingdom Johnston Press, the regional newspaper group behind the Yorkshire Post, wants to launch local online auction sites to ensure that it fends off the challenge from eBay. The group, which publishes more than 250 newspapers throughout the country, plans to add an auction capability to its websites from the end of this year as part of an organic expansion of its online offering. Johnston Press, in common with Trinity Mirror and Daily Mail and General Trust, is expanding its online operation, although its organic approach contrasts with acquisitions made by its rivals. The newspaper groups are trying to take advantage of the rapidly growing online advertising market, particularly for recruitment, cars and property — all areas where local newspapers are traditionally strong. Half-year online revenues were up 32 per cent to £4.2 million, while profits increased 48 per cent to £3.2 million. Despite the impressive growth, online remains small. Overall sales in the half were up 1 per cent at £264.6 million and profits before tax up 9 per cent at £82.2 million. On a like-for-like basis, advertising was down 0.8 per cent and the company is expecting the slight downward trend to continue throughout the year. http://business.timesonline.co.uk/article/0,,9071-1758969,00.html; September 1, 2005

Mobile Telephony & Newspapers International The International Herald Tribune (IHT) announced on September 13 the launch of mobile- friendly versions of its Web site to its digital portfolio, allowing users to access the International Herald Tribune on their mobile phones and read full text of the day’s top news, features and analysis, updated every 15 minutes. “This is a crucial step in the evolution of our digital offering,” said Meredith Artley, IHT.com’s editor and director. “It is essential to allow our users to access the IHT’s broader perspective whenever and wherever they are. As our already substantial readership of business people and high-end consumers continues to grow, we are committed to meeting their specific needs, as well as the needs of the growing online marketplace.” The formatting of the IHT’s service will vary depending on the type of mobile phone the reader uses. Smart phone users can bookmark mobile.iht.com where they will receive a graphical version of the IHT specially formatted for smart phones, with the day’s

30 top news, browsable by headline or section. WAP (Wireless Application Protocol) users can bookmark wap.iht.com to receive a text version of the IHT. In addition, the IHT remains available on AvantGo for most PDA and smart phone users. The New York Times/USA September 13, 2005; http://www.publicitas.com/display.asp?id=6.8&chp=6.3&foot=6.9&cpny=*&PARAM1=150 56; September 14, 2005

United Kingdom Reuters has launched its first consumer mobile video news service on Vodafone Live! with 3G in the UK. The streamed subscription series is the first business and financial video to be available on the Vodafone network. It includes regular updates from key financial markets around the world and clips of the biggest news stories of the day. Customers can pick from more than 20 videos daily. Along with financial news, there will be clips from covering major news, sporting events and entertainment. The full package of Reuters services, including the new video section, is available for a monthly subscription of £3, with an initial month on free trial. The launch follows Reuters’ move this April to offer a free mobile news story service in the UK and US. The service delivers the top 10 stories by Reuters’ correspondents in 200 bureaux around the world and illustrated with photos. Alisa Bowen, head of Reuters.co.uk, said: “The growth in downloads of video from our websites, where more than 1 million clips are viewed each month, made it clear just how popular video news has become. It was an obvious next step to make this available on mobile devices, combining it with the existing financial data and text services to offer a truly multimedia experience.” http://www.brandrepublic.com/bulletins/media/article/505739/reuters-teams-vodafone-video- news-mobile-phones/; September 14, 2005

 EDITORIAL CONTENT

Trends / Strategies / Visions in Editorial Content Denmark The Danish newspaper Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten has decided to relaunch eight of its daily sections in a new tabloid magazine style at the end of the year. The main newspaper will still cover domestic, international, and business news. But the second/third sections which cover areas such as lifestyle, sports, travel, and home will be printed on better paper, in magazine layout – and with articles that focus on meeting readers’ needs. Editors from Jyllands-Posten explain that readers often have very little time to read the paper in the morning, and when they return in the afternoon, they need a really good reason to pick up the old paper again. Sounds obvious. In the afternoon, the contents of the morning paper are close to 24 hours old, and readers meanwhile have been bombarded with updated news on TV, radio, and the Web. There’s no doubt that we’re in the middle of a huge media evolution where those who adapt stand a better chance of survival. Newspapers have for the past 10-20 years moved toward providing more analysis and lifestyle and less “instant” news. Who knows, it may be that newspapers survive – without the news. http://www.poynter.org/column.asp?id=31&aid=88724; September 12, 2005

31 Image / Credibility / Perception of Newspapers Japan The Asahi Shimbun’s executive adviser, Shinichi Hakoshima, said he will step down from his post and resign as chairman of the Japan Newspaper Publishers & Editors Association to take responsibility for a fabricated report published in the daily. The Asahi Shimbun revealed in late August that a reporter at its Nagano bureau had fabricated a story of a meeting between Nagano Gov. Yasuo Tanaka and former Liberal Democratic Party policy chief Shizuka Kamei to discuss founding new political parties, which was reported by the newspaper. The Asahi Shimbun issued an apology over the fabricated story and explained the circumstances behind them. It has also fired the reporter. Hakoshima said he does not view the incident as a chance occurrence but the result of a systemic problem within the organisation and called for preventive measures to be put in place, including staff education and an examination of the personnel system. http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getarticle.pl5?nn20050908a3.htm - The Japan Times; EJC MediaNews of 8 September 2005

United States of America After a series of damaging newspaper scandals involving plagiarism in recent years, a new piece of software looks to help editors stop wrongdoers before their articles go to print. The LexisNexis data collection service has introduced CopyGuard, a program aimed at exposing plagiarists or spotting copyright infringement. According to John Barrie, chief executive of iParadigms, the company that developed the programme with LexisNexis, CopyGuard can generate a report that calculates the percentage of material suspected of not being original, highlights that text and pinpoints its possible original source, all within seconds. Existing programs from iParadigm and others have focused on plagiarism by students, not journalists. CopyGuard draws on LexisNexis’s database of more than six billion documents and several years’ worth of Web pages archived by iParadigm. In addition to checking newspaper and magazine articles, CopyGuard can be used by publishers to scan book manuscripts. http://www.nytimes.com/2005/09/05/technology/05plagiarism.html - New York Times; EJC MediaNews of 7 September 2005

Integrating Online / Print Operations Global As the global trend towards tabloid papers gathers momentum, the architect of one of the region’s more prominent conversions says that the real issue newspapers are facing is a technological one, requiring closer integration of traditional print and multimedia content. “Readers are people who are smart, technologically savvy but with incredibly short attention spans because of the devices and media that exist around them,” said design guru Mario Garcia, who was in town last week to talk about his new tabloid design for the Wall Street Journal Asia. “Going compact is very exciting because the readers like it, but the real story here is the fusion of the online and print versions of the newspaper. “We know that readers read the newspaper, but we also know that they connect several times a day on mobile devices, laptops and in the office. “Fusion is only now coming to the newsroom, but the fusion has already taken place in the minds of the readers.” Very few newspapers can genuinely claim to have integrated online and print sections. Many online editions began life as verbatim recreations of print editions, and even when the idea of charging for content caught on, online operations were often developed as separate business units within the organisation. And with separate business units came separate editorial meetings. One of the global leaders in integrating new media with traditional print publishing, according to

32 industry analyst Andrew Lynch of the Ifra, is the Norwegian daily VG, which gained international recognition for its coverage of the tragic tsunami in Southeast Asia. VG used news and pictures sent from mobile phones in the affected region in both its online and offline coverage. Meanwhile, The New York Times announced last month that it would merge its online and offline newsrooms by 2007 in an effort to better exploit the potential of the internet. The paper’s executive editor Bill Keller told The Guardian: “As long as the two newsrooms are separate, it almost inevitably means the Web is something of an afterthought.” Mr Garcia said the design for the new Journal was based on the premise that readers now demanded more than one media format for their news. When it is launched on October 17, the newspaper will direct readers to content that appears only online via selected icons and webpage addresses to features such as full-length interviews, videos and photo essays. “Newspapers think in terms of print, and online media people are usually younger and only think of digital content,” Mr Garcia said. “But with fusion, it becomes more about deciding in editorial meetings the best medium to tell a particular story. “Some stories will lend themselves to a photo gallery, others will be told better through audio or video, and reporters will have to be clued into that. “The reporters become more like story-tellers than reporters. They will tell the stories in nine paragraphs for the newspaper and then in a multimedia format online,” he added. Mr Garcia has taken cues for the new Journal from the online or mobile world, right down to the small photos on each page which are precisely the same size as his cellphone screen. Ideas for future designs include directing readers at the end of an article to other similar news items or features, such as Amazon.com does, or even pointing readers to content outside the company. “Readers cannot read every piece of information available to them,” he said. “The internet is a jungle of information. The newspapers that will survive will be great at the concept of ‘send me’. At the end of an article on Alan Greenspan you tell the reader he is on the front cover of the current Time magazine. I see in the future bibliographies at the end of every reporter’s article.” What these initiatives have in common is the perception of new media, the internet and mobile connectivity as an opportunity for rather than a threat to newspapers. Often, the emergence of bloggers, podcasters and the internet has been portrayed as heralding the end of traditional print media. Another issue is that the new media inevitably suggests a lesser standard of journalism. While the media itself has often reacted against the emergence of bloggers and citizen journalism because their content is not subject to the editorial process, the industry has moved slowly to welcome new media content created by professional journalists. South China Morning Post http://www.asiamedia.ucla.edu/article.asp?parentid=30503; September 27, 2005

Redesigning / Restructuring United States of America Dow Jones & Co. today will unveil a pioneering new nameplate design for the international editions of The Wall Street Journal, reflecting their integration with The Wall Street Journal Online edition beginning October 17. Created as part of a redesign of the newspapers into a compact size, the new nameplate features a sharp black version of the original, 116-year-old Journal banner, over a Champagne-color watermark of WSJ.com, the Internet address of The Wall Street Journal Online. “The new design combines the powerful brand we are best known for with a subtle statement of our continuous, around-the-clock presence,” said Karen Elliott House, senior vice president of Dow Jones & Co. and publisher of The Wall Street Journal. The design was conceived by Mario R. Garcia, chief executive of Garcia Media, a newspaper designer who is guiding the redesign of the Journal’s Asian and European editions. It was produced by Jim Parkinson, a leading specialist in typeface design and logos. “The nameplate gives us a sense of familiarity with a product,” Dr. Garcia said. “The Wall Street Journal’s

33 banner has been the ‘flag’ of the newspaper for more than a century. It stands for all that the newspaper means to its loyal readers: credibility, seriousness, authority, tradition.” Fusing the print and online identities of the Journal is central to the Journal’s new global initiative to redesign its Asian and European print editions in compact format and harmonize the paper’s name around the world. In Asia, The Asian Wall Street Journal will be renamed The Wall Street Journal Asia. Online, the paper already carries the Journal brand. As part of the Oct. 17 relaunch, subscribers in Asia and Europe will be offered special packages that combine print and online access, an information package intended to serve mobile businesspeople 24 hours a day with news. Throughout the new compact, international editions of The Wall Street Journal there will be pointers that guide readers to data, transcripts, photos and even video online, to enrich and deepen their Journal experience. The Journal Online also will offer readers in Asia and Europe significantly enhanced content, including email news alerts and exclusive new international features. http://online.wsj.com/public/article/SB112716369675745304- GwNq76KeOoGv08ysFxGBiz0_FQQ_20051019.html; September 20, 2005

Violence / Terror Europe Europe’s media should draw up a code of conduct to ensure that newspapers, television stations and the internet do not act as propagandists for terrorists, the European commission will say on September 21. In a move that is likely to provoke a debate on state controls of the media, the paper titled ‘Violent Radicalisation and Terrorism Recruitment’ warns that the media are taking an over-simplified view of the world, which plays into terrorist hands. The commission also accuses the media of playing a role in helping terrorists recruit by allowing contacts between ‘radicalised individuals’ on the internet and acting inadvertently as messengers for terrorists. One striking proposal is a call for people to refrain from talking about Islamic terrorism. The paper says: ‘The commission believes there is no such thing as ‘Islamic terrorism’, nor ‘Catholic’, nor ‘red’ terrorism . . . The fact that some individuals unscrupulously attempt to justify their crimes in the name of a religion or ideology cannot be allowed in any way . . . to cast a shadow upon such a religion or ideology.’ http://media.guardian.co.uk/broadcast/story/0,7493,1574624,00.html - Media Guardian; EJC MediaNews of 21 September 2005

Covering Tragedies United States of America CNN television has obtained a court order allowing its journalists to cover the operation to retrieve bodies of those killed in Hurricane Katrina, a spokeswoman for the US cable network said. The federal agency dealing with disaster recovery efforts had earlier said it would ban media from reporting on the recovery of those killed, saying it wanted to preserve the dignity of the dead and avoid distressing relatives. But CNN brought a case to the district court in Houston, Texas, on Friday, arguing that the ban announced by the Federal Emergency Management Agency and a New Orleans official was unconstitutional. The network said any such ban violated the First Amendment to the US Constitution, governing freedom of speech. Judge Keith Ellison issued the temporary restraining order “to prevent emergency officials in the Hurricane Katrina disaster zone from preventing the media from covering the recovery of bodies,” CNN spokeswoman Megan Mahoney said. A further hearing would be held Saturday to rule whether the order would be made permanent, she said in a statement. The federal disaster agency had asked media earlier in the week not to show images of the dead, out of

34 fear that family members would be able to identify relatives. Bloated corpses are still being recovered across the shattered city of New Orleans, almost two weeks after Hurricane Katrina slammed the southern United States on August 29. Nearly 400 people have so far been confirmed dead in the disaster, but estimates of the final death toll have varied wildly, with New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin suggesting earlier this week that it could reach 10,000. AFP, September 10, 2005

Crosswords / Puzzles United States of America Sudoku, or Su Doku, is the name for a maddeningly addictive Japanese number logic puzzle which has become a bona fide craze in the United States during the past few months. The rules are simple. There is a nine-by-nine grid composed of nine three-by-three boxes. Some numbers are already filled in to a few of the 81 squares. The goal is to fill in all the squares so that each row, column and box contains the numbers 1 through 9 only once. Scores of newspapers have added the game alongside the crossword puzzle. There are several Sudoku Web sites as well where people can play for free or pay to download programs that generate new puzzles. And according to the most recent list of best-selling books tracked by USA Today, seven of the top 100 were compilations of Sudoku puzzles. The rapid rise in popularity of the game has reminded some of the Rubik’s cube phenomenon in the 1980s. Wayne Gould, a Hong Kong-based entrepreneur who has written a computer program that generates Sudoku puzzles, said that his firm, Pappocom, has received “well over $1 million” in revenue in less than a year from the game. His Sudoku.com Web site offers downloads of the puzzle. Gould also has written several Sudoku books. He has a publishing deal with Harper Collins, a subsidiary of News Corp. Gould, who said he first discovered a book of Sudoku puzzles while vacationing in Tokyo in 1997, also offers his program to newspapers for free in order to generate more publicity for the game. He said he first approached the Times of London in the fall of 2004 and after that paper published it, the game just took off, eventually spreading to the United States. “People enjoyed it immediately and other papers noticed the jump in circulation,” Gould said. More than 140 newspapers worldwide now feature his Sudoku puzzles, including the New York Post, Washington Post and Chicago Sun Times. Will the game’s popularity be a shot in the arm for the beleaguered newspaper industry? Shares of publishing stocks have slumped lately due to concerns about sluggish advertising growth and declining readership due to the growing popularity of online media. So far, there are some hopeful signs. “This has been a fantastic launch for any new feature. It’s unprecedented,” said Kathie Kerr, a spokesperson for Universal Press Syndicate, which began offering a version of Sudoku to newspapers in May and already has 250 clients. “Newspaper editors feel Sudoku is a natural fit to capture new readers.” But the wide availability of the game could also wind up being a problem for companies trying to profit from it. Although Dell Magazines, a privately held publisher of puzzle books, claims to have invented Sudoku in 1979 (at the time it was called Number Place), Gould, a retired judge, said that the game itself is in the public domain. So it’s not too hard for others to create their own Sudoku computer programs or launch Web sites featuring the puzzles. To that end, Kerr said that Universal Press Syndicate is using a version of Sudoku written by British puzzle author David Bodycombe. And Tribune Media Services, the content syndication arm of newspaper publisher Tribune, began offering the game, based on a version created by British puzzle writer Michael Mepham, to newspapers in August. “It’s doing quite well. We’re excited about that. A lot of papers are paying attention to it,” said Walter Mahoney, vice president of sales for Tribune Media Services, pointing out that it has customers ranging from publishers in Akron, Ohio to a newspaper in the Orkney Islands off the coast of Scotland. Considering how

35 fast the game has become a pop-culture phenomenon, Gould is a bit worried that the craze could cool just as rapidly. “The glut does concern me. But it’s a free market,” Gould said. Still, Kerr believes that Sudoku won’t be a fad. “Crossword puzzles are the love of many people. There is a hope that newspapers can build the same kind of loyalty with Sudoku fans,” she said. http://money.cnn.com/2005/09/19/news/newsmakers/sudoku/index.htm; September 20, 2005

 YOUNG READERS

Targeting Young Readers International Associated Press will break new ground on September 19 in the hunt for a younger readership with a wire service aimed specifically at 18- to-34-year-olds. The new service, called asap, will include print and online content and has been branded one of the most ambitious projects ever undertaken by the 157-year-old news organisation. Featuring audio, video, blogs and wireless text, as well as news and features for use in traditional print formats, asap was conceived in response to the declining circulation in the US among younger readers. More than 100 newspapers have so far signed up to asap in the US, many of them using its content both online and in their print editions. The news wire service provides content to more than 15,000 news outlets, with a daily reach of 1 billion people. http://media.guardian.co.uk/presspublishing/story/0,7495,1570024,00.html - Media Guardian; EJC MediaNews of 15 September 2005

 MANAGEMENT

Crisis Management United States of America The Times-Picayune, the hometown newspaper in New Orleans, defied violence and floods on September 2 to get its first print edition on the streets since the Hurricane Katrina tragedy struck. “Help us, please,” blared the banner headline, with a poignant picture of a woman begging on her knees splashed across the entire front page. The Times has sent out three Web editions since August 29, but on September 2, for the first time, it got papers on doorsteps in sectors of the city that are inhabitable and not flooded. Around 50,000 copies rolled off the borrowed presses of another paper, the Houma Courier, overnight, containing stories filed from the streets of New Orleans, hit by mob violence and looting. “We appreciate the dedication of employees and the patience of advertisers and subscribers,” said the paper’s publisher, Ashton Phelps. AFP; September 2, 2005

36  MEDIA LAWS

Sports reporting rights International A delegation from the World Association of Newspapers met the international football association FIFA on September 23 to discuss concerns about potential limits on newspaper coverage of the 2006 World Cup, notably on the right to publish photos on newspaper web sites. FIFA, and many other sports organizations, have begun introducing terms and conditions for coverage of events that limit the number and the timing of photographs that newspapers can publish on their web sites. The rules for the Confederations Cup and World Cup Draw banned internet publication of images until two hours after the final whistle, and then only allowed single still images (no sequences) to be published. The same rules are likely to be proposed for the World Cup in Germany next year. “WAN finds that international sports event organizers are increasingly introducing unreasonably restrictive conditions for the normal exploitation by newspapers of images and text in their electronic media”, said Timothy Balding, Director General of the World Association of Newspapers. “We believe these conditions are an infringement on the free access to information and we are determined to defend and promote the interests of newspaper publishers. This is the first in a series of meetings WAN will hold with major international sports groups to represent the rights of publishers.” WAN Press Release, September 23, 2005

Germany The German Football League (DFL) has begun the new season with a new set of media guidelines that reduce the ability of newspapers to cover matches. Among other rules, newspaper photographers are no longer allowed to shoot pictures from the sidelines and must stay behind the goal. Print journalists have to wait 10 minutes after a game before they are allowed to interview players – a rule that gives television reporters first access. The German Newspaper Publishers Association (BDZV) calls the new rules “foul play” and has protested against them. Contact: Dietmar Wolff, [email protected]; Newsletter for Directors of WAN Member Associations - N ° 31, September 7, 2005

Protection of Sources Spain The director of Spanish daily El Mundo Pedro J. Ramirez said he would not name sources who provided confidential information on the investigation into the Madrid train bombings, to a government inquiry. Ramirez, nicknamed Pedro J, faces between six months and a year in jail for non-compliance, but told AFP he was confident the case would be closed. “I don’t think they would dare,” he said when asked if charges were likely to be laid ahead of a trial. “It would be a real declaration of war on the part of the government and I don’t think they want to get involved in that.” Judge Juan del Olmo, who is in charge of the investigation into the blasts which killed 191 people and injured almost 2,000 more, on March 11, 2004, had demanded in July that Ramirez reveal the source of confidential information, published in El Mundo, about the Islamic extremists accused of carrying on the bombings. Ramirez said he believes he is on safe ground, however. “I told (the judge) it was not possible to obey him as, for journalists, article 20 of the (Spanish) constitution (on freedom of expression) is not a right but an obligation, as it protects the citizens’ right to information. “I would have liked to

37 cooperate with the judiciary, but I had a professional obligation to protect sources,” said Ramirez. AFP; September 12, 2005

 MEDIA OWNERSHIP

Takeover Bids Thailand A Thai media baron close to Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra announced plans to buy major strategic stakes in two leading papers that are the targets of high-profile libel cases. Thailand’s top entertainment company GMM Grammy Group told the Stock Exchange of Thailand that one of its subsidiaries would buy into the two companies that publish the Bangkok Post and Matichon. The 2.7 billion baht (about $66 million) deal would give the company a 32.23 per cent stake in Matichon and a 23.6 per cent stake in Post Publishing, according to a filing by Grammy subsidiary GMM Media. The company and its chairman Paiboon Damranongchaitham would make a tender offer for another 42.78 per cent stake in Matichon at an expected price of 11.10 baht per share, which would give the company control, the filing said. Matichon declined to comment on the deal and the exchange said the company had yet to announce how the deal will change its shareholder structure. Post Publishing said the deal would make GMM Media the largest single shareholder in the company. A press conference was planned for later Tuesday to announce details. Post Publishing publishes the English-language Bangkok Post as well as the Thai-language Post Today. Matichon publishes the politics-heavy Thai-language daily Matichon and the regional Khao Sod, among other titles. Grammy is Thailand’s biggest music company, owning 12 radio stations as well as television and radio production firms. The company already publishes several magazines. Paiboon made headlines last year when Thaksin tapped him to negotiate a buyout of the English premiership football club Liverpool. The deal eventually fizzled out but it highlighted the links between Paiboon and Thaksin, a billionaire businessman whose family also controls a major media and telecom empire. The Post is at the same time the target of criminal libel suits brought by government agencies over a report – which was quickly retracted – that the runway at Bangkok’s new airport had cracks. The editor responsible for the story was sacked, amid political pressure for the paper’s top editors to resign. Bangkok Post editor-in-chief Pichai Chuensuksawadi declined to say if the deal would affect the newspaper’s staffing or editorial policies. “It’s a matter for the shareholders,” he told AFP. For its part, Matichon is the target of the largest libel suit ever filed in Thailand. Picnic Corporation, a cooking gas conglomerate, has lodged two complaints seeking 15 billion baht ($367 million) over stories the company claims tarnished its image and caused a drop in share prices. Picnic is under investigation for stock-related offences. Press rights groups have long voiced concern about the muzzling of Thai media, both by direct government pressure and by changes in media ownership. The conglomerate owned by Thaksin’s family bought Thailand’s only independent television station, iTV, which had run news stories critical of the prime minister. AFP; September 13, 2005

* * * * * An entertainment industry mogul has abandoned his hostile takeover bid for the country’s most respected newspaper, Matichon. Paiboon Damrongchaitham, head of the GMM Grammy group, said he would cut his majority stake due to protests from the newspaper’s owners and staff. Journalists and democracy activists had denounced his attempt to buy into

38 the paper as an attack on press freedom. Mr Paiboon is known to be close to the Prime Minister, Thaksin Shinawatra. His takeover bid, announced earlier this week, had set off an outcry in Thailand, with many believing that it was a thinly concealed attempt by the prime minister to curtail criticism of his government. The newspaper has long been known for the quality of its investigative reporting, and boasts a circulation of 400,000 – making it one of the most influential voices in the Thai media. In making his bid, Mr Paiboon tried to calm his critics, saying he would not interfere in the paper’s running. But few seemed to believe him. On Friday, in a big turn-around, a joint statement by Grammy and the chairman and founder of Matichon stated that Mr Paiboon would sell 12 per cent of his majority holding of 32 per cent in Matichon. The statement said Mr Paiboon had given up his ownership ambitions, after the board and employees of the newspaper made clear their unhappiness over his hostile takeover bid. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/4253446.stm; September 16, 2005

Mergers / Acquisitions Russia Gazprom-Media has bought St. Petersburg weekly newspaper Chas Pik through its subsidiary firm Aura, Alexei Turchenko, the new head of Gazprom-Media said. Without revealing the purchasing price, Turchenko vowed the move was aimed at making the newspaper profitable, but market players warned that the deal may have been politically motivated. Chas Pik was founded in 1990 by Natalia Chaplina, a journalist and wife of the former KGB chief for St. Petersburg and the Leningrad Oblast, Victor Cherkesov. The newspaper came has a weekly print run of 30,000 copies, with monthly turnover at $20,000 to $30,000, a member of the newspaper’s editorial said. Under the deal, Gazprom-Media acquired a 70 per cent stake in the company, while the rest the media holding plans to control through Aura. Gazprom-Media already has a big portfolio of companies: NTV, TNT, and cable channel NTV-Plus, as well as five radio stations, the national daily Izvestia and the NTV-Media purchasing group. Gazprom-Media’s revenues surpassed $400 million in 2004. The deal has worked out well for Gazprom-Media, the holding’s press secretary Daria Litvina said. “There is room to grow for a company on the St. Petersburg’s printed press market.” Tuchenko added that the new owners planned to make the paper break even within three years and then look for profit. Nikolaev, however, judged the purchase to be motivated purely by political reasons. “If Gazprom-Media wanted to strengthen their market position, they would have looked at buying other publications. Chas Pik is an outsider.” The buy is well-timed before the 2008 presidential elections, an analyst said. http://www.sptimes.ru/story/15453; September 6, 2005

Equity Stakes India The next big growth for the Indian newspaper industry will come from initial public offers (IPOs) and the private equity funding route, senior fund managers and financial consultants said at a seminar on the future of the print media by Ficci. Speaking to FE, Vikram Narula, fund manager, GW Capital said, “We already hold majority stake in Radio City and two large newspaper organisations have approached us for private equity funding. We are evaluating the market.” Investment bankers say large newspaper houses are sitting on huge cash piles but do not know how to grow the business. “For newspapers, private equity funding is a means to increasing their market valuation before going for an IPO,” Ashok Wadhwa, MD, Ambit finance said. At present, only one Delhi-based English daily has gone for two rounds of private equity funding. “Jagran group has raised some money but that is for its television business. Other groups will be raising fair amount of money through equity funding,” Mr

39 Narula said. This year about $8.5 billion FII money has come so far into the stock market. In today’s rising market a fund manager has to invest in growing business and print media is one such business, a financial consultant said. The fund managers are excited about print media because the advertising spends to GDP ratio in India is still small compared to US, UK, China and Thailand. “In India, the ad spend to GDP ratio is 0.34 per cent while in US it is 1.24 per cent. For the UK the figure is 0.75 per cent, while for China and Thailand its 0.54 per cent and 1.16 per cent respectively. If our GDP growth continues at 7 per cent and above, the ad spends in media will increase showing a healthy environment for investments,” a financial consultant said. http://www.financialexpress.com/fe_full_story.php?content_id=103901; September 28, 2005

Cross-Ownership Australia Communications Minister Helen Coonan has clearly flagged changes to the cross-media rules that prevent newspaper proprietors from owning more than 15 per cent of television or radio outlets in the same market to ensure Australia’s media groups are globally competitive. Senator Coonan has also announced the Government’s intention to scrap limits on foreign ownership of local media companies. With legislation likely to be introduced into the parliament later this year, Australia’s media industry is set for some major consolidation. http://www.abc.net.au/7.30/content/2005/s1450484.htm; August 31, 2005

Sell-off / Buyout Turkey Turkey auctioned one of the country’s major television stations, in state receivership since last year when the authorities seized dozens of companies from the now-defunct Uzan business empire following a bank scandal. The highest bid of $306.5 million (€254.6 million) for Star TV, Turkey’s first private television channel, established in 1990, came from the Isil company, a subsidiary of the country’s biggest media group, Dogan. Star TV was among the 219 Uzan companies which the authorities seized in February 2004 in a bid to recover some $5 billion needed to reimburse account holders in the family’s Imar bank, which collapsed in 2003 after large-scale fraud by its owners. Last week, the authorities began auctioning the media institutions – several radio and television stations as well as a newspaper – which once belonged to the Uzans. Among the other companies slated for sale is Telsim, Turkey’s second-biggest mobile telephone operator. AFP; September 26, 2005

 COMPETITION

Subsidies France Some €280 million will be devoted to support the printed press in 2006, €2 million more than in 2005, according to the draft budget of the Culture and Communication Ministry. This support includes €31 million “to continue the social modernization of the daily press production”. The authorities will help to restructure the press, taking part of the burden of early retirement costs. The assistance funds for the political and general news dailies have increased by 20 per cent, up to €4 million. Subsidies to cover state subscriptions at the

40 Agence France Press (AFP) are €107.8 million, in accordance with the 2 per cent annual increase fixed in the Contract of Objectives and Means (COM) concluded with the agency. Help for the postal distribution of the political and general news press, amounting to €71.5 million, is evolving “in accordance with the engagements adopted” in the accord between the state, the press and the post in 2004. Help for the modernisation of the distribution of the national daily press is “maintained to support the restructuring efforts of the NMPP” (€8 million in 2006, a “slight decrease”), in order to bring the distribution costs of national dailies back “to an economical and financially reasonable level”. Help for the national political and general news dailies with low advertising revenues (such as L’Humanité or La Croix) rises by 7.5 per cent up to more than €7 million. AFP; http://fr.biz.yahoo.com/050928/202/4lviz.html; September 28, 2005

 LABOUR & EMPLOYMENT

Labour Markets United Kingdom The Newspaper Society’s annual industry survey found, which is now in its second year, showed that more than 55,000 people are now employed in the regional press, 14,009 of which are editorial staff, an increase of 7.6 per cent on the previous year. In contrast, 585 people are employed in a senior management role, a drop of almost 17 per cent compared with 2003. Commercial, advertising and marketing together account for the highest number of staff, at 16,450 – and 10,393 staff are employed in production/press, an increase of 6.8 per cent and 14.3 per cent respectively. The Newspaper Society sent out a detailed questionnaire to all regional and local publishing groups in the UK. Replies were received from publishing groups accounting for 75 per cent of all regional press titles published each week and, based on the response, figures were then adjusted to give an estimate of the industry as a whole. http://www.holdthefrontpage.co.uk/behind/analysis/050901surv.shtml

Job Cuts United States of America The New York Times Co. (NYT) and two Philadelphia newspapers announced major job cuts as the industry grapples with severe financial problems including weak advertising and circulation declines. The Times said it would cut about 500 jobs, while the Philadelphia papers will eliminate a total of 100 jobs. The cuts at the Times represent about 4 per cent of the company’s overall work force and will be made across the company, including about 45 jobs in the Times newsroom and 35 at The Boston Globe. The Times also said its third- quarter earnings would come in well below Wall Street forecasts because of sluggish advertising trends and higher-than-expected costs from a previous round of job cuts in May, which resulted in 200 jobs being eliminated. McClatchy Co. (MNI), a California-based newspaper publisher, also trimmed its earnings forecast Tuesday because of weaker-than- expected advertising. The Philadelphia Inquirer will cut its editorial staff 15 per cent, from 500 to 425 people, while the Philadelphia Daily News will cut its editorial staff 19 per cent, from 130 to 105. Both papers are owned by Knight Ridder Inc. (KRI), the nation’s second- largest newspaper company. The cuts come as the newspaper industry faces serious problems including slow advertising growth, long-term declines in circulation and a widespread shift by readers - especially younger ones – to online news sources. The Times said it expected 250

41 jobs at its main newspaper group to be affected, which includes the Times, the International Herald Tribune and the online operation of the Times. Of those job cuts, about 45 will come from the Times’ newsroom, the company said in a statement. Another 160 jobs will be cut from the Times’ New England operation, which includes The Boston Globe and the Worcester Telegram & Gazette and Boston.com. The company didn’t provide a breakdown of those job cuts other than to say that 35 newsroom jobs would be cut at The Boston Globe. In a note to Times staffers, the Times’ chairman Arthur Sulzberger Jr. and Chief Executive Janet Robinson called the new round of cuts “a painful process” but a necessary one given the “continued financial challenges and the cloudy economic outlook for the remainder of the year.” Sulzberger and Robinson said the company would manage the cuts “in such a way that we continue to provide our readers, users, listeners and viewers with journalism of the highest quality and that our operations function smoothly on a day-to-day basis.” Last week, Knight Ridder said its third-quarter earnings would fall about 20 per cent because of declining ad sales, as well as higher interest expense and newsprint costs. http://news.morningstar.com/news/DJ/M09/D20/200509201856DOWJONESDJONLINE000 932.html; September 20, 2005

United States of America The San Jose Mercury News is cutting 60 positions, including 52 newsroom jobs, through buyouts and possible layoffs, the newspaper announced. Beginning on September 26, employees covered by the San Jose Newspaper Guild will be offered buyout packages. If enough staffers don’t take the buyouts, layoffs will be needed, said Mercury News Executive Editor Susan Goldberg. Employees were notified in a staff meeting Friday afternoon, September 23. “This is a very painful but necessary step that’s reflecting an industry-wide slump in revenue,” Goldberg said. The 52 jobs represent a 16 per cent reduction of the newsroom’s 332 staffers. The remaining eight buyouts will come from the classified, administration and marketing departments. The Mercury News is owned by Knight Ridder Inc., the nation’s second-largest newspaper publisher. Earlier this week, two other newspapers in the chain, The Philadelphia Inquirer and its sister paper the Philadelphia Daily News, announced they were cutting a combined 100 jobs. A week earlier, Knight Ridder said third- quarter earnings would fall about 20 per cent because of declining ad sales and higher interest expenses and newsprint costs. The Associated Press; http://www.usatoday.com/money/media/2005-09-24-mercury- news_x.htm; September 24, 2005

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