Newsletter
Transcription
Newsletter
world edition PreMedia Cost-effective media design International media markets Newsletter Management Information for the – technology Karl Malik Media Consultancy Moscow - Vienna - Zurich [email protected] www.malik-consulting.de Media Industry December 2013 Multimedia Appvertisement – People – organisation Number 4 Volume 18 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Latest news from the supply industry December 2013 Intergraphics new sales partner in Thailand ppi Media and Digital Collections Increase Presence in South-east Asia In south-east Asia, interest is increasing in the solutions developed by ppi Media and Digital Collections (DC). As a result, in order to provide improved, more intensive assistance and support for customers and interested parties, the software producers from Hamburg concluded a partner agreement in November 2013 with Intergraphics, a Thai company. “For a long time, Intergraphics has been held in high esteem in the Thai market. We have also noted a trend towards digital media in Thailand. Therefore, our customers and interested parties rightly expect us to increase our presence,” said Christian Finder, Head of International Sales at ppi Media. Effective immediately, Intergraphics will represent ppi Media and Digital Collections, offering the entire portfolio of solutions from both suppliers.“ Intergraph will work closely with the Asian representative for DC and ppi Media: Medialive Pte Ltd. and ppi Media’s classic products, PlanPag and AdPag, which are used to automate the planning and production of daily newspapers and magazines, south-east Asian publishers are increasingly implementing cross-media solutions such as AdX for integrated ad management for print, web, tablets or broadcasting and Content-X, the new and successful multimedia editorial system solution. ppi Media in south-east Asia ppi Media has been active in the south-east Asian market since 2003. Its customers include, among others, Post Publishing Company Ltd in Thailand, Singapore Press Holdings and MediaCorp in Singapore, and the Compass Gramedia Group in Indonesia. Apart from a range of DC’s archive solutions – e. g. at Mediaprima and The Star in Malaysia From left to right: Reiner Ebenhoch, CEO MediaLive Asia, Christian Finder, Head of International Sales at ppi Media, Ole Olsen, CEO Digital Collections, Jesada T. Suwan, CEO Intergraphics in Thailand, Prayong Daranuwat, Sales Manager at Intergraphics in Thailand Grow with ProLiner. The ProLiner is the world’s most modular and most reliable inserting system. If the marketrequirements change, the ProLiner can be adjusted easily with tailor-made solutions. When combined with the integrated NewsStitch stitching unit, it can be used to produce the most diverse and creative products. From gathering Page 2 www.mullermartini.com, phone +41 (0)62 745 45 75 tasks and stitching right through to adding inserts, semi-commercial products can be produced in a single process step. What’s more, the efficient and innovative manufacturing process offers long-term investment security. The right inserting system, whatever the product – Grow with ProLiner. ProLiner inserting system with integrated NewsStitch stitching unit. December 2013 Editorial – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition The multimedia fight is only beginning The fight for the multimedia power is increasingly growing. It is obvious: All media channel offers and thus the overall media consumption habits are changing almost every day. Media channels are merging and the communication is becoming increasingly mobile and interactive. Readers and viewers are expecting that information is realised via multimedia. In the United States, the Washington Post has been almost given away to the Amazon founder at a sale price of 250 million US dollars. The listed á la Google Internet providers, etc. – who gained their advantages from the newspaper media for free, can now afford their hobbies. They take newspapers over but seldom really buy them. In Germany, Axel Springer, led by the media strategist Dr. Mathias Döpfner, has merged its quality newspaper „Die Welt“ with N24 Media. It is buying the N24 news channel and takes Stefan Aust, the former head of „Der Spiegel“, into the team. The merger of Springer‘s newspaper „Die Welt“ and N24 shall be the beginning of an attack against the Imprint PreMedia-Newsletter GmbH Management Information for the Media Industry Publisher: Prof.Ing. Karl Malik Managing Director: Dipl.-Graph. Piri Malik leading news magazine „Der Spiegel“ and ARD/ZDF to gain multimedia control in Germany. The largest coalition between Springer and Stefan Aust, 67, is not only possible because Aust is the editor of „Die Welt“ but also because his TV news channel N24 and 300 employees have been sold to Springer and integrated into the „Die Welt“ group. Dr. Döpner has thus realised his long dream of TV integration. A development which can become exemplary for the future of large newspaper media provided there are enough funds and resources. For media houses other than Axel Springer, this is possible to only a very limited extent. Rupert Murdoch has gained its own experiences. A sobering balance for the newspaper publishers who have been trusting in Axel Springer‘s and Rupert Murdoch‘s multimedia model. Is this really inevitable? Money alone cannot win hearts and does not lead to media consumer sustainability. Is it not the proximity to customers, new product offers via all media channels, particularly focused on people‘s needs in the area of circulation? Events strengthening brand loyalty, also by developing and trying new products. Business models in which free media are considered part of our free, democratic society. A successful multimedia payment model requires own new ways of corporate development. What I mean is to have a corporate culture relying on motivated employees and economic viability. Recently, I asked a successful media manager who proudly spoke about his further campaign of realisation by cutting staff: Where will your children work when the time comes? He suddenly became less talkative, even thoughtful and more open. More human. It is a matter of the future of free, economic, independent media. With quality journalism which is paid for the free speech and critical reports. We need media – via all possible channels. We must grow with them while keeping an eye on the quality of contents. I wish you all the best for the holiday period and courage for the new challenges in free speech media, via print, Internet and mobile! Yours, Prof. Ing. Karl Malik [email protected] PreMedia Newsletter Portal Available 24 hours a day worldwide wherever you are: www.premedianewsletter.de for the German version and www.premedianewsletter.com for the English World Edition Street: Adalbert-Seifriz-Straße 53, Zip-Code City: D- 69151 Neckargemünd/Germany Phone: (+49) 62 23 7 47 57 Fax: (+49) 62 23 7 41 39 http//www.premedianewsletter.de e-mail: [email protected] also aviailable as APP under PreMedia Newsletter.com (English) and PreMedia Newsletter.de (German) for 2,99 Euro Subscription Price outside Germany 12 editions 185,00 Euro invcluding shipping. E-Paper Subscription: 95,00 Euro Rate-Chart No. 1/2014 applies Page 3 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Index 06 Appvertisement – Ads on personal devices CURRENT TRENDS IN THE MEDIA INDUSTRY ppi Media and Digital Collections Increase Presence in South-east Asia.2 Editorial The multimedia fight is only beginning.....................................................3 Coverstory Appvertisement – Ads on personal devices...............................................7 TALKING WITH EXPERTS manroland web systems GmbH puts emphasis on print specialisation ..12 Eckhard Hörner-Maraß, the managing director of manroland web systems GmbH in Augsburg People in the Spotlight La Razón – strong partnership with ProtecMedia....................................16 Page 4 December 2013 12 manroland web systems GmbH puts emphasis on print specialisation Eckhard Hörner-Maraß, the managing director of manroland web systems GmbH in Augsburg CURRENT TRENDS IN THE MEDIA INDUSTRY Raju Narisetti’s Top 9 Challenges Facing Journalism.............................18 Job 1 for newspapers: Audience development.........................................20 Media that is dynamically changing .......................................................21 “Sporty” teamwork: red.web and MSU announce cooperation...............24 Struggling industry throttles newspaper metrics......................................26 The Sun has digital subscribers and soccer, but the goal is hard to see...26 Lineup Systems’ impressive growth and technology roadmap secures future for publishers in a turbulent market...................27 Latest news from the supply industry Dependability and performance tip the scales.........................................30 Mittelland Zeitungsdruck AG upgrades with ABB production management systems.............................................................31 KBA: shrinking backlog dims 2014 outlook...........................................31 Index – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition December 2013 40 18 World’s first 160-page LITHOMAN begins operation Raju Narisetti’s Top 9 Challenges Facing Journalism Latest news from the supply industry 44 Offset and inkjet newspaper printing from one source Special Report – World Publishing Expo 2013 Verlagsgruppe Rhein Main banks on prepress solutions by ppi Media...32 WESTFALEN-BLATT opts for ppi Media..............................................42 The Boston Globe signs for Integrated Advertising, Production and Business System from Miles 33...............................................................32 Total upgrade in St. Galler Rheintal........................................................42 New sales company Koenig & Bauer do Brasil in Sao Paulo.................34 Beijing Daily moves into commercial printing with China’s first Goss M-800 web press......................................................................................34 A fitness program for the newspaper.......................................................35 Boosting efficiency, minimizing set-up times..........................................36 ABB to retrofit Wifag OF370 press at La Nacion, Buenos Aires............37 With MILENIUM we have reduced the working time in the editorial area by at least one hour...........................................................................38 Profit and the compatibility concept........................................................39 Management change at ABB Printing......................................................39 World’s first 160-page LITHOMAN begins operation............................40 CCI to buy Escenic – the perfect match...................................................41 Offset and inkjet newspaper printing from one source............................44 How NPR lures younger digital audiences..............................................46 ppi Media enters the market in Kenya.....................................................47 The Sun attracts 117,000 paying subscribers to its Sun+ digital service.................................................................................47 “The newspaper industry is alive and well”............................................48 The Portuguese newspaper A Bola, available in e-paper, tablets and smartphones with Protecmedia viewers...................................................49 ppi Media looks back at a successful World Publishing Expo 2013.......50 People in the Spotlight Richards retires after 45 Years in the Industry.........................................51 Page 5 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Coverstory December 2013 Appvertis Ads on perso Use of Newspaper Apps2 I am interested I am interested very much to some extent Browsing apps Success factors in mobile marketing I am not interested 60% 26% 13% Daily newspaper apps 63% 31% 6% News apps 39% 10% 33% 6% Apps for business 41% 39% 20% Apps for playing 20% 32% 47% Book apps 29% 40% 31% Video apps 23% 44% 33% Service apps I am not interested 51% 61% I am interested to some extent Success factors Personalisation Localisation Regularly Emotionalisation Ubiquity Interactivity I am interested very much 20% 40% 60% 80% 100% Temporary Novelty Low costs/contact Although a genuine interest exists in „Press Apps“, – national brands are the first that come to mind (SPIEGEL, BILD) – very few regional publications still offer interesting apps, that meet the requirements of the relevant target group. 2 Effective sources: BDZV tablet study Stuttgart Media University Page 6 Stuttgart Media University Page 10 Mobile Promotion Ad Link Mobile sticker ad Advantage: The Promotion Link Ad must be produced with a low technological overhead, as it consists of only one image, a link and a short advertising text. If it is customized to the App‘s editorial design, it is not immediately recognizable as an ad. Disadvantage: If the Promotion Link Ad is customized to the editorial design, it is not as eye-catching as an advertising space, which stands out from its environment. This makes it easier for the ad to be ignored and to remain unnoticed. Advantage: The horizontal scrolling ad space directs the user‘s attention to it. If the ad space is not automatically enabled, but instead is opened by a user click, then the ad is not perceived as intrusive. In addition, a small ad space on the side, which does not give much away and which only hints at something, can awaken the user‘s curiosity. Disadvantage: The sliding in of the ad space disrupts the user‘s usual behavior. The inserted ad space covers editorial content that the user possibly wanted to read at the time. This can be interpreted as a nuisance. The disadvantage of being activated by the user is that s/he can simply ignore the ad space and in certain circumstances simply not see it. Stuttgart Media University Stuttgart Media University Page 6 Page 15 Page 16 Coverstory – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition December 2013 Mobile Interstitial Ad sement – onal devices Advantage: The advantages of the interstitial ad is its size. As it completely fills the screen, users are obliged to notice it or to view it. It is also easy to use and available on Rich Media Elements, as it fills the entire screen and therefore offers enough space for images and interactive elements. Disadvantage: The interstitial ad can quickly be perceived as disruptive, insofar as it is automatically activated, and appears without the user having made any selection and it fills the entire screen area. In this way the user‘s original app use is disrupted. Stuttgart Media University Page 13 Mobile Content Ad Mobile Expandable Ad Advantage: The mobile content ad can be created at a low overhead. Furthermore, it is inserted relatively unobtrusively in the typical product structure of a Smartphone App and is considered as less intrusive. If it is well adapted in the App‘s layout, it is not immediately identifiable as an ad space. A banner in the larger format is a better way of attracting the users‘ attention. Disadvantage: While the content ad is inserted relatively unobtrusively in the App‘s product structure, it is easier to overlook it or not pay attention to it. Advantage: The advantage of the expandable ad, where it is not automatically activated, is that it only expands when the user interacts with the ad. In its original format it is therefore not intrusive and offers the user more information if s/he is explicitly interested in it. (Different to pre-expandable ads.) Disadvantage: In the expandable ad the user can easily ignore the ad space or simply skip over it. The disadvantage of the pre-expandable ad is that it can disrupt the user behavior, as it is automatically activated and it forces the user to view it. Stuttgart Media University Stuttgart Media University Page 12 Mobile Sticky Ad Mobile Gesture Ad Picture 1 Page 14 Picture 1 Picture 2 Advantage: The users can decide themselves if they want to view the advertising or not, in this way advertising is considered to be less of a nuisance. Furthermore, the interaction with the ad space increases the user‘s level of attention. Disadvantage: As users can decide for themselves whether or not to view the ad, they can also choose to ignore the ad and possibly do not notice it at all. If the ad is not well prepared, it can make users perceive them as being badly made. This can result in a negative image. Advantage: The ad space reappears after scrolling which means that the user‘s attention is repeatedly directed to the ad space. Disadvantage: As the tablet sticky ad reappears continuously, the user can find it annoying. Stuttgart Media University Stuttgart Media University Page 17 Page 18 Page 7 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Coverstory Nokia Lumia, Sony Xperia, Samsung Galaxy, Apple iPhone, Motorola Razor, Asus Padfone, HTC One, Samsung Galaxy, Samsung Note, Samsung Galaxy Note, Apple iPad, Lenovo Thinkpad Tablet, Motorola Xoom, Samsung Galaxy Tab, HTC Flyer – even an extract from the list of currently available smart phones and tablets shows the diversity and dynamics of the mobile devices market. At the same time, this diversity also demonstrates the huge potential for the range of mobile media products. The use of mobile devices is continually increasing, not least because data tariffs are becoming cheaper and due to broad network coverage. These facts alone must be cause for celebration in the press industry – completely new markets and potential are still opening up, in order to be able to counter the constant gradual collapse and contraction of the traditional markets. Many investigations and studies on media use are cause for hope, in particular studies of use by younger people, who are showing a preference in the future for mobile information channels. In addition to the question, if and whether editorial contents can be monetized in the Internet and on mobile devices and the ensuing “paid content” discussion, as a media company it is natural to immediately think about marketing advertising formats on mobile devices. The lessons learned from classic Internet display advertising demonstrate that it is not possible to simply import a business model to a new medium. There are particular points that must be taken into consideration, in order to be successful in the mobile market. As is always the case with a new development, there are currently no standardized terms or norms. Many companies are conducting experiments and trying out different options with clients. December 2013 Digital society People who have not reached much in the digital world Digital outsiders Casual users Digital professionals People feeling confident in the digital world Trend users Digital Digital avantprofessionals garde Success factors for advertising in News apps This article deals with a few general points, without claiming to be a complete analysis or a guarantee of success, as the author is very aware of the dynamics of this new field. Nonetheless, it is worth analyzing findings from advertising (advertisement) and the opportunities and special features of mobile applications (apps) – which can therefore best be described using the term “appvertisement”, as it is ultimately about advertising on mobile devices. What does “mobile marketing” actually mean? Mobile marketing can use the advantage of Individualization in a focused manner, in which for example the customer’s personal preferences and possibly the location preference are taken into consideration. In the final analysis, “one-to-one” marketing occurs with a stronger Push component. This means theoretically that advertising messages can be sent to the clients at a targeted time – although only where they give their permission. The advantages lie in a higher degree of involvement and therefore a greater level of interest in the advertising message. From the advertiser’s perspective this represents improved advertising contact and less waste coverage. According to Andre Alpar in his great online marketing manual: “The customer must feel that you are speaking directly to him, that you are responding to his particular interests and his way of life, and that he is valued.” This aspect of subjective communication is set to become ever more important in the future. Of course the recipient can be bombarded with over 3,000 advertising stimuli daily so there is a need for a high degree of selectivity. Especially advertising in electronic media, television and Internet is very quickly perceived as intrusive and can for example easily be hidden using software tools. (This is incidentally a major advantage of printed media, in which advertising is not perceived as intrusive but rather as supplementary information.) For this reason, mobile advertising is more useful as a supplementary and focused advertising tool, which of course must take into account success factors such as personalization, localization, ubiquitousness, interactivity, user friendliness and emotionalization. Are we not all a little bit “mobile”? In the study “Germany’s digital society: A comparison of six user types”, Matthias Peterhans from Initiative D21 in collaboration with the Federal Ministry for Finance and Technology, researched and categorized society in the digital world since Prof. Christof Seeger, Dean of Stuttgart Media University, encourages newspaper media to be brave when it comes to innovation Page 8 Coverstory – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition December 2013 2009. 1,005 interviews were conducted and formed the basis of this study. that user types of mobile media can be divided into two main groups “Digital novices” and “Digital experts”, which can be more accurately subdivided into six further segments. The digital society (Source: http://www.initiative21.de) If you compare the two main types of user groups, a significant difference emerges in terms of mobile Internet use. While the “Digital Novices”, who represent 62% of the German population, hardly ever use mobile Internet up to now, every second person in the “Digital Experts” group (38% of the German population) is already a mobile user of the World Wide Web. Experts therefore assume that mobile Internet use is set to grow hugely in the years ahead. By the year 2014 at the latest, it is expected that there will be more mobile users accessing the Internet worldwide with mobile devices than with stationary computers. Mobile Internet speed, which has been the main issue up to now, will be resolved by then, with the nationwide introduction of new LTE technology. With transfer rates of up to 150,000 KBit/s, specific rural regions could have high speed mobile Internet connections, which would imply that even greater increases are likely. According to the Digital Life Study in 2011 (http://2010.tnsdigitallife.com/) 43 per cent of tablet owners use their devices in transit, 41 per cent prefer surfing while they watch television, the remaining 21 per cent of this group are more likely to use it incidentally when cooking and shopping. It is immediately obvious that users of smart phones behave differently. Currently 57 per cent of digital novices and 61 per cent of digital experts use the Internet on their smart phones while on the go. This study could be helpful in the design of planned advertising measures. Given that the majority of users criticize the slow speeds of the mobile Internet, more elaborate and complex ads are not recommended, at least for now. Interruptions in videos or animations that require too much traffic or take too long to load, are found to be intrusive and therefore do not achieve the hoped for advertising effectiveness of a campaign. Of course this problem is likely to be resolved, as already mentioned, by the expansion of the LTE technology. The success of a mobile ad in news apps is dependent on several factors. As a result, design and usability of an In-App ad are just as important as ensuring that the ad is positioned at the right time and with the right topic within the app. In order to maximize the success of the advertising campaigns in news apps, some important rules must be kept in mind at the planning and creation stages. It is not only the app that should be designed according to certain rules, but the ad itself that appears there. To make it as easy as possible for the users to receive the advertising message and at the same time not to bother them too much with ads, it is important to stick to some design and usability principles. u u esign for touch D – Independent of the device manufacturers the minimum sizes for “Touch Areas” must be adhered to (Minimum size 44 x 44 pixels) – Intervals and arrangement between the clickable elements must be adhered to, so that the recipient can navigate in a focused way. esign for medium D – The number of different output devices poses serious challenges for the creatives with regard to the technical data, such as resolution, screen size etc. – A good ad must adapt quickly to the different output channels. u Design for mode – When designing mobile advertising it is important to consider where the ad will be viewed in portrait or landscape mode, as these also affect the size of the ad space and the design. u esign for system D – With multimedia content, the output device must also be taken into account. Flash programming for example is not executable on an iOS device. Mobile Rich Media Ads Mobile Rich Media Ads are defined as ads that contain interactive multimedia elements on top of “classic” static content. For example where ads come loaded with current information (up-to-date weather forecasts or stock exchange rates for instance), ads can be extended over a larger area by clicking the banner and also the location of the App user can be identified by GPS and a local map can be displayed. However, the mobile website or app is not exited when the interactive content is displayed, but instead the content extends over the content of the app and can then be closed again with a click. Multiple studies demonstrate that InApp ads with multimedia content are more successful than static banners, with the caveat that Rich Media Ads in certain circumstances with slower Internet connections are annoying. The ever improving net coverage with 3G and especially the new standard LTE are helping to resolve this issue. The fact that many newspaper apps can be downloaded in one go in the morning and are then available offline to the user for the remainder of the day, further reduces the significance of the problem for newspaper apps. At the same time, it is important when creating these types of ads to ensure that the required data volumes do not exceed a certain size. The morning download of the newspaper edition should not take any more time than absolutely necessary and an app should not use up too much device memory. Recommendations for newspaper publishing The potential and opportunities in the area of mobile advertising are actually enormous. Nonetheless it is vital not to indiscriminately implement everything just because it is technically possible, without first evaluating the added value to the recipients and their user experience. Newspaper publishers have an opportunity to offer mobile advertising as an add-on and a bonus, based on the classic print campaign. Portrait Prof. Christof Seeger Christof Seeger (born on 26 July 1973 in Germany) is a professor for periodical media for print and online markets since 2005 in the degree course Media Publishing at Stuttgart Media University. Since 2007 he is Dean of the Master’s Degree Course in Print & Publishing at Stuttgart Media University. Seeger completed his studies in Print Technology at Stuttgart College of Printing in Stuttgart, majoring in Marketing and Management. He was publishing director and managing director of a medium-sized newspaper publication for several years. Seeger gained international experience with the news magazine Newsweek and was involved in several projects in other European countries. In 2004 he founded a management consultancy firm and since then he has collaborated on several publishing projects. He has been a lecturer and trainer in management and sales topics for the Federal Association of German Newspaper Publishers and the Newspaper Marketing Society (ZMG). At Stuttgart Media University, his areas of interest included communications issues in the area of media use and media reception. Seeger investigates for example reading behavior with print products or the use of mobile devices through eye tracking. Page 9 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Coverstory In order to be able to profitably market the particular potential of mobile advertising within the context of newspaper apps, it is indispensable for the sales teams to be properly qualified. The difficulties in sales of online advertising forms are well known. Now mobile is adding a whole new dimension to this. In its own interest, publishers should promote standardization for mobile ads, in December 2013 order to be able to offer an appropriate set of formats and options that they know well and that can offer the customer the desired added value. Ideally, publisher representatives would be able to sit down with customers at the design phase in order to discuss the benefits of multimedia advertising or even a crossmedia campaign at this point. In summary, it can be said that “ Appvertisement” represents an additional new challenge for press publishing, which ultimately can only be successfully mastered when we learn to think from the recipient’s point of view. In the process, patterns of use, user environments and human-machine interactions must be evaluated at the design stage, so that mobile advertising formats are acceptable and ultimately, that they are successful for advertising clients and the publisher. Kai Diekmann‘s focus at BILD.de is on the youth Winds of change blowing from the conservative angle: Julian Reichelt (photo), 33, most recently a controversial advocate of global NSA monitoring, assumes the role of chief editor at Bild.de. Predecessor Manfred Hart, at 60 almost twice as old as Reichelt, withdrew from his position in February 2014 in exchange for a role as a chief editor for digital development projects. The momentum is coming from Senior Executive Kai Diekmann, who, following his experience in Silicon Valley is now putting all his energy into online efforts and rejuvenation, although at 49 he is no longer a spring chicken himself. Reichelt is a homegrown Springer talent, having started his writing career for “Bild” at 18 years of age, a student of Springer’s school of journalism and a senior reporter for “Bild” since 2007, even reporting from crisis and war zones. His digital footprint is not particularly deep, apart from his attempt to present himself as a quick lateral thinker in the NSA/Snowdon affair where he became the victim of a shit storm with a controversial commentary piece. Hart has been managing Bild.de since 2007 and with quiet persistence has transformed the website, which for a long time lagged behind Spiegel Online, into the news site with the greatest number of clicks in Germany. In the future, Hart is set to take on community, social media or video projects, and teach online journalism to the students at the Axel Springer school of journalism. Wijeya Newspapers Ltd., Sri Lanka The first step towards automation in the mailroom Wijeya Newspapers Ltd. is one of the most innovative media groups in Sri Lanka, and at the same time can record some of the country’s highest sales figures. The company publishes more than 14 daily and weekly newspapers and magazines in all three national languages – Sinhala, Tamil and English – with an overall circulation of more than a million copies. For the company, recent years have also been marked by rising circulations, especially in the case of the Sunday newspapers. To meet the growth in demand, the company has decided to add a 24-page press with a production speed of 45,000 copies an hour to the two existing newspaper presses. To make full use of the speed and productivity advantages of the press, and ultimately transfer those gains all the way through to the loading docks, too, Wijeya Newspapers made the decision to make its first investment in mailroom automation. The company has installed a UTR Universal conveyor as the basis, and has automated bundling with a MultiStack stacking system. Wijeya Newspapers was able to configure the line layout individually, so that products reach the MultiStack system by a direct route. On arrival, the daily newspapers are processed into bundles, and go to the sales outlets in that form. The team at Wijeya Newspapers is especially impressed by Ferag’s added-value concept, which allows new sources of revenue to be tapped by extending the mailroom. Page 10 V.l.: Sujan Wijewardene, Director, Wijeya Newspapers Ltd.; Janaka Rathnakumara, Assistant General Manager, Hokandara Press Complex, Wijeya Newspapers Ltd., Marcel Binder, Sales Director, Ferag AG Publishing on all channels! www.worldpublishingexpo.com PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Talking with experts December 2013 manroland web systems GmbH puts emphasis on print specialisation PreMedia Newsletter: Dear Mr Hörner-Maraß: since February 2012, manroland web systems, Augsburg, is owned by the Possehl Group from Lübeck. What are your strategic visions for the leading traditional brand in manroland’s highly integrated printing press manufacture in the foreseeable future? Eckhard Hörner-Maraß: Our strategy has been developed on the assumption that manroland web systems will keep its print potential also in the future.We are going to change. But this will be an evolutionary and not revolutionary change. As a man who approaches things in a practical and realistic way I say to myself: Cobbler, stick to your trade. For us, this is the entire product and service range, all around the topic of printing process in its broadest sense.It may sound somewhat conservative but we are going to change a lot here. As regards our general focus, we are going to develop to a full-line supplier for the conventional print area. With a complete, finely graded product range, from entry-level to premium-level. In certain regions of the world, potentials come from the emerging markets such as India and China. This is why we are going to expand our product range downward. In the past, we focused a lot on technological premium solutions. The entry-level products persuade customers by their simplicity and ease of operation while keeping the same print quality. Brief profile of Eckhard Hörner-Maraß Eckhard Hörner-Maraß (53) has been the managing director of manroland web systems GmbH in Augsburg since 15 September 2012. The graduate engineer has more than 25 years‘ experience as a manager in mechanical engineering industry, among other things, in business management at JenbacherEnergiesysteme GmbH and Zeppelin Baumaschinen GmbH. Since 2002, Hörner-Maraß has been the managing director of HOLZMAPlattenaufteiltechnik GmbH, a company belonging to the HOMAG Group. Page 12 Another case in point is the service, one of our strengths already now.We are going to permanently expand our service portfolio. For instance, we are going to gradually increase our role as full-service provider within the entire value-added chain of our customers. With requirement-based solutions, tuned to the individual needs. Furthermore, we want to conquer new market segments. Our commitment to the digital print development proved to be rewarding in the recent successful sale. It took a little bit of patience, but it was worthwhile. The goal now is to make use of the existing know-how in a profitable way. In my opinion, here our opportunities are in the flexible packaging print, safety print and textile print. These are the disciplines in which we want to realise competitive products in a fast way. PreMedia Newsletter: With the growing importance of digital media and the changed media consumption habits, the print industry with its business models gains a new position. This equally applies to the printing houses and suppliers. What do you think about the opportunities of print communication in the newspaper and job printing? Eckhard Hörner-Maraß: I trust in the printed word and demand for printing machines will definitely come. This must be said first. I myself am an active Internet user. But I am sure that it will take several more generations to find suitable tools allowing to display modern media in the digital world in a profitable way. Until this time, printing machines will be required. December 2013 Talking with experts – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition “As a medium-sized enterprise we cannot change the market development absolutely, but we can definitely drive the market Eckhard Hörner-Maraß to some extent. ” Of course this does not mean that things will remain as they were before. Circulation may stagnate or reduce. This is why we have to adapt to the changing media consumption behaviour, but without rush. Because the new media like the Internet or devices like tablet will not replace the old, printed media completely. In this context I would like to mention the “Riepl’s Law”, formulated by Wolfgang Riepl in 1913. Riepl, at that time the chief editor of the largest Nuremberg newspaper, said: New media don’t displace old media, but accrete on top and converge with them. In this case this means that the printed media will change and have to search for new applications. This will keep them attractive. A glance at the past shows: neither radio nor cinema have been replaced by the television. On the contrary: Radio and cinema had to establish themselves anew after the spread of television. Thus publishers and printers have to develop new ideas and solutions. For example, with integrated inkjet Axel Springer realises a progressive approach while connecting printed and digital newspaper. Rupert Murdoch is another example. He combines analogue and digital technologies in the newspaper as cross-selling. Recently, he equipped 26 towers with integrated inkjet solutions at “News International” in Great Britain. PreMedia Newsletter: The ways the worldwide media markets develop are very different. For the print media markets and for the printing machine supply industry this means the opportunity and at the same time the threat. Where do you think are the opportunities for manroland web systems in this situation, the ability to successfully use growth potential? Eckhard Hörner-Maraß: There are opportunities and challenges, this is absolutely right. As global player we are dependent not only on Europe. Our sales are also strong in growing markets in Asia. The United States and Australia are characterised by a strong consolidation and centralisation. If we look at the opportunities, there is room for action in the regional newspaper printing, in the emerging markets and in the service sector overall. In particular, the newspaper market has a certain status, and here, “the fast ones beat the slow ones and the big ones the small ones”. An important keyword is “regional”. This is where I see the potential. In the newspaper sector, innovative, regional business models give publishers some opportunities. Here, digital technology will be increasingly used as supplement of the web offset. It can handle the requirements of the regional readers and advertisement and the reduced circulation in an even more individual way. Due to the collaboration with Océ, manroland web systems is well prepared for this. Apart from the technological premium segment, we want to find more customers in the emerging nations. Taking a lead from the slogan: “Think global, act local”, we are going to develop strategies how, as a fullline supplier, to timely provide all existing customers in the emerging markets with competitive products from manroland web systems. All direct and indirect product costs, from manufacture to the end customer, shall be analysed in detail and the right conclusions shall be drawn. Simplicity is the key to success! It will certainly be necessary to provide a less high-tech but still innovative product design. In the service sector there is also a growth potential. With our absolute customer orientation we ask our customers what they need. It is not what we primarily strive for to reach the maximum margin with certain activities. The customers increasingly demand holistic service concepts. So they can focus on their core competences. They want more then to have the opportunity to buy consumables, the keywords are retrofit and process optimisation. With print. competence we offer our customers services which are individually tuned to their needs in terms of the scope and content. This is the path we will continue to follow. PreMedia Newsletter: Are there any particularly successful product segments for you, some very successful manrolandLITHOMAN series for high-volume illustration printing? Eckhard Hörner-Maraß: You address illustration printing and you are right. Last year we were particularly successful here. Meanwhile, two thirds of machines with 96-page configuration on the market are from manroland web systems. The start-up of the large commercial web press at KraftSchlötels in Wassenberg was something special as well. A LITHOMAN with 180 page configuration is an achievement that makes us proud and demonstrates high Page 13 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Talking with experts December 2013 PreMedia Newsletter: What integrated process workflow solutions can manroland web systems offer to the potential investors as part of the holistic print media work process? For example, in the integration of digital and offset print? “The digital print and the related opportunities for our processing components and workflows are of the utmost importance.” Eckhard Hörner-Maraß performance. This is also reflected in the market shares which give us 36% in the sector of commercial web presses. We are also proud of the sold COLORMAN e:line or of the highly automated COLORMAN for the Finnish Punamusta. The dedication of e:line at the newspaper publishing house in Allgäu was a major success and a real highlight. Here we want to do more. The new control system with control centre and MobilPad is an explicitly successful product. This applies to the commercial and newspaper printing. After the last drupa 2012 we sold 26 systems. The touch screen control and the mobile control panel meet the customer requirements and are very popular in the printer applications. This also applies to News Limited in Australia. Here, the control system is expanded as part of a comprehensive retrofit. In addition, the retrofit and upgrade service segment gains increasingly in importance. Lately, we could assert ourselves in many projects. In addition to the extensive project for the Australian news, a large retrofit of the newspaper print machines at the Austrian print group Styria is pending. Page 14 Eckhard Hörner-Maraß: manroland web systems is one of the first companies to create a bridge between digital and offset. Because we do not leave the customers alone with the integration of processes and production equipment. For us, process electronics, product planning and hightech printing technology are a unit that ensures smooth production process in an optimum way. The users of the digital print processing modules FoldLine and FormerLine from manroland web systems benefit from this strength to the full extent. With the DigiLink and the printnetwork Bridge we have developed software modules that connect the previously separate production worlds of offset print and digital print. The DigiLink, for instance, allows planning of offset and digital production from a central workplace. In addition, it monitors the production in print and mailroom. Real multitasking connecting offset and digital in the workflow. PreMedia Newsletter: How important is the fast-growing digital printing for manroland web systems? 48 pages broadsheet 6/2 Colorman XL Autoprint at Athesia Talking with experts – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition December 2013 Eckhard Hörner-Maraß: The digital print and the related opportunities for our processing components and workflows are of the utmost importance. We have received orders, for example, for the FormerLine from Hucais Printing in China and for the FoldLine from RotolitoLombarda in Italy. This gives us power to stay optimistic. In these new approaches, we have to show a certain degree of patience. Together with the customers we have to develop completely new business models which can be quickly “produced out of thin air”. Long-term thinking and action have always been and continue to be required here. With the upcoming projects we can now prove how economical our installations are. This is how we want to persuade other potential clients. In my view, the strategic partnership with Océ is absolutely correct and important, it is planned for the long term and is future-oriented. We are not going to develop digital print heads ourselves because for a small enterprise it is really better not to do everything itself. PreMedia Newsletter: What can be the successful strategy for manroland web systems GmbH with 1,500 highly qualified employees in Augsburg in the medium term? Eckhard Hörner-Maraß, Managing Director manroland Websystems Inc. Colorman 6/2 XL Autoprint at Athesia at Bolzano, Italy Eckhard Hörner-Maraß: Product development : As a medium-sized enterprise we cannot change the market development absolutely, but we can definitely drive the market to some extent. This particularly concerns our new products and installations in the area of the continuous increase in productivity. We provide technology for competitive, attractive print products to secure a strong market position for print. We will continue to follow this path of progress, even in a smaller market. You mentioned our 1,500 employees, 1,400 in Augsburg and about 100 at our external companies. The advantages of our today’s middle-sized enterprise have already started to pay off. We are more than ever customer-oriented, very flexible and can quickly implement new customer solutions and are, due to the considerably leaner processes, more profitable. Many people are asking: Do you as a middle-sized company still have sufficient capacity for research and development? Here I can say: yes, we have. In our R&D efforts for the new machines as well as for the retrofits, we attach great importance to the demand-oriented solutions. What we should do in the first place is to increase productivity of our customers along the entire value-added chain. And if our customers are successful, we at manroland web systems will also have a successful future ahead of us. Page 15 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – People in the spotlight December 2013 La Razón – strong partnership with ProtecMedia example, the technical department consists of few technicians, we are talking about eight people, of which four belong to our newspaper and the other four are outsourcers. To be more precise, what we do is to rely on Protect for all the development of the sound composition and The admirable cathedral of Madrid “Santa María la Real de la Almudena” Herbert Kolling, ProtecMedia Germany, talking to Miguel Ángel Garcia: Herbert Kolling: Mr Garcia, he media world is undergoing a change. I thank you for your readiness for an interview with PreMedia Newsletter. Could you tell the readers of PreMedia Newsletter something about you and “La Razón”? Miguel Ángel García: As Mr Kolling has just mentioned, I am the technical director of “La Razón” since its foundation in 1998, specifically on 5th November 1998. The corporate philosophy externalises all what is not considered to be the core competency of this newspaper. “La Razón” is composed of a newsroom with approximately 200 220 journalists. At present, the newspaper has four offices distributed on the national territory in: Valencia, Seville, Barcelona and Valladolid, and the headquarters is located in Madrid. The truth is that we have been a newspaper that little by little has been positioning in the difficult press market of a country which regarding the read rates is in one of the lowest of Europe. But well we got our void in the market and we are going to keep trying to maintain that position and grow little by little. Herbert Kolling: I understand. For our international readers, how would you describe the current segment of the informative press in the market? How is your position in comparison with your competitors? Page 16 Miguel Ángel García: The newspaper “La Razón” belongs to GrupoPlaneta, that nowadays is one of the strongest communication groups of this country. Maybe we are the smallest newspaper, regarding its structure, but we are one of the national dailies with national coverage. And well, these are tough times for press, there is no reason to hide it. We all know that press is affected by two crises. The economic one which all of us are suffering, and the business model one. But I think that “La Razón”, being a newspaper with a light structure, in these times of storm and difficulties, maybe for this reason, can defend and assert itself better. Maybe we are able to move forward in a perhaps, less traumatic way than the rest of our competitors. La Razón relies on high-quality journalism Herbert Kolling: Yes, of course. And regarding Protect Media, what does the relationship look like, what products do you currently offer, what do you use and what is your first feeling? Miguel Ángel García: I would define the experience with ProtecMedia as satisfactory. Protect won the contest we initiated one year ago to select a new partner for semantic search at CMS. We were looking mainly for a reliable partner, a technological partner that would offer a level of confidence, and the guarantee of a product, a robust package product that is not that ad hoc, and would not mortgage us in future. I think we overcame it in an overwhelming manner because as I said, it is a really light newspaper; for Miguel ÁngelGarcía, technical director of the newspaper „La Razón“ December 2013 People in the spotlight – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition La Razon counts on the highly integrated Crossmedia Portal from Protec Media all the new things that can come up to us to be developed by this technological partner, a partner in which we trust. And another aspect that, in my opinion, is interesting to highlight, is that the managing department of our newsroom is really small, we are talking about nine editors. Nine editors are able to maintain a website with an optimum degree of actualization and a great dynamic. I think this says pretty a lot about the work tool. There is no need for a lot of people dedicated to update the website or make new designs and new templates. Herbert Kolling: Yes, that’s right. I want to thank you for your time, your patience and for answering kindly to all the questions. Thank you very much! Miguel Ángel García: I thank you. Herbert Kolling, Managing Director of ProtecMedia Germany, an experienced expert in the international media market Page 17 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Current trends in the media industry December 2013 Raju Narisetti’s Top 9 Challenges Facing Journalism With more and more people consuming news digitally, the future of journalism has never been brighter. But journalists of the future will face a number of challenges, according to Raju Narisetti, senior vice president and deputy head of strategy at the new News Corporation. Narisetti recently shared his predictions about the future of media with students at the West Virginia University P.I. Reed School of Journalism, (where I am dean) as part of our Future of Media — Now series. In a nod to the “listicle” format, popularized by BuzzFeed, Narisetti provided his top nine reasons why the road ahead for journalism will be tricky to navigate. 1. Print isn’t going away. Despite downsizing and cutbacks at the nation’s top newspapers, print journalism continues to offers advertisers the most effective way to reach audiences in many markets. For example, The Washington Post (where Narisetti served as a managing editor) still captures about 40 percent of the local market, providing a necessary revenue stream for the paper. “If it’s 50, 60, 70 percent of our revenue and profit is coming from print, we will always have to have kind of large staffs focused on print,” Narisetti said. Comparing print journalism to the declining auto industry, he said, “It’s like Detroit. Fewer people will make it [journalism], but you will always need somebody making it.” 2. Digital advertising isn’t the savior. While more readers are moving to digital, the revenues from digital haven’t kept pace — because the audience has become increasingly fragmented, giving advertisers the upper hand. “If you’re an advertiser, the choices you have where you can run your ads continue to explode,” Narisetti said. “And as a result you [news media] can make a fair amount of money on digital, but it’s nowhere close to what the revenue is for print.” Narisetti says it’s essential that newsrooms build new revenue models into new digital products and applications. He described The New York Times’ Pulitzer Prizewinning Snowfall project as an “amazing” experience that fell short because it had no revenue model attached to it. “At the end of the day, the Snowfall page views are really empty calories because they really haven’t generated any incremental revenue.” 3. Paywalls are here to stay and struggle. West Virginia University journalism students take notes and tweet during Narisetti’s presentation. The number of newspapers with paywalls will continue to grow but with varying degree of success because it’s hard to attract digital subscribers willing to pay for content. Narisetti says that the most a news organization can expect to attract from either a paywall or a metered model is about 5 percent of its unique digital audience. “If it’s seen as an extra source of revenue, I think it will succeed, but if paywalls are seen as solving the problem [of funding journalism], then most of them will fail,” said Narisetti. 4. News will have to go to readers; they don’t have to come to us. With Facebook and other social media providing new pathways to journalism, the modern audience doesn’t expect to work hard to “find” the news. Today’s digital journalists must be able to write, report and market their stories. At the very minimum, reporters need to know how to use SEO to their advantage. “In the print world, there is a position called circulation marketer, whose job is to figure out how to make money. That doesn’t exist in the digital world,” said Narisetti. “In 2013 the definition of a journalist must include ‘I will do everything I can to bring more people to my journalism.’” 5. Web video offers a possible way out. Raju Narisetti Page 18 Web video offers a significant monetization opportunity because (a) audiences want it and (b) the pre-roll advertising can be embedded into the content. December 2013 “Video is the first form of journalism where we have figured out that when somebody watches it – no matter where they watch it – the business model travels with it,” Narisetti said. For that reason, The Wall Street Journal — a former print-only publication — is now producing about 1,600 videos or 120 hours of video a month, making it the largest producer of video in the world outside of a television newsroom. 6. Mobile might be a threat or opportunity, but it is a journalism reality. With an increasing number of people accessing news through mobile devices, news organizations must adopt a “mobilefirst” model — or risk becoming irrelevant. This means packaging content in a way that is easy to digest on a small “window.” For example, long narrative print leads could be replaced with shorter, snappier leads that can be read on the first screen. It also means devoting significantly more resources to mobile, which is a long way in coming. Narisetti says that even at The Wall Street Journal — which 36 percent of its audience reads only on mobile — just a handful of people serve on its mobile team. Current trends in the media industry – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition 8. Good and bad experiences all come at the same intersection: content and technology. To produce impactful digital journalism, reporters, developers and designers all have to work together to create quality content that also will engage an audience. But working as a team can be challenging for professionals who don’t always understand and appreciate what the “other” is doing. “When you go into newsrooms, you don’t have to code, but what you have to be able to do as a journalist is to speak the language of developers,” said Narisetti. “If you make the conversation about what is the experience we’re trying to give to our audience, the developers get it and understand what you’re trying to do.” 9. Newsrooms now face a new competitor: our advertisers. Many companies that advertised in traditional media are now going directly to their consumers to promote their brands. The rise of “sponsored content” and “native advertising” has created a major threat to newsrooms. Companies have also become skilled content producers, vying for “the single nonrenewable resource my readers have, which is their time,” said Narisetti. For example, General Electric is trying to position itself as a leader in innovation through videos and social media campaigns such as #6secondsciencefair. “We have to start thinking, how do we engage with these brands, how do we help them do this,” he said. If news organizations don’t play in that space, they “are not going to have the opportunity to make any significant revenue in digital.” Ultimately, the key to thriving and not just surviving in the ever-evolving digital environment is to continue to adapt, experiment and anticipate what’s coming next. “The good thing about talking about the future is that it’s in the future,” he said. “But the bad thing is, it doesn’t have a sign post saying it’s coming. You just wake up one day and realize it kind of hit you, and if you’re not prepared, you’re left behind.” -Maryanne Reed is the Dean at West Virginia University’s P.I. Reed School of Journalism.- 7. Great journalism matters, but how readers experience that journalism will matter even more. Today’s news consumers are “promiscuous” — going from source to source and device to device, giving news organizations a limited amount of time to capture their attention. “The advantage we had with great journalism or great storytelling exclusives used to be a day when we were primarily in the print world,” said Narisetti. “It then shrunk to a few hours when the websites had to catch up. If you’re lucky, now it has shrunk to two minutes.” Narisetti says that “amazing” content is no longer enough. The only way to catch and keep an audience is to create compelling experiences that keep them coming back, such as The Wall Street Journal’s graphic that tracked Mark Zuckerberg’s wealth in real-time when Facebook went public or The New York Times’ interactive Academy Awards ballot on Facebook. Karl Malik and Raju Narisetti Page 19 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Current trends in the media industry December 2013 Job 1 for newspapers: Audience development Alan D. Mutter is perhaps the only CEO in Silicon Valley who knows how to set type one letter at a time. Mutter began his career as a newspaper columnist and editor at the Chicago Daily News and later rose to City Editor of the Chicago Sun-Times. In 1984, he became No. 2 editor of the San Francisco Chronicle. He left the newspaper business in 1988 to join InterMedia Partners, a start-up that became one of the largest cable-TV companies in the U.S. Mutter was the COO of InterMedia when he moved to Silicon Valley in 1996 to join the first of the three start-up companies he led as CEO. The companies he headed were a pioneering Internet service provider and two enterprise-software companies. Mutter now is a consultant specializing in corporate initiatives and new media ventures involving journalism and technology. He ordinarily does not write about clients or subjects that will affect their interests. In the rare event he does, this will be fully disclosed. Mutter also is on the adjunct faculty of the Graduate School of Journalism at the University of California at Berkeley. While strategic audience development ought to be the top priority at every newspaper, efforts toward fulfilling this vital mission are fitful and far between at many publications. This has got to change, if the industry intends to sustain its strength. The bad news for newspapers, as discussed here, is that a significant majority of the adults in the typical community don’t subscribe to the paper in either its print or digital incarnations. But the flip side of this problem is that the abundant population of non-readers in every community represents a substantial base of potential consumers for the transformative and delightful new products that publishers could bring to market – if they put their minds to it. For the avoidance of doubt, a static, iPadfriendly PDF of the day’s print edition does Page 20 not, IMHO, qualify as a transformative and satisfying digital product. It’s not that newspapers neglect audience building. They don’t. But their outreach is aimed almost exclusively at capturing the increasingly rare customer who reliably pays for print or digital access for months, if not years, on end. Those are great customers and any business would be glad to have them. But the population of steadfast loyalists is dwindling, as modern consumers take advantage of the digital media to customize the news, entertainment and information they ingest. Given shifting consumer preferences, newspapers need to think differently, if not to say obsessively, about how to serve – and profit – from individuals who don’t look, think or behave like traditional subscribers. Unfortunately, most newspapers don’t. Here’s why they should: u Falling readership. Since peaking at 63.3 million subscribers in 1994 (the year before the Internet entered the public consciousness), weekday newspaper circulation today is 38 million to 43 million, as detailed here. Back in 1994, 63.5% of American households subscribed to newspapers, according to an analysis of census data. Today, barely one in three homes take a newspaper. u Rising competition. Modern consumers are hooked on the power conferred by the digital media to pick and choose what, where, when and how they get news and other information. The Pew Research Center last year found that two-thirds of Americans visited upwards of three or more outlets to keep up with current events. Twenty percent of urban dwellers accessed six or more news sources, while 11% of rural residents consulted half a dozen or more sources. u Demographic drift. Most young consumers simply don’t dig newspapers, leaving publishers with ever-older audiences that eventually will age to extinction. The Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at Oxford University earlier this year reported that 55% of individuals under the age of 35 preferred the digital media as their primary news source, as compared with 5% in the same age category who preferred print. Because there is no reason to believe these trends are likely to reverse, publishers hoping to sustain and reinvigorate their valuable franchises need to concentrate on finding new products and services to attract the readers they need – and the advertisers they want. Newspapers can create transformative and delightful products across the growing range of digital platforms by leveraging their unmatched content-creation capabilities, vast archives, unrivaled local marketing power and the deep commercial relationships they possess in each of the communities they serve. What audiences? What products? What platforms? The answers to those vexing questions will be revealed only after publishers invest the time and money necessary to develop thoughtful strategic plans that take into account local market conditions, the competitive forces arrayed around them, and the unique strengths and weaknesses of their respective organizations. Equipped with well-wrought strategic plans, publishers can invest wisely and confidently in opportunities to attract new audiences and revenue streams. As mission-critical as strategic planning and audience building ought to be, these missions fail to be accorded the priority they deserve at many newspapers. Some newspapers delegate “audience” to the editor, who somehow is supposed to fix things by intuitively producing the “right” sort of content. Some publishers assign audience development to the circulation manager, who somehow is supposed to boost subscriptions while curbing cancellations. Some papers allocate audience development to the marketing department, whose staffing, research and/or promotional budgets often are the first to be cut in moments of financial distress. At many newspapers, these missions aren’t even explicitly on the radar at all. When the development of transformative and delightful products is left largely to chance, the outcome is unlikely to be auspicious, because successful innovations seldom emerge from seat-of-the pants hunches, scattered responsibilities and episodic tactical skirmishes. Success requires a well-researched, well-conceived, well-articulated and wellcommunicated strategic plan that is the responsibility of everyone in the building. At most newspapers, this approach not only would be transformative but also would make life more delightful than it has been in years. December 2013 Current trends in the media industry – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition Media that is dynamically changing The strategy of sitting it out, until an innovator successfully creates the model of the multimedia newspaper strategy, which many can copy and experience in advance, is now merely a very recent memory for newspapers and magazine publishers. Axel Springer AG, as Europe’s largest media corporation, quickly transformed itself into an Internet store, where one of the growth business areas is magazine media and magazines of the red line (Bild) and blue line (Die Welt). Springer is no longer available as an exemplary model. The significant changes in the media industry are challenging newspaper publishing all over the world in hitherto unknown forms. It is all about defining and developing new sources of revenue in order to successfully market the unique synergy potentials of print and multimedia, while maintaining the greatest possible level of economic independence in newspaper publishing. The INMA annual congress 2013 in Berlin provided valuable suggestions and case studies on this topic. Best practice examples such as the importance of the newspaper brand, reader and advertising coverage and that turnover could grow, more than justified the exceptionally high visitor numbers. The multimedia abundant society The daily sensory overload of permanently transmitted news, researched to varying degrees of accuracy, via the stock exchange newbies Twitter, Google News etc. and many other media channels available around the clock, is one side of current media reality. The other side is the publication of serious information via traceable sources so that these are also of value. And which the reader knows to have been thoroughly researched and substantiated. At the moment we are experiencing a development, in which those companies that have brought newspaper and other Page 21 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Current trends in the media industry December 2013 print media to a state of existential crisis through unfettered predatory journalism then “buy” these selfsame media, after the deed is done, at the cheapest possible price, as in the example of the “Washington Post” before purporting to be the saviors of independent newspapers. What role does print media play in multimedia marketing? Print represents the main source of revenue for newspaper media companies. Even Springer, from now on operating without Axel, the charismatic newspaper legend, would not be in a position to finance its extensive albeit audacious Internet experiments without the revenue from the print editions of BILD and its line extensions. It seems that many publishers are more preoccupied with downsizing journalists than being committed and insistent about developing new media formats. For example, the media giant Funke Mediengruppe courageously and with a hefty loan of €920M, is buying the regional newspapers “Hamburger Abendblatt” and “Berliner Morgenpost” and magazine titles from Springer, although simultaneously incurring a total debt of €1.4 billion by having to pay off former shareholders. At the same time, its own regional newspapers are being sold off and local branch An inspirational professional from the world of international news media: Earl J. Wilkinson offices are being shut down. There is more behind this unique concept than meets the eye. It is a conundrum why the leading European newspaper company Springer is offloading this line of business due to it being no longer financially sustainable, and Funke Mediengruppe is simultaneously buying this media division for a very high price. Liza Hauwaert and Inge van Gaal, extraordinarily committed to INMA Page 22 Daily newspaper publishers each need to figure out for themselves what multimedia services they can offer, with print as the backbone of their brand. Print offers so many supplementary options such as printed papers, weekly newspapers and magazines. Whether this range is special enough to entice the reader to buy, is not down to the reader, but should be attributed December 2013 to the range and to customer friendly, marketing that improves on a daily basis with a service range that towers majestically above the current gaping void of service that currently exists in Germany. In particular there is great untapped potential in the regional newspapers. So many opportunities that are not being used for fear of an uncertain future. Reliable payment business models offer so many opportunities in association with print, to cater to satisfied customers and earn money. The opportunities of a hybrid media ecology The core competencies of the newspaper must continue to be focused on building quality journalism. At the end of the day this is what drives the entire business model with an extremely robust, economically feasible print business model as its backbone. Who currently still dares to argue for the unique feel of the newspaper, the magazine or a book? Earl J. Wilkinson, CEO of INMA, demonstrated this clearly in his very convincing presentation in Berlin: “Hybrid contents in a time of great change in the media industry offer the opportunity to also monetarize added values via all possible media channels. We are poised at the cusp of a development, where the credibility of the newspaper brand can be promoted over all platforms using smart practiceoriented ideas. And it is not a question of print or digital, but rather about the best available media 24/7 for media Current trends in the media industry – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition customers, regardless of whether this is printed or digital.” High technological availability “The newspaper business model will continue to be successful, if digital media channels are also consistently supplied with high value content,” was the firm opinion of Nobert Ohl, managing director of ppi Media, in response to an informal question at the INMA Congress in Berlin. Clearly planned and continuously developed multi-channel publishing enable media companies to quickly publish a digital version of a newspaper or a magazine, with interactive content, on smart phones and tablets, at a low cost. In addition to the editorial system media-neutral advertising management is also becoming more important for publishers. Particularly in the digital media sector, many publishing companies still work manually to a large degree. Why is that? Evolution or Revolution? EMany media companies are still preoccupied with the exhausting and demanding downsizing and dismissal of employees. This leaves little time and capacity for developing business models that could take the company into the future. This regressive view creates no advantage in the market. Germany’s rigid and stale regulations, which cause companies and associations to struggle Continuing to attract young people for newspaper media: Sophia Seiderer, representative of the Hamburger Abendblatt publishing management team. to find flexible, fair structures for both sectors, further restrict the freedom to do business in a dramatically changing media market such as news media. Here it is about forging one’s own future - reinforcing the newspaper brand with a well-developed print edition and exploring the digital distribution channels, making oneself ever more useful to readers and advertising customers - and earning money for the pleasure. Taking advantage of opportunities everywhere, on the spot and all over the world Eine ungeahnte Flexibilität in der tägAn unbelievable flexibility in daily media work makes this possible. From every corner of the world, wherever Internet access is available, the editor or the advertising sales consultant can access a flexible system environment and its entire functionality with a complete customer focus. Editorial content is edited in a media-neutral way and content is more current than ever in cross-media and media specific publications - from print to online. No matter where you are, publications are only a mouse click away. At the same time, the applications which are easy to learn, remain intuitive to use. It’s quite simply unbeatable - at the moment anyway. Google Glass or other developments ruled out for now. Nowadays we have the best systems in the world from the preliminary digital stage to editing, marketing of advertising, marketing of publications, to the integrated technology preliminary stage, CtP, print and shipping. In the area of advertising alfa Media Partners with Stylo, among others, offers a well-designed new advertising system to meet customer requirements. Systems are also being used in commercial operations, which provide information on the status of the order at all times in the sales process, including marketing, controlling and finally invoicing. What more can we ask for or wish for? In sales, presentable geomarketing models based on JJK software etc. provide far-reaching opportunities to optimize and manage sales structures. These opportunities are still not being used to their full extent. There is a valid reason to use them more consistently. So that newspapers can continue to enrich our lives every day in the future. -karma- Page 23 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Current trends in the media industry December 2013 “Sporty” teamwork: red.web and MSU announce cooperation Koblenz-based software experts to integrate two powerful modules produced in Aschaffenburg into their product family under the name “Sportal”. Software producer red.web of Koblenz and Aschaffenburg-based Medien-Service Untermain GmbH (MSU) embarking on joint project: Just in time for the World Publishing Expo 2013, one of the most important events for the news media industry, the two companies signed an agreement for cooperation. After a few days ago Siegmund Radtke, Director of Publishing at publisher Mittelrhein-Verlag and person in charge of the red.web business unit and Ulrich Eymann, Business Manager at MSU signed agreements to this effect in Lower Franconia, the partnership has now been officially announced at the Berlin trade fair. Starting immediately, the sports league tables programme and the sports portal of MSU are integrated into red.web product portfolio and marketed under the name “Sportal”. “We are extremely delighted to have found another established partner in MSU who is recognized in the industry”, said Siegmund Radtke as they were signing the agreement in Aschaffenburg. “The ‘Sportal’ is an ideal fit for our product family”, added the person in charge of red.web. Ulrich Eymann expressed similar sentiments: “This cooperation with red.web as a company with increasingly strong international operations is a good fit for us. Our product philosophies complement each other very well. I am completely convinced that our cooperation will be successful.” It is the intent of our joint operations to bundle the core competencies of both companies. On the one hand, the publishing system red.web is used by now in more than 25 newspaper and publishing companies domestically and abroad. On the other there are around 50 publishers using the sports programmes of MSU. The use of their flexible software in media companies of any size is typical for both companies. And these two new partners have another thing in common: proximity to the publisher. While red.web is a business unit of the Mittelrhein Publisher in Koblenz, the Publisher of the Rhein-Zeitung, MSU is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Main-Echo publishing group. Siegmund Radtke and Ulrich Eymann in unison: “We know the requirements of modern newspaper and media companies. We speak the same language.” The MSU sports league tables programme offers a host of benefits: Thus, the web application, for example, is completely HTML5-capable and offers automated data Page 24 imports which in turn can be processed for a wide variety of publication channels. Clubs, associations and external employees, of course, are able to supply data by way of a sophisticated rights system. More than 40 high-profile and some lesser-known types of sports are already represented within the powerful module: from A as in American football to fistball, football, handball, shooting and squash all the way to V as in volleyball. Beyond that, the product range is expanded by way of an attractive platform: the Sportportal, regardless whether for hyperlocal, trans-regional or individual concepts. Customers already using the sports league tables programme developed by red.web will soon be contacted personally with more detailed information. At some point in the future they will receive tried and proven support during a smooth changeover process. Only this much in advance: Maintenance of the red.web sport programme is ensured through the end of 2015. Together into the future: Siegmund Radtke (centre, red.web) as well as Reinhard Golembiewski (left) and Ulrich Eymann (both MSU) look forward to working together. KBA Newspaper Printing Technology Automatic plate changing on the KBA Commander CL Offset and / or Digital? Array of printing heads on the KBA RotaJET 76 We have both High-tech solutions from the market leader KBA.W.528.e The media shift is changing newspaper production. Print runs are getting smaller and target groups more specific. The bar is being raised in terms of quality, productivity, flexibility and economy. New ad forms and added value concepts are in demand. As the technology leader KBA offers future-orientated solutions tailored to individual needs – whether traditional offset, waterless offset or high-performance digital printing. Any questions? Give us a call. Koenig & Bauer AG Tel.: +49 (0)931 909-0, [email protected], www.kba.com PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Current trends in the media industry December 2013 Newspaper Media in the United States Struggling industry throttles newspaper metrics Unable to arrest years of declining ad sales and sliding print circulation, two key trade groups representing the newspaper industry have done the next best thing: They effectively have stopped reporting on the metrics that make it possible to measure – and, therefore, understand and manage – the industry’s ongoing challenges. Earlier this year, the Newspaper Association of America, an industrysupported trade organization, decided to stop producing the quarterly revenue reports that have charted the advertising slump that has carved aggregate industry revenues from a record $49.4 billion to $22.3 billion in 2012. As reported here, my analysis shows that ad sales slipped about 5.5% in the first six months of the year. Assuming the industry does no better or worse in the last half of the year, it is on track to deliver approximately $21 billion in ad sales for all of 2013. The NAA, which publishes sales records dating to 1950 here, promises to release a once-a-year revenue report scheduled to debut in March, 2014. While the revenue picture may come into greater focus next spring, a series of changes in the way newspapers report readership has made it impossible to authoritatively compare ongoing changes in circulation. As has been customary for years, the Alliance for Audited Media, which formerly was known as the Audit Bureau of Circulation, today announced the publication of the second of its semi-annual circulation reports. But this time, unlike all the others, the organization gave no clue as to whether circulation had gone up, down or sideways in the six-month reporting period. Because publishers no longer are “required to report the same information, it is not possible to come up with a macro [circulation] number,” said Neal Lulofs, the executive vice president of AAM in a telephone interview. Owing to a series of changes adopted by the industry-funded organization over the years, publishers no longer have to provide a five-day average of daily circulation. They also have the liberty of counting a woman who reads the paper in print, on her office computer, on her personal laptop, on her tablet and on her smartphone as five separate subscribers. Some newspapers take advantage of these options and others do not, eliminating seemingly forever the possibility of comparing apples-to-apples data across the industry – or even from year to year for the same publication, if it changes its reporting standards over time. Notwithstanding the limitations imposed by the inconsistent data, a few hardy analysts have been trying to gauge the public appetite for print newspapers as it has declined over the years. One of them, Ken Goldstein of Communications Strategies in Canada, pegs weekday print circulation in the United States at about 38 million copies, as compared with the 43.4 million subscribers reported in the Editor & Publisher Yearbook for 2012. The E&P number, which closely matches the last-available AAM data published this spring, appears to include both print and digital editions. Thus, the E&P data are not precisely comparable to Goldstein’s estimate. Setting aside the discrepancies in the admittedly imperfect data, one thing is clear: Newspaper circulation today is at, or below, its lowest level in modern history. The oldest available records from E&P show that weekday newspaper circulation averaged 41.4 million papers per day in 1940, as compared with 38 million to 43 million today. Daily circulation, btw, peaked at 63.3 million in 1984. But there is a big difference between 1940 and now: The population is a lot larger. Back in 1940, newspaper penetration actually surpassed 100% of households, because some families took more than one paper per day. Today, with the number of households three times greater than in 1940, there’s a paper in only one out of three homes. The Sun has digital subscribers and soccer, but the goal is hard to see The Bun’s eagerly awaited post-paywall numbers aren’t quite as revelatory as Murdoch watchers were hoping Premier league goals are a big draw for Sun subscribers. Photograph: Paul Childs/ Action Images. The debate about subscription paywalls around newspaper websites often seems quasi-religious. is the Great God Rupert right to want Sun punters to pay for everything? Do those heretics who still believe in free have all the best arguments? Ah! here, after four months of silence, comes Mr Murdoch’s beloved Bun, at last giving us some facts to confirm the boss’s prejudices. Page 26 Since August, when the wall went up, 117,000 readers have, one way or another, bought the Sun+ digital package, 47% of them signed up on mobile, 30% of them in the precious 25-to-34 age range. So everyone – though talking long marches – professes themselves content. Maybe, at £2 a week, the Bun could be drawing in £12m to £13m extra revenue that wasn’t there last “free” July. Nothing to sniff at here, then. But nothing too concrete to cover over either. Mr M wants “sustainable profitability” from his papers, according to Wapping leadership. That means hard sums of money, laid out for inspection. We know (more or less) what the Mail earns because the free Dacre Online details its ad revenues. The coy old Bun, though, pleads corporate-discretion-cumbundling-obfuscation. Its super goals app cost more than £10m a year (with new social media teams and other investment costs on top). Hard targets are pretty hard to find. Conclusion: the Sun shines, because they’re saying something rather than nothing. But keep scanning, narrow-eyed. Last July, pre-wall, the print Bun sold an average 2,281,000 in the UK and Ireland. Last month that was 2,089,000. Holes in the bucket – and holes in the logic, too? -By Peter Preston- December 2013 Current trends in the media industry – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition Lineup Systems’ impressive growth and technology roadmap secures future for publishers in a turbulent market Lineup Systems, one of the fastest growing vendors in the fiercely competitive advertising systems market has announced another year of significant revenue growth and expansion . Underpinned by major client wins at companies such as News Corp Australia, NewsUK and Holland’s Telegraaf Media Groep (TMG), among others , Lineup have achieved record growth in a market that has been going through a major shakedown beset by mergers, acquisitions and technology shifts. With its multi-channel, web-based AdPoint solution, Lineup has continued to deliver a stable and progressive environment for publishers wanting a future at the cutting edge of advertising sales. AdPoint offers a streamlined ad operation across CRM, sales, ad booking, invoicing and analytics and has quickly become the ‘go-to’ solution for major publishers across the globe . They have continued to expand through investment in a talent acquisition programme which ensures they are recruiting only the highest qualified and experienced professionals from the advertising systems technology sector . Project management and deployment teams have increased, whilst there has been further expansion to its international sales region focus across EMEA, Scandinavia, Central Europe , US and Australia. “It is another excellent performance for the company,” says Lineup Systems CEO Michael Mendoza. “Lineup remain on an ambitious growth path and its AdPoint solution continues to be the product of choice for major International publishers and we are delighted to be working with many of them around the world.” “Recently we have seen moves in the market with technology providers and technologies changing hands which will ultimately put doubts in the minds of some publishers wanting to know just where their platform and support is heading,” adds Michael. “The AdPoint technology remains the most advanced and agile in the market and its development roadmap is defined and assured. It is backed-up by the best mix of technical knowhow and support that can be offered and we can provide a secure future for publishers. Lineup’s success makes us even more committed than ever to deliver long term value and speedy ROI for our customers wherever they are in the world.” vid Hall, Director Sales & Marketing lineup Systems Ltd., London Early in 2012, Lineup announced it took substantial (seven figure) development capital from NVM Private Equity . This is being invested in providing the right capability to deliver and support major new clients, as well as to ensure that the long term AdPoint development plan is secured. To help accommodate its rapid staff expansion Lineup have also moved into new larger US and UK offices as they build for future business goals. Page 27 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Hall of Fame December 2013 Hall of Fame 2013 Top Managers in dialogue with the PreMedia Newsletter April April July Axel Springer Media Impact: Focussing on Digitalization and Creativity Dr. Dietmar Otti, Managing Director Axel Springer Media Impact July Leader through innovation Vincent Peyrègne,, CEO of WAN-IFRA Gabriella Franzini,, CEO, EidosMedia July July WAN-IFRA Publishing Expo 2013 under the motto of innovation INMA: To get into multimedia the fundamental step: It`s people The mobile platforms will increase Ioana Sträter, Expo Marketing at the World Publishing Expo from WAN-IFRA Earl Wilkinson, Executive director and CEO from the International News Media Association Mark Challinor, Director of mobile platforms from the Telegraph Media Group in London October December The best in print Dr. Rainer Esser, managing director of DvH Medien GmbH December manroland web systems GmbH puts emphasis on print specialisation Eckhard HörnerMaraß, the managing director of manroland web systems GmbH in Augsburg Page 28 WAN-IFRA close to the change of the worldwide Media December La Razón – strong partnership with ProtecMedia La Razón – strong partnership with ProtecMedia Miguel Ángel García, technical director of the newspaper „La Razón“ Herbert Kolling, Managing Director of ProtecMedia Germany Top Media Manager in the dialogue with PreMedia Newsletter: “Thank you very much for your most appreciated visions and ideas for the worldwide media industry.” Karl Malik PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Latest news from the supply industry December 2013 HT Media, India Dependability and performance tip the scales With its publications Hindustan Times and Hindustan, HT Media is one of the big players in India’s daily newspaper market. The two publications alone add up to a daily total circulation of 2.3 million copies, enabling the publisher to reach 12.4 million readers. To provide the best possible service to a readership spread across the entire subcontinent, the company operates a total of 21 printing centres. At the printing facility in Greater Noida in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, the course had already been set for expanding capacity in 2011 in order to satisfy the rising demand for daily newspapers in the capital New Delhi. The company has installed two 80,000-generation presses in addition to the three existing newspaper presses. Thanks to the positive experience gained during the longstanding collaboration with Ferag, the management team at HT Media has again decided in favour of a solution from the Swiss mailroom specialist. It was mainly the constant, high output achieved in combination with the existing presses at a maximum printing speed of 90,000 copies an hour, plus the dependability of the technology in day-to-day operations, that tipped the scales in its favour. At both folder deliveries on the new presses, the daily newspapers are gripped and transported using the UTR Universal conveyor to the two MultiStack stackers on each mailroom line. On arrival there, conveniently sized bundles of the daily newspapers are produced, tuned to the respective route. Prior to sealing and crossstrapping, an underwrapper is fed to the bundles and a top sheet is printed inline with all relevant information pertaining to distribution. So as to offer their customers new advertising formats, both lines have also been equipped with an application module to apply MemoSticks to the front page of the newspapers. When working with Ferag, in addition to the well-engineered technology HT Media also appreciates the strong, local service organisation. HT Media is one of the big players in the Indian newspaper market. Page 30 December 2013 Latest news from the supply industry – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition Mittelland Zeitungsdruck AG upgrades with ABB production management systems Wide range of new systems and system upgrades ABB, one of the leading suppliers of automation solutions for the newspaper industry, has announced a large order from the MittellandZeitungsdruck AG, the print Steve Kirk, ABB Grafische Systeme, Schweiz center of the AZ Medien AG in Aarau/ Switzerland, for a range of production and workflow management systems. The order is only partially related to the recent order of a new KBA press for the MittellandZeitungsdruck AG. The new press makes an extension to the existing press management system, ABB’s MPS Production, a necessity, but the new order from MittellandZeitungsdruck AG is much larger. MittellandZeitungsdruck AG will be provided with a complete hardware and software upgrade of the MPS Production system. The newest version of the software will be supplied together with a new Geocluster hardware platform. This new system will support the planning and management of not only the new KBA press but also of the existing Wifag press in Aarau. The scope of supply of the MPS Production system also includes the Online Production Viewer, which allows production monitoring on an iPad. MittellandZeitungsdruck AG has also ordered ABB’s MPS Cockpit, the management system for the entire newspaper production process. The insert management system, MPS InsertManager, which is already in use in Aarau, will be integrated with the new MPS Cockpit system. ABB’s soft-proof solution ColorCheck, which provides a true color soft-proof image, also convinced the team at MittellandZeitungsdruck AG. This system will be supplied as an extension to the KBA control consoles. In addition ABB will install upgrades and extensions to the existing MPS PlateWorkflow system, the fully automated workflow system for the plate-making, and also to MPS Inform, the production information and analysis system. UrsBinkert, CEO of Mittelland Zeitungsdruck AG says “yes, the new press requires extensions to some of the existing management systems, but the positive experience that we have had with our ABB systems have convinced us that this much more substantial order will serve us well.” The first systems will be commissioned in February 2014. The commissioning of the remaining systems will be scheduled to fit with the commissioning of the new press and the needs of MittellandZeitungsdruck AG. KBA: shrinking backlog dims 2014 outlook One of my long-term mentors in this industry sent me a note after reading a recent post, saying “if orders are your number one problem, you don’t have a number two problem”. Looking at KBA’s third quarter report, one has to give the management team credit for not only doing a good job making the most out of a continuing difficult market situation, but also trying to adjust to the new reality by making strategic moves in order to add to the core business and (maybe late but probably not too late) addressing structural issues at the expense of short term results. Orders increased over the last two quarters but are below the DRUPA year 2012. The company still lives off its backlog of what I believe to be an exceptionally strong order intake of good margin specialty presses (booked in 2011, and visible in the three large red columns below), but eventually that rat will have gone through the python, as the saying goes. Orders for the last four quarters added up to €999.8 million. That is still a big number for any printing equipment manufacturer, but the last time KBA shipped less then a billion was in 1999. Since then annual sales have averaged €1.36 billion and topped out at €1.74 billion in 2006. Assuming that the reported shipment delays are only short term issues and given Autor: Jochen Meissner the current adequate backlog in sheetfed and web as well as increased inventories, the company should be able to achieve its new sales forecast of €1.1 billion for the year (vs. a plan of €1.3 billion), still requiring it to ship 1/3 of annual sales in the last quarter. However, and there is the problem, barring a surprise order spike the backlog will likely end up between €520 and €550 million, uncomfortably low for a billion Euro company with an unusually wide product portfolio, requiring special engineering (and thus longer lead times) for many of its orders. 2014 is going to be another challenge. In my August post I already mentioned the need for further downsizing because of the shrinking backlog. While it might have been tempting to delay the inevitable further and squeeze out another break-even year with a strong fourth quarter, KBA management is not pushing its problems into next year hoping for a gift from the market. While it is the right thing to do, the stock market did not like it much. Page 31 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Latest news from the supply industry December 2013 ppi Media’s Web-2-Print solution OM portal and its output management system OM to be installed Verlagsgruppe Rhein Main banks on prepress solutions by ppi Media For years, business with commercial print jobs has been extremely successful at Verlagsgruppe Rhein Main. By commissioning ppi Media to install OM portal, the company, which is based in Mainz, Germany, will focus on customer integration, automation and secure preflight workflows. This will reduce the workload on publishing staff, yet at the same time enable more commercial print jobs to be processed. In order to make the system landscape more uniform, the publishing group has decided to install the output management system OM at its subsidiary, the Gießener Anzeiger. The entire group will then be equipped with OM, which can be controlled from a central location in future. “By enhancing our prepress workflow, we continue to pursue our goal of automating the production of our print products. OM portal will complement our existing workflow perfectly, adding features such as a page upload and preflight functions, as well as real-time customer releases and feedback,” says Andreas Bräuer, Director of Prepress Production at MRM Medienservice Rhein Main. Integrating our customers to a greater extent makes our workflow more flexible, which in turn is an important prerequisite for processing commercial print jobs more economically. Apart from installing OM portal at the publishing group, ppi Media will also supply new software to the Gießener Anzeiger. From 2014 onwards, OM will be used there for output management, which includes the RIP, merge, imaging and proof functions. OM portal organizes, visualizes and simplifies the planning and production of jobs for print customers in a single web application. Using OM portal, customers can view their orders at the printing house and then issue a planning release. After a release, the PDF files are uploaded and the data automatically checked and normalized. An online soft proof is then created, where customers can download both the check protocols and the normalized print data. When the print data has been checked, customers can then approve the print data and release the commercial print job for printing. Verlagsgruppe Rhein Main banks on prepress solutions by ppi Media The Boston Globe signs for Integrated Advertising, Production and Business System from Miles 33 Miles 33 International, LLC, a world leader in Advertising and Content Management Systems for traditional and new media companies is proud to announce it has been selected by The Boston Globe to implement an integrated advertising and business system. The project will see the implementation of a fully integrated digital and print ad sales, Page 32 self-service ad portal, print pagination and ROP layout, digital and print ad tracking & production management, invoicing, credit management and A/R system. Miles 33 is proud to be associated with such a storied franchise in American newspaper history and looks forward to a long and mutually beneficial relationship. Installation services are intended to begin immediately after the US Thanksgiving Day holiday; the entire system is scheduled to be live in midsummer 2014. For more information please contact Don Sullivan, Sr. Vice President of Sales for Miles 33 in North America at dsullivan@ miles33.com. Merry Christmas With these Christmas Greetings we would like to thank you for an enjoyable working relationship and wish you the best of health, happiness and success for the coming New Year 2014 Your PreMedia Newsletter PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Latest news from the supply industry December 2013 KBA acquires majority stake in agency Deltagraf New sales company Koenig & Bauer do Brasil in Sao Paulo Since the beginning of September 2013 Koenig & Bauer AG (KBA) has acquired the majority stake in its former sales agency Deltagraf Representações Comerciais ltda. in São Paulo, Brazil, Latin America’s largest market. The new Brazilian subsidiary operates under the name Koenig & Bauer do Brasil. This follows the foundation of KBA Latina SAPI de CV based in Mexico city in August 2012 for the markets Mexico, Venezuela, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Bolivia. As the world’s second-largest press manufacturer, KBA aims to expand its position in the growth market Brazil with this investment in sales and service. In addition, the change of name signals the long-term commitment to the customers there. “It is our goal to continually strengthen our presence in Brazil,” explains KBA sales director Jan Drechsel. Deltagraf took over all sales and service activities for KBA web presses in Brazil six years ago, and added sheetfed presses in March 2009. The company has since been very successful in both segments. The firms Oceano und Editora Abril print on several 16and 48-page Compacta commercial presses as well as single-width Comet newspaper presses. Brasilgrafica, the largest Brazilian packaging printer, has two high-performance KBA Rapida 106 sheetfed presses, a plinth- mounted eight-colour press with two coaters as well as an eight-colour Rapida 106 with coater. Atualcard, one of the biggest internet printers in Brazil, received two Rapida 105 presses, one in the middle of 2012 and the other at the beginning of this year. Deltagraf has also landed further contracts with some other major printers, such as Emibra, Rosni and Grafica Rami. Koenig & Bauer do Brasil will continue to expand its service network step by step. The newest KBA subsidiary will also offer service support to printing firms in Argentina, Chile, Uruguay and Paraguay. Managing director Luiz Cesar Dutra has over 20 years of experience in the graphic arts industry. Service manager Sigfried Köstlein, sales manager Lincoln Lopez, finance director Fernando Maia and a well-trained 20-man team are on hand to assist him. In July 2014 Koenig & Bauer do Brasil will take part in Expoprint Latin America in São Paulo presenting cutting-edge printing technology. At the beginning of September KBA deputy president Dr. Axel Kaufmann (r), Deltagraf managing director Luiz Caesar Dutra and KBA sales director Jan Drechsel (l) announced the foundation of Brazilian sales subsidiary Koenig & Bauer do Brasil Goss press is ideal platform for expansion from newspaper-only production Beijing Daily moves into commercial printing with China’s first Goss M-800 web press Beijing Daily has installed a new heatset Goss web press as part of a strategy to diversify beyond its well-established newspaper production. In choosing the 32-page Goss M-800 press, the company has signaled its intention to become a leading player in its regional commercial print market. Featuring a four-pages-around by four-pages-across (4x4) cylinder configuration, the M-800 model is capable of printing up to 80,000 16-page signatures per hour in straight production mode. The four-unit press system also incorporates a Goss Ecocool heatset dryer and Contiweb FD paster, as well as a Goss PCC-2 pinless folder. Previously running an exclusively coldset operation, Beijing Daily produces more than 2 million newspapers daily and its entry into the Page 34 commercial market is expected to reach a similar scale over time. According to Jia Fudong, vice director for the Beijing Daily printing operation, the M-800 model was chosen with production versatility in mind. “The new press has already been called on to produce a wide range of products and formats,” explains Jia Fudong. “Demand for commercial products and heatset retail inserts continues to increase alongside quality expectations in our region, so we’re very pleased that we decided to go with the clear leader in web press technology for this important step. Goss International’s position is well deserved, not only because they have supplied precisely the right capabilities December 2013 Latest news from the supply industry – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition for our production requirements, but also because the technology is backed up with a level of local support that ensures our long-term confidence.” The double-circumference M-800 press utilizes proven With the installation of a new 32-page Goss M-800 heatset web press, the Beijing Daily has signaled its intention to become a leading player in the regional commercial print market. design elements from other Goss presses, including Sunday models, to achieve a unique combination of value and performance. Multidrive technology, bearerless cylinders and a 12-roll inking and dampening system deliver premium print quality as well as a high level of flexibility for changing production requirements. Tim Mercy, vice president of sales for Goss International, says the ability to print magazine, tabloid and other formats in straight or collect mode makes the M-800 model ideal for a company embarking on a new venture. “Beijing Daily needed a press that could adapt in line with the way the new business develops, while at the same time being able to maintain the high standards expected due to its established reputation for both product content and quality. This is also an excellent option for commercial printers looking to expand their existing operation as its four-around press format complements existing two-around presses such as Goss M-600 and M-500 models,” he adds. Beijing Daily is part of the Beijing Daily Group, a media company that manages nine newspapers and three magazines as well as web sites, a publishing house and a television broadcasting station. The Group publishes the leading circulation newspapers in the area, including Beijing Daily, Beijing Evening News, Beijing Morning Post and Beijing Suburbs Daily. Fairfax Media Ltd., Australia, New Zealand A fitness program for the newspaper Decentralization of production should help lower production costs by around 60 percent. “ We have reorganized the products within the group in order to optimize our line utilization”, says Bob Lockley, Group Director Print & Distribution at Fairfax Media. Thanks to the decentralization project, Fairfax is also reshuffling its cards in the mailroom. Ferag is supporting Fairfax with this project and integrating existing components from Tullamarine into the facilities in Canberra, North Richmond and Newcastle in Australia, and also into the two New Zealand sites in Wellington and Auckland. It’s mainly the integration of the MultiDisc winding systems and the MSD MultiSertDrum inserting drums that will give the separate locations greater flexibility and enable them to cope with higher production volumes and tighter deadlines. Integration of the separate components had already begun in the spring of 2013, and all work was accomplished with no interruptions to production. Here, Ferag can bring to bear its experience in the area of project management and equipment manufacturing, and thus ensure that integration is problemfree. Balancing of the components’ control software can also be necessary, which Ferag enables across several system generations ‒ thus underlining once again the fact that the company takes investment security seriously.. “The regional facilities are an important step in securing the future of our titles.” Bob Lockley, Group Director Print & Distribution. Australian media group Fairfax Media Limited is adapting newspaper production to changing conditions. A decentralization concept is set to realign capacity in the press hall and in the mailroom. In June 2014, two printing facilities, Chullora near Sydney and Tullamarine near Melbourne, will close and production will be transferred to the Ballarat site, west of Melbourne, and North Richmond, to the north of Sydney. As part of the decentralization project, the facility in North Richmond is being extended. Page 35 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Latest news from the supply industry December 2013 VPM Druck, Germany Boosting efficiency, minimizing set-up times The Ferag UniDrum gatherer-stitcher drum is delivered to VPM Druck and taken to the second floor of the building for installation. VPM Druck KG in Rastatt, a fully owned subsidiary of the Bauer Media Group, has recently invested in new gatherer-stitcher technology from Ferag. The existing Ferag technology dating from 1992 had been in use for far longer than planned, and the time had come to replace it. A further reason: the old technology was no longer sufficiently flexible, and the set-up times were therefore too long. Moreover, the trend towards low circulations is increasingly evident. From the initial brainstorming sessions to actual realization, the project to invest in a new gatherer-stitcher installation and press deliveries lasted almost three years. Product sales patterns demanded a completely new concept. The installation commenced at the beginning of May 2013 and was concluded at VPM Druck with no breaks in production. Impressive volumes of magazines and periodicals are processed at VPM Druck. Page 36 Commissioning was complete by the start of September 2013. Apart from a Rima log delivery system, the installation comprises a Ferag UniDrum gatherer stitcher drum with six JetFeeder hoppers, an EasySert inserting system with three JetFeeder supplement hoppers and an SNT-50 trimming drum ‒ all from Ferag. At VPM Druck, the newly developed Unicover cover hopper is being integrated into a live production line for the first time. On the UniCover cover hopper, sheets are creased, folded and fed to the UniDrum as covers at speeds up to 40,000 copies an hour. The new UniCover reduces the number of production steps, and therefore personnel costs.. PreTronic fully automatic format presetting from Ferag is a further function of the new installation and helps meet the requirement for fast set-up times. Thanks to the PreTronic control, the changeover from one job to the next is accomplished in a just few minutes. The new Ferag installation reduces the previous set-up time of two to four hours per job down to 30 minutes. The core business of VPM Druck, a specialist in sheet and web offset, and its 190 employees is the production of magazines and supplements, and also catalogues, brochures, booklets and sticker flyers, for well-known customers. Circulations range between 10,000 and over a million copies, depending on the job. Each year, up to 120 million stitching operations are performed at VPM Druck. A Ferag engineer makes precision adjustments to the UniCover cover hopper (on right). December 2013 ABB to retrofit Wifag OF370 press at La Nacion, Buenos Aires ABB, one of the leading suppliers of automation solutions for the newspaper industry, has announced a major order from “La Nacion”, the leading Argentinian newspaper based in Buenos Aires, for drives and controls retrofits on their Wifag OF370 press. La Nacion is the latest in a long line of newspaper houses that has chosen ABB’s APOS solution to replace obsolete proprietary control and positioning systems on their press. ABB will install its APOS solution on six printing towers and one folder. A drives retrofit will also be carried out on these units. In addition, ABB will supply new drives and control systems for nine Wifagreelstands at the Buenos Aires site. The project will be carried out in close cooperation between the ABB organizations in Argentina and Switzerland. “ABB’s strong local presence in Argentina and the cooperation between the two parts of the ABB organization were decisive in winning this order,” says Christian Villiger, head of ABB’s activities in the printing business. “It is another example of the advantages of ABB’s global footprint.” The commissioning of the upgrades will be performed in parallel with the daily production on the press in order to avoid any downtime and will be completed by August 2014. Service Secures Future. print.services spans the entire service range of manroland web systems. This means comprehensive support – from our classic repair service and maintenance to training, process optimization, and pressupdate solutions. print.competence expands this range: custom, needs-based service packages to increase productivity. The combination of data management, process optimization, consumables, and training yields sustainable and measurable results. manroland web systems GmbH, Augsburg. Soon with new ABB controls and drives – the Wifag OF370 in Buenos Aires www.manroland-web.com Page 37 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Latest news from the supply industry December 2013 With MILENIUM we have reduced the working time in the editorial area by at least one hour as using other press settings or a different printing press.” All of these improvements translate into tangible benefits, such as the time required in the different phases for the preparation of the newspaper. “We have reduced production time and, in particular, we have reduced the time spent in the editorial area by at least one hour. We have also reduced errors in the production area, particularly with respect to the flatplan,” explains René Di Marco. MILENIUM’s simplicity of use has also made its implementation easier and meant that the Vanguardia Liberal has hardly noted the change of system: “In less than a week all of those working on the newspaper had adapted very well to the new tool and were able to start getting the most out of it.” Picture left: Raquel Asenjo Picture down: F ernando Gomez, CEO Protec Media The newspaper Vanguardia Liberal, part of the Colombian group Galvis Ramírez, decided to carry out an overhaul of its editorial system and, with this in mind, chose MILENIUM in its search for a modern convergent newsroom so that it could face, fully prepared, the current challenges in the sector. After having carried out the implementation, it is time to evaluate the experiences with the new solution. René Di Marco, technical director of Vanguardia Liberal, is clear about the improvements that MILENIUM has brought to the newspaper’s day-to-day work: “It is a very useful tool in the production area of the newspaper. It greatly improves and facilitates the production of all printed products.” But the benefits are not only felt in the production area. “A major plus is the ease with which advertisements can be handled, from our own advertising program, including the automatic placement of pages,” points out Di Marco, who also praises the flexibility of MILENIUM: “The ease with which last-minute changes can be made to the production area, such Page 38 December 2013 Latest news from the supply industry – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition Profit and the compatibility concept Dependability is the one attribute that I-print Oy Managing Director Seppo Lahti associates with Ferag technology. He points to the mailroom system, which has coped with routine production conditions for all of 15 years. Despite the resilient technology, an update was on the cards, and a few months ago the stacking system dating from 1998 was replaced with modern MultiStack technology. The compensating stackers are fully integrated into the existing technical structures incorporating the TTR conveyor system. The compatibility of the Ferag system from one generation to the next meant that modernization could be focused precisely where it was really needed; investment could be kept as low as possible; and production equipment could be put to profitable use for further years. Without being too provocative, it could be said that I-print Oy had no other choice than MultiStack technology from Ferag. “There was never any discussion about it. There is no reason to change the very supplier that we have worked with so well and so closely for all these years. Apart from the fact that with MultiStack technology, we obtained an excellent product at a fair price that will allow us to keep our future options open, we also appreciate the solution-oriented approach adopted by the team from Ferag AG and its subsidiary Ferag Suomi Oy in order to take full account of the wishes and needs of their customers”, says Seppo Lahti. “We appreciate the solution-oriented approach adopted by the team from Ferag AG and its subsidiary Ferag Suomi Oy”, says Managing Director Seppo Lahti. Management change at ABB Printing ABB, one of the leading suppliers of automation solutions for the newspaper industry, has announced a change in the management team of its printing organization. Christian Villiger (right) congratulates his successor as head of ABB Printing, Markus Greiner Markus Greiner will take over the leadership of ABB Printing from December 1. Markus Greiner is a long-term member of the ABB Printing management team. He was head of development since the beginning of 2007, which followed a two year stint as head of sales. The computer science graduate with 10 years of experience in the newspaper industry replaces Christian Villiger, who is taking up a new challenge outside the company. Markus Greiner will also take on the role of head of sales as replacement for Boris Falk, who is taking up a senior position within the Mediengruppe Pressedruck Augsburg in Germany. Greiner’s immediate reaction on his appointments was to thank his two predecessors. “Both Christian Villiger and Boris Falk have done an excellent job steering ABB Printing through the stormy seas that our industry has experienced in the last few years. Today’s solid financial position of ABB Printing would not have been possible without their tremendous efforts”. Page 39 PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition – Latest news from the supply industry December 2013 World’s first 160-page LITHOMAN begins operation The world’s largest heatset commercial press from manroland web systems began operation on schedule at KraftSchlötels, part of the WKS Druckholding Group, in Wassenberg, Germany. At the drupa in May 2012, WKS Druckholding and manroland web systems set up a joint project to create the “world’s largest heatset commercial press”. Around 18 months later, on November 13, 2013, the idea has become reality: the two-web 80-page LITHOMAN demonstrated its performance to customers, suppliers, media, and guests invited from the worlds of politics and business at Kraft-Schlötels in Wassenberg. “For this project, we approached the press technology purely from the perspective of our customers. We intensively analyzed our customers’ needs regarding the flexibility of page numbers, formats, and product design, and tried to implement them as far as possible. As a result, a press was developed, which, on the one hand, consists of conventional press components that have never before combined in this way (two-web 80-page press). On the other hand, we also devised our own conceptions on folding technology that have given rise to extensive new designs at press supplier companies. Our new LITHOMAN press design now reflects our technological concepts regarding flexible and economic production.” Dr. Ralph Dittmann, Manager of WKS, was obviously impressed by the 160-page LITHOMAN press at its official start of production. WKS is one of the leading web offset companies in Germany and consistently orients itself toward customer needs. As a leader in innovation, the printing house has once again relied on Augsburg press technology: “The LITHOMAN presses have absolutely proven themselves in daily operation when it comes to printing stability, quality, and, above all, productivity.” Eckhard Hoerner-Marass, Managing Director of manroland web systems, emphasized the excellent cooperation with the immensely committed WKS specialists: “WKS had very clear ideas on production diversity and the resulting demands on the production process. Our colleagues from sales and design collaborated with WKS in a creative process to draft the press concept. The result: a unique LITHOMAN press with customized technology.” Extraordinary configuration An excellent team manroland web systems, WKS and the new LITHOMAN with 160page press in the production network – a brilliant feat of engineering excellence and entrepreneurial achievement. |© manroland web systems Page 40 WKS now produces at sites in Wassenberg and Essen with eight manroland web systems commercial web offset presses ranging from 32 to 80 pages. As part of the current investment, several older systems were decommissioned. The two-web 80page LITHOMAN with a total of web width of 4.5 meters is the equivalent of a 160-page press. As a result, it sets the benchmark for maximum productivity, producing up to 50,000 revolutions per hour. This LITHOMAN is something truly extraordinary for everyone involved. It features ultimate automation: in addition to the fully-automatic AutomaticPlateLoading APL®, the ClosedLoop systems developed by manroland to control inline fanout, color, and cut-off registers have also been integrated. These features optimize effective machine operation and reduce waste. The LITHOMAN will mainly be used to produce magazines, catalogs, and supplements. Veit Müller, Executive Sales Manager at manroland web systems, explains the significance of 160-pages in the production network: “The two LITHOMAN presses are operated together since they are equipped with one cutter module. This module was adapted to our customer WKS’ ideas and provides completely new production options. In addition, the newly designed folder superstructure with three formers allows operators to run over up to twelve December 2013 Latest news from the supply industry – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition paper ribbons. This combination results into a previously undreamt-of productivity and product options. Buzzwords like continuous two-page increments, complete flexibility in register products, a combination of two paper types, up to 500,000 products per hour, and format variability have suddenly become reality.” Now, we have managed to perfectly supplement our range of offerings and provide our customers with tailored, highly efficient press concepts, even for demands such as extremely large print runs and format variability.” Combining the advantages of different commercial printing processes In the past, web offset printing already offered a wide range of production options. With this extensive development step now completed, Eckhard Hoerner-Marass sees manroland web systems considers well prepared for the future: “manroland web systems now offers presses ranging from 16-pages to 160-pages for commercial web printing. We have already completely filled the fields of high quality, cost-effective and quick printing form production, as well as maximum flexibility and productivity with our web offset presses for small, medium, and large runs. November 13, 2013, was the official start of production. (f. left: Dr. Ralph Dittmann, WKS / Bert Schoonderbeek, Contiweb / Eugen Viehof, Vibro-Gruppe / Manfred Winkens, Major Wassenberg / Klaus Viehof, Vibro-Gruppe / Eckhard Hoerner-Marass, manroland web systems) |© manroland web systems CCI to buy Escenic – the perfect match CCI, known among the world’s largest media companies as a provider of multichannel publishing software solutions, is now strengthening its position through the acquisition of Escenic from Vizrt. CCI and Vizrt have been strategic partners for the past six years, and have signed an agreement that also allows Vizrt to continue selling Escenic products as an integral part of its overall solutions offering. “This is the perfect match. Escenic is an important part of our business, due to its Dan Karsgaard, CEO, CCI Europe strong expertise in online publishing. CCI and Vizrt have enjoyed a great cooperation during the last 6 years, and we have been able to provide the best of bread solutions to the news industry as a direct result of this partnership. The latest example is the corporate-wide CCI NewsGate editorial and Escenic online solution to McClatchy in the US. This acquisition is a natural next step in the close cooperation between our companies, “said Dan Korsgaard, CEO of CCI. “For CCI customers this offers a complete publishing solution provided by a single vendor. For Escenic-only customers we will not only continue to offer Escenic as a standalone system, but also offer the additional benefit of being serviced by a larger professional services organization“ Korsgaard continues. Martin Burkhalter, CEO of Vizrt, stated, “We are pleased with the signing of this agreement. We are convinced of the importance of the Escenic product range for our customers, and we will continue to provide fully integrated solutions, which form an important part of our sales strategy. We will continue to meet current and future challenges and opportunities that our customers are facing in the implementation of their multiplatform distribution strategy. Considering the dynamics in Escenic’s core markets, we believe that CCI, which is highly focused on the online market place, provides a great platform for Escenic to ensure future growth.” Both companies are committed to ensure that current and potential Escenic and Vizrt customers will continue to receive the highest level of service. Vizrt and CCI have also agreed that CCI will sell and implement the Viz Media Engine (VME) video solution, further cementing the strong relationship between the two companies. Page 41 Special Report – World Publishing Expo 2013 December 2013 Letter of intent signed at the World Publishing Expo 2013 WESTFALEN-BLATT opts for ppi Media The World Publishing Expo has, once again, proven a successful business platform for ppi Media, the software supplier based in Hamburg, Germany. On Montag, October 7, 2013, Thilo Grickschat and Frank Best, managing directors of WESTFALENBLATT, signed a letter of intent for new solutions for its newspaper planning, page production, classified pagination and ad production workflows. The decision in favor of ppi Media went hand in hand with the decision to modernize and reorganize WESTFALEN-BLATT’s 27 local editions. “ppi Media’s solutions will create a cost-effective, yet highly automated planning and production workflow, and the existing system will be optimally integrated. We are creating an optimal platform for all our workflows and departments, for future optimization as well, since ppi Media offers open solutions of guaranteed quality,” said Thilo Grickschat, managing director of Vereinigte Zeitungsverlage GmbH in Bielefeld. At the heart of the new production workflow, PlanPag will be used for planning and production, including page assembly. It will also connect to the ad booking system – via AdMan – and to the editorial system using standard interfaces. the alfa Stylo editor integrated in AdMan. This web-based ad editor runs on the AdMan GUI, enabling users to create liner and display ads easily and quickly. AdMan creates logos, a large number of different backgrounds and text blocks for designing ad layouts. Fonts and quotations (in particular for personal ads) are managed in data pools in Stylo. In the new workflow, classified ads can already be paginated on the basis of the booking data for ad pages. Production data that has been delivered or created in Stylo is placed automatically. The ad deadline can be moved forward to just before printing starts. Automated ad production A system that automatically receives and assigns digitally delivered ads, whose formats are becoming increasingly diverse for print and digital, is important for making the publishing company competitive in the future. AdMan will ensure the highly automated electronic delivery of ads and integration of the ad booking system (WESTFALENBLATT’s in-house solution). WESTFALEN-BLATT has also ordered Get together in Berlin at World Publishing Expo 2013: Norbert Ohl (CEO, ppi Media), Frank Best (Managing Director, WESTFALEN BLATT), Thilo Grickschat (Managing Director, WESTFALEN BLATT), Dr. Hauke Berndt (Senior Vices President Sales, ppi Media) Total upgrade in St. Galler Rheintal The new RollSertDrum-M has a third infeed for one preprint in addition to the connections for the main product and the FlyStream precollecting line. Page 42 Under Südostschweiz Partner AG, five publishers from the Rheintal, Principality of Liechtenstein, Grisons, Sarganserland and Glarus regions, and also Werdenberg and Obertoggenburg operate a joint printing centre in Haag in the St. Galler Rheintal. In the last seven years, Ferag technology has been in operation with some components being more than 30 years old. The time had come to change to new technology. In seven conversion phases, it was replaced by two Ferag inserting lines equipped with FlyStream and the latest MultiDisc periphery. In the postpress processing system the new RollSertDrum-M will be up and running for the first time. Compared with its smaller sisters, the inserting drum is equipped with a third feed for a preprint in addition to the connections for the main product and the FlyStream precollecting line. As a further new component, a transfer circulator links two independent UTR conveyors and enables the product stream to be assigned to two different processing steps during the conveying process. In the Haag printing centre, the transfer circulator is integrated into the line downstream from each inserting drum. Accordingly, it is possible to take either newspapers without inserts or finished products after they have passed through the RollSertDrum, and transport them directly to the winding process or bundling. In the specifications, such flexibility had equal ranking with the option to run inserting production in online and offline mode. My work - your success! VAKAT Multimedia-Marketing –P roject planning and project implementation responsibility – Due diligence analysis – Investment planning – Coaching the top management Prof. Ing. Karl Malik Media Consultancy International [email protected] www.malik-consulting.de Phone 0049.(0)6223.74757 Fax 0049. (0)6223.74139 Special Report – World Publishing Expo 2013 December 2013 KBA at the World Publishing Expo 2013 in Berlin Offset and inkjet newspaper printing from one source In 2012 Koenig & Bauer (KBA) won almost 40% of all contracts for new newspaper web presses awarded by the international newspaper industry and this year it is over 40%. Despite this high market share, the volume of new investments in newspaper printing technology which has shrunk by over 70% since 2006 to under €300m is not enough to fill the global market leader’s already significantly reduced capacity. In the KBA press conference at the World Publishing Expo (WPE) in Berlin KBA CEO and president Claus Bolza-Schünemann pointed out that the market revival for new newspaper technology expected in 2010 did not occur due to structural and economic reasons (media shift, Euro crisis). He also said that given media developments, trends towards concentration and realignment in the newspaper industry, suppliers should be prepared for a continued moderate decline in investments in new offset presses, prepress and mailroom technology, rather than a significant recovery. According to the latest market analyses, sales of new commercial and newspaper presses (not including used presses, service KBA with a wide product range, well prepared to the global market requirements: Dr. Klaus Schmidt talking to Karl Malik and consumables) in the supply industry fell to €630m in 2012 after a short-lived rise in 2010 to €800m. This is following sales of €1.7bn in 2007 and a low of €600m in the crisis year 2009. KBA is expecting a further decline to approx. €500m for 2013. It is assumed that yearly investments in new web offset technology will bottom out to approx. €400m by 2015. Against this background, Bolza-Schünemann views previous reductions in capacity on the suppliers’ side as not yet satisfactory and in line with market developments. Additional business with inkjet digital printing KBA offers newspaper printers an industrial solution for digital newspaper printing with the high-speed RotaJET inkjet web press in addition to its proven offset portfolio Page 44 Along with further capacity adjustments, KBA aims to compensate as much as possible for the lower sales of new web offset presses with more service activities, a broader portfolio for the growing packaging printing and the new business field digital printing. With this in mind, KBA has expanded its proven and innovative offset product range for the newspaper industry with the KBA RotaJET digital press, which has shaped KBA’s stand in Berlin and was present in the Digital Pavilion set up in the December 2013 “Power of Print” media port. According to Bolza-Schünemann two RotaJETs have already been sold in other market segments and KBA is receiving increasing interest from the newspaper industry, as well as from the book, direct mail and commercial printing sectors which the press initially addressed. Bolza-Schünemann: “The KBA RotaJET is the only inkjet web press from a traditional offset press manufacturer. We have been an innovative partner of the newspaper industry for nearly 200 years and know its demands better than any other digital printing suppliers who have predominantly grown up in the office area. We want to use the trust placed in us to show the industry new business possibilities in connection with the KBA RotaJET. As we offer both offset and digital printing, we can be particularly objective. The respective production structure and the cost-efficiency of a possible implementation of digital printing form the basis of our investment advice.” Oliver Baar, KBA project manager for business development digital web presses expanded on the words of the KBA CEO about digital newspaper printing. In a slightly provocative manner, he compared the newspaper industry with a tree on which the sweet, but not yet overripe fruit, hang from branches in the middle or at the very top. While today’s newspaper and supplement business only offer limited market potential, Baar sees World Publishing Expo 2013 – Special Report sustainable and profitable additional business options in digital printing. These include even more consistent target group orientated newspapers (hyper-localization or special interest small runs), expanding product portfolios to strengthen reader and customer loyalty, and addressing new customer bases as well as the very flexible linking of print and online media. In this context, Oliver Baar quoted the American financial investor Warren Buffett who bucked the trend by purchasing over 30 regional and local titles. Buffett criticises the one-sided, cost-saving strategy of the American newspaper industry at the expense of contents or the frequency of publications. Baar named the Canadian Glacier Media Commercial newspaper group as a further example. The group has successfully implemented AR codes in all of its editions linking print with the digital world (online videos as an addition). In the meantime Die Welt and Focus in Germany have also started to work in similar ways. Interesting option: Offset and digital printing in tandem Oliver Baar sees further ‘fruit’ hanging in the middle of the tree from retrofitting inkjet imprinting systems (currently Kodak Prosper S30) in offset web presses for the production of coupons, games and addresses. KBA has already carried out The flexibly automatable KBA Commander CL dominates demand of new presses in Germany and Europe with ten press lines ordered so far such inkjet retrofits. One step further is the combined use of older offset presses, for example a KBA Colora and an inkjet web press, like the KBA RotaJET. Digital printing could be used for highly localized production scenarios (microzoning) in newspapers as well as the format-variable production of additional print products on diverse substrates for readers and ad customers. Traditional business models in the newspaper industry can be expanded in this way and the process costs of small runs are significantly reduced. While in the offset sector predominantly newspaper, commercial web and sheetfed offset presses are used to produce newspapers, semi-commercials, books, magazines and commercial products, the KBA RotaJET addresses small print runs in all these market segments and opens up new business opportunities. Cutting-edge offset technology currently popular in Europe Even though KBA has expanded its portfolio with the RotaJET for digital newspaper printing, according to experts high-performance offset presses will continue to dominate newspaper production in the next years. As Christoph Müller executive vice president for the web press product house reported, KBA has notably booked orders for the new modular automatable Commander CL following the marketorientated streamlining of its product range two years ago. Since its launch at IfraExpo 2011 in Vienna, ten of these press lines have been sold to Europe, the USA and China. In 2013 Ouest-France in Rennes, Pressedruck in Potsdam and Main-Echo in Aschaffenburg have all opted for this latest KBA newspaper press. In the high-end class the compact Commander CT continues to be by far the most successful press on the global market. 27 presses with a total of 124 printing towers and almost 1,000 printing couples are on its reference list. A few weeks ago Badisches Druckhaus in Baden-Baden and Mittelland Zeitungsdruck in Aarau, Switzerland became the most recent customers to opt for this press. The waterless KBA Cortina, which also introduced automated plate changing to the newspaper industry, was the subject of great interest at Drupa thirteen years ago. It has experienced a renaissance in 2013. The Volksfreund-Druckerei Nikolaus Koch in Trier (Saarbrücker Zeitungsgruppe) brought the total of sold Cortina press lines to 20 and it is the first press to be equipped from the beginning with two coaters, following the positive experience made by Freiburger Druck (Badische Zeitung). This type of inline finishing in coldset is currently only possible in waterless offset with the Cortina. It delivers print products in an outstanding Page 45 Special Report – World Publishing Expo 2013 December 2013 print quality, as could be seen from the samples shown in Berlin. Service and retrofits gaining importance Christoph Müller emphasised that newspapers should use their acknowledged role as a strong brand even more intensively for complementary print activities. This includes creative ad forms in print. KBA offers manifold, partly retrofittable optional equipment and has expanded its service portfolio accordingly. Along with maintenance tasks and repairs, experienced professionals from KBA and its subsidiary PrintHouseService (PHS) carry out increasingly more retrofits on older own or third-party presses. In addition, KBA and PHS have taken over comprehensive on-site technical support at various newspaper and commercial printing houses. Through its subsidiary PrintHouseService (PHS) KBA takes over the complete technical support in newspaper and commercial printing houses with on-site personnel How NPR lures younger digital audiences The people who listen to NPR are a lot like those who read newspapers. They tend to be wealthier, better educated and more thoughtful than the population as whole. And, like newspaper readers, they are older than the broader population, too. But there’s one major difference between NPR and most newspapers: The managers at NPR have moved aggressively to create differentiated digital products to attract new, and significantly younger, audiences than their traditional radio listeners. In a moment, we’ll take a look at how they did it. First, let’s look at how well they did: While the median age of the NPR radio audience is 49, the median age of its web visitors is 40 and the median age of its podcast users is 36, according to a survey published on its website. This compares to the national median age of 38. The age differences across the NPR media result from the fact that each platform attracts its own, distinct following. While 18% of web visitors tune in to NPR radio, only 12% of radio listeners visit the website, according to the audience survey. The podcast service, which serves nearly 25 million downloads a month, delivers the added bonus of encouraging two-thirds of its relatively young listeners to listen to radio broadcasts at least once a week. While there’s no way of knowing if podcast users will turn into lifelong radioheads, it’s better for NPR to have them periodically engaging with the legacy platform than iTuning it out altogether. Now, let’s look at the newspaper industry, where the story is not as bright. The median age of a typical newspaper print reader is 58 and the average age of a Page 46 news website reader is 49, says Greg Harmon of Borrell Associates who has surveyed users at scores of newspapers for more than a decade. “These audiences,” said Harmon in an interview, “get a year older every year.” Another long-time industry watcher, Andrew Kohut of the Pew Research Center, reported in October that people under the age of 50 spend notably less time perusing the news each day than their elders. After studying news consumption for a decade across every age group, Kohut concluded that individuals ranging in age from 18 to 47 “have so far shown little indication that they will become heavier news consumers as they age.” Facing the same daunting demographic headwinds as newspapers, the management of NPR embarked on a thoughtfully conceived strategy to export their assets and brand to digital platforms to attract different, yet complementary, audiences. To do this, they created a magazine-style website and a comprehensive podcast library featuring audio from more than 50 local affiliates and other providers. Where newspapers for the most part export the look, feel and content of the printed product to the web – and, in many cases also to smartphones and tablets – the NPR efforts are purpose-built to leverage the full array of digital technology for each audience and application. NPR had an advantage over newspapers: As an audio-only medium seeking to project its brand to the highly visual digital realm, NPR had to learn how to acquire and use pictures, videos, maps and other graphic elements. To do so, it took its cues from successful native digital publishers, unfettered by the stubborn obeisance at most newspapers to a format inspired by the need to efficiently craft pages the way Gutenberg did. Because NPR was free to start from scratch, its website looks, and functions, like a truly interactive medium, where it is easy to find related content, navigate to a local affiliate, add or read comments, and share an article or audio clip via Facebook, Twitter, Google+ or email. There are revenue opportunities at every turn, including links to the NPR Shop and – this is, after all, public radio – where visitors like you can make a donation. Attuned to the desire of modern consumers to customize their content consumption, the podcast section of the website features a “mix your own” playlist tool, tapping a rich and easily searchable library of content indexed by topic, title and provider. The organization, design and convenience of the NPR podcast environment actually surpasses the podcast section of the estimable iTunes store. The NPR digital strategy creates multiple entry points for consuming multiple types of content on multiple types of media on multiple types of platforms. As such, it is the antithesis of the one-size-fits-all content and presentation employed by most newspapers across their digital media. The difference in strategies between NPR and newspapers would not matter if publishers were continuing to gain readers and revenues. But print penetration is at a modern-day low and advertising revenues are less than half of what they were as recently as 2005. Publishers interested in turning things around should tune in to the NPR strategy. December 2013 World Publishing Expo 2013 – Special Report The Standard opts for comprehensive workflow solutions ppi Media enters the market in Kenya On October 7, 2013, the Standard Group in Nairobi, Kenya, commissioned ppi Media to install a wide range of solutions for its planning, production, ad and editorial workflows. The contract was signed by Sam Shollei, CEO of The Standard, at the World Publishing Expo. Boasting a market share of 30%, The Standard is the largest and most influential daily newspaper in Kenya. Apart from the print edition, a large number of online, mobile, broadcast and TV products are also available to news consumers. The decision by the management at The Standard to install ppi Media’s solutions will see many manual processes replaced by automated workflows. For the print edition, Robert Toroitich, CIO of The Standard, will back tested, proven market solutions. In the digital sector especially, The Standard has already set benchmarks and, with AdX, which will integrate both the ad management system SAP IS-M/AM and the ad server, and Content-X, ppi Media’s solution for creating cross-media editorial content, it will create an even more streamlined, efficient workflow. “Our goal is to inform, educate and entertain people with high-quality content on all media channels. With its highly integrated workflow solultions, ppi Media offers maximum automation in all areas of the workflow.” ad pagination system AdPag, ad reservation system AdDispo and page assembly system ProPag, will be responsible for planning and producing the print edition of the daily newspaper. AdX will manage all the ads, including bi-directional interfaces to SAP IS-M/AM and the ad server, for digital output channels. With mediaPreflight, The Standard has opted for a cross-media preflight solution which checks content according to the publisher’s requirements for a specific medium. The editorial department will also receive a cross-media tool. Content-X, ppi Media’s editorial system, is based on InDesign, enabling users to create and deliver cross-media content to different media channels. The new workflow The Standard will install solutions by ppi Media from planning to multichannel delivery. PlanPag, together with its integrated classified f.l.t.r.: Norbert Ohl (CEO, ppi Media), Sam Shollei (CEO, The Standard), Dr. Hauke Berndt (Senior Vice President Sales, ppi Media) The Sun attracts 117,000 paying subscribers to its Sun+ digital service News UK’s tabloid erected a paywall in August and analysts reckon it needs at least 250,000 subscribers to break even Sun+ since August. The Sun has attracted 117,000 paying subscribers to its £2-a-week digital service Sun+ since erecting a paywall around its website on 1 August. News UK’s tabloid, the UK’s biggest selling paper, reached 100,000 digital subscribers in four months – it took stablemates the Times and Sunday Times a year to reach the same level of paying customers after their online content went behind a paywall in 2010. Analysts forecast that the Sun needed to attract at least 250,000 - and perhaps more than 350,000 paying subscribers to Sun+ in order to cover the loss of online advertising and recoup the tens of millions of pounds forked out for deals including digital Premier League football highlights. “No one else has sought to charge for digital access to a mass audience newspaper, and, though it’s early days, we are encouraged by the strong start achieved by the Sun,” said David Dinsmore, editor of The Sun. Dinsmore said the Sun was not looking to target overseas users like the Daily Mail and admitted the publisher’s social media strategy has not been coherent enough to date. “In reality our marketplace is very much the UK at the moment, we have 60 million people here to focus on,” he said. “We are in the process of hiring a social media team, we have been remiss [in this area] in the past. It has been an ad hoc affair. We are a product across all platforms and it is key to have that social-media marketing opportunity. “It is early days and we are still bottoming out what we want to do, we have a number of successful individuals [on Twitter], good things to build on, but we want to see something much more structured.” News UK revealed some details of the subscriber base of Sun+. The biggest single group (30%) are 25 to 34, which Katie Vanneck-Smith, chief marketing officer at News UK, said “blows out the myth young people won’t pay for [digital] content”. Almost half (47%) of sign-ups for the paid service are via mobile devices, which Vanneck-Smith said was slightly surprising as there had been an expectation that the service might be initially more popular on desktop computers, given the typical print Sun reader’s profile. Sun+ subscribers are split 60/40 between men and women, although this is expected to balance out to an extent once the football promotion slows down, and there is a “slight” London bias to sign ups, with the capital’s denizens considered to be early adopters. Not surprisingly, the Sun’s almost 30 million online unique user base plummeted following the introduction of the paywall, as users sought out free alternatives.The Times and Sunday Times saw almost 90% of web traffic evaporate after the introduction of a paywall in 2010. In October, News UK revealed that the number of digital subscribers to the Times and Sunday Times had topped 150,000. News UK chief executive Mike Darcey, who joined from BSkyB nearly a year ago December, has aggressively pursued digital sports rights deals to bolster the Sun’s online offering. First up in January was a £30m-plus deal for Premier League internet and mobile highlights – outbidding former employer BSkyB as well as O2 and Perform Group. This was followed by a four-year deal for the digital FA Cup rights, and last month the publisher secured the digital clip rights to highlights of Champions League and Europa League matches in a joint deal with BT Sport. The Sun had an average daily circulation of 2.089m in November, according to the latest Audit Bureau of Circulations figures published on Friday. However, the Sun has been overtaken for the first time as the biggest selling Saturday paper, with the Daily Mail’s edition on that day averaging 2,474,439 in November. The Sun’s Saturday edition averaged 2,453,981. Page 47 Special Report – World Publishing Expo 2013 December 2013 Successful Muller Martini Appearance at the World Publishing Expo in Berlin “The newspaper industry is alive and well” Muller Martini welcomed far more visitors at its stand at the World Publishing Expo newspaper fair in Berlin than last year. Customers were enthusiastic about the Muller Martini mailroom party in Axel Springer AG’s Spandau printing house featuring Europe’s biggest mailroom. Volker Leonhardt, Managing Director of Muller Martini Germany, was visibly satisfied with the three-day appearance of Muller Martini: “The response of customers in Berlin was a lot stronger than at last year’s fair in Frankfurt. We had lots of good project discussions at our stand, which indicate emerging hope in the newspaper industry.” The positive mood was also sensed by Vladimir Georgiev, Managing Director of IPK Rodina printing house based in the Bulgarian capital of Sofia that produces with two ProLiner newspaper inserting systems from Muller Martini: “The premises of the fair in Berlin were not only more suitable than in Frankfurt, I also think that the fair had more visitors. I consider the good mood to be a positive signal and proof that the newspaper industry is alive and well.” Having worked in the graphic arts industry for many years, Vladimir Georgiev appreciates the manageable size of the newspaper fair. “You get an excellent overview of the state of the art in a short period of time and can exchange experiences with colleagues.” WAN-IFRA Expo 2013 in Berlin was a real success: Jürgen B ender, MM Managing Director, the successful international Müller-Martini tandem Volker Leonhardt and Georg Riva This is also the reason why Christian Basse, Managing Director of SKN Druck und Verlag GmbH & Co in Germany’s Emden, who has commissioned the world’s first FlexLiner newspaper inserting system from Muller Martin, appreciates the World Publishing Expo: “It’s a small, but very manageable fair for newspaper publishing houses, where I always find all relevant contacts and can get an idea of how the newspaper industry is performing.” Although Christian Basse keeps up to speed on the industry trends via the specialist press, “the individual fair stands provided me with an outstanding reflection of what I have read.” Connex.Mailroom and investment protection program The presentation of the Connex.Mailroom process management system, which enables a comprehensive and systematic data overview of the production in the mailroom, also saw great interest. As such, it is possible – motto: “management by numbers” – to read specific queries on downtimes, inserts and output reached just in time and in a simple manner. Customers used the visit to the Muller Martini stand at the World Publishing Expo in Berlin for in-depth discussions with the mailroom specialist. Page 48 The presentations of the comprehensive MMServices program, i.e. the life cycle management, from Muller Martini, also attracted lots of visitors. The service portfolio allows newspaper manufacturers to respond flexibly to current challenges and to secure the long-term profitability of the mailroom. The Muller Martini exports December 2013 World Publishing Expo 2013 – Special Report showed customers how they can keep their systems productive over a longest possible period of time with a customized investment protection program. Visit to the Spandau printing house One of the highlights of the fair in Berlin was the visit to Axel Springer AG’s Spandau printing house, where in addition to nine daily and five weekly newspapers more than 3.5 million advertisement newspapers are printed and assembled on Muller Martini systems every week. The visit to Europe’s biggest mailroom was part of the Muller Martini customer event, where attendees could exchange ideas on the opportunities and challenges of the newspaper industry in a relaxed atmosphere. “It was an impressive journey through 20 years of Muller Martini mailroom technology,” said Volker Leonhardt, emphasizing the successful event. “Our customers were impressed how Axel Springer anticipates market changes with permanent new investments and higher automation and thereby secures its competitiveness for the future.” The highlight of the first day of the fair was the Muller Martini mailroom party in Axel Springer AG‘s Spandau printing house. The Portuguese newspaper A Bola, available in e-paper, tablets and smartphones with Protecmedia viewers The Portuguese newspaper A Bola has made the move into mobile devices and is now available on tablets and smartphones and in in e-paper format. This represents a great leap forward for the leading sports newspaper in Portugal, whose readers can now enjoy all of the options offered by these devices. Through Protecmedia viewers, A Bola places its contents in these media, both in the Android platform as iOS and e-paper version, giving them significant added value thanks to different audiovisual elements, which include videos, photo galleries or different pop-ups to supplement the information. The net result is a new visual experience for readers when enjoying the publication. Fernando Gomez, CEO Protec Media With these new versions, A Bola not only improves the contents which it offers its readers, it also offers advertisers new alternatives, opening up to them these devices’ full range of audiovisual possibilities so that they can present their products in a novel and very attractive manner Page 49 Special Report – World Publishing Expo 2013 December 2013 Cross-media publishing was the main focus at this year’s trade fair ppi Media looks back at a successful World Publishing Expo 2013 Norbert Ohl, COO of ppi Media, is absolutely certain that “The newspaper, as a business model, will continue to be successful, even though the digital media channels, too, are increasingly supplied with high quality content. As a software service provider, our main focus in the last few years has been to develop strategies and solutions for digital publishing. At the World Publishing Expo, we presented solutions such as Content-X, AdX, a digital strategy, multichannel publishing and workshop programs. Three orders and overwhelming positive feedback from those who visited our stand have strengthened our confidence in our products.” with any editorial system, is the perfect foundation for a successful business model. Ads with AdX Apart from editorial systems, cross-media ad management for publishers is steadily optimize their workflow for online banners significantly. The Südkurier in Constance, for instance, achieves time savings of over 80% with complex banners,” says Norbert Ohl. All in all, ppi Media is very satisfied with the World Publishing Expo 2013. “Our stand was very well visited on all three days and we were able to sign three contracts At the trade fair, which was held in Berlin from October 7-9, 2013, ppi Media presented software and services which assist media companies in implementing and automating digital strategies. At the World Publishing Expo, there was a clear trend towards streamlined and flexible crossmedia solutions in all areas of publishing. At ppi Media’s stand, visitors showed great interest in the editorial system Content-X. The Standard in Nairobi, Kenya, and the German mediaprint infoverlag in Mering commissioned ppi Media on the first day to install its solution for creating and delivering content to different media channels. In 2013 alone, ppi Media has already received six orders for the editorial solution from various customers. More and more magazines, corporate publishers and daily newspapers now use Content-X in their editorial departments. Multichannel publishing with CX digital A further highlight at ppi Media’s stand was CX digital. The platform for multichannel publishing enables media companies to publish a digital newspaper edition or magazine with interactive content on smartphones and tablets both quickly and cheaply. CX digital has already been successfully installed at several publishing companies in the US. And the first customer in Germany, the Lippische Landes-Zeitung, will go live this year. CX digital offers publishers a transaction-based billing solution with minimal initial investment. CX digital, which can be combined Page 50 Very well visited: ppi Media‘s stand at World Publishing Expo 2013 gaining importance. In the digital media especially, many jobs at the publishing house are still done manually. With AdX, ppi Media makes the ad workflow more transparent and simpler for all media channels. “In practice, our customers have been able to with new customers. Our role as a supplier of multimedia solutions has been clearly accepted,” says Christian Finder, Head of International Sales and responsible for the World Publishing Expo at ppi Media, summing up the trade fair. December 2013 People in the spotlight – PreMedia Newsletter English World Edition Richards retires after 45 Years in the Industry First in a series of personal profiles of major contributors to our industry. After obtaining his Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering from Vanderbilt University, John Richards began embarking on a career that included. Marketing and Product Management, as well as engineering. Products that fell under his influence include the Goss Metro, the Heidelberg- Theo Buchmeyer, John Richards, Karl Malik his career in America’s Apollo program, while continuing studies in physics and mathematics. His first job in graphic arts was designing second-generation phototypesetters at American Type Founders. He joined Goss (then Miehle-Goss-Dexter) in 1972, Harris M-600, the Sunday Press lines, and the Goss Vpak packaging presses. To these ends, Richards says that his biggest contributions were talking with the most visionary customers, structuring what their future needs were likely to be, and then developing concepts for future products to meet those needs. “The whole key to successful product introduction is synthesising solutions for the customer that combine the best capabilities of the supplier with a structured vision of what the customer’s needs will be in the future,” says Richards. Always insisting on looking at the “big picture” in this way, his 39 U.S. patents (and numerous associated worldwide patents) show a wide range innovation in both the prepress and press disciplines. “But no one individual does it alone. I was always surrounded by great team members who complemented my capabilities, and great leaders who tolerated the occasional goofy idea along with the great ones.” He recalls that his boss’ boss at Goss had previously been head of the Apollo program for Rockwell International, “an indication of the calibre of leadership.” “The variety of products and services offered by the wide range of suppliers to our industry worldwide shows that everywhere there are great contributors, great teams and great leaders. It was a real pleasure to have been a part of one of these.” John will now have extra time to devote to his many hobbies that include classic car restorations and continuing additions to his 27-rank home pipe organ. “After a taste of retirement, I don’t think I would look forward to returning to working fulltime, but I will enjoy following progress in our industry, and possibly contributing here and there.” John and his wife Karolyn live in seacoast New Hampshire in the U.S. We wish them the best. ? Page 51 The international world of media on your APP: PreMedia Newsletter This service is free to our subscribers. Download for 1 App € 2,99. PreMedia Newsletter.de and world edition You can receive our the PreMedia Newsletter App via the the AppStore PreMedia Newsletter.com can you see the latest Informations and Video-Life-Streams