Advertising News Archives

100 newspaper publishers and senior executives as well as nearly 30 industry vendors - all members of Suburban Newspapers of America - gathered at the beautiful Ponte Vedra Beach Inn and Club in Ponte Vedra Beach FL February 20-22. They discussed the changing face and the outlook for newspapers and newspaper advertising and editorial products.

The latest advertising ventures and some newly-brainstormed ideas were the foci of several sessions. Associate members of SNA, the industry vendors that help newspapers evolve in the multimedia world, were in abundance.

Newspapers met the following online expert exhibitors offering Web, print and even mobile advertising products and services:

Classified Concepts, www.classifiedconcepts.com , part of Maps.com , which offers dynamic mapping capabilities for real estate, garage sale and other classified advertising on the Web.

Content That Works, www.contentthatworks.com, providing vibrant and relevant online and print content for newspapers.

Digital Technology International, www.dtint.com , offers a number of online solutions for publications that include page and text editing and design, advertising order entry and production for Web and mobile, content management, circulation services and Web publishing.

ICANON Newzware, www.newzware.com , providing business software for the publishing industry.

Izmomedia, www.izmomedia.com , owner of CarSite.com. This vendor's classified advertising portal is custom-designed with out of the box functionality.

JobView, www.jobview.com , is an innovative vendor whose advertising kiosks allow job seekers to search for openings and apply from their nearby library or workforce center, or shop for their new car and home while at the mall.

MediaSpan Media software, www.mediaspansoftware.com , offers pre-press software and content management tools that empower state of the art print and Web publications.

NBC has just announced that it will launch a 52-week prime time schedule. Perhaps this is on the first network to do so? In April it will hold on one meetings with cable networks,and then meet with advertisers in May.

Gannett, Hearst, Tribune and New York Times newspaper companies have banded together to form Quadrant One, a network offering regionally-customized online advertising buys in up to 27 U.S major markets. The Neilsen Online numbers the group reports are 50 million unique visitors.

Business Wire goes social - with video. This news clipping service enhances its multimedia products and sharing options.

Are Time Warner Cable and AOL about to be separated from parent Time Warner? New TW CEO Jeffrey Bewkes suggest that might happen.

Larry Kutscher of Register.com talks about the right and wrong way to advertise at the Super Bowl - and how GoDaddy chose the wrong way.

Hillary, The Movie made it to the big screen but got booted from the little screen, due to campaign regulations.

I just finished reading "Knightfall" by Davis Merritt and if you care about the struggle of newspapers - and the history of Knight Ridder - this is a must-read book. Merritt, long time KR news executive, now retired from the Wichita Eagle newsroom, wrote his book before the demise of Knight Ridder. But he clearly saw the writing on the wall, and laments the gutting of the newsroom - leave-taking of experienced staff and loss of print space. He is concerned, rightly so, with the move towards non-news entrepreneurs owning newspapers.

So, it was very interesting that right after I finished the book media consultant and professional blogger Mel Taylor sent me this link to the Randy Michaels video. And, by the way, if you want to know what's going on in the media evolution - newspapers, radio and TV - read Mel's blog. Read it often.

Sam Zell is on the stage as well, but Michaels talks to Allentown (PA) Morning Call staff at length about his plans for Tribune, about his determination to not "gut" the newsroom and about revving up the papers' advertising motors to a far greater extent than has been happening before.

On the heels of an announcement by Yahoo that it will lay off 1000 employees, which amounts to 7 percent of its workforce, comes the astounding news that Microsoft has offered to buy Yahoo for $44.6 billion. The reason behind the move is to effectively compete against Google.