DIGITAL MEDIA THROWS UP CONUNDRUMSpressinstitute.in/file-folder/rindsurvey/RIND March 2014...

A Journal of the Press Institute of India - Research Institute for Newspaper Development

March 2014 | Volume 35 | Issue 3 | Rs 40www.pressinstitute.in

SurveyRIND

DIGITAL MEDIA THROWS UP CONUNDRUMSLEAP OF FAITH: Technology has completely changed the face of journalism today. It’s not just about speed, it’s also about how discerning and powerful the reader has become and how publishers are frantically trying to package content in different ways to suit the reader. There is also the aspect of the Internet impacting business models, and publishers finding ways to monetise print and digital platforms. Here, Sabine Jaehmlich, vice-president – Projects, ppi Media GmbH, speaks with Kausik Ray, chief manager - Production & Engineering, The Times of India, during a break at WAN-IFRA’s Digital Media India Conference held in Chennai.

Indo-UK perspectives on issues of public interest and regulation

WAN-IFRA’s Digital Media India Conference brings pertinent issues to the fore

1March 2014 SurveyRIND

FROM THE EDITOR

Testing times as the media continues to grapple with some tough questions

Freedom and Accountability. Can the two coexist harmoniously? The Indian Constitution grants every citizen the Freedom of Expression, but what really is meant by freedom of the press? As a former high court judge says, the press enjoys the same freedom as every citizen. But is it as simple as that? The Justice Leveson enquiry into the culture, practice and ethics of the press has resulted in a lot of debate on the subject over the past many months. However, there are no absolute answers to the many, many questions and the picture is still fuzzy.

What is, however, clear is that (as some of the speakers at two conferences held in Chennai in the first week of February have stated) while the media (private television channels to a large extent) have succeeded in exposing corruption in high places, be it in political parties, the gvernment, the legislature or the judiciary, it does not reserve enough space for more important social issues such as education, poverty and health.

What is also clear is that there is a lack of solidarity in the press. This is no doubt fostered by a sense of over-competitiveness – I’d rather not call it cut-throat competition. You can see it all on private television channels where each one claims a report is an exclusive. You can even see it in newspaper pages – for example, an event where somebody (such as publisher or editor or director) from a competing newspaper is up there on stage will either find less coverage, or the particular person will be conveniently left out in the picture accompanying the article with no mention of what he said at the event. I see it happening often in the city pages of the four English newspapers I read daily. Unbiased coverage indeed!

At a time when the focus is more on television and the digital media, there are other issues that are not gaining enough attention: ownership of the media or publication house, education of journalists, recruitment and employment of journalists, and corruption within the media itself. We all thought there would be a thorough cleansing after the Radia Tapes episode exposed the goings-on and the cosy relationships some journalists had with politicians and others. The tapes embarrassed the fraternity of journalists, many of who have a holier-than-thou attitude. But has any cleansing really happened? Am not so sure. So there is a lot that needs to be done within.

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Several leading newspapers of the country have condemned the newly published Indian Readership Survey (IRS 2013) on newspapers, saying the survey “is riddled with shocking anomalies, which defy logic and common sense”. In this instance, we saw quite a few newspaper publishers coming together. As we go to press, the news is that the Indian Readership Survey 2013 has been kept in abeyance by its publisher, the Media Research Users Council, until March 31 this year. All subscribers and members have been asked by MRUC to hold off usage of the study until it is re-validated. That’s what unity can do.

Sashi Nair [email protected]

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Legislation or improved self-regulation? 4

No more the ‘clueless stepchild’, digital media gains focus 10

MemoSticks – an excellent tool for advertising 14

Multi-channel strategy tops agenda for majority, reveals WoodWing study 18


Cover page photo: WAN-IFRA South Asia

SurveyRIND

Jawa Pos opts for Goss yet again 21

Sharper results, thanks to Liquid Gold 24

Industry Updates 28

Other News 46

Events Calendar 48


LEVESON REPORT KEEPS THE DEBATE GOING

Legislation or improved self-regulation?

A wide-ranging discussion on the challenges facing the media and its different branches, revolving around the question of public interest and issues of regulation from the Indo-UK perspective, took place in Chennai at a conference jointly organised by the Media Development Foundation; Panos, South Asia; and the British Deputy High Commission. Pegged on the Justice Leveson enquiry into the culture, practices and ethics of the press in UK, the topics of debate by power-packed panels included Reconciling Freedom and Accountability, Leaking, Whistleblowing and Journalism, Journalistic Ethics in the East and West, Opportunities and Challenges of the Internet and the Future of Journalism. Susan Philip reports

Senior journalists representing every arm of the media – print, television and Internet – and practically every facet of the profession – editors, chairmen of boards, members of the vernacular press, media persons from UK, educationists, legal professionals and bureaucrats

– shared their experiences and points of view with the audience comprising mainly journalists and students of the Asian College of Journalism at a conference jointly organised by the Media Development Foundation; Panos, South Asia; and the British Deputy High Commission in Chennai recently.

Justice K. Chandru, former Judge of the Madras High Court and a frequent contributor of articles connected with the legal profession to newspapers and magazines, in his capacity as chair of the panel that discussed Reconciling Freedom and Accountability, expressed the view that the two concepts were not antithetical. There was a constitutional right to Freedom of Expression though there was no special reference to press freedom, he pointed out, and said the press enjoyed the same freedom as every citizen, subject to the same reasonable restrictions put forth in Article 19.2 of the Constitution.

Decrying the tendency of Courts to issue ‘prior restraint orders’ and instances of misuse of Article 66A of the IT Act, Justice Chandru felt the seminar was very timely. His warning that if the press failed to draw up guidelines for itself and abide by them, it ran the risk of outside agencies stepping in to do so was echoed by successive speakers on the panel.

N Ravi, editor-in-Chief, The Hindu, chair, India Chapter of International Press Institute and president, Editors’ Guild of India, said accountability was when there was an issue with the media and an effort was made to restrict it, while the concept of freedom referred to the effort to free media from such restrictions. “But when we refer to freedom, the question arises, whose freedom? The editor’s? The publisher’s, the owner’s? The journalists?” he asked.

What the Leveson Report did was to trigger a back-to-basics movement in Britain, Ravi said, adding, self-regulation in Britain was a practice most relevant to India. Talking of the role of the Press Council of India in regulation, he said the practice of “naming and shaming” had lost its force. Saying that while the media had, in the recent past, been vigorous in exposing corruption in high


places and that it had moved away from issues of social importance like education, poverty and health, he left the audience to mull his contention that self-regulation could at best arrest negative trends, it could not foster positive ones.

Shekhar Gupta, editor-in-chief, The Indian Express, felt that in India at least, the media wasn’t doing anything to warrant a stringent regulatory system. Yet, there were issues to be contended with. “Old incompetence is compounded by a new-found arrogance,” he said, adding, “The anonymity offered by the Internet complicates matters. The print media also has a bad conscience vis-à-vis paid news.” Talking of censorship and competition , he strongly denounced the gagging of the press by the courts, saying that

“retrospective censorship” was unprecedented in its width and that it was compounded by the lack of solidarity among the press, fostered by a sense of over-competitiveness which prompted media houses to deny/debunk/repeat as their own the scoops obtained by others.

Maalan Narayanan, editor, Puthiya Thalaimurai, said the media itself was partly responsible for the growing cries for accountability. Pointing out that the Justice Leveson Report had criticised British politicians for developing unwarranted relationships with the press, Maalan said the Radia Tapes incident in India proved that Indian press and politicians were in no way different to their British counterparts. He felt that media accountability was a must, considering that it wanted others to be accountable. The questions he said were: Who should the press be accountable to? To the owners of the media houses? To professional ethics? Or to the public at large? Maalan suggested that a

readers’ editor, who had to be mandatorily named in the news organisation, as the publisher, printer and editor now are, could be one way of imposing checks and balances.

Talking about moves such as the Independent Press Standards Organisation and Impress in Britain, Marcus Winsley, director, Press and Communications Group, British High Commission, New Delhi, was categorical that “the British Government passionately believes in the freedom of the press.” Britain was not advocating Draconian laws to rein in the press, he stressed, and added that the Justice Leveson Report should not be seen as an excuse to go in for strict control of the media.

Different views on regulationThe discussion on issues of regulation saw

experts like Stephen Pritchard, Sashi Kumar, Krishna Prasad and Deepak Jacob presenting their views on various facets of the subject. A.S. Panneerselvan, executive director, Panos, South Asia, and readers’ editor, The Hindu, was in the chair. Explaining the roles and responsibilities of a readers’ editor, Stephen Pritchard, who holds the post at The Observer in the UK, and is president, Organisation for News Ombudsman, said readers’ editors work independently of the editor and represent people who buy the paper and appear in it. They stand back from the fray, listen to the public, and act on complaints and comments, if necessary. It’s all about transparency, and from transparency comes trust. Making a solid business case for accountability he said, “If a reader trusts you, he will buy you,” and a readers’ editor, as proven by the experience of his own paper, also significantly reduces legal costs for the media house.

Sashi Kumar, chairman, Media Development Foundation and Asian College of Journalism, said while Parliament, the Executive and the Judiciary acted as checks and balances on each other as envisaged by the Indian Constitution, the Fourth Estate was not as readily perceived as accountable, and hence the demands for self-regulation. If any of the other three estates were to impose such accountability on the press, it would not be a free press anymore and as such, the action

From left, John Lloyd, director of Journalism, Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism; Sashi Kumar, chairman, Media Development Foundation; N. Ram, chairman, Kasturi & Sons; and Om Thanvi, editor, Jan Satta; at the conference.

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would be tantamount to tampering with the Constitution, which was the conundrum to be resolved. Expressing himself against government or Parliament regulating the press in India, he cautioned that the wrong lessons could be learnt from the Justice Leveson Report in India, and it could be used as a tool by the Government to clip the wings of the press.

In UK, the debate of consumer vs citizen as pertains to the media was resolved by Ofcom (the independent regulator and competition authority for UK’s communications industry), In India, we were still grappling with the two concepts, Kumar said. Though the Press Council was mandated to ensure a level playing field, entry levels, had been raised so high that only “money bags” can start television channels, he said, comparing the present scenario with his own experiences relating to Asianet, the Malayalam satellite TV channel which he founded and launched in 1992.

Offering a different perspective, Krishna Prasad, editor-in-chief, Outlook, said for one thing, the press was barking up the wrong tree when it talked about regulation of the print media. It was the television and the digital media which needed more attention in this regard. For another, he said, before the question of regulation in content was taken up, there were other areas that needed to be looked at. Ownership, education of journalists, recruitment and employment of journalists and corruption within the media itself were some aspects that needed close attention, he said. For instance, the question of corporate ownership of media houses and the inherent conflict of interest there needed to be looked into, as did the issue of cross-media ownership. Further, the vernacular press seemed to be outside the loop of regulation, and could do pretty much as it liked, he felt.

Deepak Jacob, president and legal consul, Star TV India, called for a light-handed, stable regulatory regime. If television did not realise its own responsibilities, the government would come down on it with a heavy hand, he warned. Welcoming the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) recommendation to ban state-run and political party-owned TV channels, he said he preferred a co-regulatory model.

Judgement is key

Speakers on the panel on Leaking, Whistleblowing and Journalism, chaired by Kevin Burden, managing director, Training Station, an independent TV journalist and media trainer, stressed the need to balance the right to be informed with caution, as vested interests were often at play. He stressed the importance of getting things in perspective, and assessing the quality of the information as well as that of the source of that information before publishing it.

Kumar Ketkar, former chief editor, Dainik Divya Marathi, emphasised the need to check and verify information. Whistleblowers were also likely to be paid in India, which added another layer to corruption, he pointed out.

V. Sudarshan, executive editor, The New Indian Express; Ranjan Roy, associate editor, The Times of India, and editor, Times News Network; and Bhagwan Singh, executive editor, Deccan Chronicle; all cautioned the budding journalists in the audience about the possibility of agenda-setting, keeping in mind that a whistleblower could be influenced by his personal feelings about the issue at hand, and the necessity to use one’s judgment to decide the value of a news story.

The session on Journalistic Ethics: East and West, was chaired by Sashi Kumar. John Lloyd, director of Journalism, Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism; N. Ram, chairman, Kasturi and Sons, publishers of The Hindu; and Om Thanvi, editor, Jan Satta, were among the speakers. Regretting what he described as the commodification of scandals, Lloyd said the downfall of some media houses in the West resulted from journalists blackmailing people into giving information that proved baseless. N Ram was categorical that the fortunes of the newspaper industry must be kept distinct from the state of journalism. He spoke about a growing willingness among newspapers to tailor their news to their advertisers, which has a bearing on professional ethics. Proper sourcing and protection of sources are also matters of journalistic ethics, he pointed out. Om Thanvi talked of the disturbing acceptability that the practice of giving gifts and providing favours to the media had gained.


Challenges posed by technology

Priya Rajasekar, coordinator, New Media, Asian College of Journalism, chairing the session on Opportunities and Challenges of the Internet, pointed out that with the rapid advances in technology, the way of telling the story itself had changed, offering wide opportunities to journalists. The opportunities for readers too were vast, as they could now get into the skin of the subjects of news stories, so to speak.

Sheela Bhatt, senior editorial director, rediff.com, talked of the opportunity offered by the Internet in terms of reach, citing the example of an individual like Arun Jaitley whose twitter posts, she said, were read by more people than The Times of India. At the same time, it posed challenges on fronts such as privacy and accountability. Every reader should be traceable and accountable, she asserted, and said that when so much freedom was available, it was only right that the Internet user gave something back – his or her identity. She also pointed out that large sections of the Indian populace were still outside the reach of the Internet, yet were content and productive.

The new generation of digital natives, with Internet ingrained in them in patterns and ways that those outside that generation cannot fathom, were focused on by Sundeep Khanna, executive editor, Livemint. The Internet was the only way to reach Gen-Y, he said, adding that it offered vast opportunities but needed careful mining. He quoted the experience of his own paper in soliciting reader feedback online. Though at first there was a surge of uncontrolled expression, gradually, the tone changed, and now erudite comments are coming in. This goes to show that reasoned and reasonable voices are out there, waiting for a platform, he said.

Prem Panicker, managing editor, Yahoo India, felt the breaking down of geographical barriers was one of the greatest opportunities to journalism offered by the Internet. He talked of Yahoo’s success in covering Cyclone Phalin, sitting far away from the path of the storm, by roping in citizens on the spot, live on Twitter. Also, infographics, sound blogs and other technological advancements had made it possible to present every element of the story in the most optimum

fashion, he said. There remained the question of selling that story. The challenge was to merge the two successfully, which was something yet to be figured out, he added.

A fuzzy picture still

Setting the tone of the final session, The Future of Journalism, K.N. Shanth Kumar, director, The Printers (Mysore), publishers of Deccan Herald and Prajavani, as well as chairman of the boards of the Press Trust of India and the Press Institute of India, said rapid technological developments had changed the ways of journalism and the speed with which it was generated. The relationship between journalist and reader/viewer had changed, and the Internet had impacted business models. A new breed of multi-media journalists had emerged. Emphasising the need to be aware of the changes and challenges wrought by technology, he said it was important that mid-level journalists, particularly in vernacular news organisations, be given training in handling new technology.

James Lamont, managing editor, Financial Times, the UK, spoke of the emergence of ‘short-form journalism,’ designed to be read on mobile phones. Admitting that there was less money now in journalism, he said the way forward was far from clear, but FT had decided that the future lay in going digital. Tweets, blogs, live streaming and apps were changing the rules that regulated strategy. The use of web analytics, engagement with the reader and social media, and the broadcast schedule – putting out news when the reader wanted it – were key, he said, adding that paying attention to such aspects

From right: David Levy, director, Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism; K.N. Shanth Kumar, director, Deccan Herald Group; James Lamont, managing editor, Financial Times, the U.K., and Bharat S .Joshi, British deputy high commissioner, Chennai, at a conference in Chennai.

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Statement about ownership and other particulars about “RIND Survey” the English Monthly Newspaper, Chennai, as required to be published under Section 19-D Sub-Section (b) of the Press and Registration of Books Act read with the Rule 8 of the Registration of Newspapers (Central Rules) 1956

Form IV RIND Survey - Monthly

1. Place of publication : Chennai2. Periodicity of Publication : Monthly3. Printer’s Name : V.B.S. Mony Nationality : Indian Address No. 10/2 Second Loop Street Kottur Gardens Chennai 600 0854. Publisher’s Name : Sashi Nair Nationality : Indian Address

Flat 3C, GRN Akshara D112, Sangeetha Colony Ashok Pillar Road K.K.Nagar, Chennai 600 0785. Editor’s Name : Sashi Nair Nationality : Indian Address Flat 3C, GRN Akshara

D112, Sangeetha Colony Ashok Pillar Road K.K.Nagar, Chennai 600 0786. Names and addresses of individuals who own the newspaper/magazine and partners or shareholders holding more than one per cent of the total capital: The Press Institute of India - Research Institute for Newspaper Development RIND Premises, Taramani, CPT Campus Chennai 600 113 Shareholding of more than one per cent of the capital does not arise as the The Press Institute of India - Research Institute for Newspaper Development is a non-profit society registered under the Societies Act No. XXI of 1860. I, Sashi Nair, hereby declare that the particulars given above are true to the best of my knowledge and belief. Sashi Nair Publisher

01.03.2014

had resulted in the FT’s digital subscription exceeding the printed one in 2012, and content revenue topping advertising revenue.

Talking of a viable business model, or the lack of it, N. Ram said the crisis was real. “There is no certainty that we’re closer to any viable, profitable business model. The anxiety persists,” he said, adding that in his opinion, the challenge was to engage with the audience that was now getting away, with grim financial implications.

David Lang, director, Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, named lowered costs of newsgathering and of transmitting news globally as two of the positives of Internet journalism. News wasn’t a dying industry, he felt. On the contrary, more people were wanting news. The more devices a person had, the more he/she was motivated to look at news, studies by the Institute had shown. More people were now willing to pay for news. In his opinion, hard pay walls were to be avoided, and media organisations should take time to work out what the consumer would consider worth paying for. Frictionless payment modes would help the success of a business model, he added.

Bharat Joshi, deputy British high commissioner, Chennai, felt journalism was one of the core driving forces of democracy, and seconded the opinion of David Carr of The New York Times that now was the best time, not the worst, to be a journalist.

During the two-day event, the emerging journalists in the audience got a wealth of information from the eminent personalities who not only put forth their views from the podium but also interacted with them in question-and-answer sessions. And as a thumb rule for responsible journalism, a member of the audience, a retired senior officer of the armed forces, offered some invaluable advice: “Journalists should remember that what they put out goes to the very heart of those who are accountable. If you remember that, you will couch your words and focus your cameras more appropriately.” <


Focus on digital, no more the ‘clueless stepchild’

WAN-IFRA’s Digital Media India Conference opened in Chennai with a call for publishers to prepare for the future by making digital investments now, in a country where print publishing continues to grow. With the theme, ‘Get ready for the next big growth cycle’, the two-day event focused on the challenges of multi-channel publishing and the opportunities for increasing revenue from digital media. It featured case studies and experiences from international media companies ranging from VG in Norway to Beritasatu Media Holdings in Indonesia, publishers of the Jakarta Globe

“The speed of disruption taking place in the industry is greater than ever, and news publishers should take note of the context of these new development happening around them,” said Michael Maness, vice-president of Journalism and Media Innovation at the Knight

Foundation, speaking in the opening session of Digital Media India, the South Asian edition of the global Digital Media Conferences organised by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers. “Social media is more than a promotional tool. It is a bigger disruption to journalism than the

Internet. Social media does initial reporting well, we don't know about its authenticity. The challenge is to filter, curate and amplify news found via social media,” Maness said, emphasising the need for verification of information on social media platforms. The two-day conference drew 110 delegates and 23 speakers from 13 countries.

Oyvind Naess, chief of staff of Schibsted-owned Verdens Gang, spoke of the opportunities offered by video and non-linear TV. He said VG had plans to double the staff, video inventory, acquisition of programs, series and shows, and to give a bigger push to live-TV. “Readership might reduce in newspapers but it'll increase in mobile devices. India must prepare for this shift,” he pointed out.

Sachin Gopalan, CEO, Beritasatu Media Holdings, Indonesia, encouraged editors to accept digital media and take the “leap of faith”.“Digital media should learn from print and be user friendly,” he said.

In the second session, the focus was on leveraging content and technology. Speakers Sukirti Gupta, CEO, MMI Online; N.P. Rajendran, deputy editor, Mathrubhumi; and Amitabha Sinha, DGM, IT Strategy and Development, ABP; all agreed that news agencies should keep in mind the vernacular language of the readers and provide content accordingly. “We use Hinglish (Hindi + English). It is important to interact with the audience in the language they know. The multi-language news strategy also helps in reaching large numbers,” said Gupta.“Every piece of news has its audience across the world and it is more so in the language press be

it print or online, said Rajendran. People in every nook and corner of the globe wanted to know what is happening at the other end, he added, explaining how Mathrubhumi’s web edition helped daily cover about 100 local and hyper-local news stories, while print was able to put out only about 75 stories. This, he said, helped a reader outside his home state or country.


Post-lunch, Grig Davidovitz, CEO, RGB

Media Inc, Israel, spoke about techniques used to enhance user experience. He said that each page of a website should be treated as a homepage and that content creators should focus on driving users to visit more pages. “We have to attract accidental readers into permanent ones; that is, have to convert one-night-stand users and end up marrying them.”

Rajesh Mahapatra, executive editor, Hindustan Times, who spoke about the transition of print to digital, said, “Until one year back, I had no idea about new media. Now I'm in charge of the transition from print to digital. Digital media was seen as a clueless stepchild. There was no vision, no strategy and no business plan. The digital transformation has not yet happened, but the intent has become a lot stronger.” He concluded by saying that the crisis the print industry faced had become an opportunity for the digital world and added that journalists must adapt to different medium.

Matias Cascallares, consulting engineer, MongoDB Inc, Singapore, and Sachin Gupta, chief information officer, Bennett Coleman &

Co, spoke about ways to optimise databases for digital content.

Journalism in the Age of the InternetThe Chennai event included a World Editors

Forum seminar on ‘Journalism in the age of digital surveillance’, which was live-streamed and channeled to Twitter feeds by students from the Asian College of Journalism in the city. Participants included some of India’s leading editors: N. Ravi, editor-in-chief of The Hindu; K.N. Shanth Kumar, editor of Prajavani; Kalpesh Yagnik, national editor, Dainik Bhaskar; and Krishna Prasad, editor-in-chief of Outlook. The session was titled ‘Lessons from the leaders, successful digital strategies’. “Surveillance is omni-present. All communication

can be intercepted. Media has traditionally been opposed to surveillance. Surveillance is justified by using the term 'public interest'. It is different from what the public are interested in,” said Ravi, opening the discussion. “There is a growing intolerance world over to good

journalism, which makes people uncomfortable,” said Kumar. He added that journalists took very little care to protect them from surveillance.

Krishna Prasad, editor-in-chief of Outlook has (from left) Kalpesh Yagnik, national editor of Dainik Bhaskar; N Ravi, editor-in-chief of The Hindu; and K.N. Shanth Kumar, editor of Prajavani all ears.

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Yagnik was of the opinion that the readers/

viewers were the ones to decide what was right or wrong in the surveillance content. The job of the reporter was to just provide the content, he said. Supporting the use of surveillance by journalists, Prasad said the government, army, police and even the public did it and so, shouldn't journalists do it.

Adapt to surviveTony Danker, international director of Guardian

News and Media, opened the second day of the conference with a presentation on ‘Social, local, mobile’ media and the Guardian’s model of open journalism. “Open journalism is not just about going online, it is about practising journalism along with the people online,” he said. He went on to narrate examples, such as the G20 and the 2011 London protests, where journalists at the Guardian used social media to get inputs from people. He also talked about The Guardian Witness and its user-generated content platform. “We believe that it's critical to open our content across all platforms. Closed journalism would say that readers should come to their place, their website. The open journalism model would say we want to go where the readers are,” Danker said.

Referring to social media and the blogger community that contributed greatly to the growth of the Times of Israel website, Davidovitz said professionals were not the only gatekeepers of information now, the crowd could also act

as one. He pointed out how they capitalised on people’s FOMO or ‘fear of missing out’ by having journalists on the ground tweet live from events such as political rallies.

Sorav Jain, an entrepreneur and digital marketing and social media consultant, discussed the growing impact of social media in India and good practices to leverage and monetize the medium. “It’s not just about what you post, it’s also about how you post. Try to make your site Facebook-friendly, for example,” he exhorted the audience.

Markus Feldenkirchen, CEO of ppi Media, outlined his company’s fi ve-phase framework for leveraging the digital platform: discover, design, deliver, distribute, determine. Salil Kumar, COO, India Today Group Digital, explained how the group capitalised on its capability to publish content on radio across differnet media – radio, TV, magazines, online and mobile – by tailoring and repackaging content for each medium.

Speakers at the fi nal session, which looked at how advertisers viewed digital and traditional media in India, included Shekhar Sharma, managing director, GroupM; Murugavel Janakiraman, founder, Bharat Matrimony; Porush Jain, founder and CEO, Sportskeeda.com, and Dan Barth, chief information offi cer and VP - Audience Development at the OPUBCO Group.

Seven suppliers of various products and services to the news media industry were present during the two days, showcasing their offerings. <

Learning on-the-job: students of Asian College of Journalism provided live coverage of the event using social media tools.

The various speakers provided the delegates enough food for thought.


MemoSticks – an excellent tool for advertising

At a time when the advertising world is looking for still newer ways to capitalise on investment and elicit reader response, the MemoStick comes as an innovative solution that is brilliant in its simplicity. The leverage that the advertiser is able to get in terms of response, as well as advantage the newspaper wins in terms of additional revenue, more than justify the investment in the campaign

The MemoStick, basically similar to the Post-it note, is a form of advertisement that sticks to the newspaper or any other type of print media. It can be used purely for display, and also be put to interactive use – for instance, it could take the form of coupons or other ways in which

the reader is expected to respond directly to the advertiser. As an advertising technique that stands out from the general flood of information and prompts the target audience to interact or buy, it is unique.

Valecom AG, a part of WRH Marketing AG, Switzerland, is now trying to hardsell the wonderful versatile tool that can take virtually any shape and can come in a variety of sizes. MemoSticks find a place on the front pages of newspapers – the most coveted advertising space. They stand out clearly from the carrier, and so attract immediate attention. They are simple to handle. There’s no need to hunt for the scissors to cut out coupons, or tear off strips to encash. They can be peeled off from the newspaper or magazine without damaging the page, and stuck on another surface, the refrigerator perhaps, thus prolonging the span of attention it gets.

And both the advertiser and the publisher have been laughing all the way to the bank, thanks to the reader response that has been “nothing short of sensational” as a company press release puts it, and the accompanying increase in circulation.

The unique selling proposition can be shaped and tailored to match various types of advertising strategy. They can supplement printed advertisements, play a part in cross-media campaigns, and be

The cover page of a brochure readied by Valecom AG shows the use of MemoSticks by newspapers.

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timed to sync with specific moments or events – a shop opening, for instance, or a product launch. The MemoStick is also the perfect choice to advertise special offers and prize draws. The format makes it equally suited for short-term as well as long-term advertising campaigns and, significantly, it does not cannibalise other forms of advertising.

MemoSticks come in a standard size of 76 x 76 mm, but can be made both smaller and larger, as per the client’s requirement. They also lend themselves to folding into a concertina-type book if needed.

Thanks to MemoStick, advertisers are achieving above-average response rates, according to WRH. The responses can be very accurately measured if they involve the target audience taking direct steps. For instance, the UFA Sports GmbH, which is responsible for managing all the Hamburg St Paul Football Club’s marketing and hospitality rights, placed 26000 MemoSticks on a part edition of the Hamburger Abendblatt, giving a link to a page on the club’s website. Within a week, 2200 ‘unique visitors’ had registered and the club was able to sell 30 second-half season tickets costing 1500 euros each. The investment? A total of 3000 euros on the entire campaign!

WRH Marketing AG, which has a global presence, sees itself as a partner in all aspects of MemoSticks and has developed a full service package that makes the launch of a campaign as easy as possible. One approach that it offers is through the publisher’s own advertising department. After the order has been placed, WRH Marketing deals

with all issues of production and delivery of the MemoSticks to the client’s mailroom.

The company has also created a MemoStick e-shop (www.memostick.com) which can handle all booking enquiries. The site lists around 5000 newspapers from across the world. The e-shop quotes guide prices on the basis of details like circulation, date of campaign, etc, and also allows clients to create MemoSticks from templates. Those wishing to do so can even upload their own PDFs. In all cases, WRH Marketing deals with the management of the order along with the entire value-creation chain. The package includes support in attracting advertisers, comprehensive campaign advice, planning and booking, training publishers' sales and marketing teams and procurement of quality materials.

WRH Marketing also supplies the necessary technology to integrate MemoStick application into the mailroom lines without compromising existing logistics. The Accraply, the 5203 HS (high-speed) servo-driven MemoStick Applicator from mailroom technologies leader Ferag, has the capacity to apply MemoStick notes at the speed of 80000 copies per hour. It even has a wide label head as an option.

Taking the idea forward are MemoScent and MemoCare. They allow perfume and other cosmetic and personal care product samples to be carried on the front page of newspapers. The innovative advertising format has caught the imagination of advertisers and newspaper publishers on a global scale. Within a short span of time, it has opened new horizons in the marketplace.

The advantages of a MemoStick

Simple, but highly effective due to • prominent positioningThree-dimensional and repositionable, • creating enlarged contact time with the customerExclusive and interactive• An eye-catching platform providing • double-digit response ratesTop cost-response ratio•

Newspapers aren’t the only medium that can use MemoSticks. The product can also be applied to:

Tabloids• Magazines• Trade journals• Brochures• Pamphlets• Flyers• Direct mail pieces•

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IRS 2013 throws up ‘shocking anomalies’The following is the text of the statement issued by leading publications on the Indian Readership

Survey (IRS 2013):We, the leading newspapers of the country, condemn the newly published Indian Readership Survey

(IRS 2013) in the strongest possible terms.The survey is riddled with shocking anomalies, which defy logic and common sense. The survey

completely ignores circulation, the very basis of readership, and grossly contradicts audited circulation fi gures (ABC). While there are hundreds of such anomalies in the report, we are highlighting just a few of them here:•There are wild swings in overall newspaper readership across States. Every major newspaper in

Andhra Pradesh, irrespective of language, has de-grown by 30 to 65%.•English language readership in Tamil Nadu has decreased by 38%.•There are similarly wild swings at the city level. Mumbai shows a 20.3% growth in overall English

readership, while Delhi (a faster-growing city overall on all macro indices) shows a drop of 19.5%.•Hitavada, the leading English newspaper of Nagpur with a certifi ed circulation of over 60,000, doesn’t

appear to have a single reader now!•The Hindu Business Line has thrice as many readers in Manipur as in Chennai!!•While Punjab has lost a whopping one-third of all its readers in just a year since the last IRS,

neighbouring Haryana has grown by 17%.Given these glaring anomalies, we urge our advertisers and media agencies not to rely upon or use

the recently published IRS results in any way.We also strongly ask RSCI and MRUC, the conductors of the Indian Readership Survey, to withdraw

the results of IRS Q4 2013 immediately as well as put a stop to all future editions of this survey, as their continued publication will cause irreparable injury to the reputation of established publications like ours.

Issued in the public interest on behalf of the following publishers:The Hindu Group of Publications, Dainik Jagran, Dainik Bhaskar, Bennett Coleman & Co, India Today, ABP,

Lokmat, Outlook, DNA, Sakshi, Amar Ujala, The Tribune, Bartaman, Aaj Samaj, The Statesman, Mid-Day, Nai Dunia and Dinakaran.

(Courtesy: The Hindu)

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DNA, Express sore about IRS numbersDNA has sent a legal noti ce to the Media Research User Council (MRUC) and Nielsen India today

against the IRS fi ndings, according to industry sources. Earlier, 18 major publicati ons had withdrawn from the IRS. The Indian Newspaper Society is also holding discussions on taking legal recourse and is planning to seek refund from MRUC. The Indian Express has joined other publicati ons that have unsubscribed their membership from the Indian Readership Survey and are seeking refund, in the wake of the intense oppositi on to the latest IRS numbers released by MRUC. According to sources, legal acti on is also under way against the MRUC from the Indian Express Group.

(Courtesy: exchange4media)

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A WOODWING SURVEY REVEALS

Multi-channel strategy tops agenda for majority

Trends 2014, a study conducted by WoodWing Software from mid-December 2013 to mid-January this year, examined relevant publishing technology trends. A total of 125 participants – mainly from the Americas, Europe and the Asia-Pacific Region – answered four multiple-choice questions about their publishing strategies and the use of social media. The submissions came mainly from newspaper, magazine and corporate publishers as well as advertising agencies and marketing departments. Of these, 59% plan to implement a comprehensive multi-channel strategy this year; 22% still focus on print above Web and mobile. In social media, Facebook (77%), Twitter (61%) and YouTube (53%) clearly dominate, while the high interest in LinkedIn (32%) is also noteworthy. With social media, 71% want to increase brand awareness, while 42% want to address new markets

A study conducted by WoodWing shows that publishers, agencies and marketers have recognised that modern communication must address the variety of publishing channels to reach its audience. The majority, 59.2%, favour a combination of print, Web, mobile, tablet and social

media. The ‘first’ approaches are of less interest – only 5.6% vote for Web first and 4.8% for mobile first, while 21.6% vote for print as the key channel.

The main reasons to communicate via the various social media channels is to increase brand awareness (71.2%) and to interact with customers (64.8%). Social media also plays an important role in customer acquisition – 52.8% aim to reach new customers in existing markets, and 41.6% use it to make inroads in new markets.

With regard to the relevance of the various social media channels, Facebook, Twitter and YouTube still have the lead. In the evaluation of other channels such as Google+, Instagram, Pinterest and Vimeo, the participants were less enthusiastic – only 17.7 % were planning to use Pinterest (Google+: 23.58%, Instagram: 19.51%), while 31.7% rated Pinterest as not relevant (Google+: 18.7%, Instagram: 21.5%).

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The WoodWing’s survey showed that brand awareness and customer acquisition were key objectives of the use of social media as a publication channel.


Some of the comments on expected trends

refl ect the participants’ thoughts and strategic approaches in more detail. Some examples:– Among the new models for tablet publishing,

Flipboard and Zinio will succeed (corporate publisher)– Sharing and recycling information (corporate

publisher)– Design once, publish to multiple formats

(advertising agency)– Channel-neutral authoring workfl ows;

streamlining/improving effi ciency of workfl ows that feed Web, blog, mobile and social channels (magazine publisher)

– Shifting away from print replicated on tablets (magazine publisher)

– A combination of all possibilities – text, video, music and photo. The newsletter in magazine form (magazine publisher)

No ‘royal road’ “On one hand, the results of our trend study

show that publishers of all kind have recognised the importance of providing their content via various channels,” says Roel-Jan Mouw, CEO of WoodWing Software. “On the other hand, the broad variety of strategic approaches has also revealed that there is no royal road to reach the relevant audiences. In the light of these fi ndings, we are pleased to see confi rmation that publishing and DAM solutions should be open and fl exible enough to support each and every publishing strategy and workfl ow. That’s exactly the philosophy behind our multi-channel publishing system Enterprise and our digital asset management solution Elvis DAM.” <

Pie-charts indicating the survey composition.

Five events for one ti cketThe annual World Newspaper Congress has always off ered value for news executi ves seeking

the latest on trends and strategies for news media, especially in a transformati ve age. But this year’s event in Torino, Italy, will off er even more for ti me-pressed publishers, editors and everyone working at a senior level in news publishing. Torino 2014, the global summit meeti ngs of the world’s press to be held from 9 to 11 June, will off er fi ve separate events for one ti cket in one venue:

These include: the 66th World Newspaper Congress, which will focus on emerging business models and revenue streams; the 21st World Editors Forum, which will examine innovati ons in journalism and newsroom organisati on; the 24th World Adverti sing Forum, which will off er successful strategies for increasing adverti sing revenues from digital, mobile and print; the Energy Lounge, a new venue for discovering and examining disrupti ve technologies; and the social events, which off er a long-proven networking platf orm for the publishing industry. <


Supreme Court upholds Wage Board’s adviceIn a decision that will adversely aff ect the newspaper industry, parti cularly the weaker ones

among them, the Supreme Court has asked newspapers and news agencies to implement the recommendati ons of Majithia Wage Board and pay their employees the revised pay scale with arrears from November 2011.

A bench of Chief Justi ce P. Sathasivam and Justi ces Ranjan Gogoi and S.K. Singh rejected challenges to the Wage Board recommendati ons and asked newspapers and news agencies to pay the wage arrears in four equal installments within one year and "conti nue to pay revised wages from April 2014 onwards".

"We hold the recommendati ons of the Wage Board are valid, based on genuine and acceptable considerati ons and there is no valid ground for interference," the bench said. In the course of the case, newspaper associati ons, companies and news agencies are challenging the validity of the Act and the wage boards consti tuted under it, on the ground that the newspaper industry is the solitary case today in the private sector in India where the government — and not the employers

— decides how much salary wage board employees should be paid.According to them, this is an anti quated legislati on, which has lost all social relevance in the

modern age of high technology and advent of electronic media. The newspaper establishments have been pointi ng out that no other media including TV, internet and mobile are shackled by a similar law.

The industry contended that wage fi xati on should now be left , as in other industries, to market forces of demand and supply. News organizati ons had pointed out that the government had not accepted recommendati ons pertaining to reti rement age, pension, paternity leave and some other aspects of wage benefi ts terming them as beyond the objecti ve for which the wage board was set up.

The industry was also unhappy with the consti tuti on, functi oning, procedure and recommendati ons of the Majithia Wage Board. Newspaper establishments have been saying that these recommendati ons, if fully implemented, would result in an 80-100% wage hike, which would force many newspapers, parti cularly small and medium, to shut shop, thereby dealing a blow to the freedom of the Press.

They have argued that in the newspaper industry, non-journalist employees are already paid much higher than their counterparts in other industries, and this unnatural gap would broaden if the Wage Board recommendati ons are implemented.

The bench did not heed any of these arguments. It said, "It is the prerogati ve of the central government to accept or reject the recommendati ons of the wage board. There is no scope for hearing the parti es once again by the central government while accepti ng or modifying the recommendati ons, except that the modifi cati ons are of such nature which alter the character of the recommendati ons and such modifi cati on is likely to aff ect the parti es."

It said merely because the government had not accepted a few recommendati ons would not "automati cally aff ect the validity of the enti re report". It also found substance in the argument that Majithia Wage Board merely copied the recommendati ons of the Sixth Central Pay Commission.

(Courtesy: The Times of India)

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Jawa Pos opts for Goss yet again

Temprina Media Grafika, a subsidiary of the Indonesian Jawa Pos Media Group, has installed a new six-tower, two-folder single-width Goss Community SSC press at its printing facility in Solo City, Central Java, in order to boost production capabilities for more sections and more colour

Temprina Media Grafika is part of the Jawa Pos Media Group headquartered in Surabaya, East Java. The Group is among the world’s largest Goss press users, with approximately 900 Goss units in operation across Indonesia.

“We are very satisfied with the combination of quality, reliability and flexibility of our Goss presses. The press is easy to operate, strong, and we can always find any support and parts. We have a 60 year-old Goss press that is still running in full production. We also like the idea that Goss is using industrial-standard electrical equipment which makes it easier for us to get support anywhere across the islands,” says Agus Suryo, general manager of Temprina Media Grafika.

Jawa Pos has seen continued growth over the years to become one of the leading newspaper publishers and the biggest media network in Indonesia, comprising a TV network of 20 channels. With a combined circulation of over one million copies a day, it prints more than 150 local newspapers and 20 weekly tabloids, as well as the largest national daily newspaper, the Jawa Pos, printed in 80 different cities across Indonesia. This is also supported by the company’s own paper mill and power plant in an integrated facility alongside the Surabaya printing site.

“We are very proud of our dynamic and innovative leadership style that has enabled us to become the leading brand in this region,” explains Suryo. “Embracing the younger population, we were the first newspaper in Indonesia to have a section dedicated to younger readers which was a great success. To maintain our leadership we need to keep improving our print quality and capability, and investing in the right equipment is essential.”

Under the leadership of Dahlan Iskan, Jawa Pos has been transformed from a small newspaper in 1982 to one of the largest media groups in Asia today. Jawa Pos readership has risen steadily in this time, including a five-year period of growth which saw the circulation rise from just 6000 copies to over 300000 copies. Now Jawa Pos has around 500000 readers spread from Java Island to Bali.

Iskan now serves as Indonesia’s minister of State-owned Enterprises, and the newspaper is led by his 35-year-old son, Azrul Ananda. Jawa Pos had bagged the WAN-IFRA World Young Reader Newspaper Award in 2011. Last year, it achieved an unparalleled growth of 14 percent.DetEksi to the rescue for Surabaya's youth market.

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2014 Golden Pen of Freedom awarded to jailed Ethiopian journalist

Eskinder Nega, an Ethiopian publisher, journalist and blogger who is serving an 18-year jail sentence under anti -terror legislati on, has been awarded the 2014 Golden Pen of Freedom, the annual press freedom prize of the World Associati on of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA). Nega was arrested on September 14, 2011 aft er publishing an arti cle criti cising his government’s use of the 2009 Anti -Terror Proclamati on to jail and silence criti cs, including Ethiopian actor and acti vist Debebe Eshetu. He was sentenced on 23 January 2012 and denounced as belonging to a terrorist organisati on.

In making the award, the WAN-IFRA Board sent a message to the Ethiopian Government that misusing anti -terror legislati on to jail journalists and those criti cal of his government is unwarranted and against internati onal protocols, including the Vienna Declarati on on Terrorism, Media and the Law. “This award recognises the courage of Eskinder Nega to speak out despite the risks that saw him jailed under his country’s draconian and overly broad anti -terror laws,” said WAN-IFRA President Tomas Brunegård, speaking on behalf of the Board.“We call on the Ethiopian government to release Eskinder Nega and all journalists convicted

under the sediti on provisions, including Solomon Kebede, Wubset Taye, Reyot Alemu, and Yusuf Getachew”, said Brunegård, who recently visited Ethiopia as part of an internati onal mission that found that the country’s publishers and journalists practi ce journalism in a climate of fear.

The Golden Pen of Freedom is an annual award made by WAN-IFRA since 1961 to recognise the outstanding acti on, in writi ng or deed, of an individual, a group or an insti tuti on in the cause of press freedom. The award will be presented on 9 June during the opening ceremonies of the World Newspaper Congress, World Editors Forum and World Adverti sing Forum, the global summit meeti ngs of the world’s press, to be held in Torino, Italy.

In an opinion piece published in the New York Times, Nega said of his imprisonment: “I’ve never conspired to overthrow the government; all I did was report on the Arab Spring and suggest that something similar might happen in Ethiopia if the authoritarian regime didn’t reform... I also dared to questi on the government’s ludicrous claim that jailed journalists were terrorists.”

WAN-IFRA has been vocal in their oppositi on to Ethiopia’s misuse of anti -terror legislati on, writi ng to late Prime Minister H.E. Meles Zenawi in 2012 requesti ng the immediate release of Nega and most recently demanding his release, along with four other imprisoned journalists, in a joint internati onal press freedom mission to Ethiopia, conducted with the Internati onal Press Insti tute.

Nega opened his fi rst newspaper, Ethiopis, in 1993, which was soon shut down by authoriti es due to its criti cal reporti ng. He then, along with his wife Serkalem Fasil, managed Serkalem Publishing House, responsible for newspapers such as Asqual, Satenaw and Menelik, all of which are currently banned in Ethiopia. He has also had his journalist’s licence revoked since 2005, but conti nued to publish arti cles despite the ban. Nega is no stranger to being imprisoned due to his writi ngs. He was detained at least seven ti mes under Prime Minister Meles Zenawi. This included a 17-month jail sentence, along with his wife, on treason charges for their criti cal reporti ng on the Meles government's violent response to peaceful protests that followed the disputed 2005 electi ons

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Sharper results, thanks to Liquid Gold

Since the launch of the Intelliconline of ultra-concentrated fountain solutions in September 2013, RBP Chemical Technology has implemented over a dozen installations of Liquid GoldUC. Several other installs are pending and are expected to be completed in quarter one 2014.

The Intellicon Liquid Gold UC is an ultra-concentrated, homogeneous solution that incorporates the latest chemical technology for newsprint and coldset applications. Liquid Gold UC fountain solutions can be pumped directly from their original containers with no additional steps required. Printers also have the fl exibility to reconstitute the solutions to any desired amount onsite.

According to product developer Jeff Behrens, technical service manager, RBP Chemical Technology, Liquid Gold UC is completely adjustable and allows a press operator to mix and use only the amount of fountain solution needed at any given time by following a simple formula. “Prior to launching our ultra concentrated solution, Liquid Gold was already well-known for providing superior ink and water control,” explains Behrens. “With these recent applications of the UC solution, Liquid Gold has again proven to produce cleaner, sharper print quality with fewer toning and emulsifi cation issues.”

One installation took place at a Midwest-based producer of multiple daily community newspapers. The paper’s production manager says among the greatest benefi ts of switching to Liquid Gold UC are its better colour control, less ink emulsifi cation and excellent start-ups and restarts. He explains,

“Overall the printed product looked sharper and cleaner and we can pump right from our 20-gallon carboy, something we could never do before.”

In another installation for an Ohio-based newspaper averaging 70,000+ dailies in addition to regional papers, the switch to Liquid Gold UC has been easy, according to the facility’s production

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director. “We’ve experienced nothing but consistency, and better yet, zero issues on press. And, we’re benefi tting greatly from its delivery system.”

The direct pump delivery system for the Intellicon line is among its unique differentiators, providing users with noticeable freight cost and fl oor space savings. “Our press operators pump what they need, when they need it and still achieve the same great press results as with pre-mixed solutions,” the paper’s production manager added.

Due to their modest container size, Intellicon

products consume less storage space and are easier to handle than pre-mixed fountain solutions. Concentrates utilise much smaller packaging, resulting in reduced freight costs that are passed along to the customer. The products can also be individually drop-shipped rather than skidded, which is benefi cial for shipping to hard-to-reach destinations.

Specially formulated to work on all types of dampening systems, including spray and turbo, Liquid Gold UC comes in various pack sizes – 5, 20, 55 and 275/330-gallon containers – and is compatible with most pressroom pumps.

RBP’s technical service specialists created a Frequently Asked Questions reference and is available online at http://rbptoolbox.com/print ing/products-by-categor y/founta in-concentrates/intellicon. Founded in 1954, RBP Chemical Technology Inc is a world class supplier of proprietary chemicals and delivery devices for the printing, newspaper and electronics manufacturing industries. <


Industry updates


3-knife trimmer from Muller Martini

The new Granit three-knife trimmer impresses with innovative SmartPress technology, resulting in consistent, first-class trim quality. The fully automated equipment has a wide range of applications in softcover and hardcover lines.

The Granit uses patented SmartPress technology, which has proven its worth in the higher performance range, to provide optimal, consistently high trim quality. It ensures a gentle and controlled pressing procedure in which all air between the sheets of paper completely escapes, even if the product is bulky, allowing for the product to be trimmed perfectly, which is key to consistently high product quality. SmartPress technology is adaptive. In other words, pressing automatically adjusts during production to fluctuations in product thickness, ensuring consistent book quality.

The Granit three-knife trimmer from Muller Martini ensures cost-effective production in a wide range of applications. The Granit can take full advantage of seamless automation in a fully networked perfect binding line, such as the Pantera or Alegro A6. The operator can perform the necessary fine-tuning directly on the central

screen of the perfect binder during production. In addition, the trimming cassette and pressing pad can be exchanged in just a few steps, which shortens job changeover times considerably.

If used in existing perfect binding lines, the Granit increases efficiency enormously. Production runs can be planned and performed efficiently with a job changeover time of just three minutes. The productivity of an older line can be vastly increased, especially for relatively small runs, while the required investment volume remains limited.

The Granit also provides top-class trim quality in hardcover lines. The SmartPress technology meets all the requirements in this area too. In order to achieve short setup times, the three-knife trimmer is easily connected to the commander of the casing-in machine, which enables size data to be transferred quickly. At companies where perfect-bound products are trimmed using a guillotine cutter, the production process is rendered considerably more efficient using the Granit. If the new three-knife trimmer is used as a stand-alone machine, loading is always ergonomic and safe.Ph

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Consistent automation from infeed to delivery enables extremely short job changeover times. The trimming cassette and pressing pad can be exchanged in just a few steps, which shortens job changeover times considerably.

The new Granit three-knife trimmer from Muller Martini has an extremely wide range of applications. Cost-effective production is ensured thanks to SmartPress technology and full automation.

Industry Updates


AVD Goldach AG invests in Rotoman

The highly specialised Swiss magazine printer AVD Goldach AG has invested several million euros in a new 16-page Rotoman DirectDrive from manroland web systems. The new machine, which will be installed in 2015, is the sixth press of manroland web systems for ADV Goldach AG. The new press enables an economic printing of magazines with up to 48-pages or even more – already at 3000 copies. This is very interesting for corporate publishing (customer- and staff magazines) and an appealing alternative to classical sheetfed printing.

The four unit Rotoman DirectDrive demonstrates high performance with up to 65000 cylinder revolutions per hour. The 16-page press was developed for printers in dynamic markets as a highly efficient and flexible solution for printing magazines. This is mainly possible due to the modern folder with the extensive folder superstructure that shows ultra-modern finishing technologies. The new operating system, which was launched at drupa 2012, provides modern automation features and the latest technologies. The manroland web systems ControlCenter is the most progressive operating system at the printing industry and part of the One Touch philosophy. All relevant information can be caught at a glance and the operator can interact intuitively with a finger tip. At any place. At any time.

With the huge financial investment, AVD Goldach AG sets a clear sign for the future of

The Rotoman DirectDrive from manroland web systems.

print. “We really believe in today`s printing industry. However, it is a fact that we have to be more flexible to meet the publisher’s demands,” says Kai Hebel, owner and managing director at AVD Goldach. “To be competitive and successful, the modern print product needs to be extraordinary efficient and flexibly designed. That’s why we chose to invest in the new Rotoman DirectDrive from manroland web systems, as this press perfectly measures up to our expectations and those of our customers.”

An update with StreamFold quarterfold

At Nya Wermlands-Tidningen in Karlstad, production has been running on the same Ferag system since 1996. But the fact that, even after 17 years, a technical upgrade is still possible using the latest generation of Ferag components, is of great value. Between October and November 2013, the old technology in the all-important quarterfold area was set for an update with a StreamFold quarterfold line, a MultiStack compensating stacker and the Navigator control.

Managing Director Mats Muregård talks of a strong upward trend for business with newspaper products over recent years. In addition to inserting production, quarterfold processing has experienced above-average growth, with the existing quarterfold system with its maximum

Thanks to StreamFold, Nya Wermlands-Tidningen is achieving a multiple increase in net output and at the same time creating the basis for further mailroom updates.

Industry Updates


output of 10000 copies an hour rapidly coming up against its limits. With a single StreamFold line it is now possible to boost net output by a multiple factor and at the same time achieve disproportionately higher production security.

Bearing in mind later updates, the variant offered the opportunity to take a technological leap forward in conveyor technology, bundling and line control as well. The decision in favour of Ferag was therefore obvious. Integration of StreamFold has been planned so that the quarterfold line can be fed off existing TTR conveyor technology from two-folder deliveries. The connection between the StreamFold outlet and the MultiStack compensating stacker will now be secured via a UTR conveyor system.

EasySert inserting line scores

Commissioning of a Goss Magnum 4 sent to Agderposten Trykk AS in Arendal, Norway, was careening into a post-press processing bottleneck. With the inserting process no longer able to keep pace with the high printing speeds, updating the inserting technology was seen as the No. 1 priority.

However, preliminary work on the project revealed that a dead-end would be reached if only part of the mailroom system was replaced, and the remaining, outdated technology would severely restrict the performance of state-of-the-art inserting technology. Overall, effi ciency was a good reason for replacing the mailroom with a new system.

The choice was made in favour of an EasySert inserting line with MultiDisc periphery; RollStream gathering technology with two JetFeeder hoppers; two MultiStack stackers; and a PKT plate chain evacuation system. Technically, EasySert was the favourite. The customer was particularly impressed by the transport for the newspaper products without transfer points, and also the option to process low-pagination products.

In the case of thin products, the JetFeeder hoppers on the RollStream precollecting line are subject to the same set of demands. The

management team at Agderposten Trykk AS were aware that the hoppers would have a direct impact on the productivity of the system as a whole. Attention was thus turned to these key components, and their stability when running – especially with diffi cult insert products.

At Agderposten, EasySert is seen as the only correct concept for newspaper printers in the middle to lower segment.

KBA Commander for Nussbaum Medien

Nussbaum Medien St. Leon-Rot has ordered a triple-width Commander CT newspaper web press from Koenig & Bauer. With the investment, the German media enterprise is fundamentally upgrading its printing house and thus strengthening its various print products in the competitive media arena.

At the beginning of 2015, the compact press with one reelstand, a 6/2 tower and a KF3 folder is scheduled to take over the majority of the print jobs currently produced on two Albert 101s and a Clauberg web press as well as those given to third parties.

The new triple-width KBA Commander CT will have a cylinder circumference of 900mm (35.4in) and a maximum web width of up to 1,860mm (73.2in). It is confi gured for a maximum rated output of 40000 full-colour copies collect per hour, each with up to 48 tabloid pages. Pagination

Industry Updates


changes for the many different products can be initiated automatically from the console.

The Pastomat reelstand will be embedded in a KBA Patras A automatic reel handling system with stripping station. The Commander CT’s high level of automation and top-quality specs are refl ected in its automatic plate changing, roller locks, colour-register controls, ink pumping and washing systems. Other equipment will include a folder superstructure with three formers, a KF3 jaw folder, cut-off register controls and a section stitcher. The KBA ErgoTronic console will be networked with KBA PressNet production scheduling and presetting software and will incorporate waste- and time-saving KBA EasyTronic software.

Says proprietor Klaus Nussbaum: “The highly automated compact press lays the perfect foundations for printing our plethora of gazettes and bulletins with very small circulations extremely effi ciently, fl exibly and economically. Along with the high level of performance, the press will enable us to improve print quality, cut waste, and enhance ease of operation and reduce maintenance tasks for our press operators, for example, with automatic roller locks. We have worked with KBA Group in St. Leon-Rot for about. 30 years and wish to continue our close partnership well into the future with this decision once again to invest in technology from KBA.”

Nussbaum Medien St. Leon-Rot publishes gazettes and private bulletins in the Rhine-Neckar Region, around North Karlsruhe and the municipality Altrip near Ludwigshafen. The fi rm focuses on serving local towns and communities with up to 20000 inhabitants, who are often the editors of the gazettes. In the Rhine-Neckar Region, Nussbaum Medien St. Leon-Rot reaches about 60 per cent of all households. In addition, the publisher also has facilities in Bad Friedrichshall and owns Druckerei Stein in Bad Rappenau in the north-eastern part of Baden-Württemberg.

Under the management and ownership of Klaus Nussbaum, the three media houses publish local newspapers in more than 100 cities and communities, informing several hundred thousand readers about local news week after week. Normally, all of the printing plates have to be changed for nearly 100 different weekly titles as the news differs signifi cantly depending on region. The editions vary between 700 and 23500 copies, with anything from eight to 48 tabloid pages apiece.

Since the launch of the online portal Lokalmatador.de, Nussbaum Medien now also supplies its readers in the northern Baden region with a wealth of local and regional news via the internet and mobile devices.

The KBA Commander CT 6/2 for Nussbaum Medien St. Leon-Rot.

Nordwest-Zeitung opts for ppi Media

Integrated booking, scheduling, delivery and billing processes now for online ads as well: from March 2014, Nordwest-Zeitung (NWZ) will use ppi Media's AdX Online to ensure that the processes run smoothly. In future, using the close interaction that AdX creates between the ad booking system SAP IS-M/AM and the two DFP ad servers, NWZ will have an absolutely secure revision process. A common order number and identical data make it possible to track the ad at any time: how it was scheduled, when and how long it was delivered.

A further advantage of automating NWZ's ad management process is the increased effi ciency with which the growing volume of online ads can be managed using the same number of employees, whereby the workfl ow component in

AdX also improves communication between the departments involved by automatically forwarding the production status via email to the responsible members of staff.

Using the standardised integration of all standard ad servers as well as ad booking systems, AdX combines all of the work steps in ad management to form one central process. Irrespective of how many media channels an order or campaign covers, AdX merges everything under one order number. To ensure the smooth transfer of ad data, AdX knows the exact structures of the websites, including all of the sub-pages, regional specifi cations and desks as well as the number of page impressions for each page during the past months. It is exactly this structure which AdX displays to the fi eld media consultant on a GUI that is clear and easily comprehensible, showing the current placement status.

Industry Updates

Industry Updates


New director for Goss in Europe

Goss International has promoted Rutger Jansen, an executive with extensive company and web offset industry experience, to head its Customer Service operations and network supporting Goss customers in Europe. “Rutger’s appointment provides continuity for our customers

while also representing another positive step in the transformation of Goss and the strengthening of our world-class regional support hub in Europe,” explains Theo Buchmeyer, head of the Goss Europe organisation. “He is a dynamic industry expert with a strong sense of the modern, responsive parts, service and support capabilities our customers need in order to excel in today’s environment.”

Jansen will manage the extensive Goss Europe customer service network providing emergency and routine service and parts as well as unique, proactive maintenance and enhancement programmes for Goss customers throughout Europe, West Asia and Africa. His team also works closely with the company’s large-scale European parts warehousing and distribution operation based in Boxmeer, The Netherlands.

Jansen was worldwide director of Sales and Service for Goss Contiweb for the past decade. The Goss subsidiary is an industry leading supplier of splicers, heatset dryers and other web offset auxiliary components, including VITS Rotocut sheeters. Jansen previously held various management positions since joining the Contiweb organisation in 1990.

Jansen says direct experience serving web printers over the past 20-plus years has provided a strong understanding of what they need to improve effi ciency and profi tability. “Our customers in Europe have installed more than 10000 Goss printing units in the past two decades,” he explains. “I look forward to aligning the talent,

resources and commitment of the Goss team in Europe to help them optimise the performance of these platforms to meet the challenges and seize the opportunities of the current business climate.”

Rutger Jansen, head of Goss Customer Service in Europe.

LumeJet to display ultra-high print quality

LumeJet and its new ultra-high-quality print technology makes its UK debut at Ipex 2014 (24-29 March) in London (Hall S2, Stand F175 at venue). Developed over the past four years, the LumeJet inkless Digital Print Head (DPH) has moved from university concept to a disruptive print technology that is being acknowledged as ‘game changing’ by industry observers.

The LumeJet technology has been designed from the ground up to exploit the proven, continuous tone quality of Silver Halide (AgX) media and its extended RGB colour gamut. This produces vibrant, smooth and colour-accurate images. It also exploits the inherent micron-sized grain resolution of the media for ultra-sharp text and graphics.

Altaimage in the UK was the fi rst company in the world to invest in the LumeJet S200 printer - the fi rst to product to incorporate LumeJet’s DPH technology. The LumeJet S200 takes 305 mm photographic roll paper for page sizes up to A3 landscape double-page spread, full bleed, including trim (1000 x 305 mm maximum) – ideal

The LumeJet-S200 at Altaimage.

Industry Updates


for lay flat books. Using the RGB colour space, it is ICC profiled and achieves amazing colour fidelity, including hard-to-print Pantone spot colours such as Reflex Blue, neons, metallics and pastels, not to mention flawless solid black.

Says Rob King, Altaimage MD: “The print quality is fabulous, quite unlike anything we’ve ever seen before. Fantastic photographs, eye-popping colours, sharp text and line art - all on the same page at the same time.” He adds, “Any agency using iPads for client presentations should get the prints made on it, it’s the hard-copy equivalent of a retina screen.”

KBA to partner montex-print

The Radebeul facility of Koenig & Bauer AG (KBA) has entered into a partnership with montex-print ost druck- und papierverarbeitungs-maschinen gmbh & co kg (montex-print) in Lindlar near Cologne to develop, manufacture and market new, high-performance sheetfed rotary die-cutters. A corresponding agreement was signed by Ralf Sammeck, executive vice-president for the KBA sheetfed offset product house, and montex-print managing director Eberhard Fuchs in December 2013.

Under the product name DC R105, montex-print will in future be distributing single- and double-unit rotary die-cutters based on the technical platform of the medium-format sheetfed press KBA Rapida 105. KBA will be supplying all the modules required for a sheetfed rotary die-cutter (feeder, infeed and die-cutting unit, together with the associated drive systems, electrical equipment and air supply) as a ready-assembled machine, at the same time already incorporating montex-print's proven, high-precision magnetic cylinder into the die-cutting unit. Transport, installation, commissioning, training and customer service are to be handled by montex-print. The first DC R105 is expected to be ready for demonstrations at KBA in Radebeul at the end of May, and customers can look forward to the first deliveries from early autumn.

The DC R105 is designed for sheet formats from 360 x 520 mm to 740 x 1050 mm, a maximum production speed of 12000 sheets per hour, and a substrate range from 0.03 to 0.7 mm (setting range 0.0 – 1.2 mm). In terms of productivity, precision, make-ready times and ergonomic operation, it will be far superior to the used offset and letterpress models otherwise re-equipped for such die-cutting work. The whole set-up is operated from a control panel at the delivery, as the console normally installed with an offset press is not necessary for a pure die-cutting machine.

montex-print has been repairing and overhauling used printing presses since 1978, and has built up a good reputation in the industry for the conversion of used sheetfed offset presses into rotary die-cutters over recent years. With the development of a new rotary die-cutter together with KBA, montex-print is now venturing the next step, but nevertheless without abandoning its current used-press business.

Managing director Eberhard Fuchs is convinced that the cooperation will bring benefits for everyone involved: “For all those customers who seek to generate additional revenue with flexible finishing of the most varied materials, formats and run lengths, we offer the best price-performance ratio thanks to the simple handling and extremely fast make-ready. That applies, for example, to the fast-growing IML segment, but at the same time also for short-run packaging, self-adhesive labels and other special materials. The DC R105 is the perfect machine for such jobs!”

Print finishing has been an important topic at KBA for many years. In the past, this usually meant

The DC R105-1-2 as a double-unit machine, that is, with two magnetic cylinders for combination jobs such as creasing, kiss cutting and perforating or with a special folding carton module in the first unit and regular die-cutting in the second, is also ideal for the cost-effective finishing of short-run packaging.

Industry Updates


diverse coating technologies, cold foil transfer and the like. The cooperation with montex-print in the fi eld of rotary die-cutting, however, is now set to further extend the already broad spectrum of fi nishing options – initially as an stand-alone offl ine solution after printing, but with the medium-term perspective of inline integration into a Rapida press in suitable cases.

KBA and montex-print ost see good market potential thanks to the high productivity of the new sheetfed rotary die-cutter DC R 105, for example in the growth segment of in-mould labels. Picture shows Eberhard and Daniela Fuchs from montex-print ost with KBA marketing director Klaus Schmidt (left to right) at the KBA facility in Würzburg.

KBA now distributor for Optimus MIS

KBA and the Optimus Group have announced a partnership relating to worldwide sales and distribution of management information systems (MIS) from Optimus. With effect from 1st March, press manufacturer KBA is to become a distributor for Optimus solutions such as Dash, Cloud and Cloud Mobile in the regions Western Europe, Asia-Pacifi c and USA/Canada. Further markets are expected to follow later.

Many sheetfed offset users around the world are interested in the capabilities of an integrated MIS, which can not only manage all its different substrates and processes, but also grows together with the company and its needs. Various KBA customers are already using Optimus systems, and they have gained a good reputation for

their outstanding fl exibility and user-friendly implementation. “We have already worked with other partners in this fi eld in the past, and our customers can continue to rely on our openness and fl exibility if they wish to integrate existing or new KBA Rapidas into their preferred MIS solutions. But when we recently decided to offer MIS solutions as part of a closed-loop workfl ow with our presses, Optimus was our fi rst choice,” says Ralf Sammeck, KBA vice president for the sheetfed product house.

Nicola Bisset, group managing director for Optimus, adds: “We are really looking forward to the cooperation with such a renowned and future-oriented company. KBA possesses a broad, global customer base – also in countries in which we are not present to date. Our partnership is a fantastic opportunity to reach further potential customers for our MIS solutions. KBA is similar to Optimus in the way it places the customer's needs in the foreground, and is well known for its excellent service. The cooperation with KBA will enable both sides to further strengthen their brand image and reputation.”

KBA and Optimus exchanged contracts to seal their new sales and distribution partnership on 12th February. Here are seen Nicola Bisset, group managing director for Optimus, and Ralf Sammeck, KBA vice president for the sheetfed product house.

Industry Updates


Successful relocation of a disused Cromoman

The specialists from KBA subsidiary PrintHouseService worked together with technicians from Paarl Coldset in South Africa to get a disused manroland Cromoman 50/70 ready for day-to-day production. The press, which had been in storage for several years, was fi red up within a tight time frame. Expanding capacity was necessary to ensure the punctual delivery of newspapers printed in Pietermaritzburg following the takeover of Natal Witness Printing and Publishing Company by Paarl Coldset. After a successful relocation and commissioning, since November the rebuilt Cromoman has joined a KBA Comet from 2002 and extended in 2006.

Paarl Coldset produces 342 million daily, Sunday and weekly newspapers a year at its plants in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Port Elizabeth, Bloemfontein and Pietermaritzburg. This includes South Africa’s leading daily, the Daily Sun; 185000 tons of paper are printed annually. Paarl Coldset is part of the Media24 group which publishes, prints and distributes newspapers, magazines and books. In the print arena this leading African media group also runs gravure, label and sheetfed offset printing facilities. Furthermore, Media24’s portfolio encompasses e-commerce and a raft of internet businesses. PrintHouseService offers a

PHS site manager Hans-Peter Schiller (centre), printer and shift supervisor Johannes Granville (l), and apprentice Bongani at Paarl Coldset are pleased with the successful restart in Pietermaritzburg of the Cromoman which was previously in storage.

broad vendor-independent spectrum of services for the print industry, including prepress, press and mailroom technology.

KBA Rapida 75 UV debuts in China

At the beginning of this year a UV version of the half-size KBA Rapida 75 was unveiled in China under the banner, Big Goals with Small Format. More than 150 visitors seized the opportunity to attend the open house event. Two years ago Taizhou Xindali, a young company, fi red up a fi ve-colour and a six-colour Rapida 105 which features UV capabilities. They were joined recently by two raised special-format Rapida 75s (605 x 750mm/ 23.8 x 29.5in) with nonstop facilities.

The six-colour press is the fi rst in its series in China to be equipped with UV kit, and it is essential at Taizhou Xindali as the company prints primarily on various types of fi lm (PE/PP/PVC) as well as on board with a metallic coating. In 2013 annual sales came in at RMB 80m ($13.6m), with over 30 per cent generated abroad. This was a 30 per cent increase on the year before. The fi rm which is managed by twin brothers, Zaiding and Zaiquing Xu, has just under 80 employees on its payroll.

The Rapida 75 presented in both the practical and theoretical parts of the open house is

High-quality calendars with UV fi nishing were produced as part of the open house to celebrate the Chinese year of the horse. Shown here are brothers Zaiding (second from left) and Zaiquing Xu with Lianbiao Wang (left), Dietmar Heyduck (centre) and Yugao Gong (right).

Industry Updates


equipped with central format adjustment, KBA CleanTronic washing systems for rollers and blankets, differential drives in the dampeners and further automated features. The equipment in the inking unit for UV mixed operation, a board-handling and anti-static package as well as air-cushioned sheet travel all make the press perfectly suited to printing on non-absorbent substrates. Along with UV dryers in the extended delivery, two further UV interdeck dryers that can be inserted at multiple docking stations in the press are also available. In addition, an EES (Emission Extraction System) reduces emissions and unpleasant odours around the delivery.

Color-Logic adds ‘oomph to the job’

The Dimensional-FX feature in the upgraded Color-Logic Design Suite, a user-friendly plug-in tool for graphic designers, enables graphic designers to make a selected artwork area appear to change colour and dimension, from a lighter to a darker hue. The proprietary technique lets artists create messages and areas that stand out within the printed product, adding dimension and depth without using any additional press units or post-press finishing.

The Color-Logic Design Suite is available from licensed Color-Logic printers for only US$199. For the graphic designer, the return on investment is incredibly quick. Files prepared using the Color-Logic Design Suite may only be printed by licensed Color-Logic printers.

Laura Manthey, a graphic designer in Denver, Colorado, USA, uses the Color-Logic Process Metallic Color System to make her clients' brochures sparkle. According to Manthey, Color-Logic is not a gimmick. “Because of the metallic effects it lets me create, Color-Logic is just the thing for glamorous, quality, high end products." Discussing the effects she achieves with Color-Logic, Manhey adds: "It helps to think about Color-Logic just like foil stamping or embossing-it costs a bit more than just CMYK, but it adds oomph to the job that is unattainable any other way."

Commenting on how graphic designers use the

Color-Logic software, Color-Logic director of Sales and Marketing Mark Geeves says: "Laura Manthey is just one of the many graphic designers who have found the Color-Logic Design Suite provides them with the tools necessary to differentiate their clients' marketing collateral, product packaging, point-of-purchase signage, labels, and direct mail at a mere fraction of normal design time and production cost. These designers create many Color-Logic special effects with a single mouse click."

Color-Logic has announced its certification of Case Paper Sonata Silver and Sonata Rainbow laminated paperboard substrates for use with the Color-Logic process in UV inkjet applications. The substrates-available in thicknesses from 0.08 to 0.024 point-are appropriate for folding cartons, point-of-purchase displays, book covers, and other commercial printing applications.

Color-Logic develops color communication systems and software tool sets for a variety of special effect printing applications. It provides brand owners, product managers, corporations, and their advertising agencies the ability to differentiate themselves and their clients with a simple print production process that yields dramatic results. Color-Logic decorative effects utilise the existing workflows of printers and designers, yielding dynamic results without the use of special equipment; it supports the value of print and works with designers and printers to enhance their printed media.

Industry experts join Goss packaging team

Goss International has added two experienced industry experts to its team supporting packaging printers and the new Goss Sunday Vpak web offset press platform. Matt Adler has joined Goss as director of Sales for packaging products in the Americas. John Kulak has been appointed manager of the new Goss Packaging Technology Center, a specialised demonstration, testing and education facility at the Goss headquarters in Durham, New Hampshire (USA).

Industry Updates


The addition of two high-calibre industry

veterans in these newly created positions is a further indication of how Goss is evolving its business, transforming the company to better serve its customers, and using its technological expertise to grow the company and compete in new markets, explains senior vice-president of Sales and Marketing Jacques Navarre. “Goss International provides customers with the highest-value print technology,” according to Navarre. “We are diversifying our product portfolio to drive revenues in new, neighboring markets where our expertise delivers differentiating advantages.”

Adler will serve Goss packaging customers in the Americas and assist in managing the extensive Goss sales and support network in the region. Under Kulak’s management, the Goss Packaging Technology Center will be used to demonstrate Sunday Vpak web offset press technology and for a wide range of print, technology and consumable testing programs. Goss will also utilise the centre as a catalyst for bringing packaging producers, brand owners and suppliers together to explore market requirements and new concepts. The 7000-square-foot (650-square-meter) centre will feature a fully operational Sunday Vpakpress system confi gured for printing on fi lm and paper substrates.

KBA Rapida 205 hits 100m-sheet mark

On 21 January at 3:25 pm, the sheet counter on a KBA Rapida 205 with the serial number 001 proudly clocked up its 100 millionth sheet at Ellerhold in Radebeul. This comes only three

weeks before the press’ tenth birthday. However, 100 million sheets in ten years is nothing new in sheetfed offset. Some packaging printers hit this mark after just two years. The Rapida 205 in giant format (151 x 205cm/54.4 x 80.7in) at Ellerhold p r e d o m i n a n t l y prints large posters with occasional print runs of only 100 copies. More time is spent on make-ready than on printing with

such small jobs. The fi rst Rapida 205 to roll off the assembly line

was delivered to Ellerhold where it has completed 7720 shifts in total and produces nearly 2000 jobs every year with a maximum output of 9000 sph. In the last ten years it has printed an area measuring 310 km² roughly as big as the German city of Munich. Two Rapida 205s are in action at the Ellerhold poster factory in Radebeul. The oldest is a four-colour press with coater and the youngest is a fi ve-colour version with hybrid coating capabilities. Two further four-colour Rapida 205s with coaters have been installed in the fi rm’s plants in Witten and Karow, near Wismar, as well as a four-colour Rapida 185 with coater in Zirndorf. Ellerhold is the world’s biggest KBA jumbo press user with a total of fi ve Rapida 205s.

In the past ten years KBA has delivered some 60 Rapida 185/205 presses to 20 countries all over the world, an average of one every two months. For many years now poster printers have not been the only ones who think big as the super jumbos are just as likely to be found in packaging and commercial print fi rms. In Saudi Arabia a seven-colour Rapida 185 with twin coaters, a press with an impressive 11 printing and fi nishing units, is the longest large-format installation to date.Frank Ellerhold (l), CEO of Ellerhold, with the team who printed

the 100 millionth sheet: Alexander Schmidt, Torsten Schubert, Oliver Hirsch and Sven Schiffl er (l-r).

Ten years later the fi rst Rapida 205 on the market is in the same good shape as it was when it was commissioned and it still has got many years to go.

Industry Updates


FFEI’s RealPro Toolkit a winner

FFEI, the global developer of award-winning digital imaging solutions, has announced that Peninsula Print & Design - a leading commercial print company - has signifi cantly improved productivity and job accuracy since introducing RealPro Toolkit into its packaging prepress cycle.

According to Neil Frazer, Peninsula Print & Design general manager, the company moved towards FFEI's innovative software to help grow its packaging division by automating a series of pre-press tasks that were affecting productivity and accuracy: "We set up the new packaging division 2 years ago to address the growing need for shorter packaging print runs. In the early days we were happy to spend the time manually completing pre-press tasks, but as the business grew we needed to automate these tasks - RealPro Toolkit was exactly what we needed."

RealPro Toolkit is a feature-rich software suite of tools designed to overcome the challenges of labelling and packaging pre-press tasks. Consisting of over 12 modules, the software addresses specifi c pre-press workfl ow requirements such as nesting, fi le editing and preparation, colour management, trapping and step and repeat tasks. Aaron McBride, Pre-press Manager at Peninsula Print & Design, tested the software with a free, 30 day license. "I was impressed by how user friendly the software was. Following just a 15-minute online demonstration, I was able to confi dently start using it. As an Adobe Illustrator plug-in it is very user friendly - no training required and works seamlessly with our Agfa system."

FFEI is a leading developer, manufacturer and supplier of digital imaging solutions within the graphic arts industry. With a focus in workfl ow software and inkjet technologies, FFEI products and solutions reduce cycle times, improve quality and add value to the services provided by printers and other users of digital imaging technologies. FFEI’s own-brand product portfolio includes RealPro Workfl ow System, RealPro Toolkit, RealPro ColourCloud, RealVue3D Packager, RealVue3D Publisher, and its market-

leading Alinte violet CTP range, which continues to lead the way in emerging markets such as India and China. With over 60 years heritage and almost a decade working as part of FUJIFILM, FFEI’s market-leading expertise and knowledge has established it as a key supplier of OEM products and integrated technologies to world-class partners including TechNova, Founder, Agfa and Edale.

Intropak on growth curve with 6-colour Rapida

Packaging printer Intropak Płochocki & Wspólnicy Sp.j. in Celestynów, near Warsaw, fi red up a six-colour KBA Rapida 105 with coater and delivery extension at the beginning of this year. The press is equipped for mixed operation with conventional and UV inks as well as fi nishing with water-based and UV coating. With this investment, the 40-year-old fi rm reaffi rmed its successful partnership with KBA.

Intropak has an excellent market position in carton printing. Its broad customer base consists of clients from the music, cosmetics, food and electronics industry, as well as from other branches including publishing. Along with printing and fi nishing, Intropak offers various fi nishing services, such as coating (including UV), laminating, gold blocking, embossing, and window cutting and gluing. The new Rapida 105 has paved the way for further fi nishing effects. Intropak’s management made a conscious decision to invest in a hybrid press which enables the use of conventional and

With a raft of automation and kit for inline fi nishing, the KBA Rapida 105 gears Intropak up for growth.

Industry Updates


UV inks in combination with various types of coating.

The Rapida 105 at Intropak is mounted on a 450mm (17.7in) plinth for printing packaging and is equipped with additional board and film packages which handle a maximum stock thickness of 1.2mm (48pt). Automatic plate changing, CleanTronic Multi and CleanTronic UV washing systems as well as nonstop rollers in the delivery all contribute to short makeready times. The press features VariDry IR/TA/UV dyers in the delivery extension and delivery as well as a UV interdeck dyer which can be positioned freely between the printing units. In addition, ErgoTronic ColorControl for measuring colour density, ErgoTronic Lab for colour measurement and control based on Lab values as well as QualiTronic ColorControl for inline quality control all ensure a consistent high quality and low waste levels.

Marlowe Digital to unveil 4 new products

Marlowe Digital will show solutions across the entire spectrum of prepress production at Ipex 2014. New products include: StudioRip XF, the current market leader in price/performance RIP and workflow solutions; Quantum, a new comprehensive, but low cost, service package for owners of rebadged Screen platesetters; Torrent JetFilm, an environmentally responsible and lower cost alternative to image-setting for printers that still rely on film-based workflows; and Torrent JetPlate, inkjet CTP for smaller commercial printers.

Some of the new features of StudioRIP include a comprehensive suite of flexo-specific tools, multi-core processing, ink-spread compensation, multiple screen types per job, multi-level imposition and improved pre-flighting. In addition, StudioRIP XF comes as standard with a dot-meter application, the ability to serve data to MAC client computers, faster and more accurate preview with no zoom limit, and much more.

With new imagesetters no longer available, but many printers still dependent on film for

small format commercial print and flexo plate production, relentless research has resulted in a viable imagesetter-replacement technology. The Torrent JetFilm solution includes an Epson printer, driven by any version of StudioRIP, to produce high quality print-ready films with pin-sharp halftones, clean-edged graphics and imagesetter-quality text. Specially developed inks and substrates ensure dimensional stability and high-density imaging, suitable for both commercial and flexo print applications. The use of multiple channels enables the Torrent system to output films at up to four times faster than the normal Epson speed, providing the productivity required for a busy print room.

The Torrent JetPlate has been designed to improve prepress workflows for smaller printers. It uses a similar technology and specification to Torrent JetFilm, using any Epson inkjet printer with a suitable specification. The addition of a pin-based registration system together with the use of multiple channels ensures the direct output of in-register, print-ready plates at up to ten plates per hour. Suitable for stochastic or conventional screening up to 175lpi, the solution is ideal for 2- and 4-page printers that cannot justify the expense and running costs of a laser CTP system. Torrent JetPlate offers a fast ROI to these printers, possibly as low as three months depending on the volume of work.

StudioRIP XF, built on a new rendering platform, will extend the brand’s capabilities, flexibility and cost-effectiveness.


GUJARATMITRA COMPLETES 150 YEARS

No compromise on honesty, editorial values

Gujaratmitra, a leading Gujarati daily published from Surat, recently celebrated 150 years of its existence. A 156-page sesquicentennial issue, Simachinha, was brought out to mark the occasion, complete with articles from several eminent personalities in India. The issue covered diverse subjects – space technology, tourism, print ancd electronic media, computers, food and literature

Gujaratmitra enjoys the status of being one of the oldest newspapers published in India and being the oldest newspaper in Gujarat. It completed a glorious run of 150 years of its existence on 13th September last year. Despite several ups and downs, financial crises, and

the ever-changing political scenario during all these years, the paper managed to survive all odds and come up an unscathed winner.

Gujaratmitra was started in 1863 by a Parsi, Dinshaw Ardeshir Talyarkhan, as a weekly newspaper. It was named Suratmitra. Due to its growing popularity even outside Surat, within a year of its

inception, on 11th September, 1864, the name was changed to Gujaratmitra. Since 1870, its ownership changed several hands.

In 1893, Uttamram Umedram Reshamwala joined Gujaratmitra as its sub-editor. In 1920, Uttamram bought over the newspaper. Since then, it has remained in the Reshamwala family. Uttamram managed Gujaratmitra efficiently up to 1929; gradually, it became an inseparable part of the life of the people of Surat and South Gujarat. In 1929, Uttamram breathed his last and Champaklal Reshamwala, his eldest son, became chief editor and owner. “Please continue to uphold the policy of neutrality and non-alignment. Look after the newspaper well.” Those were the words uttered by the first of the Reshamwala editors, Uttamram Umedram Reshamwala, during his last days.

Champaklal achieved an important landmark when he transformed the weekly Gujaratmitra and Gujaratdarpan into a daily newspaper on 15th November 1936. Gujaratmitra was thus established as a daily. Sadly, six months later, Chamaklal died an untimely death. His younger brother Pravinkant Uttamram Reshamwala, was compelled to quit college studies and take on the burden and responsibility of running the newspaper.

The cover page of the special issue brought out to mark 150 years of Gujaratmitra.


Pravinkant nurtured the publication and

successfully focused on strengthening the newspaper by providing balanced views, powerful editorials, columns on various subjects by authoritative writers, in-depth coverage, etc. The newspaper was soon on a strong footing.

It survived four devastating fl oods caused by River Tapi between 1959 and 2006. Each time, the fl oodwaters caused colossal loss to machinery, stock and property. The fl ood in 2006 ravaged the entire plant and the store at Gujaratmitra Bhavan was submerged in about 12 feet of water for more than fi ve days. For over a month, the newspaper was published with outside help. Each of those times, Gujaratmitra rose like a phoenix.

The newspaper has not only been a witness to political upheavals, the Freedom Struggle and the socio-economic and cultural changes over the past century and half, it has also been a friend, philosopher, guide, leader and catalyst to people in the changing times. It has stood upright as a sentinel of democracy, and undauntedly listened to and righteously conveyed the voice of the people in times of need, be it the Pardi Ghasia Satyagrah led by Ishwarbhai Desai in Bardoli or the fi ght for a separate university for South Gujarat or an airport for Surat. Gujaratmitra has always strongly and fearlessly fought for and

supported public causes for the betterment of its people and the region. For their benefi t even if it had to antagonise the government and lose advertisement revenue (as in several instancess such as during the Ghasia Satyagrah), it has never stepped back from disharging its reposnsibilities to the reader, earning it heightened stature and goodwill.

Even today, readers totally depend on the reliability of news and the balanced views provided by Gujaratmitra. In today’s age of deteriorating journalistic values, the newspaper’s honesty and adherence to principles has received appreciation from readers, the intelligentsia, various political parties, and the administrators as well.

Today, Bharat Pravinkant Reshamwala, the editor, who represents the third generation of the family, is focused on blending the modern with the old, ensuring that its traditions of neutrality, credibility, balanced coverage and its values and principles are not compromised. Bharat Reshamwala’s sons Ruchir and Milind are also part of the team. Gujaratmitra is now available online to cater to Gujarati readers all over the world.

(The article is based on information provided by Gujaratmitra.)

Indian Multi plex Awards from BusinesworldBusinessworld has announced its upcoming awards for the Indian multi plex industry, the

Businessworld Indian Multi plex Awards, at the recently held IMC Fusion 2014. The Businessworld Indian Multi plex Awards are a fi rst of its kind to create a platf orm for honouring the rapidly expanding industry that has revoluti onised the movie business in India. The awards were launched by Manmohan Shett y, the jury chairperson, and Annurag Batra, chairman, GBN Media | Businessworld and chairman and editor-in-chief, exchange4media Group. Businessworld, with its 32-year old history in business journalism, extends itself beyond publishing to create business and industry platf orms that are ferti le for discussion.

Says Batra, “We are not just a magazine brand. It is our mandate to create business communiti es for initi ati ng dialogues among key players and keep them thriving with relevant acti viti es.” One such endeavour is the Businessworld Indian Multi plex Awards, an initi ati ve to honour the best examples of quality, innovati on and growth in the cinema exhibiti on industry.

(Courtesy: exchange4media)

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Other News


Press freedom under threat from ‘soft’ censorship

Press freedom is Europe is facing a widespread and growing threat by 'soft' censorship that includes governments’ use of financial power to pressure news media, punish critical reporting and reward favourable coverage. While Europe’s press is not generally threatened by the jailing of journalists or the closure of media outlets, 'soft' censorship is a more subtle but significant new danger, according to new reports released by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA).

The reports demonstrate how the governments in two European countries – Serbia and Hungary – use their financial power to pressure media outlets, punish critical reporting and reward favourable coverage. Economic pressures are especially devastating in times of economic instability and lead to unbalanced reporting and to self-censorship among media professionals, and thus constitute a real threat to press freedom, the reports found.

'Soft censorship' or indirect government censorship, includes a variety of actions intended to influence media, short of closures, imprisonments, direct censorship of specific content, or physical attacks on media outlets or journalists. “Although it is less visible, soft censorship can be equally insidious, and must be recognised for the very serious threat to media independence and press freedom it is today – in Eastern and Central Europe and also around the world,” says Vincent Peyrègne, CEO of WAN-IFRA.“Unlike jailings, closures and other direct

attacks on press freedom, soft censorship is far more subtle and rarely generates the same level of international outrage as direct attacks on the press,” Mr Peyrègne explains. “The jailing of a journalist is guaranteed to draw attention. But a tax case? If a government uses tax laws, or withholds

advertising, or carries out similar measures in response to criticism, it does not generate the same level of condemnation.”

WAN-IFRA and its partners, supported by the Open Society Foundations and Open Society Justice Initiative, have launched a series of reports that will investigate the practice of soft censorship worldwide. Soft Censorship: Strangling Serbia’s Media and Capturing Them Softly: Soft Censorship and State Capture in the Hungarian Media identify major trends and abuses, such as the biased allocation of government subsidies and advertising, evaluate their impact, and propose recommendations. The findings aim to contribute to the implementation of fair and transparent rules necessary for the development of independent media sectors.

Call to end attacks on journalists in Ukraine

Forty journalists have reportedly been assaulted in the latest wave of anti-government protests to sweep the Ukrainian capital, Kiev. In a letter to Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych, the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), the World Editors Forum, and the European Newspaper Publishers Association (ENPA) have together denounced a brutal assault on Ukrainian journalist Tatiana Chornovol and called for urgent criminal investigations to be launched. “We are concerned that the beating of Ms Chornovol may have been in retaliation for her investigative reporting and for exercising her right to freedom of expression,” said the joint WAN-IFRA and ENPA letter.

Chornovol was severely beaten in the early hours of 25 December 2013, after her car was rammed and she was dragged from the vehicle. A few hours earlier, Chornovol - whose articles are regularly published by the websites Ukrayinska Pravda and Levyy Bereg and deal with alleged government misuse of state resources and the conspicuous

Other News


wealth of officials - had posted information relating to a member of the government on her blog. The journalist had also reported being followed by police officers in the course of her work, while Chornovol has been active in supporting the on-going ‘Euromaidan’ protests.

Calling for those responsible for the attack on Chornovol to be brought swiftly to justice, WAN-IFRA and ENPA also called on the government to take all possible steps to ensure Ukraine fully respects its international obligations to freedom of expression.

Press freedom at risk in Belarus

The World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), the World Editors Forum, the European Newspaper Publishers’ Association (ENPA) and the News Media Coalition have protested to the International Ice Hockey Federation about visa requirements for journalists wanting to travel to Belarus to cover the World Ice Hockey Championships in May.

While reporters accredited to the event via the International Ice Hockey Federation system will not need a visa to enter Belarus, they will need to apply for a visa if they want to report on anything else while in the country. Belarus has an extremely restrictive media environment. “Having chosen one of the most repressive regimes in Europe to host your event, we ask that the International Ice Hockey Federation take all possible steps to ensure that Belarus fully respects its international obligations to freedom of expression,” the letter said.

The IIHF has a duty to ensure that journalists were free to carry out their legitimate news gathering duties and to ensure their partnership with the host country did not encourage or promote repression. Sport does not occur in a vacuum and journalists should be free to report without restrictions, the organisations said.

Many journalists were interpreting the regulations as a form of censorship, says Markku Mantila, a World Editors Forum Board member and editor-

in-chief of the Finnish newspaper Kavela. “The decision has caused concern at least in Finland, but I believe the feeling is the same around the hockey world. We in Finland find the decision made by Belarus officials nothing but censorship,” Mantila says.

WAN-IFRA announces key 2014 events

The World Newspaper Congress in June and the World Publishing Expo in October lead a stellar array of international, regional and local conferences and events in 2014 organised by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA).

The 66th World Newspaper Congress, which will be held along with the 21st World Editors Forum and the 24th World Advertising Forum in Torino, Italy, from 9 to 11 June 2014, is the global summit meeting of the world’s newspapers and news publishers. More than 1000 publishers, CEOs, managing directors, chief editors, and other senior news media executives are expected to attend.

The World Publishing Expo 2014, to be held from 13 to 15 October 2014, in Amsterdam, is the largest global trade exhibition for the news publishing and media industry. More than 7000 visitors and 300 exhibitors participated in last year’s event. The Expo will be accompanied by the World Digital Media Awards, WAN-IFRA’s annual Newsroom Summit, Tablet & App Summit, and a series of Shaping the Future of News Publishing Forums.

EVENTS CALENDAR


March

May

June

April

2014

March 3-4, organised by WAN-IFRA, in Singapore: Social Media for News Gathering and Publishing. More details from [email protected]

March 5-6, organised by WAN-IFRA, in Singapore: Visual Storytelling through the Lens. More details from [email protected]

March 12-13, organised by WAN-IFRA, in Dubai: 9th Middle East Conference – Successful Strategies for Media Houses. More details from [email protected]

March 16-19, organised by the Newspaper Association of America, in Denver, Colarado: NAA mediaXchange 2014. Sessions will highlight leading-edge thinking about media strategies, successes in product and revenue development, new ideas and innovation inside and outside the industry, and tactics and techniques to employ in print and digital. More details at the www.naa.org

March 19-20, organised by WAN-IFRA, in Munich: Printing Summit 2014. More details from [email protected]

March 20, organised by European Flexographic Industry Association, in Bolton, Greater Manchester: EFIA Awards Gala Dinner 2014.

March 24-29, in London: Ipex 2014 – Discover the Power of Print. More details at http://www.ipex.org/ and from Laju Jariwala at [email protected]/ 022-2410 2801-03, 67282400

March 30 - April 2, organised

by Printing Industries of America in partnership with Flexographic Technical Association (FTA) and Specialty Graphic Imaging Association, in Dalla, the US: 2014 Continuous Improvement Conference. More details at http://ci14.printing.org/p/

April 2, organised by Independent Print Industries Association, in the UK: The Evolution of Innovation Conference. More details at http://www.ipia.org.uk/

April 7-9, organised by WAN-IFRA, in London: Digital Media Europe. More details from [email protected]

April 7-10, co-organised by IPAMA, in Sharjah, UAE: Print Pack Arabia 2014. More details from [email protected]

April 23-25, organised by WAN-IFRA, in Hong Kong: Publish Asia 2014. Includes CEO Conference, Advertising Summit Asia, Newsroom Summit Asia, Learning Workshops, Publish Asia Expo, and Networking Events. More details from [email protected]

April 27-30, organised by the Flexographic Technical Association, in Baltimore, USA: FTA’s 2014 Annual Forum – Breaking New Ground. More details at http://www.flexography.org/

April 28-29, organised by the Flexographic Technical Association, in Baltimore, USA: InfloFlex 2014 – A Gold Mine of Solutions, focused on the printing, packaging and converting

industry. More details at http://www.flexography.org/

April 29 - May 1, organised by Sign & Digital UK, in Birmingham: Sign & Digital UK. More details from [email protected]

May 12-16, organised by WAN-IFRA, in Stockholm, Oslo, Berlin: Study Tour – Fitter Newsrooms. More details from [email protected]

June 9-11, organised by WAN-IFRA, in Torino, Italy: 66th World Newspaper Congress – 21st World Editors Forum – 24th World Advertising Forum. More details from [email protected]

June 12, organised by Whitmar Publications, aboard the River Thames in the UK: The Print, Design, Marketing Awards 2014. More details from Chloe [email protected]

June 23-27, organised by WAN-IFRA, in Hamburg, Copenhagen, Düsseldorf: Study Tour – Paid Content 2.0. It’s about upgrading your approach to reader revenue. With print ad dollars slow to migrate online, almost every news publisher is looking for ways to increase direct income from digital consumers. More details from [email protected]


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Yes, digital publishing is here to stay

Tablets might still be a niche market in India, but they are a rapidly growing and promising new media channel for newspaper publishers. Digital publishing to tablets is another step in the ongoing evolution of the media industry. This change forces publishers to defi ne an effective multi-channel publishing strategy, enabling them to effortlessly address any channel and to monetise new channels such as tablets successfully. A special report by Stefan Horst >>> more

Dinamalar surges forward on the new media front

A 60-year-old newspaper has adapted and moved with the times, and moved quickly. Its Web site attracts more than two million unique visitors and more than 190 million page views a month; its iPhone, iPod and iPad applications have recorded a substantial number of downloads and page views, with various apps being made available on the Android platform as well. All run and managed by a small team that is highly focused on delivering value to users as well as clients, and it has paid off well. Sashi Nair reports on the Dinamalar new media success story

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