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Redefining the LA Times Online

November 28, 2007

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What to build?

• Newspaper articles online don’t cut it. – Build a functional, utility-oriented product

• Local is our #1 opportunity– Established national players don’t adequately cover complex categories in

LA:• e.g. Real Estate, Regional Travel, Local Entertainment, Local News

• Choose a few national categories– Recognize where we have competitive advantage nationally

• e.g. Entertainment Industry news, Autos, Environment, Immigration

• Build a social news platform to engage users– A me-too digg.com will go nowhere: we must to leverage our editorial

capabilities to differentiate the product and add value

• Recognize that content aggregation is as important as content creation – These days it is as important to help users make sense of an increasingly

fragmented media landscape as it is to produce original content

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How to build it?

• Launch quickly, iterate frequently. Plan on 3-6 month release cycles to avoid getting out of synch with changing market dynamics.

• Embrace rapid prototyping, new open source technologies, and agile software development to build product quickly and launch inexpensively

• Allow users to access our content anywhere, anytime, on any site– via widgets, RSS and other forms of syndication, open APIs, etc.

• A relentless focus on user experience and consumer testing must drive all product design and development

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LAT Guide

None address the unique complexities of life in LA

The competition is any web site that provides listings, directory, recommendations

Multi Category Guides(Citysearch, La.com, Gayot.com)

Well rounded resource but not completely satisfying

Portals, Local Directories(Yahoo, Google, MSN, Yellowpages)

Meet basic, tactical needs but lack emotional connection and local expertise

User community driven guides(Yelp, Insider Pages, Chowhound)

True voice of peers but not comprehensive and lack validating authority

Pure recommendation sites(Dailycandy, Flavorpill, various blogs)

Engaging niche content, but limited as a go-to resource

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LAT Guide

Key Features• Browse the site:

– By Neighborhood

– By Category: Restaurants, Bars/Clubs, Movies, etc.

– By Lifestyle theme: Family & Kids, Bargains & Free, Gay & Lesbian, L.A for Visitors, etc.

– By Date

• Content comes from many types of users, all treated equally

• Live connections to traffic, ticketing, finding deals, and making reservations online

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LAT Guide

Key Features• Browse the site:

– By Neighborhood

– By Category: Restaurants, Bars/Clubs, Movies, etc.

– By Lifestyle theme: Family & Kids, Bargains & Free, Gay & Lesbian, L.A for Visitors, etc.

– By Date

• Content comes from many types of users, all treated equally

• Live connections to traffic, ticketing, finding deals, and making reservations online

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LAT Guide

• Multiple content types, all aggregated on a single page

• Mapping, online reservations, and additional recommendations all integrated in-page

• Content Comes from many types of users:- Everyday users- Super Users- LA Times editorial staff

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LAT Guide

• User content always shown in the context of a profile

• eBay-style reputation system allows users to judge the quality of a review

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LAT Guide

• User content always shown in the context of a profile

• eBay-style reputation system allows users to judge the quality of a review