A former newspaper editor and Silicon Valley entrepreneur is proposing that newspapers create a cooperative payment and authentication venture through which they can charge for online content.
Alan Mutter, a northern California consultant who worked at the San Francisco Chronicle and Chicago Sun-Times before serving as an executive at a cable television provider, said his proposal, dubbed ViewPass, would enable readers to easily pay for and access content from multiple newspaper Web sites.
“ViewPass would be a single, ubiquitous brand to enable consumers to access valuable content on the Web sites and mobile platforms of all participating publishers,” Mutter wrote on his blog.
“It would be deployed as a widely recognized and widely accepted brand in a manner similar to the way Visa cards were established by the banking industry as a ready substitute for cash.”
The mechanism would also support payments for individual articles, subscriptions or bundles of content, Mutter said.
Mutter and partner Ridgely Evers presented the ViewPass concept before a group of newspaper publishers at a May 28 meeting quietly convened by the Newspaper Association of America to discuss how the industry can monetize Web content.
Mutter said ViewPass would enable readers to register once, and that the system would remember them as they moved among participating Web sites. More importantly, the software would build a profile of individual users, thus enabling “superior ad targeting,” he wrote.
News & Tech will have more information about ViewPass and other ways the industry might be able to monetize their online content in the July issue.
Monday, June 8, 2009
QuadTech files suit against QIPC in U.S.
QuadTech filed suit in U.S. District Court in Pennsylvania alleging that Q.I. Press Controls infringes on QuadTech’s patent covering register control technology.
The complaint alleges that QIPC’s mRC register control product violates a QuadTech U.S. patent dating back to 1992.
The action follows last year’s ruling by a German court that held that QIPC had infringed on QTI’s patents governing the design of markless register controls (see News & Tech, March 2009).
The U.S. case alleges that QIPC’s mRC technology is infringing on QuadTech’s patents in both the mark and markless modes.
QuadTech said it would move aggressively to protect its intellectual property, according to President Karl Fritchen.
“We will evaluate any infringements on a case-by-case basis and act accordingly to protect our rights and the innovative products we bring to the marketplace,” he said. “We are extremely pleased that the German courts ruled twice in our favor against Q.I. Press Controls and look for a similar outcome in the United States.”
QIPC couldn’t be reached for comment before Dateline’s deadline.
The complaint alleges that QIPC’s mRC register control product violates a QuadTech U.S. patent dating back to 1992.
The action follows last year’s ruling by a German court that held that QIPC had infringed on QTI’s patents governing the design of markless register controls (see News & Tech, March 2009).
The U.S. case alleges that QIPC’s mRC technology is infringing on QuadTech’s patents in both the mark and markless modes.
QuadTech said it would move aggressively to protect its intellectual property, according to President Karl Fritchen.
“We will evaluate any infringements on a case-by-case basis and act accordingly to protect our rights and the innovative products we bring to the marketplace,” he said. “We are extremely pleased that the German courts ruled twice in our favor against Q.I. Press Controls and look for a similar outcome in the United States.”
QIPC couldn’t be reached for comment before Dateline’s deadline.
Oregonian live on NewsWay
The (Portland) Oregonian is live with ProImage NewsWay, Mike Melick, director of IT told News & Tech. The publisher is using the app to streamline a number of functions previously managed with disparate systems.
“This was part of an overall workflow project,” Melick said. “We looked at all of our workflow pieces to see where we could improve efficiencies. Now we have a common workflow for all products.”
The Oregonian is one of a handful of major dailies still imaging film, and Melick said the paper has no plans to convert to computer-to-plate. The publisher purchased NewsWay late last year and began rolling it out in December 2008 (See News & Tech, November 2008).
News & Tech will have more information about The Oregonian’s NewsWay deployment in the July issue.
“This was part of an overall workflow project,” Melick said. “We looked at all of our workflow pieces to see where we could improve efficiencies. Now we have a common workflow for all products.”
The Oregonian is one of a handful of major dailies still imaging film, and Melick said the paper has no plans to convert to computer-to-plate. The publisher purchased NewsWay late last year and began rolling it out in December 2008 (See News & Tech, November 2008).
News & Tech will have more information about The Oregonian’s NewsWay deployment in the July issue.
Tenn. paper taps Acutech for lockups; to adopt new flexo plates
The Chattanooga (Tenn.) Times Free Press tapped Acutech LLC to install mechanical lockups on its manroland Flexoman press as it prepares to be the first U.S. newspaper to use plates from Japanese supplier Toyobo.
Acutech will install a total of 232 703F mechanical locks in a project to be completed later this summer, according to Frank Anthony, the
Times Free Press’ vice president of production. Acutech is also providing an Acuvision optical punch bender to improve press registration.
The upgrade comes as the Times Free Press narrows its web width from 50 inches to 46 inches and begins to use plates supplied by Toyobo. Anthony said the new steel plates, which measure only .0165 thick, will reduce its annual plate purchasing costs by $100,000.
The emergence of Toyobo’s plates, distributed in the United States by Anderson and Vreeland, means that MacDermid, long the industry’s sole supplier of flexo plates, will have some competition, Anthony said.
“This is really key,” he said. “Now there will an additional vendor that is making plates at lesser cost.”
News & Tech will have more information about the Times Free Press’ upgrade in the July issue.
Acutech will install a total of 232 703F mechanical locks in a project to be completed later this summer, according to Frank Anthony, the
Times Free Press’ vice president of production. Acutech is also providing an Acuvision optical punch bender to improve press registration.
The upgrade comes as the Times Free Press narrows its web width from 50 inches to 46 inches and begins to use plates supplied by Toyobo. Anthony said the new steel plates, which measure only .0165 thick, will reduce its annual plate purchasing costs by $100,000.
The emergence of Toyobo’s plates, distributed in the United States by Anderson and Vreeland, means that MacDermid, long the industry’s sole supplier of flexo plates, will have some competition, Anthony said.
“This is really key,” he said. “Now there will an additional vendor that is making plates at lesser cost.”
News & Tech will have more information about the Times Free Press’ upgrade in the July issue.
Ifra, WAN mulling merger
Ifra and the World Association of Newspapers will merge into a single organization called WAN-Ifra, News & Tech has learned.
The WAN board has already approved the combination while Ifra’s board is scheduled to vote on the proposal June 25, sources told News & Tech.
Under terms of the merger, WAN would maintain its offices in Paris while Ifra would remain in Darmstadt, Germany. Editorial and other operations would be administered in Paris while research, consulting and training will continue to be overseen by the Darmstadt facility.
WAN Chief Operating Officer Timothy Balding and Ifra CEO Reiner Mittelbach are expected to remain in their current posts through 2009, but the new organization will seek a permanent CEO next year.
The proposal to merge the two international newspaper groups comes as Ifra split its operations into two legal halves in order to satisfy German tax laws and EU regulations governing research grants.
This is the second time WAN and Ifra have talked merger. An earlier effort, in 2005, was called off for unspecified reasons.
The WAN board has already approved the combination while Ifra’s board is scheduled to vote on the proposal June 25, sources told News & Tech.
Under terms of the merger, WAN would maintain its offices in Paris while Ifra would remain in Darmstadt, Germany. Editorial and other operations would be administered in Paris while research, consulting and training will continue to be overseen by the Darmstadt facility.
WAN Chief Operating Officer Timothy Balding and Ifra CEO Reiner Mittelbach are expected to remain in their current posts through 2009, but the new organization will seek a permanent CEO next year.
The proposal to merge the two international newspaper groups comes as Ifra split its operations into two legal halves in order to satisfy German tax laws and EU regulations governing research grants.
This is the second time WAN and Ifra have talked merger. An earlier effort, in 2005, was called off for unspecified reasons.
Times-Shamrock launches hosted Web CMS model in Scranton
The Scranton (Pa.) Times-Tribune went live with Atex’s Polopoly Web content management platform last month, becoming the first of Times-Shamrock’s seven daily and 11 weekly Web sites to roll out the app.
Times-Shamrock’s deployment marks the first hosted version of Polopoly to be delivered by Atex in North America, the vendor said.
The Web CMS will integrate with Times-Shamrock’s Unisys Hermes editorial hub, which the publisher deployed in 2004.
“What we’ve especially gained with Polopoly is a way to seamlessly publish Web content from our existing print workflow, while adding customized control for each platform,” said Jeff Sonderman, Times-Tribune’s metro editor and Internet content director.
Meantime, Atex said La Stampa of Turin, Italy, incorporated text mining into existing Atex CMS and DAM apps. Text mining allows La Stampa’s editorial teams to organize the large quantities of information coming into the newsdesk, Atex said.
Times-Shamrock’s deployment marks the first hosted version of Polopoly to be delivered by Atex in North America, the vendor said.
The Web CMS will integrate with Times-Shamrock’s Unisys Hermes editorial hub, which the publisher deployed in 2004.
“What we’ve especially gained with Polopoly is a way to seamlessly publish Web content from our existing print workflow, while adding customized control for each platform,” said Jeff Sonderman, Times-Tribune’s metro editor and Internet content director.
Meantime, Atex said La Stampa of Turin, Italy, incorporated text mining into existing Atex CMS and DAM apps. Text mining allows La Stampa’s editorial teams to organize the large quantities of information coming into the newsdesk, Atex said.
Moody’s: Newspapers have to reduce print-centered strategy
A report issued last week by Moody’s Investors Service says that the newspaper industry has to reduce the fixed costs associated with print-centered distribution or risk financial failure.
The ratings agency said the newspaper industry devotes only 14 percent of its cash operating costs to content creation while 70 percent supports the current print distribution model and other corporate functions. This “imbalance,” Moody’s said, “limits the industry’s flexibility to overcome competitive threats.”
“This disconnect is a legacy of the industry’s vertical integration beyond content creation and into the production and distribution of newspapers,” said Moody’s Senior Analyst John Puchalla.
Puchalla said he expects publishers will reverse some of the current disparity by outsourcing print production and distribution. “Although newspapers may lose some of their in-house control over press time, they would also release resources to beef up investment in content and technology.”
The analyst said the industry’s move to reduce print frequency may also serve to help publishers cut costs while preserving their newspapers’ value.
“Newspaper companies’ credit ratings have moved considerably lower over the last few years, but additional downward pressure remains," Puchalla said.
“If newspapers can't monetize the content in new digital channels at the same level as with print, or cut structural costs enough to keep up with the changing competitive environment, the prospect of additional recapitalizations or shutdowns will grow, adding further pressure to ratings, he added.
The full report titled, "Newspaper Industry Costs: Out of Balance," is
available at www.moodys.com.
The ratings agency said the newspaper industry devotes only 14 percent of its cash operating costs to content creation while 70 percent supports the current print distribution model and other corporate functions. This “imbalance,” Moody’s said, “limits the industry’s flexibility to overcome competitive threats.”
“This disconnect is a legacy of the industry’s vertical integration beyond content creation and into the production and distribution of newspapers,” said Moody’s Senior Analyst John Puchalla.
Puchalla said he expects publishers will reverse some of the current disparity by outsourcing print production and distribution. “Although newspapers may lose some of their in-house control over press time, they would also release resources to beef up investment in content and technology.”
The analyst said the industry’s move to reduce print frequency may also serve to help publishers cut costs while preserving their newspapers’ value.
“Newspaper companies’ credit ratings have moved considerably lower over the last few years, but additional downward pressure remains," Puchalla said.
“If newspapers can't monetize the content in new digital channels at the same level as with print, or cut structural costs enough to keep up with the changing competitive environment, the prospect of additional recapitalizations or shutdowns will grow, adding further pressure to ratings, he added.
The full report titled, "Newspaper Industry Costs: Out of Balance," is
available at www.moodys.com.
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