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NEW
DELHI: The growth of the Hyderabad-based ‘Eenadu’
from a Telugu newspaper to English editions and to a media
conglomerate with print, television, internet and other media
will be the cynosure of discussion at the 61st World Newspaper
Congress.
The
Congress organized by the World Association of Newspapers
is being held in Göteborg, Sweden from 1 to 4 June next.
According
to Larry Kilman who is director of communications with Association,
the Indian newspaper market is drawing attention for both
its growth and innovation and newspaper executives from around
the globe were keen to examine this particularly successful
example of Indian innovation.
The
growth of ‘Eenadu’ (the title means "Today")
will be exemplified in a presentation by I Venkat, Director
of the Group. Newspaper companies are well-placed for multi-media
growth, says Venkat. "We have the infrastructure, we
know the markets, we have some understanding of consumer preferences,
and we have experience of running the business. So why not
take advantage of the situation and try and get ahead?"
Venkat is part of a 23-member Indian contingent attending
the meet. The delegates include India Today Group chairman
and editor-in-chief Aroon Purie; Malayala Manorama’s
executive editor Jacob Mathew and deputy editor Jayant Mammen
Mathew; director Naveen Chamoli and vice-president (Business
Development) of Planman Technologies; Dinamalar’s editor
R Sathiamurthi and associate editor Manjula Rajagopal; president
(Dailies) Amitabha Datta of ABP Pvt Limited; and Mint’s
managing editor Raju Narisetti.
The
Bennett Coleman and Company will be represented by Times of
India executive editor Jaideep Bose, CEO – Publishing
Ravindra Dhariwal, director – Business and Commercial
Mohit Jain, and Economic Times executive editor Rahul Joshi.
The Prabhat Khabar group’s vice-president Kamal Kumar
Goenka, chief editor Harivansh Narayan Singh, business advisor
Deepak Pramanik, and promoter Prashant Jhawar will also be
part of the delegation.
The
Congress, World Editors Forum and Info Services Expo 2008
are expected to draw well over 1,500 newspaper publishers,
managing directors, CEOs, chief editors and other senior newspaper
executives to Sweden at a time when the newspaper industry
is focused more than ever on multimedia expansion.
The
theme of the Congress reflects the changing nature of the
industry - "Newspapers: A Multi-Media Growth Business."
Print publications remain the core activity of press companies,
generating most of their profits and providing resilient to
increasing competition from other information channels. At
the same time, digital media are allowing newspapers to significantly
extend their audience and revenues.
How
best to exploit the multi-media opportunities now open to
newspapers will be at the heart of the programme.
In
addition to Venkat, confirmed speakers for the Congress include:
Joe Webb, deputy managing director of the Irish Independent;
Tim Bowdler, CEO of Johnston Press in the United Kingdom;
Giorgio Valerio, GM of RCS Quotidiani in Italy; Christian
Van Thillo, chairman of De Persgroep in Belgium; Francis Morel,
director general, and Pierre Conge, deputy director general
in charge of New Media, of Le Figaro in France; and Tony Watson,
editor-in-chief of The Press Association in the United Kingdom.
The
Congress business sessions will focus on the best strategies
for growing audience, in print and online, the best strategies
for increasing both print and digital advertising - and the
growth that can be expected. Discussion will also be held
on what management, infrastructure and processes are necessary
to sell advertising for a portfolio of products, as opposed
to a single newspaper title, how the new reach attained by
newspapers through their combined print and digital operations
can be monetized, and whether newspapers are the Content Kings
who can exploit the unique content gathered by newspapers
through the full range of new distribution channels.
The
Paris-based WAN represents 18,000 newspapers and its membership
includes 77 national newspaper associations, newspaper companies
and individual newspaper executives in 102 countries, 12 news
agencies and 11 regional and world-wide press groups.
The
session on ‘2007 - 2008 print and online launches’
will include among others a presentation by Nasiretti.
The
session on participatory journalism will discuss both the
positives and negatives of "sharing" the news process
and how these two forms of collective intelligence - the newsroom
and the audience - can better collaborate. Speakers include
Nikesh Arora, vice president of European Operations for Google.
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