Mathrubhumi
orders for 20 Krause
platesetters
Mathrubhumi Printing & Publishing (MPP), which publishes one of the largest-circulated Malayalam language newspapers Mathrubhumi from Kerala, has signed for 20 Krause LS Performance 250 violet platesetters with BlueFin processors and Krause JetNet workflow. The deal signed during the recent drupa 2016 held in Dusseldorf, Germany, is the single biggest sale ever made in the history of Krause. Mathrubhumi is the second most widely read newspaper daily in Kerala, after Malayala Manorama.
The newly ordered Krause platesetters will replace the newspaper’s old Ctp devices equipped at its 10 production units located in different parts of Kerala. The printing plants have been using 25 Ctp machines, which are more than a decade old. Mathrubhumi went for the new Krause systems to feed higher productivity needs of its TKS presses as well as to replace the dormant pre-press systems. Shreyams Kumar, marketing & electronic media director, MPP said that the new 20 Krause platsetters would replace the aging units in their production facilities. “We have invested in the new platesetters to augment the pre-press requirements of our high-end TKS presses,” he added.
Last year, Mathrubhumi magnified its production facilities with the adoption of fourth TKS press now installed in its Kozhikode plant. The leading Malayali daily expanded its production facilities between 2012 and 2015 by adding three TKS printing machines at its plants in Thiruvananthapuram, Kochin and Kannur. Shreyams said that two more TKS presses will be installed by the end of 2017, one of which is a heatset machine for commercial job. And the new Krause systems can throughput at 250 plates per hour. Of the 20, two are high resolution platesetters that will be deployed to work along with the commercial printing machine. The new pre-press systems will be supplied to various print sites and expecting to complete the commissioning by 2017 end.
Jurgen Horstmann of Krause mentioned that the first deal of two platesetters was awarded to Krause at the World Publishing Expo 2013 in Berlin and two years of excellent experience in reliability and performance of the Krause Ctp lines was the base for this strong future commitment from Mathrubhumi in the Krause technology. TKS presses at the production facilities of the daily came fitted with QI Press Controls’ mRC-3D colour register system. In India, QI Press Controls expands its business opportunities through Krause Biagosch India.
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New manroland web STORE goes live
A new manroland web STORE has gone live mid July. The new online store makes fast, easy and inexpensive shopping possible, intuitively, at all times and also on the go, by using a laptop, tablet or smartphone.
With regards to all demands of modern printing houses that require a flexible spare and wear part management with short response times, the well-known online shop from manroland web systems has been completely revamped. Together with customers and the company e-matters in Hamburg, manroland web systems has developed and launched the B2B platform based on the e-commerce Suite software. The new manroland web STORE aims on customer requirements and allows ordering quickly, conveniently, and inexpensively at any time and from anywhere.
With this relaunch, manroland web systems is able to offer its customers an online shop full of professional expertise with convenient operation that comes close to the ones in the consumer sector. The new web STORE offers an outstandingly fast, flexible, and convenient spare parts supply.
Some of the advantages for manroland web systems customers are original parts with tested quality from manroland
web systems; optimised performance thanks
to consistent further development;
high machine performance across the entire life cycle; wide range of parts available from the warehouse at short notice and convenient online shopping at all times and from anywhere.
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TN govt loans temple lands for paper pulp
In what could be termed unprecedented, the Tamil Nadu government has allocated about 36,000 acres of uncultivated lands to Tamil Nadu Newsprint and Papers Ltd (TNPL). The lands in question belong to more than 15 temples in the state.
The state government and TNPL have entered into a 15-year agreement. Under the arrangement, TNPL will develop, plant and maintain the lands that belong to the temples, whereas the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments, which manages the temples affairs, will receive 30 percent share of the gross revenue.
TNPL, which is one of the largest paper manufacturers in the country, will be responsible for the plantation of eucalyptus and casuarina trees in the alloted lands. TNPL is expected to raise approximately 50,000 tonnes of pulpwood from the lands over five years, which, at the end of the agreed 15 years, will have potentially produced 1.5 lakh tonnes of pulpwood. The pulpwood that this arrangement yields will be vital in driving the paper industry in the state that is struggling for raw materials.
The pulpwood raised from 36,000 acres of the temple lands will be shipped to two TNPL’s manufacturing units in Karur and Tiruchi in Tamil Nadu.
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IP International Holdings to acquire
75 percent in International
Paper APPM
IP International Holdings Inc and International Paper Investments (Luxembourg) have announced their intention to acquire a 75 percent stake in International Paper APPM. IP International Holdings will acquire a stake of 20.05 percent and International Paper Investments will acquire a stake of 54.95 percent from IP Holdings Asia Singapore Pte. IP International Holdings is the parent company of IP Holdings Asia Singapore Pte.
When the deal completes, IP International Holdings will become the promoter of Andhra Pradesh-based International Paper APPM.
According to industry sources, the deal follows a move within the International Paper Company to reorganise its business interests globally. In 2011, the US-based International Paper had acquired a majority stake in Andhra Pradesh Paper Mills Limited through its Singapore holding entity.
In related news, Rampraveen Swaminathan, chairman and MD, International Paper APPM said the US-based company will continue to evaluate investment opportunities and capacity expansion in India. Rampraveen told media that “the company has continued its focus on achieving operational excellence through integrated initiatives in safety, reliability, overall machine efficiency, quality and cost reduction resulting in improvement in production and profitability.” In 2015-16, the IP APPM reported a net profit of Rs 20.39 crore.
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Innovative editorial and workflow
solutions from News Hub Media
At drupa 2016, leading software developer News Hub Media (NHM) presented innovative editorial and workflow solutions providing newspaper, magazine and commercial printers with technologically advanced software to optimise their day-to-day production operations. The software solutions exclusively designed for the print and publishing industry comprise advanced tools for editorial planning, content creation, digital asset management, automated image toning and more. “We received 500 visitors who attended the one-to-one demo sessions at our stall during the expo; they requested further contact after the show to see how our software solutions can benefit their businesses,” said Swapan Chaudhuri, CEO, NHM. He further mentioned that they were pleased to see strong attendance from India in the expo and looking forward to boosting new relationship with the country’s graphics art community.
“Whether you are a publisher, editor, graphic designer of a newspaper house or a printing firm, NHM tools are designed for you to increase accuracy in imaging, editorial workflow and big data monitoring,” explained Sahaya Inbarajan, business development manager-Asia & Pacific, NHM in a brief conversation with All About Newspapers during drupa 2016. The tools which NHM has designed to establish and enhance efficiency in images are: Suite, Claro, LIVE, among others.
Suite is a comprehensive editorial workflow with multichannel publishing, designed for small and medium publishers. Claro is an intelligent auto image enhancement tool, which is dynamic and it uses the user’s targets and goals to enhance each image to its unique ideal. Newly introduced at the expo, LIVE is a new cutting edge and big data monitoring solution that helps users watch the latest trends, track and process, posts and updates from the web, which may include blogs, social networks, etc. “We are delighted to be able to support our customers in growing their business using the very latest in technology and automated software solutions,” asserted Swapan Chaudhuri. Visit: www.newshubmedia.com to know more about NHM and its products.
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IBT Bangalore team
to double
International Business Times (IBT) is reportedly considering expanding its Bangalore newsroom after mass layoffs in its New York office.
Early this year, 16 people were laid off in the US newsroom of IBT at New York, which had 85 people in January, from about 110 people last year. After another round of lay off, the size of IBT New York newsroom was reduced to a mere 22 people.
After the last lay off, IBT Media advertised several editorial and sales positions, including news editor—US news, for its Bangalore office, reported POLITICO.
Arjun Kashyap, IBT deputy managing editor and Bangalore chief, heads the IBT Media's Bangalore office where about 40 journalists work for the Indian, UK and US editions of International Business Times.
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Print circulation rises over five percent: ABC
According to the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC), the non-profit body for measuring and auditing newspaper and magazine circulation in the country, print circulation grew by 5.4 percent CAGR (compounded annual growth rate) between 2008 and 2015. This growth has come despite fierce competition from other medium of communication.
“This growth was achieved due to new titles entering various market places as well as existing titles expanding their by starting new editions and printing centers at various locations,” said ABC in a statement.
According to the report, The Times of India remained the highest circulated English language newspaper followed by The Hindu and Hindustan Times. However, Hindi publications have benifited the most; though, most member publications of ABC have shown a positive growth trend during the assesed period.
ABC has been certifying circulation figures of member publications every six months since 1948.
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Punjab Kesari flags off 422nd and 423rd
trucks of relief materials to J&K migrants
In continuation of its philanthropic work, Punjab Kesari Group (Jalandhar) has recently sent the 422nd and 423rd trucks carrying relief materials to J&K migrant families, who have been affected by terrorist activities, fled their villages and now staying in makeshift accommodations in Jammu border areas. The 422nd truck was sponsored by social worker Harish Setia and the 423rd by Lala Jagat Narain Nishkam Seva Society and Shree Gyan Sthal Mandir Sabha (Ludhiana). Present at the twin flagging-off occasions of the relief material trucks were Vijay Kumar Chopra, editor-in-chief, Punjab Kesari Group, Dr Bimal Khanna, Jagdish Bajaj, Romesh Ghumar, Harjinder Singh, Hardayal Singh Aman, Raju Vohra, Sham Lal Kapur, Romesh Handa, Ashwani Garg, Rohan Lal Sharm, Rakesh Goyal, Varinder Sharma, Tinku Nikang, Iqbal Singh Arneja, Kamaljit Singh Dhamija and JB Singh Choudhary.
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Top Indian news publishers
start fight against ad blockers
Major news publishers in India are taking the fight against ad blocker seriously by blocking readers using ad blocker from accessing content on their website.
The top 10 news websites in India, including Times of India and Hindustan Times, are joining hands and taking a stand against people who use ad-blockers, reported Factor Daily on June 29. The website quoted un-named inside sources to add that The Indian Express, The Hindu, Dainik Bhaskar, Amar Ujala, among others, are also part of the fight.
This has slowly become an industrial trend globally. In October last year German publisher, Axel Springer, banned readers from accessing Bild’s online content. New York Times, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, WIRED, Gawker, etc did the same in the US.
Indians happen to be the second largest user of ad blockers in the world, next only to China. According to a report by Mint in 2015 “the number of people actively using ad blockers in India increased from two million (in the second quarter of 2014) to four million by June 2015.” A report in the same year by PageFair-Adobe said the number of ad blocker users touched 200 million worldwide, costing online publishers $21.8 billion. A new research by Juniper Research titled Worldwide Digital Advertising 2016-20 has forcast that digital publishers stand to lose over $27 billion by 2020, accounting for almost 10 percent of the total digital advertising market.
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QuadTech control systems
drive Aamoda production
Aamoda Publications Pvt Ltd (APPL), one of South India’s largest newspaper publishing houses, has started installing QuadTech Register Guidance System with MultiCam and QuadTech Ribbon Control System with MultiCam on its 28 web offset presses.
With installation completed on 15 of the 28 presses, early customer feedback suggests that the Indian newspaper publisher is already seeing a dramatic reduction in waste for increased cost control and improved margins. APPL considers this new capability to be the lynchpin to increase company’s growth, enabling it to profitably expand its geographic footprint in Telangana and other regions of Andhra Pradesh, with a view to increasing its newspaper circulation and sales.
The QuadTech systems have been specifically installed by APPL to support the expansion of one of its most notable publications, Andhra Jyothi, which has recently extended its production and readership in a number of additional towns and cities including Hyderabad, Vijayawada, Tirupathi and Vishakapatnam. The Telugu language daily is the second largest newspaper in Andhra Pradesh, with a readership of 12.5 million people across 21 cities in South India.
Radhakrishna Vemuri, managing director for APPL, commented on the QuadTech investment: “Tight control of margins through increased production efficiencies is key to profitability in publishing, and maintaining a competitive edge. QuadTech’s technology is already enabling us to achieve that, and we expect to see current results amplified many times over when all 28 installations are completed next year.”
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Publishing houses eligible for
additional depreciation grant: CBDT
This news will come as music to the ears of publishing houses in India. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) has issued a circular stating that publishing houses are now eligible to claim aditional depreciation on plant and machinery (over and above the normal depreciation rate).
“The Board has accepted the position that printing or printing and publishing amounts to manufacture or production of article or thing,” said the government circular dated 19 May. The tax office comminique means that publishing houses in the country can now avail an additional depreciation of 20 percent, over and above the normal depreciation rate of 15 percent, specified for plant and machinery.
The CBDT decision is based on judgements of Delhi and Kerala High Courts on this issue. Kerala High Court in the case of Mathrubhoomi Printing and Publishing Co (judgement dated 16 Feb 2015) relied on Delhi High Court judgement in the case of Delhi Press Patra Prakashan Ltd (judgement dated 31 May 2013) and held that printing and publishing activity is a manufacturing activity and therefore publishing houses are eligible for grant of additional depreciation under the income tax law.
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Amar Ujala’s UP dominance almost complete
The latest Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC) report of July-December 2015, puts Amar Ujala as the leading newspaper in Uttar Pradesh (UP) with a circulation of 29.35 lakh copies, a growth of 29 percent over July-December 2014. According to the report, Amar Ujala is leader in major cities of UP. The newspaper is also performing exceedingly well in the neighbouring Uttarakhand markets of Dehradun and Haldwani.
Amar Ujala is now officially the No. 1 newspaper in the state capital of Lucknow, after having dominated in Kanpur, the state’s financial hub, and Varanasi, the cultural center of the counrty. This report caps the newspaper’s complete dominance in other major markets of UP such as Agra, Allahabad, Bareilly and Moradabad.
Amar Ujala has been controlling the western UP market for some time now. The ABC report shows an almost complete dominance in the state by making a strong inroad into the central and eastern markets of the state.
The report reflects that Amar Ujala has clearly outrun its close rivals far behind in the competition. The publication leads Dainik Jagran by 85,878 copies in UP and 72, 266 copies in Uttarakhand. Amar Ujala is now a leader in important markets of UP, Dehradun and Haldwani.
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Indian print sites shine in INCQC Quality Focus
Twenty-eight print sites operated by 12 Indian publishers are among the 64 admitted to the 2016-18 International Color Quality Club.
Organisers WAN-Ifra say the 64 publishing and printing companies in 26 countries to have achieved membership for two years were drawn from 128 participating in this year's competition.
Membership is offered to companies that show they can produce high-quality newspapers consistently over an extended time period, with evaluation divided into two parts - one based on measurement of a test element, and visual inspection by a jury of newspaper experts.
Participating companies can also benchmark their printing quality against recognised international standards and improve it.
Deputy chief exective Manfred Werfel says INCQC 2016-18 was tougher than previous years: "We asked newspapers to print the WAN-IFRA Cuboid test element every day of one week per month for three consecutive months, and we picked the date for evaluating the copies." He adds, "That 64 companies secured membership is proof that quality continues to be a passionate area for printers and they are committed to produce high-quality products for their readers and advertisers."
Certificates will be handed to new club members on October 11 as part of this year's World Publishing Expo in Vienna, Austria, where INCQC practitioners will also present case studies during the Print World conference.
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Sanjay Pugalia joins The Quint
Sanjay Pugalia has been appointed president and editorial director of The Quint and Bloomberg Quint. He has over 25 years of experience in journalism.
The Quint is an online English news media founded by Raghav Bahl where Pugalia will help develop a Hindi edition of the webzine.
In his new role, Pugalia will report to Raghav Bahl. According to news reports Pugalia’s key responsibility will be to set up the Hindi version of The Quint. He is also expected to play a vital role in other properties of Quintillion Media.
The Quint has recently entered into a joint venture with Bloomberg LP, following which a new English business news channel is in the works.
Pugalia was instrumental in the launch of Star News in India. He was the former editor of CNBC Awaaz and CNBC Bajar. Before being picked by Raghav Bahl’s company he was at Network 18 where he worked for over 12 years.
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ABP’s Kishore Ajwani joins Network18
ABP News anchor Kishore Ajwani has been appointed as deputy managing editor of IBN7 by Network18. He quit ABP earlier this year. According to a media report, Kishore will lead the output function at IBN7 while Sumit Awasthi, deputy managing editor, will lead the input function.
Sumit and Kishore will work closely with Prabal Pratap Singh. Kishore has earlier worked with Zee News, DD Sports, etc.
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Indian newspapers win big
at INMA Global Media Awards
Mumbai Mirror, Dainik Bhaskar, Dainik Jagran, Hindustan Times and The Times of India have been feted at the prestigious INMA Global Media Awards in London for public campaigns, reader connect, corportate innovation, futuristic newspaper, advertising, new concept and brand development, coming out winners in a competition of global news organisations.
The Times of India's 'TOI Green Drive' and 'The Great Indian' campaigns won the second place for Brand Development and Best Use of Social Media, respectively. Mumbai Mirror's campaign titled ‘Mumbai Heroes’ has been adjudged the best in the category of Best Public Relations or Community Service Campaign among entries from across the world. Another innitiative by Mumbai Mirror on ‘Girls Soccer League’ won the newspaper the Best Idea to Encourage Print Readership or Engagement.
Dainik Jagran won the third place in Creating a Newspaper For The Future, By The Future. Hindustan Times was also placed third in the Best Idea to Grow Advertising Sales or Retain Advertising Clients. Dainik Bhaskar won the second and third places in Best Execution of Print Advertising and Best New Corporate Innovation Initiative respectively. Dainik Bhaskar has also been placed in the third place in Best New Concept to Incubate Products or Ideas. The awards, which was organised by the International News Media Association, were presented at London's Victoria and Albert Museum. The competition received 699 entries from 264 news organisations from 40 countries. An international jury of 41 executives from 19 countries sift through the entries to pick more than a hundred winners.
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ABC launches digital measurement service
Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC), an independent body that provides audited newspaper and magazine circulation, is now foraying into measurement of
digital properties. This is the first such initiative to offer industry-accredited
digital measurement.
The service, which goes live from Q3 2016, fills an important gap for digital property owners by offering them precise audience metrics. The solution being deployed by Nielsen measures audiences consistently across PC and mobile, providing the media industry with highly accurate measurement of online text content, as well as key performance metrics such as reach, frequency and demographics.
“We are not restricting ourselves to the print publisher fraternity, but will extend the service to include digital property owners across sectors. This is a historic moment, as for the first time in India, an industry body has started a service of this kind,” said Shashidhar Sinha, chairman, Audit Bureau of Circulations.
Hormuzd Masani, secretary general, ABC said, “The outreach will be to all digital properties, going beyond ABC publisher members, and will bring about standardisation and higher accountability in measuring the consumer base with the backing of industry accreditation. This will prove to be an important and path-breaking currency for a fast evolving and dynamic industry.”
Across media, digital is witnessing the highest year-on-year growth of nearly 30 percent. While there are some marketers who have allocated over 20 percent of their marketing budget on digital, nearly all brand marketers are looking to spend more. The ABC digital measurement service will empower digital property owners to prove their capabilities in being able to reach the right audiences.
