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04.18.2012
Vance Publishing Corp. is celebrating its 75th year in business serving the agribusiness, beauty, woodworking and home organization industries. In honor of the occasion, Vance (which includes brands such as The PACKER, Modern Salon, Drovers/CattleNetwork) has redesigned its corporate website and issued a “75th Anniversary” logo to be used throughout 2012 on all corporate products, including print publications, websites, e-newsletters, digital and electronic products, and research and information materials. A section of the Vance website also features Vance employees talking about their experiences.
ABM spoke with chairman Bill Vance about how the company’s mission has changed, and why b-to-b media remains more viable than ever even as the industry undergoes radical transformation.
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04.18.2012
Oil traded near the highest close in two weeks after the International Monetary Fund boosted its growth outlook and a Spanish debt sale raised more than planned, easing concern that an economic slowdown may curb crude demand.
Futures were little changed in New York after gaining for a second day yesterday. The IMF increased its 2012 global growth forecast to 3.5 percent from 3.3 percent and said oil will advance 10 percent this year on rising demand and possible supply disruptions. Spain sold 3.2 billion euros ($4.2 billion) of bills yesterday, compared with a maximum target of 3 billion. U.S. crude stockpiles climbed a fourth week, data from the industry-funded American Petroleum Institute showed.
“We received fairly optimistic news from IMF and the Spanish debt auction, so we expect the recent downside momentum in oil prices to falter, with potential for a correction higher,” Myrto Sokou, an analyst at London-based Sucden Financial Ltd., said in an e-mail today.
Crude for May delivery was at $104.31 a barrel, up 12 cents, in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange at 9:47 a.m. London time. The contract yesterday gained 1.2 percent to $104.20, the highest close since April 2.
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04.18.2012
In special ABM webinar hosted on April 11, USPS vice president of product information Jim Cochrane discussed the Postal Service’s plan to sunset its use of the POSTNET barcode in January 2013 and begin requiring use of Full-Service Intelligent Mail barcode (IMb) to qualify for automation discounts.
The use of IMb, plus investment in real-time scanners and other processing equipment puts the USPS on the path to offering customers real-time tracking data and allowing for corrective action before problems occur, according to Cochrane. “Tracking now stops at the processing plants,” he said. “We want real-time tracking at every level.”
By 2013, USPS will have real-time scanners installed and begin tracking delivery events based on GPS, including notice when periodicals have been delivered to mail boxes, said Cochrane. “This is one of biggest databases in the world, tracking millions of events.”
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04.18.2012
The Watermill Group, a strategy-driven private investment firm, received court approval today to acquire Manistique Papers, the only company in North America producing high-value uncoated printing and writing paper exclusively from 100-percent recycled fiber. The purchase agreement was finalized following an auction and confidential bidding process.
Manistique Papers enhances The Watermill Group's investment portfolio of environmental paper manufacturers, which also includes FutureMark Paper Company, the leading recycled coated paper producer in North America. With today's acquisition, The Watermill Group brings together leaders in 100-percent recycled paper in both the coated and uncoated markets and creates the most comprehensive line of recycled printing paper products in North America, representing nearly 300,000 tons of recycled paper per year.
Today's acquisition significantly expands The Watermill Group's footprint in sustainable paper manufacturing and positions the firm to deepen the value it delivers to Manistique's and FutureMark's customers, employees and investors.
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04.18.2012
The line between magazines and e-commerce continues to blur with the launch of a new home décor section of the web site of retailer HSN Inc., No. 26 in the Internet Retailer Top 500 Guide.
The web and TV retailer’s new House Beautiful Marketplace features items such as armchairs, table lamps, fringe pillows and area rugs that have earned the recommendations of House Beautiful editors. The interior decorating magazine—also called a ‘shelter’ publication—has a paid and verified circulation of 818,734, according to a December filing, and also operates the informational web site HouseBeautiful.com.
Besides the monthly product selections, the new HSN microsite, HSN.com/HBMarketplace, also will have what the retailer calls exclusive editorial content from the magazine’s editors, including decorating advice.
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04.18.2012
Through a combination of energy reduction initiatives and continued biomass and natural gas substitution for fuel oil, JDI’s Sawmill, Pulp and Paper, Transportation, and Cavendish Farms divisions reduced greenhouse gas emissions by 45,000 tonnes in 2011. Since 2007, oil consumption has been reduced by 156 million litres and greenhouse gas emissions cut by 346,000 tonnes annually - the equivalent of taking 66,500 cars off the road.
Sawmills Division: Oil use reduced by 21 million litres per year - a 92% reduction with three new biomass boilers - since 2010.
The associated greenhouse gas reduction equates to 11,500 cars being taken off the road.
70% of wood ash from biomass boilers diverted from landfills to beneficial uses such as agriculture and soil enrichment.
Pulp and Paper Division: Oil use reduced by 118 million litres per year, a 96% reduction.
Lake Utopia Paper’s new biomass boiler (Spring 2011) has reduced greenhouse gases by 20,000 tonnes per year, a 30% reduction from 2010 - equivalent to taking 3,800 cars off the road. Further reductions are expected in 2012.
Irving Paper in Saint John stopped using heavy fuel oil (2011) in favour of natural gas, resulting in the following reductions in air emissions: Greenhouse Gases: 18% reduction; SO2: 93% reduction; NOx: 16% reduction; Dust: 21% reduction.
Irving Paper was awarded Natural Resources Canada’s Conservation Leadership Award in the category of Employee Awareness and Training for excellence in energy efficiency awareness and management.
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04.18.2012
Bookstore sales fell 4.1% in February, to just over $1 billion, according to preliminary estimates released by the U.S. Census Bureau. As bookstore sales dropped, total retail sales rose 10.5% in the month. It was a year ago February that Borders filed for Chapter 11, something that began a period of declining sales at the chain until its going-out-of business sales began later in the year.
For the first two months of 2012, bookstore sales were down 1.9%, to $3.06 billion, while total retail sales rose 8.0%.
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04.18.2012
SCA acquires the remaining 50 percent in the Chilean hygiene company PISA (Papeles Industriales S.A.), and will after the transaction own 100 percent of the company. The purchase price is approximately 520 MSEK.
The turnover 2011 was approximately 780 MSEK. The company is primarily operating within tissue for consumers and Away-From-Home usage, which represents almost 70 and almost 30 percent of the turnover, respectively. In addition, incontinence care products under SCA’s global brand TENA have been introduced in Chile through PISA.
SCA entered PISA with a 50 percent ownership during 2003. After the acquisition announced today, which is expected to be closed end of April, PISA will be a fully-owned subsidiary to SCA.
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04.18.2012
Integrated Book Technology (IBT Global) has joined forces with Hamilton Printing of Castleton, NY. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. [IBT is ranked #243 with $19 million in sales on the 2011 Printing Impressions 400 ranking.]
The new company will operate under the name IBT/Hamilton moving forward and will have more than 160 employees with revenues approaching $30 million. The corporate headquarters and manufacturing facilities will remain in their current locations for the time being.
IBT’s digital offering will be enhanced by Hamilton’s web offset capabilities. When combined with IBT’s editorial, page composition and software, along with linking in book publishers’ administrative systems and warehouses, IBT/Hamilton will enable a customers to improve schedules and control inventory from quantities of 10,000 copies to one copy.
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04.18.2012
The U.S. Senate moved Tuesday to consider legislation that would fundamentally reshape the U.S. Postal Service as the struggling agency nears the end of a self-imposed moratorium on closing post offices and processing facilities.
Senators voted 74 to 22 to proceed to debate on the bill, with less than a month left until postal officials say they plan to begin closing hundreds of post offices and processing facilities. Congress requested that USPS wait to close facilities until mid-May so that lawmakers could pass legislation to help USPS save about $22.5 billion by 2016 by curtailing delivery services, closing facilities and offering buyouts to hundreds of thousands of workers.
The bill set for debate is co-sponsored by Sens. Joseph I. Lieberman (I-Conn.), Susan Collins (R-Maine), Tom Carper (D-Del.) and Scott Brown (R-Mass.) and would delay the Postal Service’s move to a five-day delivery schedule for at least two more years while requiring the agency to downsize, rather than close, most of the processing facilities it wants to close.
It also would permit USPS to deliver mail to curbside, sidewalk or centralized mailboxes instead of to front doors or mail slots, allow the service to ship beer, wine and spirits and to explore other sources of revenue. The Postal Service would have to continue overnight delivery of first-class mail, but limit it in some cases to shorter geographic distances.
Six-day delivery service would be scrapped only after the Government Accountability Office conducts a thorough study and determines that the Postal Service has no other way of cutting a considerable amount of operation costs.
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04.18.2012
Packaging Corporation of America today reported first quarter net income of $18 million, or $0.18 per share, which included a non-cash, after-tax charge of $23 million, or $0.24 per share, from an amendment to its 2009 federal income tax return related to biofuel tax credits. Excluding this charge, adjusted net income was a first quarter record $41 million, or $0.42 per share, compared to first quarter 2011 adjusted net income of $39 million, or $0.39 per share, which excludes a $2 million, or $0.02 per share, asset disposal charge.
The increase in adjusted net income was driven by higher containerboard and corrugated products volume ($0.09) and lower costs for energy ($0.04) and recycled fiber ($0.02). These items were partially offset by lower containerboard export prices ($0.03) and higher costs for depreciation ($0.03), transportation ($0.02), labor ($0.02), and interest expense ($0.02).
Net sales were a first quarter record $671 million, up 7% compared to first quarter 2011 net sales of $630 million.
Corrugated products shipments were up 8.3% compared to last year's first quarter, and outside sales of containerboard were essentially equal to last year. Containerboard production was 640,000 tons, up 38,000 tons over the first quarter of 2011. PCA ended the quarter with its containerboard inventories about 11,000 tons above year-end 2011 levels.
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04.17.2012
Grainger today reported record results for the 2012 first quarter ended March 31, 2012. Sales of $2.2 billion were up 16 percent versus $1.9 billion in the first quarter of 2011. There were 64 selling days in the quarter, the same as in 2011. Net earnings for the quarter increased 19 percent to $188 million versus $158 million in 2011. Earnings per share of $2.57 increased 18 percent versus $2.18 in 2011.
Sales in the 2012 first quarter increased 16 percent consisting of 10 percentage points from volume, 5 percentage points from acquisitions and 3 percentage points from price. This growth was partially offset by a 1 percentage point drag from lower sales of seasonal products due to milder weather across the United States and Canada and a 1 percentage point drag from foreign exchange. On a daily basis, sales increased 17 percent in January, 18 percent in February and 15 percent in March.
Company operating expenses in the quarter increased 18 percent driven primarily by expenses from Fabory, an incremental $27 million in spending to fund the company's growth programs, volume-related expenses and corporate support services costs.
Company operating earnings of $304 million for the 2012 first quarter increased 16 percent. This earnings growth was driven by higher sales and improved gross profit margins, partially offset by operating expenses, which grew at a faster rate than sales. The increase in the company's gross profit margin was driven by a number of factors that are addressed at the segment level. For the quarter, the Fabory business, which was acquired in August 2011 and represents less than 4 percent of total company sales, had a positive contribution to gross margin expansion, but resulted in an unfavorable mix on the company's operating margin.
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04.17.2012
Brown Printing will install the 20,000-copies-per-hour binder with 24 hopper positions and full in-line ink jetting and mailing auxiliaries at its facility in Waseca, MN, this spring.
“The new Goss binder will further expand the state-of-the-art print finishing capabilities—including advanced targeting, product personalization and co-mailing—that we deliver for catalog and publication customers,” explains Pat Bayer, engineering and IT director at Brown. “We have a strong record of productivity and efficiency with Goss Pacesetter and Universalbinder systems and recognize the advantages this technology provides for us and for our customers.”
Goss International will equip the new Universalbinder system with an HT20 trimmer, BS60 stacker and overhead gripper conveyors. Brown Printing will also add new Goss trimmers to existing Universalbinder lines at the facility to accommodate thicker products.
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04.17.2012
Ahlstrom, a global high performance materials company, will launch products for Transportation Air Filtration during the 11th World Filtration Congress in Graz, Austria.
Ahlstrom XAIR is a new portfolio of Automotive and Heavy Duty Air Filter media achieving exceptional efficiency in Soot filtration and Dust Holding Capacity having positive impact on engine lifetime, engine emission and fuel consumption.
The media can be processed in traditional high speed pleating machinery and is available with no curing, fast curing, flame retardant and water durable functionalities.
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04.17.2012
Ahlstrom, a global high performance materials company, will extend the range of release papers produced at its Jacareì plant in Brazil with the introduction of calendered Ahlstrom SILCA(TM) Soft grades.
The Pressure Sensitive-Adhesive (PSA) labelling market is estimated to grow approximately by 5-7% per year in Brazil and South America. By extending its release papers product range in Brazil, Ahlstrom aims at better serving the growing market needs and offering further local supply alternatives to imported glassine or supercalendered kraft release papers.Equipment modifications to enable larger production volumes are planned for August 2012.
In developing Ahlstrom SILCA(TM) Soft, the company relied on its broad expertise in the production of high quality release liners. This new calendered backing paper, particularly well adapted for labelstock applications, offers the required properties for secure siliconizing and reliable converting process. It complements the existing range of Ahlstrom SILCA(TM) calendered release papers manufactured in Europe and used by the PSA industry worldwide.
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04.17.2012
At the National Association of Broadcasters (NAB) conference, Adobe Systems Incorporated (Nasdaq:ADBE) today released a report showing increased viewer acceptance of TV-like ad experiences on the Web. The report found high audience engagement with ads during live online events and mid-roll commercial breaks and that users are the most actively engaged viewers when it comes to consuming video ads on tablets and smartphones.
Compiling data from the last six months of 2011, the semi-annual report was generated using an aggregated and anonymous sample of 2.5 billion ad impressions served via Adobe® Auditude®, Adobe’s video ad management and monetization platform and a key component of Adobe’s Project Primetime. The report shows that online video ad consumption is beginning to mirror that of traditional TV commercials, opening the door to greater revenue potential for media companies. Compared to data from the first six months of 2011, there has been an increase in the average number of video ads per content stream in professional, long form content and the record high completion rates for video ads.
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04.17.2012
The U.S. Postal Service, struggling to rein in its financial losses, is having a difficult time shedding operational expenses it no longer needs to carry, according to a report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office. According to the GAO report, the USPS has 461 processing centers but only needs 238, given the overall drop in mail volume as businesses and consumers increasingly switch to electronic forms of communication. There are about 8,000 processing machines but with mail capacity for only 5,000; and, out of 154,000 postal employees, there is work for just 119,000, according to the report. The USPS has saved $2.4 billion since in 2006 it undertook to cut overhead, but last month reported a loss of $1.1 billion for February, the fifth month of its fiscal year, raising its year-to-date losses to $5.6 billion.
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04.17.2012
Catalyst Paper announced today that meetings of its secured and unsecured creditors to consider the plan of arrangement under the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act have been changed from April 23, 2012 to May 2, 2012.
The rescheduled meetings will be held at the same location (Delta Vancouver Airport Hotel, 3500 Cessna Drive, Richmond, BC) at 10:00 am for unsecured creditors and 11:00 am for the First Lien Noteholders.
The court date to sanction and approve the plan of arrangement has also been rescheduled from April 25, 2012 to May 7, 2012.
The new dates were set to accommodate court scheduling issues with the original dates. The revised schedule will also provide court Monitor, PricewaterhouseCoopers Inc. and Catalyst additional time to complete the accounting review and verification requirements associated with the creditor claims process. Claims must still be filed with the Monitor by 5 p.m. April 18, 2012.
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04.17.2012
Oil rose to the highest in two days in New York after Spain sold debt and a bigger-than-projected gain in U.S. retail sales.
Futures in New York also extended gains after advancing for a third time in four days yesterday on better German investor confidence data. Spain sold 12-month and 18-month bills a day after borrowing costs climbed to the highest level this year. Retail sales in the U.S. increased more than forecast in March as Americans snapped up everything from cars and furniture to clothes and electronics.
The Spanish debt auction helped boost oil prices, said Carsten Fritsch, analyst at Commerzbank AG in Frankfurt. “Apparently, the market expected much worse. But concerns will remain. Look at the much higher rates Spain needs to pay.” He predicts Brent will average $115 a barrel in May and June.
Crude for May delivery climbed as much as 77 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $103.70 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
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04.17.2012
AOL will guarantee audience delivery for online video marketing campaigns across AOL's properties, said Charles Gabriel, VP of sales at AOL Video.
AOL's offering, powered by Nielsen Online Campaign Ratings (NOCR), has already launched with 10 brands. Gabriel declined to reveal the brands.
When advertisers purchase video ads aimed at a specific demographic, AOL guarantees 100% of the segment will be targeted. For a premium of the service's base price—between 20% to 50% depending on the desired target or more for a particularly niche segment—AOL validates the percentage of the audience actually hit and the advertiser only pays for the segment that was hit, Gabriel said.
“Lots of companies say they deliver audiences, but they're lucky if they hit 50%—yet they're still charging advertisers and saying it's a guarantee,” Gabriel said. “We're putting our money where our mouth is by guaranteeing [audiences] and if they don't hit the targeted audience, they don't pay for it.”
Additionally, if the campaign only hits 50% of the targeted audience that Nielsen validates, advertisers will get the reach of the other 50% of impressions free of charge.
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04.17.2012
Neenah Paper today announced the worldwide release of the Neenah Cabinet(TM) for iPad application (app) in Apple's App Store. This free app, optimized specifically for iPad, is designed to provide a way for Neenah customers to visually interact with all of Neenah's paper brands, making paper and envelope specification more convenient and creative.
iPad users will quickly learn how to navigate the Neenah Cabinet for iPad app, which has been described as intuitive in early feedback. Once users open the app, they can easily search paper and envelope options by brand color or envelope style. The iPad app features all of the Neenah Paper brands, including the full offering of the CLASSIC(R) Papers, ENVIRONMENT(R), SUNDANCE(R), ESSE(R), CRANE'S(R) and over two dozen more.
The Neenah Cabinet for iPad app is an off-shoot of Neenah Cabinet(TM) for Desktop, a robust and much more inclusive, technology-driven solution to view papers through Neenah's NEW eSwatchbook platform with intuitive waterfalls. With the Cabinet for Desktop, designers can order Personal Proofs(TM), sample papers, organize projects, use tools like environmental calculators, and download ASE Files, die-line files and much more right from their office desktops.
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04.17.2012
Walmart today released its fifth annual Global Responsibility Report (GRR) entitled "Beyond 50 Years: Building a Sustainable Future," highlighting Walmart's global top 10 list of achievements to reduce its impact on the environment, improve efficiency in its supply chain and stores and address social issues. The new GRR unveils data and progress against Walmart's three primary sustainability goals to use 100 percent renewable energy; create zero waste; and sell products that sustain people and the environment. Landmark waste reduction leads other notable accomplishments, including growing use of renewable energy, increased locally-grown sales and emphasis on diversity and empowerment.
"Good work is taking place every day across our global operations to make us a more responsible and sustainable company, and the results have been significant," said Mike Duke, Walmart's president and CEO. "We set ambitious goals to challenge ourselves but are committed to making change in a way that will be meaningful and long-term. Understandably, in some areas our progress is slower than we would like and sometimes we hit temporary roadblocks. Our commitment is clear and our resolve to lead is stronger than ever."
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04.17.2012
Gannett Co., Inc., a leading international media and marketing solutions company, today reported first quarter financial results. Earnings per diluted share, on a GAAP (generally accepted accounting principles) basis were $0.28 for the first quarter of 2012 compared to $0.37 for the first quarter last year. Excluding special items in 2012 and 2011, first quarter earnings per diluted share were $0.34 compared to $0.41 for the same quarter in 2011.
Net income attributable to Gannett in the first quarter of 2012 totaled $68.2 million while net income attributable to Gannett on a non-GAAP basis was $80.8 million. Reported operating income was $135.7 million and non-GAAP operating income totaled $156.7 million. Operating cash flow in the quarter (a non-GAAP term defined as operating income plus special items, depreciation and amortization) was $204.3 million.
Total operating revenues for the company in the first quarter totaled $1.22 billion, a decline of 2.6 percent. Digital segment revenues were almost 7 percent higher reflecting primarily solid revenue growth at CareerBuilder. A 7.5 percent increase in Broadcasting segment revenues was driven by stronger advertising demand and growth in retransmission revenue. Publishing segment revenues declined 6.0 percent reflecting, in part, the impact of sluggish economic growth on advertising demand early in the quarter.
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04.17.2012
We are writing to inform you that UPM is increasing transaction prices of all LWC and CFS web products beginning with all orders delivering on or after July 1, 2012, as follows:
LWC products: $40 per short ton ($2.00 per cwt) for the following grade names in all basis weights and finishes: UPM Cote; UPM Satin; UPM Ultra; UPM Star
CFS web products: $30 per short ton ($1.50 per cwt) for the following grade names in all basis weights and finishes: Finesse
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04.16.2012
The union at the NewPage Port Hawkesbury paper mill in Nova Scotia is recommending workers accept a contract offer from a company that wants to buy the idle operation in a vote to be held Monday and Tuesday.
The executive of the Communications Energy and Paperworkers union Local 972 had previously taken no position on the offer, but that changed after Pacific West Commercial Corp. provided new information to the union.
Union vice-president Archie MacLachlan said in an interview the new information included clarification on seniority and recall rights.
He said the union's membership decided at a meeting on Sunday evening to put the offer to a vote.
Pacific West Commercial's original offer would have laid off about 320 employees of the 550-member workforce.
MacLachlan said those numbers are still accurate because Pacific West Commercial would only operate one of two papermaking machines at the mill in Point Tupper.
The mill closed in September as it struggled with soaring electricity and shipping costs, a strong Canadian dollar and declining demand.
MacLachlan said the union was still getting new information from the company until 30 minutes before Sunday's meeting.
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04.16.2012
Brent crude fell, extending last week’s drop, after the first international talks in 15 months on Iran’s nuclear program yielded an agreement to reconvene in May.
Futures slipped as much as 1.3 percent in London. The United Nations’ five permanent Security Council members plus Germany will meet Iranian delegates in Baghdad on May 23 after “constructive” talks in Istanbul on April 14, the European Union’s foreign policy chief said yesterday. Oil rose this year amid concern that tension with Iran may disrupt global supply.
“It’s definitely a step forward that the parties are at least talking again,” said Thorbjorn Bak Jensen, an analyst at Global Risk Management in Middelfart, Denmark. “There is a significant risk premium in prices related to Iran, and even small steps towards a solution can have large impacts.”
Brent oil for June settlement dropped as much as $1.62 to $119.59 a barrel on the ICE Futures Europe exchange and was at $120.06 as of 11:13 a.m. local time. Futures fell in four of the past five weeks.
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04.16.2012
Metsä Group is developing its energy efficiency further. As a part of its sustainability agenda the Group has introduced targets for increasing energy efficiency and reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions. Metsä Group’s energy efficiency improvements have been awarded international acknowledgements.
Metsä Group is already a major producer and consumer of bioenergy. The Group’s target is to further reduce fossil fuel based carbon dioxide emissions in production by 30% per product ton by year 2020 from 2009 level. At the same time, Metsä Group also targets to improve its energy efficiency by 10%.
To demonstrate its commitment to reducing emissions and improving energy efficiency, Metsä Group has initiated several major investments in bio energy production and reducing energy consumption. The investment programme includes four bioenergy projects and energy efficiency improvement projects in all of the Group’s mills. Metsä Group’s sustainability strategy is presented in more detail in the Sustainability Report available at the Group’s website.
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04.16.2012
Precision Press, part of Taylor Corp. and a packaging and label producer for the food, beverage and consumer markets, will be the first in the world to install the new Goss Sunday Vpak web offset printing system.
The new press will be configured for flexible packaging applications, with Sunday Vpak 500 web offset printing units, as well as a Goss in-line flexo and coating unit. The press will also be equipped for UV and EB curing. The system will go into operation at the company’s 213,000-square-foot facility in late 2012.
Print quality, quick-change sleeve technology and the prospect of lower production costs were key factors in the investment decision, along with Goss support resources in the United States, according to Lee Timmerman, president of Precision Press. Timmerman said the Sunday Vpak 500 press will accommodate a wide variety of film substrates, product formats and high-quality lithographic requirements, supplementing the company’s extensive web offset capabilities.
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04.13.2012
Meredith Corporation, a leading global media and marketing company serving women, announced several recent launches and new agreements that expand the reach of its brands across print and digital media in Europe, the Middle East and in Asia.
In Europe, Vienna-based Liquid 7, the digital content division of Atlantic Group, recently launched Sunny 7, an online network aimed at adult women. Sunny 7 integrates content from Meredith brands such as Better Homes and Gardens, Parents, Fitness and Family Circle across digital and social media. In the six weeks since launch, Sunny7 has attracted advertising from clients such as Nissan, Accor Hotels, Bank Austria, Ford, Clinique, Citroen, Johnson & Johnson and numerous others.
Also in Europe, Budapest-based Hamu es Gyemant will launch a quarterly localized edition of Diabetic Living in the Hungarian language with distribution planned via subscriptions and newsstand in Hungary and several other central and eastern European countries.
Athens-based Democratic Press just launched a Greek edition of Diabetic Living. Combined, these agreements represent the fifth and sixth local editions for Diabetic Living, which is also published locally in Australia, India, Italy and Russia.
In the Middle East, Riyadh-based Saudi Specialized Publishing Company (SSPC) will launch localized English-language editions of Parents and Better Homes and Gardens for the Gulf States markets of Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman. Since 2009, SSPC has published an Arabic-language edition of Parents in the Middle Eastern region. Today there are 10 local editions of Parents and five for Better Homes and Gardens.
In Asia, Manila-based Summit Media will add content from Meredith’s American Baby brand to its locally published Smart Parenting brand. Smart Parenting is the No. 1 parenthood brand for Filipino parents of children from birth to age 6. American Baby will strengthen the brand’s reach to expecting and new mothers.
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04.13.2012
The majority owner of the Twin Rivers Paper Co. is seeking to sell its stake in the company.
Brookfield Asset Management confirmed Wednesday that it is looking for a buyer for its 51 percent share in Twin Rivers, which employs approximately 1,200 at its paper operations in Madawaska and Edmundston, New Brunswick, and at a sawmill in Plaster Rock, New Brunswick.
Twin Rivers Paper previously was known as Fraser Paper. That company filed for bankruptcy, emerging in April 2010 as Twin Rivers. Brookfield Asset Management, formerly known as Brascan Corp., emerged as majority owner. The New Brunswick government is a general partner and creditors own minority shares in the company, as they exchanged debt for equity as part of the bankruptcy deal.
Dan Whyte, senior vice president at Brookfield, said the business has stabilized out of bankruptcy, has secured customers and suppliers, hammered out a union contract, gotten additional financing and made capital improvements in the Madawaska mill.
“The company, though it’s stable, will need to establish a longer term financing plan for growth. Where do you get that capital? Brookfield Asset Management is not prepared to put any more capital in that company,” said Whyte. “Paper is no longer a core business of ours. We hold 51 percent interest in Twin Rivers and we’re looking to divest that interest to a purchaser who’s prepared to work with the minority shareholders, existing stakeholders and someone who can support the business in a strategic direction.”
Brookfield, said Whyte, is focused on four business platforms: power, properties, infrastructure and finance. Paper is not core to Brookfield’s business, he said.
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04.13.2012
Manistique Papers is being sold. MPI Acquisition, LLC has reached an agreement to purchase the assets of Manistique Papers which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last August.
Terms of the sale have not been disclosed. Manistique Papers says the plan is to continue operating with the same management and production team. The plant temporarily closed last August, but reopened in September.
Final bankruptcy court approval of the sale is scheduled for April 17 with the formal sale closing on or before May 4.
MPI Acquisition, LLC has been formed by investors from the Watermill Group, a Boston area private equity firm.
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04.13.2012
NewPage Corporation announced today that it has been awarded U.S. (8,096,479) and Canadian (CA 2678556) patents for PointTrac™ TT, a new paper-based substrate for printed Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) labels. PointTrac TT offers RFID label manufacturers the ability to combine thermal transfer printed variable analog information with advanced RFID chip technology. This technology facilitates low-cost production of printed paper RFID labels when compared with traditional multi-layer plastic film substrates.
RFID uses a wireless non-contact radio system for the transfer of data for automatic identification and tracking. PointTrac TT has special dual functionality built in so that printed barcodes on the label face can be read with a line of sight optical device or by using an out of sight electronic device.
"The NewPage PointTrac TT technology will allow RFID chips to become more widely used in shipping, tracking and transactions by making conversion to this technology more affordable," said Jim Sheibley, director of Specialty Business and Product Development.
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04.13.2012
Effective with shipments on or after May 1, 2012, Appleton Coated will be increasing the transaction prices on the following web grades:
Utopia Three; Utopia Book; Utopia Thin Book; Utopia Film Coat; All private label grades $1.50/cwt
Utopia GW Book $3.00/cwt
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04.13.2012
Cascades Inc., a leader in recovery and in the manufacturing of green packaging and tissue paper products, announces today the closure of its Norampac containerboard mill located in Trenton, Ontario. Following the rejection of the final offer made to the employees regarding the new collective agreement, the closure of the mill will be effective no later than June 1, 2012.
Difficult negotiations for the renewal of the collective agreement took place from May 2011 to March 2012 between Norampac's management and the CEP union, following which the two parties were unable to come to an agreement. Marc-André Dépin, President and Chief Executive Officer at Norampac, declared: “We are deeply disappointed that the Norampac – Trenton employees have turned down a positive and reasonable offer.”
“Despite substantial investments made by Cascades/Norampac to help increase its profitability, the Trenton mill has incurred significant losses over the years. These losses, combined with unacceptable labour relations, have left us with no other choice but to close the mill,” added Mr. Dépin.
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04.13.2012
AAA’s Fuel Gage Report as of 4/13/12
National Unleaded Regular:
Current Average - $3.901/gallon
Month Ago Average - $3.811/gallon
Year Ago Average - $3.812/gallon
Highest Recorded Average - $4.114/gallon on 7/17/08
Diesel:
Current Average - $4.153/gallon
Month Ago Average - $4.117/gallon
Year Ago Average - $4.121/gallon
Highest Recorded Average - $4.845/gallon on 7/17/08
Current Exchange Rates as of 4/12/12
American Dollar to Canadian Dollar = 1.00159 (120 day high - 1.01463 on March 1, 2012; low 0.950905 on November 25, 2011)
American Dollar to Chinese Yuan = 0.158544 (120 day high – 0.158948 on February 13, 2012; low 0.156639 on November 28, 2011)
American Dollar to Euro = 1.3153 (120 day high - 1.416 on October 28, 2011; low 1.2669 on January 16, 2012)
American Dollar to Japanese Yen = 0.0123456 (120 day high – 0.0131979 on October 28, 2011; low 0.0119026 on March 21, 2012)
American Dollar to Mexican Peso = 0.0764158 (120 day high – 0.0793808 on March 14, 2012; low 0.0700535 on November 25, 2011)
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04.13.2012
The targeted media category, which includes b-to-b media, branded entertainment, direct marketing, outsourced custom content and pure-play consumer Internet & mobile services, is expected to grow 8.1% this year compared with last year, according to the “VSS Forecast Mid-term Update.” Veronis Suhler Stevenson, which publishes the forecast, said the b-to-b media portion of the category is expected to grow 5.5% this year.
Total U.S. communications industry spending is expected to reach $1.185 trillion this year, a gain of 5.6% over last year. That growth rate will outperform GDP growth this year, which is projected to be 4.4%.
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04.13.2012
Oil dropped for the first time in three days, erasing a weekly gain, after China’s economy grew at the slowest pace in 11 quarters and Saudi Arabia’s oil minister said the kingdom is determined to see lower prices.
Futures fell as much as 0.8 percent after government data today showed China’s gross domestic product expanded 8.1 percent from a year earlier in the first quarter, after an 8.9 percent gain in the final three months of 2011. Industrial output rose at a faster pace in March, while retail sales growth accelerated. Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest crude exporter, considers prices too high and is working toward damping them, Minister Ali al-Naimi said today.
“The market is still range-trading, albeit in a slightly lower range than previously,” said Christopher Bellew, a senior broker at Jefferies Bache Ltd., who predicts Brent crude will remain supported at $119 a barrel. “Despite today’s GDP number, expectations are still that the Chinese economy will have a soft landing.”
Crude for May delivery fell as much as 78 cents to $102.86 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $103.16 at 10:50 a.m. London time.
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04.13.2012
Cascades and NextLife have agreed to an exclusive partnership to include recycled polystyrene, or No. 6 Plastic, and thereby to give this plastic a second life. Specifically, NextLife transforms recovered polystyrene products into sustainable resin that will be supplied to Cascades who will use it in the production of foam trays designed for meat packaging.
Recovered post-consumer materials are primarily sourced from businesses seeking sustainable solutions and an improvement in their environmental impact. The sourced material runs through a proprietary process and is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for use in food contact applications. “NextLife is seeing companies big and small looking for ways to become more sustainable, whether it may be finding ways to recycle and reuse their waste or implementing sustainable recycled resins in their products, Cascades is one such leader and an industry innovator,” said Ronald Whaley, CEO of NextLife.
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04.13.2012
Thanks largely to better-than-expected spending in the digital sector, the overall U.S. communications industry is projected to grow another 5.6 percent in 2012, reaching almost $1.2 trillion and beating GDP's 4.4 percent growth, says a new report from private equity firm Veronis Suhler Stevenson.
The report, called the VSS Forecast Mid-Term Update, is a companion piece to VSS's annual Communications Industry Forecast and finalizes spending data from the just-past year and updates the first-year data from the previous annual Forecast—in this case, the 2011-2015 study. Going forward, the Mid-Term report will be released at the end of the first quarter each year.
Digital spending has lifted all boats among the six sectors VSS tracks. In 2011, communications industry spending actually grew 4.2 percent, just beating last year's forecast of 4.1 percent for the year. As mentioned, 2012 is expecting 5.6 percent growth, and by 2015 VSS is now predicting that total spending will reach $1.419 trillion at a 5.7 percent CAGR, slightly better than the 5.5 percent CAGR from last September's 2011-2015 report.
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04.13.2012
Two Sides and Print Power are encouraging every company in the industry to forward a survey on print use to all their contacts in a bid to reinforce the positive message about print media.
The survey has been specially designed to discover which groups of people are still using print and are most likely to respond to printed marketing material.
It will also discover which other forms of media work best alongside print with regards to advertising.
According to Two Sides director Martyn Eustace, the survey will enable the organisation to better focus its advertising, as well as going to print buyers with valuable information on the advantages of advertising in print.
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04.13.2012
The digital edition of National Geographic’s monthly magazine is among the top sellers and top grossing apps in the News category of the iPad store. But the legendary brand has so much more to offer the tablet than its magazine in games and special issues that it has been publishing at a hearty pace for a while. But what about all of that lovely digital material from its Web site, archives and various online properties? Rather than let iPad users merely browse to the tablet-friendly NationalGeographic.com in the Safari browser, the publisher has come up with an elegant and absorbing way to bring the best of NatGeo to the tablet every day.
National Geographic Today understands the tablet user by dazzling her with full screen images. They had us at ‘hello.” Every day the app leads with a stunning splash page and a modest selection of content like a news article, video clip, gallery of photos. The art of this app is that it doesn’t overwhelm you like the site with a torrent of content. It is highly curated each day to give the user a taste. And this seems to us a novel and thoughtful way to come at the tablet.
Understanding that the evening tablet user is in lean-back/lean in mode, the brand gives her a glimpse of the NG brand’s offerings that doesn’t require serious investment but can reward the ambitious content digger. The site lets you track back over previous days of NG content from the app, parse the full catalog by four categories: videos, articles, galleries, featured photos. Or you can view the back catalog by a calendar interface. The daily content is sometimes highly topical (North Korea testing nukes) and often just interesting and random (using magnets as brakes). Each of the content pieces is surrounded by social tools, including making a Facebook comment and posting to your wall.
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04.13.2012
Printing company Multi Packaging Solutions is cutting more than 80 jobs at one of its Louisville facilities.
According to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed with the with the Kentucky Division of Workforce and Employment Services, Multi Packaging will cut 83 jobs at its printing plant at 4325 Shepherdsville Road.
Officials with Multi Packaging could not be immediately be reached for comment.
Multi Packaging had about 360 Louisville workers in 2010, according to data from the Kentucky Cabinet for Economic Development.
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04.13.2012
The iPad was hailed by many as the savior of the magazine publishing industry when it hit the market back in 2010. It represented a chance for publishers to reinvigorate their flagging subscriber bases with rich, interactive user experiences and to reclaim some of the brand ad dollars that slipped through their fingers on the Web.
But two years later, few publishers have really gone out of their way to embrace the device. There are examples of magazines that have been adapted well for the iPad environment — Wired and GQ spring to mind — but they’re exceptions to the rule. The fact is most iPad editions of magazines are simply print products squeezed onto a tablet screen with little, if any, consideration for the unique user experience of tablets.
Major publishers like Hearst, Conde Nast and Bonnier, simply shrink print pages for many of their titles and ship them out to tablet users with a few added links but with little in the way of interactive content. Examples include titles such as Men’s Health, Harper’s Bazaar, Good Housekeeping, Runner’s World, Bicycling, and more. Owing to the iPad’s smaller screen, copy is often impossible to read without zooming in or resizing the page, and before long, it’s difficult to see why users would choose an iPad magazine over an old-fashioned print one. It is akin to the early days of websites, when “brochureware” was the norm.
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04.13.2012
Consumers on the hunt for a fresh approach to eating and living well with ease need look no further. FRESH JUICE – healthy made delicious, the new multi-platform brand by TC Media, has hit the market with a “fresh” approach to connecting food with good health through its various brand channels. FRESH JUICE will be served up as a print publication including a digital edition (six issues per year), an online destination (www.freshjuice.ca) with exclusive content, a weekly e-newsletter, a comprehensive social media platform including Facebook/FreshJuiceCA, twitter (@FreshJuiceCA) and Pinterest.
Built on three content pillars, Eat Well, Be Well, Live Well and a tag line “Healthy Made Delicious”, FRESH JUICE offers fun, healthy and easy-to-prepare recipes; expert health, fitness and nutrition tips as well as time-savvy ways to help balance fun, family, finance and more.
“We are very excited to share FRESH JUICE with consumers and our advertising partners,” said Lynn Chambers, group publisher at TC Media. “We certainly appreciate how busy Canadian families are and FRESH JUICE is about helping people make the right decisions quickly and easily. FRESH JUICE is the only brand to showcase the link between food and good health, and bring that food straight from the grocery aisle to your kitchen table.Whether you’re looking for low-sodium or gluten free, we can help you navigate the grocery aisles and create a convenient meal option that is healthy and delicious.”
While TC Media owns the brand and is the publisher and content creator for FRESH JUICE, a distribution relationship with Loblaw Companies Limited guarantees that 325,000 of the 425,000 copies per issue will be mailed to Loblaw’s most loyal customers.
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04.12.2012
The U.S. filed an antitrust lawsuit Wednesday against Apple Inc. AAPL +0.73%and five of the nation's largest publishers, alleging they conspired to limit competition for the pricing of e-books.
The lawsuit, filed in Manhattan federal court by the U.S. Department of Justice's Antitrust Division, alleges Apple and the publishers reached an agreement where retail price competition would cease, retail e-books prices would increase significantly and Apple would be guarantee a 30% "commission" on each e-book sold.
A settlement involving some of the publishers is expected to be filed Wednesday, according to a person familiar with the matter. U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder is expected to discuss "a significant antitrust matter" at a press conference later Wednesday.
"Defendants' ongoing conspiracy and agreement have caused e-book consumers to pay tens of millions of dollars more for e-books than they otherwise would have paid," the lawsuit said.
The agreement between Apple and the publishers allegedly occurred ahead of the introduction of the iPad in 2010 and as Amazon.com Inc. AMZN +2.39%had driven e-book pricing down to $9.99 for newly released and best-selling e-books, according to the lawsuit.
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04.12.2012
West Linn Paper Company is increasing prices $1.50 per cwt effective on all new and existing orders with confirmed ship dates of May 29th, 2012 or later. This pricing change includes all of the following grades: Sonoma®; Capistrano®; Nature Web®; Nature Plus®
This price increase applies to all basis weights and finishes plus all related private label grades, C1S grades and associated brand extensions.
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04.12.2012
AbitibiBowater Inc., doing business as Resolute Forest Products, today announced that all applicable conditions to its offer for Fibrek Inc. have been satisfied and that it has taken up and accepted for payment the 60,831,859 shares deposited as of 11:59 p.m. on April 11. The tendered shares represent approximately 46.8% of the currently outstanding Fibrek shares. As aggregate consideration for the shares, Resolute will distribute approximately 1.7 million newly-issued shares of its common stock and CAD$33.5 million in cash through RFP Acquisition Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary.
The Company also announced that the Bureau de révision et décision (Québec) has issued an order to cease trade, effective immediately, Fibrek's second shareholder rights plan, which its board adopted on April 11.
In addition, in order to allow additional Fibrek shareholders to participate, the Company announced that it has extended to 5:00 p.m. on April 23 the expiry time for its offer. As further described in the offer circular and other ancillary documentation related to the offer (as amended), Resolute intends to carry out a second step transaction to acquire the Fibrek shares not deposited in the offer.
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04.12.2012
The big three business magazines—Bloomberg Businessweek, Forbes and Fortune—all posted advertising page gains in the first quarter, according to Publishers Information Bureau figures released by MPA. Bloomberg Businessweek led the way with an 8.2% gain compared with the year-earlier period.
Fortune turned in a similar performance with an 8.1% gain, and Forbes was not far behind, with a 7.4% gain. Fast Company (4.4%) and Barron's (4.2%) also delivered ad page gains.
However, other business magazines showed ad-page declines, including Wired (down 16.0%); Inc. (down 15.6%); Entrepreneur (down 10.1%); Harvard Business Review (down 8.2%); and The Economist (down 4.8%).
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04.12.2012
Meredith’s EatingWell magazine will raise its rate base from 500,000 to 600,000, starting with its September/October issue, marking the title’s second rate base boost this year.
At 600,000, the newly expanded distribution will represent a 71 percent increase from this time last year. In January, Meredith upped the number from 350,000 to 500,000.
Publisher Tony Catalano says the increased rate base is made possible by a combination of being “in the right place at the right time, doing all or most of the right things,” along with the mainstream emergence of the healthy eating market. The magazine’s most recent issue, January/February, sold close to 80,000 copies at newsstand, he says—a 50 percent jump from last year.
Being in the right place includes having access to Meredith’s direct mail and database resources—the company purchased the title from EatingWell Media Group last June, along with the brand’s content licensing and custom marketing group, its Health-in-a-Hurry mobile app and a series of food and nutrition-related books.
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04.12.2012
American Media Inc.’s Soap Opera Weekly is closing. Initially reported by Adweek, the soap opera rag is shuttering due to a “decline in readership in the soap opera market,” according to an AMI spokesperson. Current Soap Opera Weekly subscriptions will be fulfilled by sister publication Soap Opera Digest until they expire.
Like so many other markets, soap operas have been suffering. Now down to only four soaps appearing on network television, at their peak, there were 19 soaps on air.
AMI says, “A few employees were impacted and are being used as freelancers at AMI.” Exact numbers of affected employees were not offered.
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