ROSEVILLE, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--A consortium of eight leading media and publishing companies – Advance Digital, A. H. Belo Corporation, Cox Media Group, Gannett Co., Inc., Hearst Corporation, MediaNews Group, The McClatchy Company, and The Washington Post Co. – today announced the formation of a joint venture in connection with the launch of a common online shopping platform to help advertisers reach consumers making purchasing decisions.
This new venture includes assets from its acquisition of Travidia, a leading developer of online shopping solutions, including Find n SaveTM, a full-service shopping platform for local media affiliates. Christopher Tippie, an industry veteran who was the founding executive director of the Yahoo! Newspaper Consortium, will serve as acting CEO of the new joint venture. The new company will adopt the Find n SaveTM brand. Financial terms of the Travidia acquisition were not disclosed.
“This initiative among the country’s leading media companies and publishing brands provides advertisers a unique opportunity to reach consumers through a simplified and standardized advertising platform. Advertisers can target audiences across participating local newspaper markets through digital display ads or with digital circulars,” said Tippie, who, as managing partner at Maroon Partners, LLC, served as consultant to the effort. “By leveraging the existing expertise of Travidia, we are able to offer our local and national clients a consistent, easy-to-deploy advertising solution.”
With today’s announcement, advertisers can reach 19 of the top 50 local markets, and the new company plans to add another 21 of the top 50 local markets within the next four weeks. Find n SaveTM affiliation is available to any local daily newspaper in the United States. By the end of 2012, Find n SaveTM will be in place at an estimated 250 newspapers. By the end of 2013, an estimated 400 newspapers are expected to be Find n SaveTM affiliates.
Discussions also are under way with several other media companies that have expressed interest in joining this new venture.
“We have enjoyed working with these world class media brands for years and applaud their efforts to come together to solve their customers' needs and drive more traffic to our clients' stores and online circulars," said Christopher Cope, CEO at American Communications Group (ACG), the second largest print media agency in the U.S. representing such national retailers as JCPenney, Michaels and Belk.
The Find n SaveTM platform is tailored to local audiences, offering digital coupons, daily deals, digital circulars, and other advertising products designed and managed by the local affiliate for maximum impact. Specialized Find n SaveTM solutions such as “Search Boost,” “Advertiser Landing Pages” and “Featured Offers” will also help advertising clients meaningfully connect with local shoppers.
Christian Hendricks, McClatchy's vice president for interactive media, said, "We have been rolling out Find n SaveTM across McClatchy’s markets since late last year. It is a powerful and efficient platform that has proven to be highly effective in linking advertisers and consumers. Our advertisers have realized important benefits and immediate value in using this consistent digital platform."
Matthew Spahn, president and CEO of planitretail, agency for Radio Shack and other major retailers, said, “Circulars continue to be a key driver of traffic in today’s retail environment. By creating this joint venture, these eight media companies are affording advertisers a unique, scalable and turnkey solution for local consumer engagement across all platforms – print and digital.”
For more information, please visit http://www.findnsave.com.
About Advance Digital
Advance Digital, based in Jersey City, NJ, is a leading creator of highly interactive, online community-based news and information websites created in alliance over 25 newspapers affiliated with Advance Publications Inc. Advance Digital’s websites are the number one local news and information online destinations for the markets they serve. The websites include al.com, cleveland.com, gulflive.com, NJ.com, NOLA.com, OregonLive.com, SILive.com, syracuse.com, MassLive.com, PennLive.com, and lehighvalleylive.com.
About A.H. Belo Corporation
A. H. Belo Corporation (NYSE: AHC), headquartered in Dallas, Texas, is a distinguished newspaper publishing and local news and information company that owns and operates four daily newspapers and a diverse group of websites. A. H. Belo publishes The Dallas Morning News, Texas' leading newspaper and winner of nine Pulitzer Prizes; The Providence Journal, the oldest continuously-published daily newspaper in the U.S. and winner of four Pulitzer Prizes; The Press-Enterprise (Riverside, CA), serving the Inland Southern California region and winner of one Pulitzer Prize; and the Denton Record-Chronicle. The Company publishes various niche publications targeting specific audiences, and its partnerships and/or investments include the Yahoo! Newspaper Consortium and Classified Ventures, owner of cars.com. A. H. Belo also owns and operates commercial printing, distribution and direct mail service businesses. Additional information is available at www.ahbelo.com.
About Cox Media Group
Cox Media Group, Inc., a subsidiary of Atlanta-based Cox Enterprises, is an integrated broadcasting, publishing and digital media company that includes the national advertising rep firms of Cox Reps. With $1.8 billion in revenues, the company operations include 15 broadcast television stations and one local cable channel, 85 radio stations, four metro newspapers and more than a dozen non-daily publications, and more than 100 digital services. Additionally, CMG owns and operates Valpak, one of the leading direct marketing companies in North America. For more information about Cox Media Group, please check us out online at www.coxmediagroup.com.
About Gannett
Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI) is an international media and marketing solutions company that informs and engages more than 100 million people every month through its powerful network of broadcast, digital, mobile and publishing properties. Our portfolio of trusted brands offers marketers unmatched local-to-national reach and customizable, innovative marketing solutions across any platform. Gannett is committed to connecting people – and the companies who want to reach them – with their interests and communities. For more information, visit www.gannett.com.
About Hearst Newspapers
Hearst Newspapers is the operating group responsible for Hearst Corporation’s newspapers, local digital marketing services businesses and directories. With more than 4,700 employees across the nation, Hearst Newspapers publishes 15 dailies and 37 weeklies in cities including Houston, San Francisco, San Antonio and Albany. It also operates digital marketing services and directories businesses under the LocalEdge brand. www.Hearst.com
About Media News Group
MediaNews Group, Inc. (NYSE: MNG) is the nation’s second largest newspaper company as measured by circulation, with headquarters in Denver, Colorado. MediaNews Group and its affiliated companies publish 57 daily newspapers and more than 100 non-daily publications in 11 states. In addition, MediaNews Group provides programming and operational services for a CBS affiliate in Anchorage, Alaska, and four radio stations in Texas licensed to Affiliated Media, Inc. FCC Trust. MediaNews maintains 187 Web sites. For more information, visit www.medianewsgroup.com.
About McClatchy
The McClatchy Company (NYSE: MCI) is a leading news and information provider, offering a wide array of print and digital products in each of the markets it serves. As the third largest newspaper company in the country, McClatchy's operations include 30 daily newspapers, community newspapers, websites, mobile news and advertising, niche publications, direct marketing and direct mail services. The company's largest newspapers include The Miami Herald, The Sacramento Bee, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, The Kansas City Star, The Charlotte Observer and The News & Observer in Raleigh, N.C. McClatchy is listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol MNI. For more information, visit www.mcclatchy.com.
About The Washington Post
The Washington Post (NYSE: WPO) is an award-winning news source that provides reporting and analysis about the politics, policies, personalities and institutions that make Washington, D.C. the world’s seat of power, and is a critical tool and information source for those who call Washington, D.C. home. The Washington Post combines its world-class journalism with the latest technology and tools, encouraging participation and engagement across all platforms and ensuring readers can get The Washington Post anytime, anywhere. The Washington Post is owned by The Washington Post Company (NYSE: WPO), a diversified education and media company. For more information, visit www.washingtonpost.com.
About Travidia
Travidia, Inc. (www.travidia.com) is a leading provider of Internet marketing management and digital advertising publishing services for top newspaper companies and their local advertisers.
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