Newsplex, in partnership with the German Press Agency dpa, launched an initiative called goLocal during IFRA Expo 2009 that aims to help support local and regional publishers to make the most of their unique market position.
“We want to make it clear to publishers how to utilise the benefits of regional, local and hyperlocal publishing and business services,” says Dietmar Schantin, Newsplex director and executive director of Publishing, Editorial and General Management at WAN-IFRA. “It is important for publishers to cater to the regional and local audience with compelling regional and local content. This is where a unique advantage can be generated and global, mostly digital, media players can be beaten. At the same time, when we talk about business services, we are not just talking about advertising, we are talking about being a media consultant with comprehensive, agency-like services for regional and local businesses.”
Media-led news agencies, such as the American AP, Austrian APA or German dpa, are seeking new possibilities of supporting shareholders and customers by providing new technical services in the necessary local re-orientation. This includes enriching local contents with metadata that is becoming increasingly important for achieving success on the web, joint content marketing or pursuing copyright infringements. “Besides their core news business, the agencies will develop completely new services in order to support publishing houses effectively – just as we have done for 50 publishing houses with our MINDS platform,” says Meinolf Ellers, CEO of dpa-infocom.
For details about goLocal, contact Dietmar Schantin at: dietmar.schantin@wan-ifra.org
