Newspaper & Mailroom

Publish Asia Reflects Changing Face of News Business

Friday 28. March 2014 - Is it wise to partner with Facebook, Google and Yahoo! or can news publishers succeed without them? Is native advertising possible without sacrificing credibility? Those are some of the questions to be answered at Publish Asia, the region's leading annual conference for newspapers and news publishers, to be held in Hong Kong from 23 to 25 April next. The conference will be opened by H.E. Leung Chun-ying, Chief Executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

The programme for the event, organising by WAN-IFRA, the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers, reflects the changing face of news media in the digital and mobile age.
Partnering with pure players. Big data. Native advertising. These are issues that are essential to the future of the news business, as the historic business model of newspapers is replaced with something quite different in the digital economy.
Sessions include:
– Searching for competitive advantage: From stable to unstable competitive dynamics in the news industry? How Schibsted has broken the historical business model of newspapers, moving on from a natural monopoly to the new competitive dynamics. By Sverre Munck, CEO Libras SA, former Executive Vice President of Schibsted, Norway.
– Partnering with pure-players. Can you better meet advertisers’ needs selling our digital ‘frenemies’ products? Is it wise to partner with Yahoo!, Facebook or Google? Can news publishers succeed online without them? Case study of a large scale partnership presented by Jeff Folckemer, Senior Vice President, Hearst Newspapers, and President of Media Services and Affiliates LocalEdge, Hearst Media, USA.
– How high can native advertising rise? Native advertising is one of the most promising online-advertising formats for content producers. Can news publishers benefit from it without compromising their most valuable asset, credibility? A panel discussion with Katharine Viner, Deputy Editor, The Guardian, UK; Mo Chung, General Manager, Digital Sales, Next Mobile Ltd, Hong Kong; Inez Albert, Digital Sales Director APAC, The Economist Group, Hong Kong.
– The importance of gaining scale. A case study examining the objectives and challenges of the merger of Shanghai’s two largest newspaper groups, which formed a media giant. By Zhang Qian, Director of Strategic Development, Shanghai United Media Group, Mainland China.
– How Publishers can take back their company’s big data revenue potential from tech middlemen. Pure-players are taking up to 68 per cent of online ad dollars. How can publishers take back all their users data? What steps can they take to reclaim the revenue potential of their big data to create revenue? By Paul Hood, Digital Director, Archant UK.
– Using Big Data to Drive Digital Revenue and Engagement. Mediagene, a leading online media group in Japan, partnered with experts in big data to understand its audience, increase user engagement and drive higher advertising revenue through advanced targeting. A case study to be presented by Motoko Imada, CEO, Mediagene, Japan.
– Next’s strategy for growth. Next Media has invested in animated news, online video, mobile and online for connecting with the new generation of users. The Group’s CEO will present their transformation from print to digital and how they use big data for their “members without membership” concept. By Cassian Cheung, CEO, Next Media, Hong Kong.
– The social media newswire. Storyful is a new kind of newswire, powered by “human algorithm,” which serves verified news videos, alerts and context from the social web. Its founder and CEO will explain the vision behind this revolutionary news outlet and why it has recently been acquired by NewsCorp. Mark Little, CEO & Founder of Storyful, USA.
– What news publishers can learn from BuzzFeed? With an audience of more than 100 million, BuzzFeed provides shareable breaking news, original reporting, entertainment, and video across the social web. Hear what legacy publishers can learn from this 8-year-old media outlet about audience development and digital advertising perspectives. By Scott Lamb, VP of International, Buzzfeed, USA
– Transformation and the development of online video. A case study of the evolution of the International New York Times (formerly the International Herald Tribune) and its uptake of online video, by its president, Stephen Dunbar Johnson.
– Drone journalism. How will the media use drones in the future? What are the legal, financial and ethical frameworks? By Sithikorn Wongwudtianun, Photographer, The Bangkok Post, Thailand; and Pichai Chuensuksawadi, Group Editor in Chief, Post Publishing, Thailand.
– They said our newspaper was dead… tell that to our 1.5 million new readers. Five years after their acquisition by a colourful Russian oligarch, The Independent and Evening Standard are back to profitability. The Group has experienced a four-fold growth to 2 million readers, launched a new national newspaper and started-up London’s first TV station. By Doug Wills, Managing Editor, Lebedev holdings, UK.
– From print centric to digital first. How newsrooms from different part of the world are re-organising to make the transition from print-centric to digital first news media companies. A panel discussion with Doug Wills, Managing Editor, Lebedev holdings, UK; Brian Rhoads, Managing Editor, South China Morning Post, Hong Kong; Yu Yilei, Editor in chief, ChinaDaily.com, Mainland China; and Daisy Li, Online News Director, Apple Daily, Taiwan.