Domtar Reports 2012 and Q4 Results

http://www.domtar.com/

FY 2012 

For fiscal year 2012, net earnings amounted to $172 million ($4.76 per share) compared to net earnings of $365 million ($9.08 per share) for fiscal year 2011. The Company had earnings before items¹ of $233 million ($6.45 per share) for fiscal 2012 compared to earnings before items¹ of $452 million ($11.24 per share) for fiscal 2011. Sales amounted to $5.5 billion for fiscal year 2012. 

Q4 2012

Domtar Corporation today reported net earnings of $19 million ($0.54 per share) for the fourth quarter of 2012 compared to net earnings of $66 million ($1.84 per share) for the third quarter of 2012 and net earnings of $61 million ($1.63 per share) for the fourth quarter of 2011. Sales for the fourth quarter of 2012 amounted to $1.3 billion.

Neenah Buys Southworth Premium Paper Brands

http://www.neenahpaper.com/

Neenah Paper, Inc. (NP) announced today that it has completed the purchase of certain premium business paper brands from the Southworth Company. These brands, including Southworth, the category leader, are sold largely to major retail customers such as Staples, Office Depot, Office Max and Walmart. Annual sales from the acquired brands are approximately $20 million.

The purchase was financed through the Company's existing credit facility and cash on hand. Other terms of the purchase agreement were not disclosed.

U.S. Renewable-Energy Capacity Doubled

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-01-31/u-s-renewable-energy-capacity-doubled-from-2009-2012-bnef-says.html

Renewable-energy capacity in the U.S. almost doubled from 2009 to 2012, helping reduce the nation’s carbon-dioxide emissions last year to the lowest since 1994, according to a Bloomberg New Energy Finance report. 

The cumulative installed solar, wind, geothermal and biomass-based energy sources in the U.S. climbed to 85.7 gigawatts in 2012, compared with 43.5 gigawatts in 2008, the London-based research company said in a report today. 
U.S. energy consumption fell 6.4 percent from 2007 to 2012 as new, energy-efficient commercial buildings were built and older ones were retrofitted. There have also been “greater efforts from consumers to cut energy use,” including significant growth in sales of hybrid and electric vehicles, Zindler said.

New Yorker Plans New Verticals

http://www.adweek.com/news/press/new-yorker-launch-new-online-verticals-146931

The New Yorker, which has launched several new Web channels over the past year, is continuing its digital expansion with the launch of two new channels—one dedicated to Science and Technology and the other to Business—in the coming months.

NYT Attacked by Chinese Hackers

http://gawker.com/5980420/chinese-hackers-infiltrated-the-new-york-times-computer-networks-for-4-months

The New York Times was the victim of an elaborate hacking attack from China, according to a report in Wednesday's Times. The attacks, which have been on-going for the past four months, were apparently in retaliation for an article the Times published about the vast wealth accumulated by Chinese Prime Minster Wen Jiabao's family.

Hackers first gained access to the Times's system on September 13th, but the breach wasn't noticed until October 26th, the day after the article was published and two days after the Times had asked AT&T to monitor its network for any unusual activity. The paper first became suspicious after receiving warnings from the Chinese government that, if their investigation continued, they would "have consequences." It wasn't until November 7th that the Times realized the hackers were still in their network, at which point they hired Mandiant, an outside computer security company, to investigate.

MediaPost "Mag Bag"

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/192428/mag-bag-real-simple-launches-wedding-channel.html#axzz2JgDIiTHj

Real Simple has launched a Weddings channel on its Web site, RealSimple.com, according to Folio. The channel consists of a dedicated home page with navigation to resources including checklists, gift ideas, décor, hairstyle inspiration, and a wedding planning boot camp...While Real Simple is launching new content channels, it’s also taking hits on the personnel side, as part of the layoffs announced by Time Inc. Adweek reported that publisher Sally Preston, who joined Real Simple in 2011 from Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, is leaving Time Inc. Preston will be replaced by Charlie Kammerer, previously group publisher of This Old House and Coastal Living...
Young men know that it’s important to smell good. Alpha Media Group is launching a new line of men’s fragrances in partnership with Omni Scents. The “Maxim Fragrance Collection,” set to premiere in department stores and fragrance retailers in this fall... 

Time Out North America has named Jennifer Morgan president, with responsibility for all operations including online and print properties in both New York and Los Angeles.  Previously, she served as chief operating officer and chief marketing officer at Collective...
Time Inc. Branded Solutions, the magazine publisher’s integrated sales and marketing division, announced two new hires this week. Stephanie Vautravers joined the division as executive director for digital sales, with responsibility for managing the New York digital sales team and serving the company’s largest East Coast clients. Barbara Leung has joined Time Inc. Brand Solutions as associate director for sales development. She previously worked at Conde Nast, where she most recently served as senior insights manager.

Buffett Still Interested in Newspapers

http://www.thetimesnews.com/news/top-news/news-record-sold-to-warren-buffett-company-1.87418

Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway Inc. said Thursday that is adding the Greensboro, N.C., News & Record to its growing newspaper division.

Berkshire bought the 122-year-old daily newspaper from Landmark Media Enterprises, based in Norfolk, Va.
Financial terms were not disclosed. The Omaha World-Herald, which oversees Berkshire's newspaper division, reported that the News & Record has daily circulation of 58,000 and Sunday circulation of 86,000.

Amazon eBook Sales Up 70%

http://www.digitalbookworld.com/2013/amazon-fourth-quarter-sales-up-22-to-21-27-billion/

Despite the sharp decline in net income, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos hailed this as a watershed moment for the company in a statement (below), “We’re now seeing the transition we’ve been expecting. After 5 years, ebooks is a multi-billion dollar category for us and growing fast – up approximately 70% last year. In contrast, our physical book sales experienced the lowest December growth rate in our 17 years as a book seller, up just 5%. We’re excited and very grateful to our customers for their response to Kindle and our ever expanding ecosystem and selection.”

Summit Business Media Sells Futures Magazine

Summit Business Media Sells Futures Magazine to Financial Media Startup:  Summit Business Media is set to announce that it sold its Futures brand to The Alpha Pages llc, a Chicago-based financial media startup.

Augmented Reality and Magazine Publishers

Augmented Reality Brings New Ad Revenue Opportunities to Magazine Publishers: Free WhatTheyThink webinar, sponsored by Ricoh, discussed Use of Augmented Reality in Print Publications:
Research shows that 70% of mobile searches lead to action within one hour—and print can be an important vehicle for getting those mobile searches started. This session discussed how magazine publishers and marketers can use augmented reality to make print interactive and cause the initiation of some of those important mobile searches.”