Wednesday, September 19, 2012

BD White Birch Investment Completes Acquisition

BD White Birch Investment LLC completes acquisition of White Birch Paper Company:
BD White Birch Investment LLC today announced the successful completion of the acquisition of the assets of White Birch Paper Company. The completion of the acquisition represents the successful culmination of a nearly three year restructuring process, resulting in the formation of a newly revitalized and competitive enterprise.

Still No Union Agreement at Kruger Mill


It's been almost three months since the other unions inside the mill agreed to new collective agreements, but the two trades unions at Corner Brook Pulp and Paper are still without new contracts of their own.

Harbor Paper Restarts UFS Mill

Harbor Paper in Hoquiam, WA, started up a 75,000 tons/yr uncoated freesheet (UFS) paper machine No. 2 on Sept. 12, in line with what it had announced five weeks ago, and was working to restart the 80,000 tons/yr UFS PM 1 by mid-October, company pres/CEO John Begley told PPI Pulp & Paper Week today.

Oji Stops Coated Machine Production


Oji Paper has halted production on the sole paper machine at its Nantong mill in China for three days due to the anti-Japan unrest in the country.
A spokesman for Jiangsu Oji Paper, Oji's subsidiary that operates the plant in Nantong city, Jiangsu province, said that whether the 400,000 tonne/yr coated fine paper machine at the facility resumes production on September 19 as planned initially will depend on the situation.

China Files Dispute Against US Duties

On 17 September 2012, China notified the WTO Secretariat of a request for consultations with the United States on countervailing and anti-dumping measures applied to a wide range of products exported by China to the US. Among the products cited by China, affected by the measures, are paper, steel, tyres, magnets, chemicals, kitchen appliances, wood flooring, and wind towers.

Paperlinx Chairman Resigns

Paperlinx chairman resigns along with two board members:
He and non-executive directors Lyndsey Cattermole and Anthony Clarke announced their resignations today (19 September), with plans to leave in less than two weeks.

RH Continues with Unique Approach, "First of Kind" Catalogue

http://www.sfgate.com/business/article/Restoration-Hardware-catalog-a-huge-feat-3866807.php
RH (Restoration Hardware) is bucking a trend with its book-size mailing, advertising experts say. In recent years, retailers have scaled back on the size of their catalogs, used thinner paper and in some cases are sending out fewer per year. Restoration Hardware may be publishing its "source book" just twice a year, but the product - three companion pieces totaling 992 glossy, artfully styled pages of merchandise - shows no signs of skimping. The hope, say industry insiders, is that the breadth of the catalog will keep consumers from chucking it into the trash after a quick flip through, and it will instead become a lifestyle guide kept on hand for months.
Restoration Hardware executives have gone as far as to call the books "a first-of-its-kind hybrid of catalog, magazine and inspiration file."

Printed Inserts Market Grows

Printed inserts market grows despite impact of NOTW closure:
Saturday supplements carried the largest amount of inserts in Q4 2011 (359m), just over a third of the total 1bn across daily papers and weekend newspapers and supplements for the period, according to the Direct Marketing Association (DMA) Inserts Council report, published on 11 September.
Sunday newspapers showed the biggest growth in the second half of 2011 when they grew by 108% in Q3 compared to same period in the previous year (18.2m to 37.8m).

Quad/Graphics Rebrands Polish Subsidiary


Quad/Graphics Inc. announced Monday it is rebranding its Poland-based commercial printing subsidiary, QuadWinkowski, as Quad/Graphics.
Winkowski Logistics will change its name to Quad Logistics Europe, Quad/Graphics said.

Scholastic Offers XBOOKS to Students

As students head back to school, districts are looking for classroom resources to help teachers fill key instructional gaps to meet the new, more rigorous Common Core State Standards.
To meet this need, Scholastic Classroom and Community Group is offering XBOOKS™, a nonfiction language arts program for middle schools, provides a collection of compelling informational texts in print and digital formats steeped in critical need-to-know science and social studies content.

Next Issue Media Ads More Titles to iPad

Next Issue Media, a joint venture formed by five leading U.S.-based publishers – Conde Nast, Hearst, Meredith, News Corp. and Time Inc. – today announces 31 new titles, expanding the catalog for iPad® subscribers to 72 popular magazines.  This expansion comes just two months after the launch of Next Issue for iPad and extends the value proposition for customers, offering unlimited access to all titles for a single, low monthly price.

Apple Places Few Magazine Ads

Magazine Publishers & The iPad: An Unrequited Love:
Apple hasn’t promoted the tablet computer in MPA member magazines since summer 2011 when they made a brief appearance within the industry’s pages, with the latest iPad campaign in magazines appearing from May-July 2011. During that time there were 21 ad pages placed strategically among 21 MPA monthly magazines, all with the same creative.
Why would they? Magazine publishers have been doting over the product and Apple not only with each other at industry events, or to media journalists like this reporter, but they have, essentially, been running ads for them.

eMarketer Forecast Robust Holiday Sales

US retail ecommerce holiday sales (excluding travel) will reach $54.5 billion in 2012, up 16.8% over last year, according to eMarketer estimates.

Condé Nast Cutting Ad Budgets


Condé Nast is asking its publishers to cut 5 percent from their budgets as the weak ad market is expected to bleed into the second half and beyond, company sources tell Adweek.

Newsweek Daily Beast Names CEO

The Newsweek Daily Beast Co. has named a new CEO as Barry Diller’s IAC forges a new path for the news outlet and faces fresh questions about its future. Baba Shetty [1], chief strategy officer/chief media officer at the ad agency Hill Holiday, is now CEO of NewsBeast, replacing Stephen Colvin, who had been with the Beast since its launch in 2009.

FedEx Increasing Rates


FedEx Corp. will increase shipping rates for FedEx Express by a net average of 3.9% for U.S. domestic, U.S. export and U.S. import services effective January 2, 2012.
The full average rate increase of 5.9% will be partially offset by adjusting the fuel price threshold at which the fuel surcharge begins, reducing the fuel surcharge by two percentage points.