UPM Closes Sale of Papierfabrik Albbruck

UPM has completed the sale of its closed Papierfabrik Albbruck GmbH to the German Karl Group. UPM permanently ceased graphic paper production at the mill situated in Baden-Württemberg, Germany in January 2012.

The Karl Group, experienced in developing industrial sites, is planning to establish new businesses on the premises of the former paper mill within the next 3 to 5 years in agreement with the local authorities.

IP Closes TX Sheet Plant

http://www.mysanantonio.com/business/article/Company-cutting-129-jobs-in-S-A-3784305.php

Global paper and packing company International Paper Co. has issued pink slips to 129 employees in San Antonio.

The Memphis, Tenn.-based company notified the Texas Workforce Commission on Friday of the planned closing of its Texas Sheets plant at 3323 E. Commerce St. The move will affect 65 workers at the plant, where the company manufactures corrugated paper sheets.

Provinces Work to Control Pine Beetle Damage

Saskatchewan contributes $450,000 to mountain pine beetle control in Alberta:
Saskatchewan will contribute $450,000 to mountain pine beetle control efforts in Alberta as the two provinces work together to aggressively detect and remove infested trees at the leading edge of the infestation in eastern Alberta.
The mountain pine beetle outbreak has killed approximately 60% of British Columbia’s lodgepole pine forests.

Game Informer has Highest Circulation Jump

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-08-07/gamestop-magazine-s-growth-vaults-it-past-better-homes-and-gardens

Game Informer, a video-game publication owned by GameStop (GME) Corp., increased its paid circulation more than any other U.S. magazine in the past year by tying subscriptions to discounts with the retailer.

The monthly magazine’s circulation jumped 37 percent from a year earlier to 8.2 million copies as of June 30, pushing it past Better Homes & Gardens magazine to make it the third- largest magazine in the U.S., the Audit Bureau of Circulations said yesterday in a statement. Meredith Corp. (MDP)’s Family Circle saw the second-largest increase in circulation among the top 25 magazines, at 7.4 percent.

Q2 Online Sales Up 15%

http://www.comscore.com/Press_Events/Press_Releases/2012/8/comScore_Reports_43.2_Billion_in_Q2_2012_U.S._Retail_E-Commerce_Spending

comScore, Inc., a leader in measuring the digital world, today released its Q2 2012 U.S. retail e-commerce sales estimates, showing that online retail spending reached $43.2 billion for the quarter, up 15% versus year ago. This represents the eleventh consecutive quarter of positive year-over-year growth and seventh consecutive quarter of double-digit growth.

Foliomag.com Changes to Paid Access Model

Foliomag.com Changes to Metered Paid Access Model:
An announcement went out today, but if you haven't seen it, we've decided to put Foliomag.com on a metered paid-access model.
Our paid-access model begins immediately. Here's the way it will work: Each month, you'll get to read eight stories on a complementary basis. You'll be reminded as you get closer to the eighth report. After that, you'll be given the option of buying an annual subscription to Foliomag.com for $69.95. Alternatively, you can gain full access to the site on a monthly basis for $14.95.

Harbor Paper Buys Grays, Plans to Restart

http://kbkw.com/modules/news/article.php?storyid=4437

Harbor Paper LLC today announced the acquisition of the former Grays Harbor Paper Mill located in Hoquiam, Washington. The new owners expect to take possession of the facility immediately and begin producing paperwithin 45 days. Grays had the capacity to produce154,000 tpy of uncoated freesheet on two PMs.

Ernst & Young Recommends Port Hawkesbury Sale

http://thechronicleherald.ca/business/125285-monitor-recommends-newpage-sale-to-pacific-west

The court-appointed monitor overseeing the sale of NewPage Port Hawkesbury is recommending creditors vote in favour of selling the mill to Pacific West Commercial Corp.

In his 12th report released Thursday, Ernst & Young senior vice-president Mathew Harris recaps the creditor protection process, from the dire financial straits that forced the beleaguered mill to shutter last September, to the lengthy ongoing sales process.

Sartell Work Transferred to Bucksport & Jay

http://bangordailynews.com/2012/08/03/business/bucksport-jay-verso-mills-to-see-more-work-but-not-more-jobs-from-closure-of-minnesota-facility/

Representatives from Verso say the workload from Sartell (closed since a fire in May) will be transferred to Verso mills in Bucksport and Jay, but that the increased paper production will not result in more jobs. “Those products will be made within existing capacity,” said Bill Cohen, a Verso spokesman in Bucksport.

SP Newsprint Dublin Mill Idled

http://www.macon.com/2012/08/03/2121363/dublins-sp-newsprint-closes-temporarily.html

SP Newsprint shut down its mill in Dublin at the end of July, and although a company official said the closure was not permanent, he declined to say when it would reopen. The mill has the capacity to produce ~600,000 tpy of newsprint on two PMs.

SP Newsprint Holdings LLC filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in November 2011.

Oji and Nippon Report Results

http://www.ojipaper.co.jp/english/

http://www.np-g.com/e/ir/index.html

Japanese giants Nippon Paper Group (NPG) and Oji Paper have released their results for the first quarter of the current financial year there, which started at the beginning of April.

Nippon's net income for the April to June period reached ¥399 million ($5 million), a decline of 75% from the ¥1.6 billion yen profit turned in the same period last year.

Oji also suffered though, seeing its profits slide from ¥8.137 billion in the first quarter of last year to ¥6.789 billion this year.

While NPG's overall profits showed a marked drop, its sales were slightly up from the April-June period last year, climbing half a percent to ¥251 billion.

But Oji marked a small decline by the sales measure, with Q1 sales this year down almost a percentage point to ¥304 billion.

Alberta Newsprint to Build Power Plant

Alberta Newsprint to build 65 MW power generation plant
Alberta Newsprint Company (ANC) announced ownership approval for construction of a power generation plant at its newsprint operation in Whitecourt, Alberta.
ANC is a joint venture owned by West Fraser and Whitecourt Newsprint Company Limited Partnership. ANC is a preferred supplier of high-quality newsprint in North America.

Resolute Forest Products' Pension Problems

Resolute Forest Products pension plans underfunded by $1.9 billion:
Resolute Forest Products‘ pension plans are underfunded by $1.9 billion and its employees say they have already given up enough to keep the company in operation.
Resolute Forest Products has not met the minimal solvency levels in its pension plans regulated by Quebec and Ontario’s funding relief regulations.  These regulations, adopted in 2011, affect approximately 80% of Resolute Forest Product’s unfunded pension obligations.
As a result of these new regulations, Resolute Forest Products has until March 2013 to adopt corrective measures to attain the target solvency ratio within 5 years.

Quad/Graphics Completes Integration, Reports H1 Results

http://www.foliomag.com/2012/quad-graphics-completes-two-year-worldcolor-integration

At the close of the first half this year, Quad/Graphics, the Sussex, Wisconsin-based printer and media services company, marked the official end to the integration of its purchase of Worldcolor two years ago. And while the company was able to pay a $.25 quarterly dividend, revenues were down about $8 million at the end of the half, to $1.92 billion, when compared to the same period last year.

RDA Reports Q2 Results

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/rda-holding-co-announces-results-for-the-second-quarter-ended-june-30-2012-165407606.html

RDA Holding Co., parent company of The Reader's Digest Association, Inc. (together with its subsidiaries and affiliated entities, "RDA"), the global multi-brand and multi-platform media and direct marketing company, announced today its financial results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2012.

Consolidated Graphics Reports Q1 FY 2012

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/consolidated-graphics-reports-financial-results-for-the-quarter-ended-june-2012-165401956.html

Consolidated Graphics, Inc. today announced financial results for its first quarter ended June 30, 2012.

Revenue for the June quarter was $238.3 million, a $5.0 million or 2.1% decline compared to the prior year quarter.

Pocket Ventures Buys Space News

http://www.foliomag.com/2012/pocket-ventures-buys-weekly-magazine-space-news

Imaginova, the Orion telescope and binocular maker, has sold off its media property Space News to Boulder, Colorado-based Pocket Ventures, a media investment firm set up by a team of former Inside Communications executives. The brand will be housed under a new company called Space News Inc.

Amazon Textbook Rental Offer

http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20120806006289/en/Amazon-Launches-Textbook-Rental

Amazon.com, Inc. today announced the launch of Amazon Textbook Rental. Now college students can choose from thousands of textbooks to rent for a semester.

Harte-Hanks Reorganizes Direct Marketing

http://www.btobonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20120809/STRATEGY0202/308099999&template=printart

Harte-Hanks Inc. has reorganized its direct marketing operations into four separate focus areas and named leaders for each.

New York Magazine Expands Blog

http://www.mediapost.com/publications/article/180699/ny-debuts-the-cut-as-standalone-fashon-site.html?print

New York magazine has expanded its fashion blog, "The Cut," as a standalone fashion and lifestyle Web site with twice its initial volume of original photography and writing. The Cut’s editorial is arranged on five main sections: fashion, beauty, goods, fame and love & war.

Gotham Names Publisher

http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowlny/gotham-names-david-katz-publisher_b65834

Gotham has named David Katz its new publisher. Katz comes to the magazine from Field & Stream, where he served as digital sales manager for six months. Prior to that Katz was the associate publisher of Brides from 2004 to 2011.

Davler Buys LI Parent

http://www.foliomag.com/2012/davler-media-group-buys-long-island-parent-magazine

Davler Media Group, publisher of NYMetroParents, City Guide and Promenade, has acquired Long Island Parent and its associated website from Wordsmiths Media, LLC. In all, Davler publishes 14 magazines and produces five annual live events. It distributes 3 million copies of its City Guide magazine to more than 300 hotels. The eight editions of NYMetroParents distribute 400,000 copies monthly.