According to statistics from Forward
Data Monitoring Center: the import volume of paper and paperboard slightly
decreased in June. China imported 0.29 million tons of paper and paperboard in
June 2012, with a year-on-year decrease of 3.3% and a month-on-month decrease
of 6.4%. The total import volume in the first half year this year was 1.59 million
tons, down 5.2% over the same period of years.
Tuesday, July 30, 2013
Chinese Imports Paper & Paperboard Falls
http://www.forwardbi.com/qzdata/detail/244/20120726-75a5ddccd5eb614c.html
RRD Reports Q2 Results
Net
sales in the quarter were $2.6 billion, up $43.0 million, or 1.7%, from the
second quarter of 2012 due to the impact of 2012 acquisitions and volume growth
in the U.S. Print and Related Services segment. After adjusting for the impact
of acquisitions, changes in foreign exchange rates and pass-through paper
sales, organic sales declined 0.8% from the second quarter of 2012 due to price
erosion in both segments and volume declines in the International segment,
partially offset by volume growth in the U.S. Print and Related Services
segment. Operating income in the second quarter of 2013 was $173.2 million,
which was impacted by restructuring and impairment charges and
acquisition-related expenses totaling $19.9 million, compared to operating
income in the second quarter of 2012 of $163.9 million, which included
restructuring and impairment charges and acquisition-related expenses totaling
$34.5 million.
Second-quarter
2013 net earnings attributable to common shareholders was $65.4 million, or
$0.36 per diluted share, compared to net earnings of $88.8 million, or $0.49
per diluted share, in the second quarter of 2012. Second-quarter 2013 net
earnings attributable to common shareholders included $25.4 million in pre-tax
charges for restructuring, impairment (non-cash) and acquisition-related
expenses and losses on investments, while in the second quarter of 2012, net
earnings attributable to common shareholders included $38.6 million in pre-tax
charges for restructuring, impairment (non-cash), acquisition-related expenses
and a loss on an investment, which were offset by the recognition of previously
unrecognized tax benefits ($26.1 million, non-cash). Additional details
regarding the nature of these and other items are included in the attached
schedules.
How Catalogs Drive Your Business
While the internet has become the preferred way to place an order, consumers still prefer to shop from a print catalog. That's why it's important to understand the difference between sales that come through the web vs. sales that are generated from the web. Catalogers frequently say that more than 70 percent of their business is coming from the web. What they really mean is that 70 percent of their orders are coming through the web, not from the web. Perhaps 15 percent to 20 percent of their orders are coming from the web; the majority of their orders that came over the web were driven by a print catalog.
Bloomberg Media Names CEO
The Bloomberg Media Group, which includs Bloomberg TV and Bloomberg BusinessWeek, has named Justin Smith
CEO.
Smith joins Bloomberg from Atlantic Media, where he was president from
2010-2013. Atlantic Media includes The Atlantic magazine, National Journal and Quartz. Smith
officially joinsBloomberg September 16, and will report to Bloomberg LP CEO Dan Doctoroff.
With the addition of Smith, Andrew Lack has been named chairman of Bloomberg Media. Lack, the former president of NBC News, has served as CEO of Bloomberg Media since 2008.
McGraw-Hill Financial Reports Q2 Results
McGraw
Hill Financial, Inc. (NYSE: MHFI) today reported second quarter 2013 results
with revenue of $1.25 billion, an increase of 17% compared to the same period
last year. Net income and diluted earnings per share from continuing operations
were $250 million and $0.90, respectively.
Excluding
the impact of one-time costs related to the Growth and Value Plan, adjusted net
income from continuing operations increased 28% to $257 million, and adjusted
diluted earnings per share from continuing operations increased 31% to $0.92.
Pearson Reports 2013 Interim Results
http://www.pearson.com/news/2013/july/pearson-2013-half-year-results.html
Sales up 5% at constant exchange rates (2% underlying growth) to £2.8bn.
Good growth in Education (up 3%) led by
North America (up 5%) and developing markets.Sales up 5% at constant exchange rates (2% underlying growth) to £2.8bn.
FT Group sales broadly level with resilient content and subscription revenue offset by weak advertising.
Penguin Random House merger completed on 1 July 2013; strong growth at Penguin (up 14%) in the first half.
Adjusted operating profit £50m lower at £137m, including £37m of gross restructuring charges and, in addition, investments to support new product launches in the second half.
Adjusted earnings per share down 4.9p to 9.9p including restructuring charges.
Interim dividend up 7% to 16p.
Hour Media Buys Publishing Assets
Terms of the deal were not released but APMG, which classifies itself as a non-profit parent of the for-profit Greenspring, notes in its June 30, 2012 financial statement that it carried forward an $8.6 million net loss associated with the group.
Apollo to Acquire Management Services Business from Pitney Bowes
http://whattheythink.com/news/64674-apollo-global-management-acquire-management-services-business-pitney-bowes/
Funds
affiliated with Apollo Global Management, LLC (together with its consolidated
subsidiaries, “Apollo”) and Pitney Bowes Inc. today announced a definitive
agreement under which Apollo will acquire Pitney Bowes Management Services
(“PBMS” ) for approximately $400 million in cash. The transaction, which is
subject to customary closing conditions, is expected to close in the fourth
quarter of 2013. Until then, Pitney Bowes will continue to operate PBMS.
Omnicom/Publicis Merger: What Direct Marketers Need to Know
12 Things Direct
Marketers Need to Know about the Omnicom-Publicis Merger
CEOs John Wren and Maurice Lévy dropped a bombshell on the agency world this
past Sunday by announcing the merger of marketing behemoths Omnicom Group and
Publicis Groupe to form Publicis Omnicom Group. The announcement led to an
explosion of questions regarding what this union will mean for the marketing
industry and how will the fused conglomerates harness Big Data for their
clients. And just like with Big Data, it's vital for marketers to sift through
the surge of information surrounding the mergerand find the key insights of how this partnership will affect them personally.
Here are 12 ways our industry experts predict this merger will affect direct
marketers in particular.
MSLO Reports Q2 Results
Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia reported that
revenues fell 11.9% from $47.9 million in the second quarter of 2012 to $42.2
million in the second quarter of 2013, as an increase in merchandising revenues
was offset by decreases in publishing and broadcasting.
Total publishing revenues tumbled 16% from $28.8 million to $24.2 million, due
largely to the absence of Whole Living and Everyday
Food, which were closed towards the end of 2012. On a same-title basis,
MSLO’s other magazines actually saw total print advertising revenues increase
slightly, according to MSLO interim Principal Executive Officer Dan Taitz.
Digital advertising revenues also increased in the quarter.
Ikea's 2014 Catalogue Released
Making everyday moments matter at home
is the focus of IKEA’s 2014 catalog, which will debut to the public next month.
At a press preview last night, IKEA showed how the new catalog concentrates on
design solutions for the home so families can make the most of time spent
together, with the theme “All Moments Count.”
2014 marks the 63rd anniversary of the first
IKEA catalog. This year, the catalog will be available in 66 printed editions,
in 30 languages and in 47 countries/territories. Consumers can request a
printed copy of the 2014 catalog at http://www.getmy2014catalog.com.
Investments New Renewable Capacity $2 Trillion by 2030
Based on current projections, new
renewable power capacity built worldwide between now and 2030 will account for
more than USD 2 trillion in total investment. Of this, 75% or 900GW of capacity
additions will be in the solar and wind sectors, both onshore and offshore, and
over half of this is attributable to Australia, China, France, Germany, the UK
and the US.
Renewables to Surpass Gas by 2016
http://www.iea.org/newsroomandevents/pressreleases/2013/june/name,39156,en.html
IEA report
sees renewable power increasingly cost-competitive with new fossil-fuel
generation, but agency warns against complacency
Power generation
from hydro, wind, solar and other renewable sources worldwide will exceed that
from gas and be twice that from nuclear by 2016, the International Energy
Agency (IEA) said today in its second annual Medium-Term Renewable
Energy Market Report (MTRMR).
According to the MTRMR, despite a difficult economic
context, renewable power is expected to increase by 40% in the next five years.
Renewables are now the fastest-growing power generation sector and will make up
almost a quarter of the global power mix by 2018, up from an estimated 20% in
2011. The share of non-hydro sources such as wind, solar, bioenergy and
geothermal in total power generation will double, reaching 8% by 2018, up from
4% in 2011 and just 2% in 2006.
Monday, July 29, 2013
Resolute Mill Spending $30M In New Woodyard
A Resolute Forest Products woodyard update will take place
on about three acres of the property. The upgrades will make the mill more
economical and competitive. In June, the Canada-based company began building a
replacement woodyard at the Augusta facility on Doug Barnard Parkway. The
woodyard will likely be operational by September 2014, said Jay Backus, general
manager of the Augusta mill. “It just
makes us a much more economical, viable mill,” Backus said. “It improves our
competitiveness in the newsprint market. Newsprint is a difficult market right
now. We have to keep our costs down to survive.” The new facility will span
about 3 acres of the mill’s property and was precipitated by an outdated
pulping process. The Augusta mill produces about 400,000 tons of newsprint
annually. The company's biggest customers are The Washington Post,
Quad/Graphics and other Southeastern newspapers, including The Augusta
Chronicle.
G-P/Buckeye Proposed Merger- Firms Recommend Vote "FOR"
Buckeye Technologies Inc. today announced that
leading independent proxy advisory firms ISS Proxy Advisory Services and Egan
Jones Proxy Services have recommended that Buckeye stockholders vote
"FOR" adoption of the Agreement and Plan of Merger (the "Merger
Agreement"), dated April 23, 2013, by and among Buckeye, Georgia-Pacific
LLCand GP Cellulose Group, an indirect
wholly-owned subsidiary of Georgia-Pacific (the "Purchaser"). The
Merger Agreement provides for the merger of the Purchaser with and into
Buckeye, with Buckeye surviving the merger as an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary
of Georgia-Pacific. If the transactions contemplated by the Merger Agreement
are completed, Buckeye stockholders will be entitled to receive $37.50 in cash,
without interest and subject to any withholding of taxes required by applicable
law, for each share of Buckeye common stock. The Merger Agreement is being
submitted to a vote at a special meeting of Buckeye stockholders to be held on
August 15, 2013 at 9:00 a.m. Central Time, at Buckeye's headquarters, 1001
Tillman Street, Memphis Tennessee 38112.
How Forbes Has Stayed Ahead Of The Curve
Innovation is taking over the publishing industry, and big
names such as Forbes are at the helm of
the change. Over at BtoB Media Business,
President and CEO Mike Perlis discusses how Forbes has stayed current in the
publishing world for nearly 100 years.
By approaching each day as a “startup” company, the leading authority in
business media is able to apply innovation to everyday publishing. The symbiotic relationship that exists
between print and digital publishing can make or break a publication – and
Forbes thrives on that synergy.
Listen to Perlis discuss his strategyOpens in a new window.
Finch Paper Appoints National Sales Director
Finch Paper has
appointed Rob Ferragina, to National Sales Director. Ferragina reports to
Debabrata Mukherjee, President and CEO, Finch Paper. As National Sales Director, Ferragina leads a team of sales
executives who are reputed to deliver exceptional, responsive service in the
opaque, text and cover, and digital paper markets. Ferragina
has over fifteen years of industry experience in the Metro NY area, most
recently with Mohawk as Regional Sales Manager, Northeast, with responsibility
for sales from Maine to Virginia. Ferragina has also represented Fox River and
Fraser in his career.
Hearst Management Change Up
Hearst Corp.'s magazine with Dr. Mehmet Oz is slowly coming
together. Less than a month after naming Alison Brower editor in chief, Hearst
will today tap Kristine Welker as the health and lifestyle magazine's vice
president, publisher and chief revenue officer. Welker was the founding
publisher of CosmoGirl until 2007, a year before it folded. In 2010, she became
vice president, chief revenue officer of Hearst Magazines Digital Media, which
oversees the Web sites of the publisher's magazines, as well as some digital-only
sites, like realbeauty.com. The as yet untitled magazine from Hearst and Oz, the surgeon
and television personality, was confirmed to be in the works in June, after
weeks of press reports, and will hit newsstands as a pilot twice next year, in
the first and second quarters. The launch is similar to those of the Food
Network and HGTV magazines, which later expanded to 10 times a year.
Hearst Magazines has hired Todd Haskell away from The New
York Times, where he had been group VP-advertising since 2007, to become senior
VP and chief revenue officer of Hearst Magazines Digital Media, a new position. Mr. Haskell will oversee sales and marketing for Hearst's 24
websites, including both magazine and pure-play digital sites. "Hearst Magazines Digital Media is in growth mode, and
Todd's leadership and expertise in digital advertising, publishing and business
development will continue the forward momentum," said Michael Clinton,
president-marketing and publishing director at Hearst Magazines.
Bloomberg Taps The Atlantic's Smith To Run Media
Bloomberg LP has named Justin Smith CEO of Bloomberg Media
Group, the unit that comprises Bloomberg’s television, radio, magazine,
conferences and digital businesses, succeeding Andrew Lack, who becomes
chairman of the group. Smith joins from Atlantic Media, where he was president
and was the key architect of its transformation from a print-centric to a
digitally focused publisher. While at Atlantic Media, he oversaw the launch of
several new digital titles, including Quartz and Defense One.
Boston Herald To Launch Internet Radio
The countdown has begun for 6 a.m. next Monday, Aug. 5, when
Boston Herald Radio goes live.
Veteran talk show host Jeff Katz will launch a morning drive
news talk show that will lead into 12 hours of live broadcasting each weekday. There will be four shows in all, including “Live from the
Newsroom with Jeff Katz,” “Morning Meeting with Jaclyn Cashman and Hillary
Chabot,” “The Michael Graham Show” and “Sports Town with Jon
Meterparel
and Jen Royle.” Throughout the broadcast day, streamed at bostonherald.com,
the Herald’s news and sports apps and the TuneIn free app, listeners will be
news insiders with updates and breaking news reports straight from the Herald
newsroom. Herald editors, reporters, columnists and entertainment
critics will provide regular commentary and analysis. Boston Herald President and Publisher Patrick J. Purcell
said, “Internet radio is exploding and it makes sense that the Herald rounds
out our multimedia platform with talk radio programming. It’s perfect synergy. Listeners can call in, take part in ongoing live chats,
comment through a Twitter feed, take polls on important topics and react to
columns and blogs written by show hosts.
Advertisers will be able to reach Herald radio listeners as
well. “The Boston Herald is a very powerful brand in print and
online and the addition of Boston Herald Radio adds another platform to engage
new audiences,” said Herald Chief Operating Officer and CFO Jeff Magram.
F+W Media Introduces New Website
Interweave, an imprint of F+W Media, Inc., the nation’s
number one craft media company, enriches crafters worldwide with the launch of
a new website, CraftDaily.com. An experience unlike any before, the subscription video
website features more than 100 hours of full-length, high-quality, fully-vetted
instructional videos. CraftDaily.com
connects artists with the best instructors in the craft world. “We know how valuable the hands-on learning experience is, and our engaged editors, devoted instructors, and passionate crafters are excited to offer deeper content in an online educational format,” says Chad Phelps, Chief Digital Officer forF+W Media. “We have selected leaders in their specialties—already on staff—to teach viewers how to create hand-made products and how to perfect their techniques.”
connects artists with the best instructors in the craft world. “We know how valuable the hands-on learning experience is, and our engaged editors, devoted instructors, and passionate crafters are excited to offer deeper content in an online educational format,” says Chad Phelps, Chief Digital Officer forF+W Media. “We have selected leaders in their specialties—already on staff—to teach viewers how to create hand-made products and how to perfect their techniques.”
Omnicom/Publicis Megamerger
The $35.1 billion monster merger that
Omnicom Group and Publicis announced Sunday could send rumblings throughout the
digital-advertising landscape. While Google is the world's biggest digital-ad network, and
Facebook has shown encouraging gains in mobile advertising, based on its
financial results July 25, the specter of OmniPub, as some call it, could
eventually change all that. The combined company, expected to be called Publicis Omnicom
Groupe, will create an advertising megacorporation that would be the world's
biggest provider of advertising.
Publicis has been especially attentive to scooping up
digital-ad firms, such as Razorfish and Digitas, establishing it as a fledgling
player in that space. Omnicom, meanwhile, has preferred to work with technology
companies and build internal web capability. The deal can only cause consternation at Google, Facebook,
Yahoo, Apple and other tech titans fighting for a piece of the
multibillion-dollar online advertising pie. For many, success in online ad
selling is the Holy Grail for long-term success.
The merger of Publicis and Omnicom is yet another sign that
the traditional media and advertising business is being disrupted. When this
wave of consolidation is over, there will be just a few major holding companies
left. At that point there will be a holding company for each of the top two or
three brands in each category (auto, telecom, CPG, beauty, etc.), and then a
roiling, vibrant economy of emerging brands, independent agencies and new
technologies. The driving force behind holding company consolidation is
not the desire to align to the needs of mega-brand clients or to stop the
downward pressure on agency fees. If that were the case, holding company
shareholders would have demanded this merger years ago.
Publicis and Omnicom are merging because of us. Anyone who
has used Facebook, done a search on Google, or watched Netflix instead of
buying a local newspaper, using the phone book or watching broadcast television
has contributed to this merger. Omnicom CEO John Wren alluded to this when he
spoke to journalists yesterday: “We have many new competitors,” he said.
Meredith’s Quiet Collection of Agencies
In recent years, Meredith Corporation, which publishes the
magazines Family Circle, Better Homes and Gardens, and Fitness, among others,
has been aggressively snatching up agencies to create content for advertisers. In the past several months, however, with a shift in
executives and strategy, these agencies, each with its own area of focus, have
been brought under one roof called Meredith Xcelerated Marketing, or MXM.
Meredith is no longer just a magazine company; it’s a marketing company, too. “We retired all the brand names,” said Doug Rozen, MXM’s
chief innovation officer. “Over the last year, we created new a leadership team
to drive this forward, setting it up to be integrated as a single structure
versus eight different independent [agencies].” MXM’s emphasis on high-quality content and the effective
distribution of that content through social, digital and mobile. It works with
Fortune 500 brands, like Chrysler, NBC and Kraft Foods, to create custom
publications or websites, manage social feeds, or develop video for brands to
post online or in a store. MXM then distributes content wherever a brand feels
it’s best suited: print, Web, email, mobile, offline or social media.
The Magazine Industry In India; Outlook Shuts 3 Mags
The Outlook Group has pulled the plug on three of its
licensed international titles: People, Geo and Marie Claire, choosing not to
renew licenses that were up, BestMediaInfo reported on Friday. Marie Claire was
being published in partnership with French publisher Groupe Marie Claire,
People magazine was licensed from Time Inc., while Geo was licensed from Gruner
+ Jahr (G+J) International, a part of the Bertelsmann group. It’s worth noting
that, two years ago, G+J had acquired a majority stake in custom publisher
Maxposure, so it does have a magazine presence in India to relaunch Geo with. There appear to be contradictory statements on the reasons
for the closure of these magazines. Indranil Roy, President for the Outlook
Group told BestMediaInfo that “It has nothing to do with profitability. It’s
our business call not to continue with the titles”, while Vinod Mehta,
Editorial chairman of the group, told BusinessWorld that the three magazines
were losing money because of the huge licensing fees for these three “white
elephants” being paid to the foreign title holders.
New B&N Filings Have No Update On 'Strategic Review'
Barnes & Noble filed its proxy statement and 10-k report
with the Securities & Exchange Commission Monday morning, and in the
filings provided no update on whether or when Nook Media may be separated from
the retail trade group. Referring to the strategic review of a possible split,
the 10-K stated that “There can be no assurance that the review will result in
a strategic separation or the creation of a stand-alone public company, and
there is no timetable for this review.” In the 10-k, B&N repeated what it has said elsewhere in
terms of it plans for its physical stores—it will close more stores than it
opens. “Management generally believes that the Company’s retail stores are
located in attractive geographic markets, and generally does not have a
strategy to open retail stores in new geographic markets or to expand the total
number of retail stores, and expects to close more retail stores than it
opens,” the 10-K read. B&N closed fiscal 2013 with 675 stores. B&N has
said it plans to close 15 to 20 outlets this year and open as many as five. Finally, the company released a restatement of results from
earlier fiscal years that cuts its loss in fiscal 2012 by about $4 million.
USPS To Use Facebook Gimmick To Unveil Stamp
Linn’s Stamp News reports that the US Postal Service plans a
slightly gimmicky unveiling for its stamp honoring the 50th anniversary of the
1963 March on Washington. Instead of releasing the image well in advance, as it
used to do, the USPS will reveal the design “pixel by pixel” on its Facebook
page. Each time a Facebook member “participates” by allowing their profile
photo to be added to a “virtual March on Washington Stamp Mosaic” another pixel
of the stamp design will be revealed. The virtual “unveiling” is set to begin
next week, and conclude with the official ceremony marking the First Day of
Issue in Washington on August 23. Linn’s says that a portion of the artwork
(presumably more than just one pixel?!) will be withheld until the ceremony. All of which may explain why the USPS is apparently looking
to hire a social media specialist!
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