Newspaper Innovation

No less than 59 newspapers will receive money from the Danish Press Fund in 2012. The total amount is 347 million Danish kroner (€47 million).

The pdf of the complete list can be viewed here and shows that 26 foreign newspapers receive €420,000 in total.

Among these ‘ailing’ papers are USA Today (€180), The Independent (€390), The Guardian (€960), IHT (€33,000) and The Financial Times (€95,000).

This could be the last year that non-Danish papers will get a subsidy as there is much resistance in parliament against this part of the law. The largest subsidy for a ‘foreign’ paper, however, goes to German Danish language paper Flensborg Avis (€120,000).

The bulk of the money goes to Danish newspapers. Kristeligt Dagblad will get €3.8 million, Information will receive €3.5 million this year.

Børsen, BT, Berlingske, Morgenavisen Jyllands-Posten, Politiken and free dailies metroXpress and 24timer (both majority owned by Metro International) will each get €2.6 million. Free daily Urban (Berlingske, Mecom) is missing from the list of main benificiaries.

For Metro the subsidy is good news, as there is a discussion going on in Denmark about the press subsidies in general and in particular those for free papers (see previous post). Without the subsidy not only Metro Denmark would lose money, but the whole company would suffer.

Mecom, with eight titles getting a subsidy, profits much more. In total the loss-making company receives almost €11 million in subsidies in 2012.

VAT on newspapers (subscription and single copy sales) in Denmark is zero percent.

In Denmark heated discussion started about the subsidies that newspapers receive – mostly for distributing the papers. Some years ago also free dailies (notably Metro and its second Danish free daily 24Timer) started successfully to apply for subsidies.

In 2010 Metro had a EBIT result of €749,000 – but because the company received €5 million in government distribution subsidies, this could turn into a loss without subsidies. Actually, the total results of Metro International could be seriously affected by a change of policy.

Also in 2011 MetroXpress and 24timer – both majority owned by Metro International – received DKK 19 million (€ 2.5 million) state support. The  yearly national Danish newspaper support (€45 million) is mainly aimed at subsidizing distribution. Also newspapers like Børsen, BT, Berlingske Tidende, Jyllands Posten, Information and Politiken receive distribution subsidies.

A Danish commission recommended that the rules for media subsidies should be changed (link to Danish report). Original content produced and the number of journalists newspapers employ would be the new standard. Free newspapers would probably not quality under the proposed rules.

It’s widely expected in Denmark that the government will follow at least some recommendations of the commission (source for much of the information on the new rules: Aske Kammer’s Blog).

Supporting original content seems fair, but stimulating (young) readers to read is also valuable. Punishing free dailies for doing that seems not that fair.

In the beginning on July, the two free Macedonian free newspapers Shpic and Koha were closed down, together with paid newspaper Vreme. TV-station A1, also belonging to the same media group – cut back in programming.

Yesterday, July 18, the court has been asked to start a bankruptcy procedure against A1. The owner of the TV-station and both newspapers, Velija Ramkovski, was arrested in December 2010, being accused of tax evasion and financial irregularities.

Vienna-based South East Europe Media Organization (SEEMO), an affiliate of the International Press Institute (IPI), has expressed concerns over the latest media developments in Macedonia because they think they might be politically motivated.

The papers had to closed down because the tax office said they were behind 21 million in taxes. After the tax office move, the papers could no longer pay wages. Albanian language paper Koha, however, still publishes a pdf on the website. The website of Shpic is also still alive. (novinite.com)

Shpic was launched in 2006 and claimed a circulation of 125,000. Koha started in 2007.

In the wake of the closure of free daily E Polis and the bankruptcy of the publisher, the Public Prosecutor of the Cagliari Court (Sardinia) accuses the owners of the paper of “criminal violations of tax legislation” of €9 million at least.

Also the books of advertising company Publiepolis were investigated. The period under investigation is 2006 to 2010, almost the whole publication period of the paper.

Seven executives, including senior management and directors of the companies in question are under investigation. Assets in the same amount as tax evasion were seized: bank accounts, securities, shares, motor vehicles, land, villas and apartments. (Wall Street Italia)

E Polis was launched in 2004 in Sardinia, and started editions in 17 other cities in Italy from 2006 on – in 2008 and 2009 circulation was around 500,000.

In 2007 the paper changed hand when Alberto Rigotti bought the majority of the shares from founder Nicola Grauso.

In July 2010 publication of the paper was ’suspended’.

Swiss publisher Tamedia, owner of the sole French language free daily in Switzerland 20 Minutes is accused of misusing their monopoly position in the western part of the country.

After Tamedia and Edipresse, the owner of competing free daily Matin Bleu decided to merge, Matin Bleu was taken from the market, although in name it ‘merged’ with 20 Minutes.

According to the Swiss organization of Advertisers (Schweizerische Gewerbeverband) rates fot advertising have been raised with 45% in 2010 and with another 10% in 2011.

According to Tamedia, rates are still lower than those in paid publications while both publishers offered advertising in the past for prices below costs. (SwissInfo)

Danish free dailies MetroXpress and 24timer – both majority owned by Metro International – each receive DKK 19 million (€ 2.5 million) state support in 2011.

The support is part of the yearly national Danish newspaper support project that is mainly aimed at subsidizing distribution. The total sum is €45 million.

Also newspapers like Børsen, BT, Berlingske Tidende, Jyllands Posten, Information  and Politiken receive distribution subsidies.(MediaWatch)

Visitors of the website of Austrian free daily Österreich will be welcomed with an unusual greeting: “Im Namen der Republik!” Under this heading Österreich admits that it is guilty of suggesting it was the newspaper with the highest circulation.

The paper was sued by Mediaprint (paid dailies Kronen Zeitung and Kurier) who succeeded in getting this message on the competitors homepage (click for bigger version).

Kronen had a sold circulation of 817,549 (first six months of 2010) and a printed circulation of  921,000 – Österreich doesn’t even reach half of this.

The Paris administrative court “tribunal administratif de Paris” ruled that the exclusive contract between Paris public transport company RATP and the Bolleré Group (free dailies Direct Matin and Direct Soir) has to be ended.

Free daily 20 Minutes appealed already in 2007 against Bolloré’s monopoly. RATP, however, can appeal against the ruling.

Even if 20 Minutes will be allowed to distribute in the Paris Metro, the terms have to be negotiated, as Bolloré paid a million Euro’s for the distribution rights. With no exclusive rights, their price will be lower, while also 20 Minutes will have to pay a fee as well. With the exclusive rights ruled illegal, also free paper Metro can now apply for a distribution deal. (France2)

The Southern French town of Toulouse, with three free newspapers (Metro, 20 Minutes, Direct Toulouse), has introduced regulation for the distribution of free newspapers.

The local government and all publishers agreed that there will be distributors present at all places where free papers are made available in order to tidy up after distribution. Papers also need permission to distribute in public places. (Toulouse7)

Argentine newspaper group Clarín, also publisher of free daily La Razon, is about to lose control over Papel Prensa, the most important newsprint mill in the country.

Papel Prensa produces 75 percent of the newsprint used by Argentina’s newspapers. Clarín owns 49 percent; the second newspaper in the country, La Nación owns 22.49 percent. The government currently owns 27.46 of the mill; state-owned news agency, Telam, owns 0.62 percent.

President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner is planning a total government takeover of the paper mill. Kirchner provides two reasons for this move.

First Papel Prensa is considered a near-monopoly, meaning that the owner can “control the written word” according to the President. Something she would rather control herself of course.

The second reason is that publishers of  Clarín and La Nación illegally purchased Papel Prensa in 1976 during the military regime. A valid reason of course – especially if it was voiced 30 years ago.

It is more likely that the President wants to muzzle the press by taking the paper mill from them. According to the Miami Herald:

The clash between Fernández de Kirchner and the independent media was ignited in 2008 when conservative daily La Nación and the Clarín Group sided with the farming sector in its battle against the government’s increase in export duties.

After a four-month escalation of street protests and blockades, the bill was defeated in Congress, the first time the president’s Peronist Victory Front had lost a congressional vote since 2003.

Fernández de Kirchner and her husband, former President Nestor Kirchner, blamed the loss on the media and especially on Clarín, a former government supporter.