Mizzima Media Co. Ltd

A Myanma Odyssey

Although print media are no longer subject to direct state censorship, journalists in Myanmar still face restrictions, and private publishers struggle to survive in a challenging economic environment dominated by government-controlled newspapers. After operating in exile for 14 years, Mizzima – now an officially registered daily newspaper – is striving to establish a sustainable independent multimedia group under the leadership of CEO Sonny Swe and Editor-in-Chief Soe Myint. Gilles Demptos reports.

"Three years ago, if you would have asked me what the greatest challenge for a publisher was, I would have said censorship, because we were heavily censured. But now I would say it is generating enough advertising revenue." - Sonny Swe, Chief Executive Officer, Mizzima Media Co. Ltd

Asian Digital Media Awards 2014

Some of Asia’s leading news media companies, including Apple Daily, Fairfax (The Age), South China Morning Post and Thomson Reuters were among the winners of the 5th annual Asian Digital Media Awards presented in Singapore on 18 November.

News

HuffPost launches in India

The Huffington Post launched an Indian version of its news website on December 8, seeking to tap the country’s exploding number of Internet users, and announced its next big goal was a Chinese edition.

Trade News

Malayala Manorama retrofits Uniset press in 18 days

Updates and retrofits are key instruments for ensuring the future viability of large and small newspaper publishers in today’s economic climate. manroland web systems specialists set a new record by reconfiguring two Uniset printing towers at Malayala Manorama, India, in just 18 days.

KBA Commander in operation at Guiyang Daily

Founded in 1957, Chinese printing and publishing house the Guiyang Daily Media Group, invested in newspaper press technology for the first time in 2006. Six years after firing up its first web press, the newspaper house reaffirmed its partnership with KBA by placing an order for a Commander CL equipped for heatset printing.

Digital Media

Facebook ‘newspaper’ spells trouble for media

Facebook’s move to fulfill its ambition to be the personal “newspaper” for its billion-plus members is likely to mean more woes for the ailing news media. The huge social network has become a key source of news for many users, as part of a dramatic shift in how people get information in the digital age.

Business News

News Corp expands into digital real estate in India

News Corp announced on November 24 that it has acquired a 25% stake in the parent company of PropTiger.com, a leading digital real estate marketing platform in India, for US$30 million.

Global Alliance to develop Classifieds

Naspers Limited, Schibsted Media Group, Telenor Group and Singapore Press Holdings announced on 14 November an agreement to establish joint ventures for the development of their online classifieds platforms in four key markets – Brazil, Indonesia, Thailand and Bangladesh.

Stock market snapshots

Feature

Dimensions of programmatic advertising

Programmatic is probably the most important advertising trend that publishers still may not fully understand. WAN-IFRA will soon release a Shaping the Future of News Publishing (SFN) Report on the impact of programmatic advertising on news publishers. The following is an excerpt from that report, examining the scale of programmatic.

Press Freedom

Jakarta Post editor accused of blasphemy

The chief editor of The Jakarta Post has been named a suspect in a blasphemy case after the publication of a cartoon about the Islamic State group.

No print edition for Malaysiakini

Malaysia has refused in October to grant a print license to Malaysiakini.com, a news portal often critical of the government, despite a landmark court ruling in the site’s favour.

Commentary

Newspapers are still here and still making money

The sky is always falling and newspapers are always dying. For more than a decade, that has been a common and constant refrain. While working at washingtonpost.com, the Guardian US, and now, the Newspaper Association of America, I have been asked frequently about the state of the industry as people search for the worst.

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