THE 62nd WORLD NEWSPAPER CONGRESS

The 2009 summit meetings of the world's press take place in the world's biggest democracy, where the press is not only free and fiercely independent - but undergoing extraordinary growth.  

India now ranks internationally as the second largest press market, after China, with almost 99 million copies sold daily - an increase in circulation of 36 % over the past five years.  Well over 200 million people read newspapers every day and 19 of the world's top 100 selling titles are to be found in the country.

While newspapers profit from the extraordinary appetite of Indians for print publications, they are by no means lagging behind in the development of multi-media platforms and many exciting and innovative digital strategies are emerging.

As newspapers all over the world  continue to develop the exploitation of their content through digital media, WAN has decided to again focus on the dual challenge facing press companies everywhere:  maintaining and expanding their core, print products, while seizing all available opportunities to extend their brands, audience and revenues through the new distribution platforms.

The leitmotiv of the 2009 World Newspaper Congress will again be 'Newspapers: A Multi-Media, Growth Business', as presentations and discussions examine the strategies which are showing success at leading news enterprises world-wide.   As each year, the conference will also provide a unique panorama of trends and innovations in the industry and an unmatched opportunity to meet and network with colleagues from every culture, region and market.  The 2008 events in Sweden were attended by a record 1,800 participants from 113 countries - and India is planning to beat that!
We recognize that this may well be the first opportunity for many participants to discover this extraordinary country.  In order to facilitate your plans to explore India, we are this year offering a rich selection of tours both before and after the Congress (details elsewhere in this brochure).  

And Hyderabad?  India's fifth biggest city, 400-years-old, it has in three consecutive years been elected the 'greenest and cleanest' in the country.  A fast-growing hub for the IT, Biotech and Pharmaceutical industries, it is now considered to be the conference capital of India, boasting a state-of-the-art convention centre, where  the WAN events will take place.  Thanks to a brand-new international airport, Hyderabad is also easy to get to, with direct flights from several continents.

Who is the Congress for?

The Congress is a 'total' newspaper event bringing together publishers, chief executives, managing directors, editors - and the most ambitious managers from all levels of the industry.  Suppliers of services to newspapers are very welcome, whether as exhibitors or participants.

Business Session Themes

Senior executives from a wide range of newspaper companies will present case studies which explore the numerous issues which arise from fact that Newspapers are a Multi-Media, Growth Business:  

o  What are the best strategies for a growing audience,
in print and online?

o  What are the best strategies for increasing both print and digital advertising  - and what growth can be expected?  What management, infrastructure and processes are necessary to sell advertising for a portfolio of products, as opposed to a single newspaper title?

o  How can the new reach attained by newspapers through their combined print & digital operations be monetized?  Many newspapers dominate their print and digital markets - how can they turn this into better profit?

o  Newspapers are the Content Kings! How can the unique content gathered by newspapers, which have the strongest journalistic teams in any media, be exploited through the  full range of new distribution channels?  And, vitally, what can be sold and what has to be free?

o  Can and should newspaper brands be integrated in the digital world or should we expect disaggregation?

o  What changes are underway to better measure combined print and digital reach?  What is audience aggregation and how does a newspaper build its product portfolio?

o  What are some of the winning new products and acquisitions that successful newspapers have added in recent times?

o  The search engines: friend or foe?  Is the continued growth and diversification of the big search companies an opportunity for newspapers, through partnerships for example, or a long-term threat to their revenues?


THE SCHEDULE

 
Evening free


thursday 3 december

8h00  - 10h30
Fifth Session

the resourceful newspaper company:
achieving business efficiency

Lower costs and greater efficiency are vital as newspaper companies continue to face turbulent market trends.  This session will examine strategies being implemented by press groups to achieve those objectives, including outsourcing, efficiency evaluation, the reduction of overheads and performance improvement.

Session chairman: Tariq Ansari, Managing Director, Mid-Day Infomedia Ltd, India

Per Bowallius, President GISAB, Mitt i, Sweden


10h45 - 12h00
Sixth Session
2009 Global Report on Innovations in Newspapers.  The presentation will examine a wide range of industry developments including: successful branding efforts,  how newspapers are developing new business models, the use of Mobile Journalists (MoJos), mobile advertising, what bloggers can contribute to newspapers, how newspapers can improve their advertising sales efforts, and the development of 'fusion journalism'.  By the Innovation International Media Consulting Group.
(Joint session with the World Editors Forum)

 
12h00 - 13h00
WAN Annual General Meeting
(open to all participants)

13h00 - 14h00
Lunch
Optional: Panel discussion on the protection and commercial exploitation of newspaper content online.  In conjunction with the Automated Content Access Protocol project.


14h00 - 16h00
Seventh Session
Newspaper publishing:
creating a sustainable future

Guest speaker: Olivier Fleurot, Executive Chairman, Publicis Worldwide


Presentation by PricewaterhouseCoopers:
The results of a major new research project undertaken by PricewaterhouseCoopers, in cooperation with WAN, will be revealed in this session.  Based on surveys of consumers, publishers and advertisers, enriched by industry and company reports, analyst reviews and PwC expertise, the presentation will include an examination of how newspaper publishers react to changing consumer behaviour.  It will also take into account a range of new technologies which influence the way that consumers interact, communicate and seek information and how these changes are impacting newspapers.


19h30
Gala dinner and entertainment at the Chowmohalla Palace