MPP expanding American market; TNG acquires Ingram Periodicals; Digital publishing becoming a priority for Reader’s Digest
Digital publishing transforms in a variety of ways, from new technology in the digital age, to different management and ownership of media brands.
We begin today’s news with news of expansion for MPP. MediaPost reports, “UK-based tech company MPP Global has secured $15 million in a Series B financing round and plans to expand into the American market.”
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“MPP Global, which works with U.S.-based McClatchy, UK’s Daily Mail, Sky, The Irish Times andCanada’s Winnipeg Free Press, provides an ecommerce digital monetization platform called eSuite to build a paywall for publishers to drive subscription revenue, by converting and retaining paid users.”
The article continues with a look at how the new financing will be used. “MPP Global plans to use this new funding, from Albion Ventures and Grafton Capital, to grow their U.S. team in New York, as well as sign additional American publishers and OTT operators.”
Next, we’re looking at a new acquisition of Ingram by TNG. Publishing Executive reports, “TNG is North America’s largest supplier of magazines to retail. Ingram Periodicals has long worked to distribute publications into bookstores and specialty outlets.”
“A major retailer confirmed the logic of the move in terms of operations. “Ingram Periodicals has great customer service, great publisher reps, great information systems, but TNG has the trucks and the merchandisers. You can time truck deliveries in a way you can’t time UPS arrivals, and you can plan around those arrival dates.””
However, not everyone is excited for this news. “TNG is huge, and we’re little,” an independent publisher said. “Ingram was a solution for us, in that they were able to get us into our target market and to do it affordably. If TNG loses sight of the little guys, or starts to increase the costs, it could put a lot of us out of business. With Ingram, no matter what happened at the macro level, there was always a place for us. Now with this acquisition, will that still be the case?”
But not everyone is afraid of this acquisition as it may foster new opportunities. “At the same time, there is the possibility that independent and directs-only publishers might discover opportunities through TNG and TNG Specialty that weren’t previously available to them. TNG Specialty distributes to many targeted outlets that could be valuable to special-interest publications that currently have an Ingram-only distribution base.”
Our final story today looks at the transformation at Reader’s Digest and its commitment to prioritizing digital publishing. AdWeek reports.”During its first NewFronts, TMBI spoke about its transformation from a venerable print publisher of lifestyle content, anchored by Reader’s Digest, into a digital-focused content company. Roughly 12 months later, the move seems to be paying dividends.”
“Our digital business has grown tremendously since last year’s NewFronts presentation,” CEO Bonnie Kintzer told Adweek.
“All in all, Trusted Media Brands is currently serving monthly digital content to 53.8 million consumers, which is a 55 percent increase in audience growth since 2014. The company also boasts 63.2 million active social users across its portfolio. On social and mobile, TMBI reaches 21 million adult millennials (25-39 years old).”
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