Canwest has revamped its general news site, Canada.com, to include topic pages that allow visitors to be more social and better manage the content they’re most interested in.
The site now includes a “featured topics” box on the right hand side of the homepage that lists the day’s top topics, as decided by editors within the Canwest network.
Yesterday’s subject matter included (in order): the Queen in Canada, Lady Gaga, Paris Hilton, HST and product safety.
By clicking on one of the topics, users are directed to a page containing articles from a variety of sources, including the network of brands that contribute to the Canwest News Service, as well as social commentary from blogs, Facebook and Twitter.
The new format also includes the introduction of celebrity bloggers such as chef Jamie Kennedy and news commentator Paul Jay of The Real News Network.
Ray Philipose, vice-president, strategy and product development, Canwest Digital Media said the new format is “a first step in what will be a big transition for us,” adding that a Canada.com rebrand and repositioning is in the works for later this year.
The revamp provides advertisers with increased sponsorship opportunities like advertorial, homepage, story and topic page sponsorships that includes a custom push down rich media ad unit.
Philipose said the sales team has sent out a few pitches but “nobody has closed yet.”
Canwest is promoting the newly formatted site with banner ad placed within its online network, outside properties and on Facebook.
