Sun Media Corp. will launch digital editions of 32 of its newspapers on Monday. The launch includes all of the Sun and 24 hours dailies, plus smaller publications like The North Bay Nugget, Kingston Whig-Standard, Sarnia Observer, the Banff Crag and Canyon and Canmore Leader.
The e-editions were developed with NewspaperDirect, a Vancouver company that produces so-called “SmartEditions” of more than 700 newspapers in 80 countries. The SmartEditions are exact replicas of the print edition, featuring the same page layouts and advertisements. However, they allow readers to utilize web functionality to share articles through e-mail and blogs, or post stories on social networks. A search and monitoring feature notifies readers when a story matching their search criteria appears.
For advertisers, the e-editions allow readers to click through to a web site or other online application.
In addition to computer viewing, the e-editions will also be optimized for mobile devices like the BlackBerry and iPhone. Sun Media is offering a free 14-day trial and will charge a “nominal fee” when it expires.
John Wildgust, communications advisor for Sun Media in Toronto, said the price of an e-edition subscription will vary from market to market, but will average about $5 a month per publication (subscriptions to the 24 hours publications will be free).
Chris Brockbank, vice-president of marketing for Sun Media, said that while some subscribers might use the e-editions as their primary news source, [the online versions] will also be a way for people who have moved to a new city or are travelling to keep up with their hometown news. “To me it’s all about flexibility and giving customers more choice,” he said.
Brockbank said the e-editions are distinct from a standard newspaper website. “People want to see exactly what is printed,” he said. “You go to [a website] for late breaking news, [but the e-editions are] a way to get access to the exact printed form which is produced in the market. That doesn’t get presented anywhere else.”
Sun Media said there are currently no plans to charge advertisers for ads in the e-editions.
“We’re going to work collaboratively with the advertising community and measure its effects,” said Brockbank. “We certainly think it’s a very good addition to their printed buy, but we’ll be working with them to refine it and enhance it.”
Sun Media is the second Canadian newspaper publisher this week to announce the launch of digital editions of its publications. On Tuesday, Transcontinental Media announced that is has launched 12 digital editions of its 170 daily and community papers with plans to roll out the remaining titles over the next few months.
