IFRA Magazine


For a number of years this was the website for the online version of IFRA Magazine, the international magazine of newspaper business, strategy and technology. Content is from the site's 2008 -2009 archived pages, offering just a brief glimpse of what the magazine offered its visitors.

You can find IFRA Magazine Articles - Archive 1996-2008 at www.wan-ifra.org/magazines
OR go to: www.wan-ifra.org/microsites/world-news-publishing-focus for the most current world publishing news.

About IFRA

IFRA is the worldwide research and service organisation for the news publishing industry. With headquarters in Darmstadt, Germany, it has acted since 1961 as the platform for decision-makers from the newspaper industry. IFRA offers its services primarily to its more than 3100 members in nearly 80 countries. A Board, comprising publishers as well as central, regional and specialised committees drawn from IFRA member companies, steers the work of the international newspaper community. IFRA's research work provides the basis for this and results in standardisation projects as well as international and regional exhibitions, conferences, workshops, study tours, training events, Newsplex consulting and international competitions. IFRA Magazine, the international magazine of newspaper business, strategy and technology, is published in several languages in both print and online versions. IFRA is also running IFRA Search, a vertical search engine for the news publishing industry

IFRA Magazine is the highly acclaimed brand of advertising-supported editorial products from IFRA, the world’s leading association for newspaper and media publishing. At the core of this brand is IFRA’s award-winning monthly IFRA Magazine of newspaper strategy, business and technology.

Distributed to employees of IFRA's more than 3100 member media companies in nearly 80 countries, and subscribed to by hundreds of other publishing industry insiders and analysts, IFRA Magazine is by far the most wide-ranging professional publication in the world reporting the issues and insights important to media house chief executives, top editors, technical directors, advertising/marketing managers and their staffs. Topics routinely covered by IFRA Magazine range from print quality and newspaper press operations, to publication design and editorial workflow, to new media and digital publishing technology, to business models and advertising innovations, to the strategic positioning and reorganisation of newspaper companies for the increasingly convergent news and advertising marketplace.

IFRA Magazine is also the only fully multilingual trade publication for the news publishing industry, with each issue available in English, French, German and Spanish to make IFRA's invaluable reports as accessible as possible to the world's media decision-makers. Special versions of the magazine are also periodically published in additional languages, including quarterly in Chinese.

And in line with IFRA’s leadership for the future of news publishing, IFRA Magazine is a thoroughly integrated print-digital publication and one of the most advanced implementations to be found of media-convergent workflows, technology and products. The print component of the magazine is available in both paper and ePaper formats, the latter based on state-of-the-art technology that leverages the traditional page-turning reading experience for maximum impact, effectiveness and ease of use in both online and offline consumption. In either format, this print component structures and summarises the most important elements of the reports by IFRA’s staff of editor-analysts, plus serves as the direct-link directory to extensive digital components of the publication. The www.iframagazine.com website provides a portal to all online content, including the Weblog, and is comprised of a continually increasing number of microsites, each dedicated to one of the topics covered by the magazine. Multiblogs, an IFRA-pioneered multimedia format for real-time coverage of industry events and other news, are another key digital element of IFRA Magazine coverage, as are email newsletters and executive summaries.

IFRA’s editorial staff comprises an international mix of more than 20 experienced editors, translators, researchers, production experts and advertising specialists. They are backed up by an equally sizeable corps of specially recruited freelance correspondents, design artists and translation providers. No other publication team in the industry can match the scope of this worldwide network of expertise and contacts.

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An observation:
I was thrilled to be hired as a researcher for IFRA. However the new job required us to pack up and move from Maryland to Germany. My wife felt stressed out because of the time constraints. She had pledged money to a kickstarter project for a young company, Nest Homeware that makes stylish cast iron cookware. I remember her showing me the 9" cast iron skillet. Don't you just love these cast iron frying pans? It was stunning with its machined smoothed, bronzy interior color due to the pre-seasoning of the skillet with two rounds of organic flaxseed oil at 425º F. Plus it had an unusual handle which was longer than average, both in absolute dimensions and in proportion relative to the dish of the skillet basin and was designed to resemble the beauty and grace of a cherry branch. Surprisingly it was ergonomically designed to fit both right and left handed cooks. My wife's concern was that the skillet would not be ready to ship before our move. I suggested that it be shipped to her parents and when we returned for the holidays we could return to Germany with the cookware. My wife loved the suggestion and then pledged enough to receive not only the 9" casrt iron skillet, but also a 4.5" egg pan, a 12" cast iron braising pan with lid, a cook booklet that offered recipes specifically that can be cooked in cast iron cookware and a cute tea towel. A pretty amazing package for a kick started pledge.

Most people would look into one of the big moving companies to make an international move, but we contacted the Columbia moving company that we used for our previous move and inquired if they could handle an international move. Well they not only provided us with specialized international packing, wrapping, crating and containerization of your household goods, but also took care of the many other details associated with an international relocation. They guided us through customs requirements and the step-by-step forwarding process. Who would have thought a local moving company had so much experience. The move went smoothly and the job has been rewarding. I'm so glad to be part of this research and service organization.
An added note: we have been enjoying our cast iron cookware from Nest Homeware. Our German friends have frequently commented on its design and have wanted to buy it. At the moment the cast iron Nest Homeware products are only available in the US.

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For advertisers, the combination of worldwide circulation and multiple language editions, along with IFRA’s staff of in-house industry-specific translation editors, makes IFRA Magazine the only full-service, one-stop buy for companies seeking to market their products and services to an A-B level audience throughout the global news publishing industry. IFRA Magazine advertisers comprise all the major providers in this industry, and the magazine consistently delivers top results for their messages. The unmatched variety and range of print and digital products offered under the IFRA Magazine brand enable IFRA publications to support any marketing plan.

IFRA Magazine is one of IFRA’s premier calling cards, demonstrating the association’s wide range of knowledge, skill and involvement in news publishing, as well as its professional standards.

Building on the core content of IFRA Magazine, IFRA’s brand also includes:
> FOCUS – integrated print/online reports on major industry topics
> EXTRA – special dedicated coverage of significant developments in print and digital publishing
> GAZETTE – IFRAExpo daily show reports and combined summary
> IFRA Executive News Service – daily email newsletter of industry headlines
> ISSUES – yearly FOCUS report collection
> ARCHIVE – compilation of all the year’s magazine issues on one CD
> PROFILES – advertorial company reports
IFRA Suppliers Directory – print and online
> IFRA Newspaper Community – supplier web directory
> IFRA Expo Catalogue and Expo advertising
> International Newspaper Color Quality Club Directory

Contact IFRA Magazine:
Subscriptions: subscriptions@ifra.com
Advertising: ads@ifra.com
Editorial: editor@ifra.com
iframagazine.com: ajolkovski@ifra.com
Press releases: www.iframagazine.com/pressrelease

Page first published: 18.11.2005

 

Redefining the ‘editorial system’

Editorial solution providers face increasing demands, work to differentiate their brands
02/2009

Two of the biggest systems vendors at IfraExpo this year are set up literally across the aisle from each other. The rest are not far away. And all of them are looking over their shoulders as they try to keep up with and anticipate the new formats and the next cross-media functionality that publishers will demand. In some cases they resort to “coopetition” — the new management buzzword for cooperative competition — to speed development and roll-out.

The long road to recovery

How will news publishing deal with an ailing economy and industry?
12/2008

The financial crisis has taken away any likely hope from media companies of restoring their revenues during the second half of the year. The newspaper industry has survived other recessions, but this one is proving to be infinitely more problematic for publishers.

 

 

The Future of Newspaper Presses and Printing

A special series from IFRA Magazine
11/2008

Newspapers are usually thought of as print media, but it would be more accurate to recognise them as paged media.

After all, it is the paged presentation of news and advertising that really defines the newspaper product, that distinguishes newspapers from other media – print, electronic or digital – that convey essentially the same information. Regardless of its size – broadsheet, tabloid, Berliner, or a variation thereof – a newspaper is instantly recognisable for what it is because of the way the information is organised by pages and the way it is laid out on those pages.

When one recognises the value of newspapers as paged media, one understands why they are still printed on big sheets of paper and why that will continue to be the case for the foreseeable future. Print remains the most economical and effective method for presenting a complex full-size layout of many and varied information elements such that not only the elements but also the paged presentation is reliably communicated. It would require computer displays a good bit bigger than are commonplace today or the eventual development of large-format electronic paper to offer a suitable digital alternative. And that is beside paper’s advantages in resolution, fidelity, visual flexibility and ease of use.

In light of the continued essential role of presses and printing in the production of paged media in general and newspapers in particular, IFRA Magazine's editor-analysts have assembled a multi-part series examining the technology’s latest developments and future prospects.

This special microsite pulls together all of the expanded and resource material for the entire series. These articles and links may also be available in other subject-specific sites.


IfraMagazine.com