By SETH SUTEL – 15 hours ago

WASHINGTON (AP) — As newspaper publishers build up their online operations and struggle through an advertising slump, one group is worried about being left behind — the folks who make printing presses and other equipment used to make newspapers.

Hoping to allay some of those concerns, a panel of four CEOs of major newspaper companies addressed a group of equipment vendors Sunday at an annual convention of industry suppliers called NEXPO.

"We, too, are feeling the pain," said panel moderator Dennis Nierman, president of AlfaQuest Technologies Inc., referring to the steady revenue declines that are plaguing the industry.

Nierman, whose company makes a product that allows printing plates to be made from digital files, said it was "discouraging" to see the exhibition floor relatively empty, as it was for part of the day Saturday, the first day of the show.

George Irish, president of Hearst Corp.'s newspaper division, noted that his company had $250 million committed to printing press updates, with more on the way. Dean Singleton, CEO of Denver-based MediaNews Group Inc., said his company spent $500 million on press-related products over the past three years.

Still, many publishers are increasingly focusing their efforts on building up online advertising revenues, which are growing rapidly even as print advertising declines.

So far, the gains in online ads are far from making up the shortfalls in print advertising. Making up the difference is currently the No. 1 topic in the newspaper industry.

Reuters

Tuesday April 15 2008

By Kenneth Li

NEW YORK, April 15 (Reuters) - News Corp and Time Warner Inc's willingness to make a deal with Yahoo Inc is seen as a tacit admission that big media empires will not go it alone on the Internet any more.

Even if they lose Yahoo to Microsoft Corp -- as widely expected on Wall Street -- analysts and media industry insiders say the two could explore other combinations including merging Time Warner's AOL with News Corp's MySpace.

"MySpace and AOL are Internet assets that are in either a state of limbo or a state of decline," said Jordan Rohan, founder of digital media advisory company Clearmeadow Partners. "Google's growing faster than you are and it's responsible for the majority of profitability for each of these. You're dependent on your biggest competitor and that's a terrible position to be in."

Both MySpace and AOL depend on Google for search advertising.

As the U.S. economy increasingly looks like it might be in recession, concerns about the long-term growth rate of Internet advertising have forced big media companies to reevaluate their role.

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US spending on online and mobile advertising rose to $29.94 billion in 2007, according to PQ Media's "Alternative Media Forecast: 2008-2012" report.

The company included 18 digital and non-traditional media segments in its definition of alternative media.

PQ Media put new media ad spending at 16.1% of total US advertising spending in 2007, up from 7.9% in 2002.

“By 2012, we anticipate one out of every four dollars spent on advertising and marketing will be earmarked for alternative media,” said Patrick Quinn, CEO of PQ Media.