Traditional Printers Diversifying

Printed content, I believe, is still the biggest revenue producer in the publishing industry --- don't know how much longer this will be the case with digital gnawing at it's heels.

But, the print portion of the industry has suffered enough to decimate many traditional printers and their peripheral support such as suppliers, etc.

Though many have gone out of business, many have survived --- and prospered to the point of actual expansion.

How did they do this? Diversification, of course. AND diversification in the direction of services complementing, what else? Digital, of course.

Here are three examples of traditional printing companies and just how they are redefining themselves.

From the May issue of Folio magazine by Ioanna Opidee and Stefanie Botelho:


The Expanding Role of Printers
 
With the race on for expanding magazine brands onto a variety of platforms, particularly the kind that don’t involve paper, printers are finding new ways to serve clients and draw in new revenue. Some of these tactics include launching multiplatform services, in addition to combining digital and print solutions for a one-stop shop for publishers.

Digital Diversification

Continuing to diversify beyond its role as a printer, RR Donnelley recently made a $2.5 million investment in catalog shopping app CoffeeTable, which allows tablet users to browse and purchase from multiple retailers’ catalogs directly within the application.

“Our core business is delivering multi-channel solutions,” says Ann Marie Bushell, president of RR Donnelley’s CustomPoint Solutions. Like cataloguers, she adds, “[Publishers] want a provider that can take content from creation to delivery, across a variety of media.”

This news follows RR Donnelley’s touting the success of its Press+ platform, now used by 323 publications to launch paid content models online.

In June 2011, the company acquired Helium.com to enhance its content creation offerings—one of a series of acquisitions it made to broaden its services. In August, it purchased LibreDigital, which provides digital magazine replicas, data analytics and content for more than 40 e-commerce sites. That same month, the company bought software company Sequence Personal to bolster its custom digital publishing services. Finally, in October, all of that build-up paid off when it struck a $550 million deal through 2020 with American Media Inc. to assist the OK! and Star publisher with its digital convergence.

Greater Reach, Smarter Solutions

Recently, Wisconsin-based printer Quad/Graphics bought a minority stake in India-based print service and business solutions provider Manipal Technologies.

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