No one is saying print is dead (not yet at least), but there can no longer be a debate that the print industry has suffered over the years as the costs of print continue to increase. As media outlets around the globe scramble to discover what the future of their publication will look like La Presse started to dig deeper into digital solutions years ago. After a lot of research and development, La Presse gave birth to La Presse+, its free digital tablet edition back in the spring of 2013 which they have since continued to evolve, develop and offer as a solution to other media partners.
Today, La Press has announced that they will will cease their Monday to Friday print edition of La Presse, opting instead to only print the Saturday edition which will continue to be distribute to subscribers and points of sale.
“La Presse will soon become the world’s first major print daily newspaper to go 100% digital on weekdays, and will position itself as Québec’s digital news and information leader,” explained Guy Crevier, President and Publisher of La Presse, “Thirty months after its launch, La Presse+ is now more successful than the print version of La Presse after 131 years of existence. Over 460,000 people(1) have made La Presse+ part of their weekly news and information ritual. At the same time, La Presse+ is a huge success with advertisers, who have quickly adopted it as a creative advertising vehicle—a highly effective and measurable medium for reaching top-quality target audiences.”
The change will not take place until January 1, 2016, and various scenarios have been developed based on the different types of subscription currently available to ensure a simple transition for subscribers after that date. Individual subscribers will receive a letter with detailed explanations in the coming weeks. This will also impact the Olive Media team as they will now be absorbed into the La Presse team as of January.
Earlier this week Toronto Star announced its Start Touch, powered by La Presse+, and the first client to adopt the La Presse+ platform.