Zinio Announces Major European Expansion of Global Digital Magazine Solutions
Company Signs Exclusive Franchise Agreements with AccesoGroup (Spain), Zinio, LLC Norden AS (Scandinavia) and Taurus (Poland)
San Francisco, CA (May 19, 2005) - Zinio, LLC, worldwide leader in digital magazine production, distribution and circulation today announced the appointment of Sarah Clegg as Commercial Director for its expanding sales efforts in the UK.
Zinio, LLC, worldwide leader in the production, distribution and circulation of digital publications, today announced the signing of exclusive franchise agreements with AccesoGroup in Spain, Zinio, LLC Norden AS in Scandinavia and Taurus in Poland. The companies will sell Zinio's products and services to magazine publishers in-country and maintain online newsstands for direct consumer subscriptions.
Zinio's franchise distribution strategy began last year with Acer in China. The company is continuing discussions with 60 franchise candidates in 20 other regions around the world. The franchise operations augment Zinio's increased direct sales efforts in the UK, as marked by the recent opening of its London office.
Joan Sola, CEO, AccesoGroup, the leading media intelligence and analysis company in Spain, noted, "Spanish publishers and consumers are ready for digital magazines. Through our partnership with Zinio, readers in Spain now have access to digital editions of their favorite magazines. Spanish-speaking people around the world also can receive local editions of the magazines instantly, inexpensively and with great customer service."
"Magazines are playing catch-up to other major media in realizing successful digital strategies," said Birger Ostraat, vice president sales and marketing at Zinio, LLC Norden AS the local provider in the Nordic region. "Zinio is the clear market leader in the U.S. and offers a platform that delivers interactive features that consumers crave and a business model that's compelling for magazine publishers abroad."
Bartlomiej Roszkowski, Director of NetPress, the online arm of Taurus, Poland's most digitally advanced printer, added, "Digital magazines are quite new for Polish readers. We are confident Zinio's Digital Magazine Solutions will offer our publisher-clients meaningful ways to expand their subscriber universe, lower costs and establish a base to generate new sources of revenue."
"The global magazine market is enormous," said Jeff Bruce, Zinio's senior vice president of worldwide sales. "With a mere 270 magazines in our system, we already distribute digital editions to 2 million customers in 95% of the world's countries, making digital magazines an undeniable global phenomenon. By developing a strong network of local franchise partners, our aim is to accelerate the number of titles available in digital format and make them easy to find, purchase and consume no matter what the reader's country or language."
