Czech innovator joins lineup of speakers at 2010 Ink & Beyond newspaper
conference, May 13-14 in Toronto

TORONTO, Feb. 17 /CNW/ - Roman Gallo, founder of one of the most exciting new ventures in the media industry, has been confirmed as a speaker at the 2010 Ink & Beyond newspaper conference in Toronto, May 13 and 14.

Gallo is director of media strategies for PPF, the company behind the new Prague-based media venture, Nase Adresa. Launched as a pilot project a year ago, Nase Adresa combines weekly newspapers, hyperlocal websites and news cafes where citizens can interact with the reporters while drinking their coffee. Gallo will explain how the concept works and what the future holds.

More than 300 CEOs, publishers, editors and corporate executives from the Canadian newspaper, advertising and marketing industries will converge in Toronto this May for the annual Canadian Newspaper Association and Canadian Community Newspapers Association conference. Partners for this year's conference include the Ontario Community Newspapers Association and the Canadian Circulation Management Association.

In line with its theme, "Ink & Beyond," this year's joint conference, to be held May 13-14 at Toronto's Sheraton Centre Hotel, will highlight the multiplatform innovations newspapers are using to connect with their readers and advertisers. The trade show exhibits will focus on Internet solutions and new technologies.

Canadian newspapers - both weekly and daily - remain a far-reaching medium with strong national and regional brands preferred by both advertisers and readers. According to just-released NADbank figures, 77 per cent of all Canadian adults read a daily newspaper last week either in print or online, while 74 per cent read the last edition of their community newspaper (Combase 2009).

"At Ink & Beyond, every newspaper large and small will hear the best national and international experts talk about the state and future of our dynamic industry," said John Hinds, Chief Executive Officer of CNA/CCNA. "The program is designed to address the major issues and highlight best practices and innovation."

Some of the confirmed conference speakers include:

    
    -  John Paton, CEO of the Journal Register and co-founder of impreMedia,
       named Publisher of the Year in 2009 by Editor and Publisher magazine
    -  James Moroney, Dallas Morning News
    -  Shannon Kinney, AIM
    -  Ken Wong (Queen's University)
    -  Duncan Stewart, Deloitte
    -  Jerry Brown, PriceWaterhouseCoopers
    -  Jonathan Goodman, Monitor
    -  Dennis Desrosiers, automotive consultant
    -  Stuart Payne (Saatchi & Saatchi)
    -  Jon Wolman, Detroit News
    -  Paul Anger, Detroit Free Press
    -  Robb Montgomery, CEO, Visual Editors Inc
    

Other events scheduled as part of the conference include the CCNA Better Newspapers Awards Gala, May 13; the National Newspaper Awards, and the OCNA Better Newspapers Competition Awards, both to be held Friday, May 14.

For a complete program, visit the conference website - www.inkandbeyond.ca.

For further information: John Hinds, Chief Executive Officer, Canadian Newspaper Association/Canadian Community Newspapers Association, 890 Yonge St., Suite 200, Toronto, ON, M4W 3P4, [email protected], [phone], ext. 244