Sun Media Corp., Canada’s biggest publisher, is closing 11 newspapers and cutting 360 jobs in a cost-cutting move.
In announcing the shutdowns that are expected to save $55M a year, Julie Tremblay, COO, noted that the print media business is undergoing an unprecedented transformation.
"The management decisions we are making are difficult and highly regrettable, particularly the job cuts. However, the downsizing is necessary to maintain a strong positioning for our news media outlets on all platforms, and more broadly to secure our Corporation’s future success in an industry that is being revolutionized by the advent of digital," she said.
The affected papers include Lac du Bonnet Leader (Manitoba), Lindsay Daily Post and Midland Free Press (Ontario), Le Magazine Saint-Lambert (Quebec) and Meadow Lake Progress (Saskatchewan).
Three commuter-focused free dailies called 24 Hours will be closed in Ottawa, Calgary and Edmonton.
Sun Media shed 500 staffers in November 2012.
The company publishes 36 paid and three free papers with a combined circulation of 15.1M.
Guardian News & Media Shaves Loss
Guardian News & Media cut its annual loss 30 percent to $46M for the year ended March 31.
The publisher of U.K.’s Guardian and Observer reported a nearly 30 percent in digital revenues to $65M, which accounts for 28 percent of overall revenues.
CEO Andrew Miller called that revenue growth a “striking figure.”
He said GN&M is reaping the benefits due to its early commitment to digital.
The Guardian’s daily circulation dipped 11 percent to 187K copies per-day, while the Observer’s circ fell 13 percent to 212,376.
The company’s websites attracted 23M unique visitors in May.
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