Local newspapers see new mobile opportunities

30 September 2008: Following the successful launch of its mobile websites in August, the Express & Star and Shropshire Star newspapers are planning to offer a range of new mobile content and services to their readers.

MNA Digital, the online arm of publishers Midland News Association, is working with mobile website specialist Wapple (http://wapple.net) to deliver a multimedia mix of news, information, sport and entertainment to complement print and online products. Amongst the ideas being explored are music and video downloads; job and property listings and alerts; and the development of branded mobile micro-sites for local football clubs and bands, for example. MNA Digital is also looking at introducing mobile advertising and sponsorship opportunities.       

The Express & Star sites (www.expressandstar.com/mobile  & www.shropshirestar.com/mobile) have been built using Wapple CanvasTM, a powerful design and publishing platform capable of producing advanced and dynamic mobile websites. And with over 5,000 mobile phones, PDAs and games consoles already being used to access the mobile Internet, Wapple ExhibitTM ensures that the sites are optimised and presented accurately on every single device.  This ensures that visitors always get the best mobile experience, while website owners can be confident that their designs and brands will not be compromised.

No other technology enables the development of such highly functional mobile sites that provide the same experience regardless of the mobile device used.

“Wapple gives us the features, scalability and expertise to add exciting rich new content and services to our existing sites as well as deliver revenue generating advertising and e-commerce functionality,” said William Beavis, new media marketing manager at MNA Digital.  “And most importantly, without Wapple we couldn’t be confident that all our visitors get a great mobile experience whatever handset they are using.”

"Regional newspapers have a steady flow of breaking news and topical local information and services that are ideal to deliver anywhere, at anytime through mobile phones and other devices,” says Anne Thomas, COO at Bromsgrove-based Wapple. “It is great to be working with MNA that is pioneering many exciting ideas to provide a dynamic new channel for their readers.”

About Wapple (http://wapple.net)
 
Established in 2004, Wapple has become a leading force in the mobile internet market.  Wapple’s award-winning design and publishing platform makes it easy to create highly functional and scalable mobile internet sites; while its dynamic profiler and delivery engine ensures that sites are automatically optimized for any mobile phone PDA or games console. Wapple combines its market leading technology with its skills and expertise to deliver complete mobile internet publishing solutions for any size of organization.