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World's Press to Examine Financial Crisis' Impact on Media

Prince Michael of Liechtenstein has joined the programme for the 63rd World Newspaper Congress, where he will join news industry notables is a discussion of the world economic crisis and its impact on the news publishing industry.

Prince Michael, who heads a financial services and trust company in the tiny Alpine principality and is President of the European Center for Austrian Economics Foundation, a financial think tank, will be joined in the discussion by: Juan Luis Cebrián, CEO of PRISA Group in Spain, the publisher of El Pais; Gregor Waller, former Vice President of Strategy & Innovation for Axel Springer's Welt Group; and Abdullah S. Dahlan, Chairman of the Board of Trustees at the College of Business Administration in Saudi Arabia.

The session will be moderated by Greg Beitchman, Global Editors of the Reuters News Agency.

Liechtenstein had long carried an international reputation as a tax haven that was criticised for a lack of transparency, but since the 2009 financial crisis has signed tax information sharing agreements with a number of countries. In May 2009 it was removed from the OECD blacklist of uncooperative countries.

The Congress, World Editors Forum and Info Services Expo 2011, the annual global summit meetings of the world's press organised by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA), will be held from 12 to 15 October next in Vienna, Austria. There is still time to register: full programme details and registration information can be found here <http://tinyurl.com/6x223jy> .

Other Congress covers all issues of pressing concern to the global newspaper and news publishing community. Highlights include:

• A session dedicated to digital innovations, featuring one of the most innovative publishers in Asia, the first tablet-only newspaper, and industry 'frenemy' Google, to examine trends and success factors in digital, what new business and revenue models are promising and the role of social media. Speakers include Mariam Mammen Mathew, Chief Operating Officer of Manorama Online in India, Rebecca Grossman-Cohen, Director of Marketing for The Daily, Madhav Chinnappa, Strategic Partner Development Manager for Google Books & News and Reggie Bradford, CEO of the US-based social media management company Vitrue Inc.

• An examination of new business opportunities, both traditional for newspaper companies and entirely new as well. As the newspaper business is no long based on the simple revenue model of advertising and circulation revenue, many new business and revenue models are emerging. Session speakers include Ravi Dhariwal, CEO of The Times of India, Soheil Dastyari, CEO of Gruner+Jahr Corporate Editors in Germany and Urs Gossweiler, CEO of Gossweiler Media in Switzerland.

• A session dedicated to repositioning newspapers in the media market, featuring Rolv Erik Ryssdal, CEO of Schibsted, Jeongdo Hong, Chief Operating Officer and Executive Director of the JoongAng Media Network in Korea, Hanzade Dogan Boyer, Chairwoman of the Board of the Dogan Media Group in Turkey, Wilfred David Kiboro, Chairman of the Board of Nation Media Group in Kenya, Eugen Russ, Publisher and CEO of Vorarlberger Media in Austria, and Damian Kudriavtsev, CEO of Kommersant Publishing House in Russia.

• A session dedicated to how newspapers can leverage one of their prime assets - the value of their brands – featuring Phillip Crawley, Publisher and CEO of Canada's Globe and Mail, Dietmar Otti, Managing Director for Marketing of Axel Springer in Germany, Jeff Shafer, Vice President for Global Corporate Communications for computer maker Lenovo, and Manfred Schmidt, Chairman of the Institut für Markentechnik in Switzerland.

• The annual presentation of the Innovations in Newspapers World Report, prepared for WAN-IFRA by Innovation Media Consulting, which this year will focus on: how to make pay walls work; how to re-invent narratives and workflows for the mobile news experience; the impact and implications of the iPad; and newspaper engagement with social media. And, as always, the presentation will be illustrated with case studies from around the world.

The events, hosted by the Austrian Newspaper Association (VÖZ), will be accompanied by a rich social programme, tours, meetings with local and international political, business and cultural leaders, and more.

Click here for more information on all the "Newspaper Week" events.