NZZ Media Group cancels print edition of Ostschweiz am Sonntag

From November, Ostschweiz am Sonntag will appear exclusively as an e-paper. Selected articles from the Sunday title will also be published on Tagblatt.ch. NZZ Regionalmedien is thus saving the high printing and distribution costs without cutting back on the journalistic offering, according to a statement. There are no plans to reduce the number of journalistic staff as a result of this measure. The content of Ostschweiz am Sonntag is accessible to all subscribers of the St. Galler Tagblatt and its partner newspapers.

With this step, NZZ Regionalmedien is continuing its course toward a shift to digital, writes the NZZ Media Group in a statement. The digital products are also to be strengthened via closer cooperation with the group's own radio and especially TV stations. In eastern Switzerland, the FM1Today portal is moving closer to the Tagblatt.ch portal, with FM1Today continuing to focus on a younger target group.

Paywall goes up

In the early summer of next year, the news portals of NZZ Regionalmedien are to be relaunched. In addition, the introduction of a paywall is planned. "The discontinuation of the print edition of Ostschweiz am Sonntag is first and foremost a cost-cutting measure," explains Jürg Weber, Head of Regional Media at the NZZ Media Group. "At the same time, however, we are using the move to drive forward our digital strategy."

ZaS remains printed - corrected externally

Zentralschweiz am Sonntag, with its significantly higher circulation, continues to appear in print. By contrast, against the backdrop of the sharp decline in the print advertising market, the NZZ regional media are forced to make adjustments to the proofreading process. In future, some of the texts will no longer be read in Lucerne or St. Gallen, but by an external provider. The final check will continue to be carried out internally. The move will result in the dismissal of five employees from the Publishing Services and Printing division, which has a total of around 300 employees. Four other employees will be offered early retirement. "We are in talks with these colleagues to mitigate the consequences of this decision as best we can," emphasizes Daniel Ettlinger, Head of Publishing Services and Reach Media.

As early as August, there was speculation in Switzerland at the weekend about whether the NZZ would discontinue its regional Sunday newspapers (Werbewoche.ch reported). So this scenario has not come to pass. While Zentralschweiz am Sonntag remains almost entirely "untouched" for the time being, the pressure to cut costs has hit Ostschweiz am Sonntag more severely with the discontinuation of the printed edition. (hae)