Newspapers of the future will be slimmer, smaller

Newspapers might become narrower, and smaller - but they will definitely continue to play a vital role in peoples' daily lives, said Dr Mario Garcia, president and CEO, media design consultancy Garcia Media.

Dr Garcia was addressing media and advertising professionals at a function organised by Gulf News to celebrate the paper's new design unveiled Saturday.

"People have been predicting the imminent demise of the newspaper, ever since first radio came on the scene, then television, and today the Internet - but the newspaper is still very much here with us," he pointed out.

He said newspapers will evolve in the coming years to cater to the new needs of their readers and advertisers. They will have to compete with new sources of news that are supplying people with information around the clock.

"I wouldn't be surprised if the majority of newspapers became tabloid-sized, even A4-sized - and within my lifetime," he commented. Adding that the most important factor would be the development of the content.

Dr Garcia should know: his team had just completed the redesign of the prestigious Wall Street Journal - which for the first time started using colour and photos, apart from more caricatures on its pages - before coming to work with Gulf News.

The company has also helped redesign several other prestigious publications, including the Miami Herald; the German Die Zeit, and Handelsblatt; Liberation from France; and Hindustan Times in India.

He said the new Gulf News has not changed in size and design only. There was a change in the way the news are being handled and presented to the readers. This also have an impact on readers and delivering the message of advertisers.

"Gulf News is the first in the region to have introduced 'silent ads' (or adverts placed inconspicuously in the newspaper, to reinforce the product message)."

Obaid Humaid Al Tayer, Managing Director, Gulf News, said that the development of the newspaper was made to maintain its position as a pioneer newspaper in the region.

"We've worked with the Garcia team for nine months, behind the scenes, and decided to launch the baby as a surprise to all our readers," he said.

He asserted the newspaper has come a long way since its early days, and is now looking beyond the Gulf to to become a truly regional player.

"In the exercise just completed we've sought to improve the design, and our challenge now is to work on further improving the content as well." Al Tayer added.