Commuter newspaper 20 minutes launched on Wednesday
The free newspaper for western Switzerland, published by Tamedia, has a daily circulation of about 120,000 copies and will have to hold its own in the market alongside Le Matin Bleu.
The French-speaking Swiss commuter newspaper 20 minutes, published by Tamedia, was launched on Wednesday. As with the regional editions of 20 Minuten in German-speaking Switzerland, 20 minutes also offers two pages of local news every day in addition to the domestic and foreign news sections, according to the Zurich-based publishing house. There are regional editions for Lausanne, Geneva and other cities. The average size of 20 minutes will be 32 to 36 pages, and the free newspaper will be produced by an editorial team of around 40 people from French-speaking Switzerland under the leadership of Managing Director Joseph Crisci and Editor-in-Chief Philippe Favre. Around 120,000 copies are distributed daily, mainly in the Lake Geneva region, in almost 130 boxes at SBB stations, around 250 boxes at public transport locations and via other distribution channels. The newspaper boxes for 20 minutes and Le Matin Bleu are located next to each other at railroad stations and stops in Geneva and Lausanne. The target audience is also the same: commuters aged between 15 and 35. According to a report by SDA, 20 minutes has four years to get into the black.
The internet edition 20minutes.ch was launched at the same time as the print edition. Following the example of the Swiss-German edition, Tamedia intends to use proven editorial and commercial cross-media opportunities in French-speaking Switzerland as well.
20 minutes will have to assert itself against its rival newspaper Le Matin Bleu, published by Edipresse. Le Matin Bleu has been on the market since last fall. According to SDA, Peter Rothenbühler, editorial director at Le Matin, said in an interview with the trade journal Schweizer Journalist that French-speaking Switzerland is a mini-market, but that his publishing house Edipresse makes a good living from it. Fine-tuning is the problem with a free newspaper. The advantage of a nationwide base of 20 minutes is small, a free newspaper earns its money regionally.
As far as the newspaper boxes are concerned, SBB has already asked Edipresse to procure a newspaper box of the same size as 20 minutes in order to create a uniform image in the stations. Edipresse is now planning to replace 150 of the 650 Le Matin Bleu boxes for the stations for the time being. Edipresse is currently obtaining offers. The 20 minutes boxes are more conspicuous and larger. An Edipresse employee caused a minor stir on Tuesday when he dismantled a 20 minutes newspaper box - to measure it because it was too cold outside.
The internet edition 20minutes.ch was launched at the same time as the print edition. Following the example of the Swiss-German edition, Tamedia intends to use proven editorial and commercial cross-media opportunities in French-speaking Switzerland as well.
20 minutes will have to assert itself against its rival newspaper Le Matin Bleu, published by Edipresse. Le Matin Bleu has been on the market since last fall. According to SDA, Peter Rothenbühler, editorial director at Le Matin, said in an interview with the trade journal Schweizer Journalist that French-speaking Switzerland is a mini-market, but that his publishing house Edipresse makes a good living from it. Fine-tuning is the problem with a free newspaper. The advantage of a nationwide base of 20 minutes is small, a free newspaper earns its money regionally.
As far as the newspaper boxes are concerned, SBB has already asked Edipresse to procure a newspaper box of the same size as 20 minutes in order to create a uniform image in the stations. Edipresse is now planning to replace 150 of the 650 Le Matin Bleu boxes for the stations for the time being. Edipresse is currently obtaining offers. The 20 minutes boxes are more conspicuous and larger. An Edipresse employee caused a minor stir on Tuesday when he dismantled a 20 minutes newspaper box - to measure it because it was too cold outside.
