Chur media house sends out "a strong signal
On Friday, the media company Somedia celebrated the opening of its new media center in the western part of the city of Chur with 120 guests from the worlds of politics and media. Federal Councilor Doris Leuthard described the new building as a «strong signal» for other regional publishing houses as well.
The new media house shows that those responsible at Somedia believe in the future of the media, said Federal Councillor Doris Leuthard in her welcoming address. Somedia had created something completely new with the integration of a degree course at the HTW University of Applied Sciences, and this cooperation was a bold step for both partners. Media research could open up new areas of business. She would like to express her respect and recognition for this. Conversely, the media house is the key to independence. The media minister emphasized that she would now like to see high-quality products from this company.
"Benchmarks in convergence"
The new building in the booming west of Chur impresses with its simple imposing appearance. The modern, light-flooded concrete building is home to 320 employees of Somedia, publisher of the daily newspaper Südostschweiz, among others, as well as 80 students of the HTW. When planning the building, great importance was attached to the concept with the three zones News, Commercial and Education. The new building sets "standards in convergence", said CEO Andrea Masüger. It is an open-plan building with just seven individual offices, held together by a large staircase. Not only a daily newspaper is produced in the building under the Südostschweiz umbrella brand. The online presence as well as radio and TV broadcasts are also produced there.
Representative building not only for Chur
Publisher Hanspeter Lebrument was proud of the completed work. A prestigious building has been created for Chur and the canton of Graubünden. The building concentrates no less than five previous Somedia locations in Chur, explained the President of the Swiss Publishers Association. The new media building has also attracted public interest. At the end of March, 6500 people took the opportunity to take a look inside the building at the open day. (SDA)
Image: Keystone
