Le Monde and Le Figaro report today about the French Bild plans.
Axel Springer is hiring almost 300 people.
Investment for the first three years: 120 million euros ($155 million)
Launching date: between July and December 2007
Circulation: 500,000 copies.
President: Robin Leproux (comes from RTL)
CEO: Patrick Wehrmann.
Future editor: Remy Dessarts.
Managing editor: Didier Pouquery (former editor of Metro)
Art Director: Joseph Maggiori (ex Express-Expansion)
Formula: French Bild, “un grand juornal populaire d´information generale”
Model: The Polish Fakt.
What they want: 10,000 more selling points (France has 28,000)
Price: 0.50 euros ($0.65)
Reactions: Le Parisien is developing the so called “Kill Bild” project, and Le Monde is planning a low price “compact Le Monde”
My take: if it is really a quality popular newspaper it will be a success.
If it is a trashy one (Bild or Fakt), it will fail.
And, yes, a very agressive distribution is crucial.
As INNOVATION has been saying for the last few years: distribution and circulation are the black holes of the newspaper industry.
In France, too.