K Balaji of <i>The Hindu</i> to speak at Wan-Ifra meet

Kasturi Balaji, director of Kasturi & Sons, the publisher of The Hindu, one of India’s largest English language newspapers, will speak on newsprint waste management in a session devoted to ‘shaping the future of news publishing report’ at the inaugural conference of the World Printers Forum to be held in October in Amsterdam.

31 Jul 2014 | By Dibyajyoti Sarma

Balaji, a noted expert on technology and production, is also the chairman of the Wan-Ifra South Asia Committee.

The two-day conference, on 15 and 16 October, will focus on innovations in print from around the world, strategies for operating printing plans as independent profit centres, savings derived from environmental improvements or “going green,” the latest developments in digital printing, and more.

According to a spokesperson from the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (Wan-Ifra), the conference will be part of the World Publishing Expo, the largest global trade exhibition for the news publishing and media industry. The spokesperson said the World Printers Forum is a new initiative that will guide Wan-Ifra’s activities in all areas of newspaper production, materials and sustainability.

“There are still a lot of ideas to be discovered in print, which continues to provide most of the revenue for newspaper companies,” said Manfred Werfel, deputy chief executive officer, Wan--Ifra. “Though newspaper companies are focusing much of their development work on digital platforms, it’s important not to forget print, and the forum will provide a global platform for the exchange of ideas and best practices.”

The forum is one of several strategic conferences taking place in during the World Publishing Expo, which will run from 13 to 15 October. More than 8,000 visitors are expected to attend the expo and conferences, which features more than 300 exhibitors and more than 100 speakers.