Wall Street Journal to publish Compact versions

Televisionpoint.com Team
The Wall Street Journal's Asian and European editions will publish an eight-page reader's guide to the compact on Monday, October 10, providing a first glimpse of the redesigned, compact versions of the Journal's international editions and full content integration between the print and online editions. In both Asia and Europe, The Wall Street Journal is the first pan-regional, English-language daily to move to a compact, fully-integrated format.

The guide, which is in the same format as the redesigned Journal, will walk readers through the format changes they can expect to see when the new compact editions launch October 17. These changes will include a blend of in-depth journalism and shorter news articles; enhanced navigational tools; new headline styles and a new typeface; increased color; and enhanced and simplified links between the print and online editions of the Journal. Personal Journal, the weekly leisure and lifestyle section currently published on Fridays, will be enhanced following the recent launch of The Wall Street Journal's Weekend Edition in the U.S. and renamed "Weekend Journal".

The reader's guide contains many of the unique design elements of the new-look compact and features the Journal's distinctive "What's News" column that has been the focal point of the newspaper's front page since the column was started more than 70 years ago. It will continue to occupy this space in the reformatted international editions.

The guide also features a front-page letter from the Journal's publisher, Karen Elliott House, outlining how the more convenient compact print publication will be integrated with WSJ.com - the Journal's award-winning Online edition - to offer readers a full business news and information package 24 hours a day, seven days a week. It also showcases the recently unveiled nameplate: a WSJ.com watermark behind The Wall Street Journal name. In addition, the guide will contain advertising - including a front-page position that is one of the unique features of the new-look international editions.

"The guide will give our readers a preview of what they can expect when the new compact format launches the following week," said Reginald Chua, editor of The Asian Wall Street Journal. "Starting October 17, they'll find many of the hallmark features of the Journal that they love are still there but in a fresher, more accessible format".

The centerspread of the guide is an article written by Dr. Mario Garcia, chief executive officer of Garcia Media and lead designer on the Journal's conversion to compact. He says that by the end of this year, nearly 40% of the world's daily newspapers will be printed in compact format - up from less than one-third two years ago. More than 200,000 copies of the reader's guide will be printed this week, and will be inserted into copies of The Asian Wall Street Journal and The Wall Street Journal Europe on October 10.