Annual Report to Shareholders 1996

Review of Operations

The beginning of the year saw welcome falls of rain right around the seaboard in Western Australia, South Australia, Victoria and southern NSW. Much needed rains in Queensland and northern NSW did not come until early in 1996. The rain led to bumper grain crops which gave rural economies a welcome boost.

Although the rains lifted the spirits of the many communities who had experienced dry weather for so many years, the year in review was particularly harsh for small business throughout Australia. Both the Christmas and Easter retailing periods were poor. Federal Election uncertainty and Government rationalisation in country areas were contributors to the flat retailing experience.

Despite this, private enterprise continues to show some confidence in country towns, with the major international, IBM locating their South Pacific headquarters service centre at Ballarat and Ansett their national reservations centre at Launceston. At year's end Western Mining confirmed that the Olympic Dam project would go ahead at Roxby Downs in South Australia with the promise of major population growth.

The Division's major initiative was paid circulation growth. Paid circulations grew in the Great Lakes Advocate in Forster, Armidale Express, Whyalla News, Port Lincoln Times, and Victor Harbor Times, and the success at the Port Macquarie News continued. The circulation development programme will be broadened to include other paid newspapers in the Division.

Circulation initiatives were assisted by publishing major quality features which were shared by newspapers in geographically related markets. For example, there were special publications in many papers for the 50th anniversary of the end of the war in the Pacific, innovative newspaper in education features were shared on the Mururoa Atoll nuclear testing controversy and at the end of the year for the Atlanta Olympic Games.

Overall, classified and local advertising volumes, the Division's main sources of revenue, were below previous years' levels. Pleasing gains were made in the national and national chain categories of advertising, following the investment in press upgrades to ensure quality run-of-press colour is available to advertisers.

In addition, special publications and advertising campaigns were mounted for new shopping centres over a diverse area from Rockhampton to Cleveland in Queensland, Port Macquarie, Forster and the central coast in NSW, Ballarat in Victoria and Whyalla and Port Augusta in South Australia.

The Division's long experience in telemarketing continues to build advertising sales around Australia. Workshops for more than 65 of the Division's telemarketers were held in Brisbane, Port Macquarie, Tamworth, Sydney, Adelaide and Perth. Sales from this service have shown impressive growth in recent years.

The Division created a number of new publications including a new fortnightly quarterfold publication to serve the growing South West Rocks area of NSW, a better business publication to serve the north coast of NSW, a coloured weekly television guide for the New England of NSW, a new weekly paid newspaper for the Moora and Wongan Hills districts of Western Australia, a networked supplement "Fresh Eyre" for the Eyre Peninsula in South Australia and a new free weekly, "The Southern Star", on the Fleurieu Peninsula of South Australia.

Special quality colour publications for local business directories, local phone books, master builders' guides, directories of industry and a fax directory supported newspaper publishing initiatives in all states, but notably in Queensland, NSW and Victoria.

The Division continued its support for its advertising clients conducting successful training seminars for more than 100 real estate agents at Newcastle, the north coast of NSW and in Queensland.

Newspapers continued their policy of supporting major community activities. The Port Lincoln Times' Christmas giveaway attracted 55,000 entries, up 20% on last year and the Ballarat Courier's car giveaway promotion attracted 25,000 entries. Another example of strong community involvement was the Maitland Mercury's sponsorship of the Annual Steamfest Festival which attracted 40,000 people to the city.

Rural Press continued its investment in state-of-the-art technology with pre-press upgrades at Ballarat, Launceston, Gympie, Tamworth and Port Lincoln. The major upgrades will continue in the new year with state of the art technology scheduled for Maitland and Newcastle in the Hunter Valley, Morwell and Sale in Victoria, Whyalla, Cleve and Ceduna in South Australia.

The Division's first four colour sheet-fed commercial printing press was installed at Port Macquarie to produce colour covers for the many special publications the company is producing throughout Australia and a two colour press was installed at Ararat in Victoria to serve the growing demands of that marketplace, the Victorian wine industry.

The Division added to its network of paid newspapers in country South Australia with the acquisition of the Tilbrook family's Northern Argus of Clare. The Argus borders with the Division's existing publication, The Barossa and Light Herald, based at Tanunda, giving the Division publications in the premier wine regions of South Australia.

In Western Australia, growth continued with the acquisition of the weekly paid publication the Avon Valley Advocate based in Northam.In addition, the Crookwell Gazette, a 110 year old weekly paid newspaper, was added to the company's mastheads.

Regional Publications

NEW SOUTH WALES

• Great Lakes Advocate
• Manning-Great Lakes Extra
• Manning River Times
• Wingham Chronicle
• Port Macquarie Express
• Port Macquarie News
• South West Rocks News
• Hastings Happenings
• Camden Haven Courier
• Hastings Gazette
• Macleay Argus
• Midcoast Observer
• Nambucca Guardian News
• Hibiscus Happynings
• Great Lakes Happenings
• Armidale Express
• Country Leader
• Guyra Argus
• Inverell Times
• New Englander
• Northern Daily Leader
• Tamworth City Times
• Tenterfield Star
• Walcha News
• Nornews Rural
• Glen Innes Examiner
• Nota
• Maitland Mercury
• Muswellbrook Chronicle
• Newcastle Star
• Newcastle Times
• Scone Advocate
• Singleton Argus
• Town & Country Magazine
• Hunter Valley News
• Hunter Valley Star News
• Gloucester Advocate
• Dungog Chronicle
• Cessnock Advertiser
• Blue Mountains Gazette
• Hawkesbury Gazette
• Hawkesbury Courier
• Queanbeyan Age
• Eastern Riverina Observer
• Cootamundra Herald
• Holbrook Chronicle
• Harden Murrumburrah Express
• Boorowa News

VICTORIA

• Ballarat Courier
• Ballarat News
• Ararat Advertiser
• Stawell Times-News
• Gippsland Times and Maffra Spectator
• Latrobe Valley Express
• Moe and Narracan Shire News
• Mirboo North Times
• Traralgon Journal

QUEENSLAND

• Gympie Times
• Leisuretime
• Cooloola Coast News
• Cooloola Lifestyle
• Bayside Bulletin
• Redland Times
• Capricorn Local News
• Nambour District Chronicle
• Noosa Citizen
• Sunshine Coast Citizen
• Ipswich Advertiser

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

• The Murray Valley Standard
• Port Lincoln Times
• West Coast Sentinel
• The Barossa & Light Herald
• Whyalla News
• The Flinders News
• The Transcontinental
• The Recorder
• Spencer Gulf Pictorial
• Leisuretime
• Eyre Peninsula Tribune
• Northern Sun
• The Victor Harbor Times
• The Great Southern Star
• On The Coast
• The Islander
• The Northern Argus

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

• Augusta Margaret River Mail
• Avon Valley Advocate
• Bunbury Mail
• Collie Mail
• Donnybrook - Balingup Mail
• Bridgetown - Greenbushes Mail
• Mandurah Mail
• Merredin Wheatbelt Mercury
• Central Midlands Advocate
• Wagin Argus
• Esperance Express
• Xpress Weekly

TASMANIA

• Launceston Examiner
• Sunday Examiner
• Launceston Week
• Suncoast News
• Tamar Times

Travelways