A first-of-its-kind conference for the free daily newspaper industry is being organized by Gansevoort Media, a newspaper product development company headed by former Metro International guys Henry Scott and Johan Hansson. The confab is set for June 18 and 19 in St. Petersburg, Fla., and is being hosted by the St. Petersburg Times, publisher of the free daily tbt* and the paid daily Tampa Bay Times. Topics include distribution techniques, using reader-generated content, advertiser response, publishing in a non-commuter market and the latest from Europe, where the free daily trend is bigger. For more information on the conference, e-mail Gansevoort Media. The early bird regisration fee is $325 until Monday, April 30. Organizers have arranged for a special $179-a-night room rate at the Renaissance Vinoy Resort & Golf Club in St. Petersburg (pictured), where the conference is taking place.
The organizers also say that "attendance will guarantee a 10 percent discount on your membership in the Association of Free Daily Newspapers, which currently is in formation." No more information is available about this new group.
