The NewsMarket

The NewsMarket is a New York headquarted company that provides video news releases and b-roll footage to news outlets. In July 2009, the NewsMarket announced that it was purchasing the largest U.S. broadcast public relations firm, Medialink Worldwide.

On November 10, 2006, Broadcast & Cable reported that "Andrew Heyward, former president of CBS News, has joined the board of The NewsMarket," whose clients "include the State Department, Microsoft, GM, and AOL. News organizations using the service include CNN, Fox News, AP, and NYTimes.com." 

On its website the company states that its web delivery system of video news footage was designed to "enable news professionals to harness the power and immediacy of the Internet to more efficiently source video and other multimedia content." In a September 2007 press release, the company said its video material was used by "more than 13,000 separate media outlets in 193 countries." Clients mentioned included Microsoft, McDonald's, Volvo Cars and Nintendo. 

The NewsMarket has hired Warner Communications as its PR company. 

Fake news advice
In March 2008, The NewsMarket stated it "is seeing certain trends emerge in terms of what content newsrooms – both TV and online are looking for. We expect that in the next six months, demand for these topics will increase dramatically and recommend that PR pros plan accordingly."

The five hot "fake news" topics for 2008 identified by the firm are:
 * Economic issues, especially "personal finance tips and mortgage advice" for local outlets and "predictions and macro-economic views by industry experts, academics, and CEOs" for national outlets;
 * Environmental issues, especially "climate change and energy," and "companies and organizations ... promoting their 'green' initiatives";
 * U.S. presidential election, especially "issue-specific video around healthcare, the economy, and education, a great opportunity for companies and special-interest groups who want to tell their side of the story";
 * Beijing Olympics Games and China in general, including "US or European companies and their activities in China"; and
 * Emerging world markets, especially "India and China, but also the United Arab Emirates and Russia" and "U.S. companies who produce or sell their products and services in these markets."

Clients
One its website the company states that news organizations that have registerd to use its service include CNN, CNBC, BBC, EuroNews, Bloomberg TV and Reuters Television.  "The NewsMarket currently boasts registered users at more than 4,000 media organizations in 75 countries," it stated in early 2006. Broadcasting & Cable also identified Fox News as using footage from The NewsMarket. 

In early 2006 it boasted in a media release of a surge in media interest. "News outlets requested more than 128,000 clips from The NewsMarket in 2005, an increase of nearly 95 percent over the year before. The number of news outlets that source video from The NewsMarket also grew -- from 4,000 to 7,500 during the year -- an increase of nearly 90 percent ... The number of requests from the top 25 media outlets in the world tripled in 2005," it stated. 

It also states that clients include "top tier global organizations such as General Motors, Intel, adidas, Motorola, Rolls-Royce and the U.S. Department of State who rely on The NewsMarket to manage their broadcast media relations more efficiently and cost-effectively." 

It also lists some of its "content providers" as including Nokia, Roche, BMW, the American Lung Association and palmOne. Other "content providers" identifed by Broadcasting & Cable were AOL, Nissan, Volvo, International Monetary Fund, ITT, Pfizer Inc, Medtronic, the U.S. State Department, U.K. Ministry of Defense and Schering Plough. 

Partnering with Burson-Marsteller
In July 2006, The NewsMarket announced a new partnership with the global PR firm Burson-Marsteller. "This partnership enables Burson to offer its clients a highly scalable, fully integrated solution to market and deliver digital content to journalists, new and emerging news platforms, and direct-to-consumers globally in local languages," read the press release. "This marks the first time a PR agency will offer a comprehensive, integrated strategic counsel capability with a digital content management and distribution platform that will enable turn-key execution for clients." 

"Empowering" through wikis
In March 2007, The NewsMarket announced its new "comprehensive user-generated editorial news calendar wiki." The wiki was launched as open only "to clients and registered media users of The NewsMarket, but it's designed to be an entirely public wiki forum to plan editorial efforts, initiatives and coverage," according to the company's press release. The company wants the wiki to provide "a current-events repository" and "a roster of organization-based activities," and to "help point journalists to available video content on The NewsMarket." 

The same press release also announced "Talk!, an online messaging tool for journalists to reach out directly to company PR professionals via an online query form." 

Video for bloggers
In August 2007, The NewsMarket announced "VideoCafe," an online platform offering "video content from major companies and international organizations to bloggers to use on their blogs. Footage available for embedding into blogs comes from Google, Yahoo, Intel, Nintendo, AOL, Dell, and Dow Chemical," according to WebProNews. "VideoCafe is currently in beta and video will be available on an invitation-only basis," added the article. 

The article also mentioned that The NewsMarket receives "30,000 requests per month for video clips from global news media." 

Expanding into India
In December 2007, The NewsMarket announced its partnership with "VJIVE Networks, India's largest digital media network." A company press release explained:
 * The partnership will see The NewsMarket supplying VJIVE Networks with access to thousands of video clips from hundreds of leading global brands. VJIVE Networks will edit and broadcast the content on its video screens across India, including Subhiksha, one of the country's largest retail chains with 700+ stores nationwide, the 350+ franchises of The Mobile Store, as well as Gold's Gym.


 * India's retail market, one of the country's fastest-growing industries, is expected to grow from $350 billion to $427 billion by 2010 according to Euromonitor and offers even bigger growth opportunities than China.

Expanding into the Middle East
In March 2008, The NewsMarket announced its partnership with "JiWin, one of the Middle East's leading communications agencies and a division of the Media Services Group." In a press release, the firm said it "and JiWin will advise companies and organizations across the United Arab Emirates and the Gulf Cooperation Council States (GCC) on how to promote their brand and product messages globally using video."

The release also stated that The NewsMarket "plans to open its first office in Dubai in March 2008 to service its local customers and media users. The company has also announced the launch of its Dubai Channel which will compile and market video about UAE and Gulf State-based organizations and make it available to journalists and online audiences globally. The Dubai Channel follows the successful launch of the India Channel (www.thenewsmarket.com/india) around the India@60 campaign in 2007."

Critique
On the "News Videographer" blog, Angela Grant critically reviewed video available from The NewsMarket:
 * What are these free "stories" we can get from TheNewsMarket?


 * Cybercriminals are becoming more professional. This story is provided by Symantec. Guess we should all run out and buy Norton products.
 * Athsma patients better using combined maintenance and reliever therapy. This one by AstraZeneca. Guess we should buy their medicines.
 * Footage available from Halliburton. Source: Halliburton. Hmm … I wonder what types of images they would decide to include in here?


 * ... I think it’s really important that newspaper video people never succumb to using PR video. It’s not honest.

Personnel

 * Shoba Purushothaman President, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder
 * Steven Schwartz Chief Operating Officer
 * Matthew Thomson Senior Vice President, Global Operations
 * Krish Menon Chief Technology Officer
 * Romina Rosado Managing Director, Europe

Contact details
6 East 32nd Street, 6th Floor New York, NY 10016 USA Toll free (USA): 888.887.0886 T: +1.212.497.9022 F: +1.212.497.9045 Web: http://www.thenewsmarket.com/

Related SourceWatch articles

 * Bluetooth Special Interest Group
 * Fake news
 * B-Roll
 * Medialink Worldwide
 * Video news releases
 * Burson-Marsteller

External articles

 * Shoba Purushothaman, "OP-ED: PR must move past VNRs and embrace new technology", PR Week, May 30, 2005. (Sub req'd.)
 * Eric Iacono, "NewsMarket gives journalists access to clips of experts", PR Week, June 6, 2005.(Sub req'd.)
 * "The NewsMarket Reports Digital Delivery of Broadcast-Standard Video Hits New Record: Number of Media Outlets Accessing Video Digitally Tops 7,500 in 2005, Company Says", Primezone, Media Release, January 24, 2006.
 * John Eggerton, "B-Roll on a Roll," Broadcasting & Cable, January 25, 2006.
 * The NewsMarket, "Bluetooth SIG Introduces Online BroadcastRoom to Provide Broadcast-Standard Video On Demand to Journalists", Media Release, February 8, 2006.
 * Press release, "Burson-Marsteller Partners with The NewsMarket to Create Proprietary Digital Capability for Clients; Provides Turn-Key Digital Content Delivery to Media and Consumers Globally," July 31, 2006.
 * John Eggerton, VNR Company Adds Ex-CBS News President, Broadcasting & Cable, November 10, 2006.
 * Press release, "The NewsMarket Launches Editorial Calendar Wiki and Online Messaging Tool for Journalists: New Community Features for Global Media & Content Providers," The NewsMarket via Market Wire, March 12, 2007.
 * Kim Peterson, "Former CBS News exec: TV news struggling," Seattle Times, April 26, 2007. An interview with former CBS News president turned board member of The NewsMarket Andrew Heyward
 * Press release, "'Green' News Video Site Launched: Exclusive Channel for Environment-Focused Video on www.thenewsmarket.com/green," The NewsMarket via MarketWire, May 30, 2007.
 * Mike Sachoff, "VideoCafe To Offer Video Content To Bloggers," WebProNews, August 8, 2007.
 * Angela Grant, "PR video - Is there a place in newspaper video?," News Videographer blog, September 19, 2007.
 * Press release, "Leading International News Agencies Join The NewsMarket in Launching First Global Exchange for Original and Hard-to-Find Editorial Video," The NewsMarket via Market Wire, October 30, 2007.
 * Press release, "Corporate Video Spend on TV and Branded Sites Jumps in 2007: The NewsMarket Predicts Corporate Communications and Marketing Professionals Will Decrease Focus on User-Generated Video Sites in 2008," The NewsMarket via Market Wire, January 31, 2008.
 * Press release, "Leveraging Olympic Spotlight, Marketers Turn to News Video: The NewsMarket Reports Record-Breaking Uploads of Olympics News Video by Corporate Marketers and Institutions," The NewsMarket via Market Wire, August 18, 2008.
 * "Release of Torture Memos Shows Administration Has Passed First Test on Transparency, Panel Discussion Finds," (panel hosted by the NewsMarket on the Obama administration's first 100 days), Salford Online, undated, accessed May 2009.
 * Tonya Garcia, "UPDATED: The NewsMarket to acquire Medialink," PR Week, July 1, 2009.
 * David Kaplan, "Video Distributor TheNewsMarket To Acquire Medialink," paidContent, July 2, 2009.