UBM Canon Announces Online Strategy for Plastics Industry Media Brands

LOS ANGELES, March 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- UBM Canon, the leading B2B media company dedicated exclusively to the global $3.0 trillion advanced manufacturing sector, announced today that it is refocusing its plastics industry media business exclusively on a multi-channel, online strategy via its leading brand PlasticsToday.com. The move aligns with UBM Canon Publishing's focus on digital-first products that inform and empower advanced manufacturing communities and platforms connecting buyers with sellers.

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"Media consumption across all industries has changed and the plastics industry is no different," said Stephen Corrick, Vice President and Executive Director of UBM Canon Publishing. "Plastics professionals throughout the world have identified the Internet as their primary source of business information and the preference for digital media is even more pronounced in the industry's fastest-growing markets of China, Brazil and India."

Corrick continued, "The time is right for UBM Canon to take the lead and dedicate all of our resources to the channels that best serve our audience of plastics professionals and deliver return on marketing investment to our customers."

A cornerstone of UBM Canon's strategy to grow its offering in the plastics market is to leverage UBM's leading technology platforms, including UBM Studios (the world's leading virtual event provider) and Qmed.com (the world's leading medical device supplier sourcing platform). UBM Canon will also take advantage of UBM's global infrastructure, particularly in Asia and South America, to expand its reach and targeted content for key emerging markets.

Jason Brown, Vice President of Digital Media for UBM Canon, stated, "We are excited to focus our deep plastics industry knowledge, digital media expertise and investment on the media channels that allow us to truly inform, empower and engage the global plastics community. This is a natural transition for our products in the plastics market and one that allows us to partner with our clients to build highly customized, results-driven programs targeting key market segments."

The product portfolio includes e-newsletters, virtual conferences and tradeshows, webcasts and online seminars, and an enhanced PlasticsToday.com website that will feature:

• Market-focused channels and newsletters for Automotive & Mobility, Medical, Packaging, and Electronics & Electrical
• Technology-focused channels and newsletters on Auxiliaries, Tooling, Injection Molding, Extrusion, and Additives & Resins
• Webinar series for Automotive & Mobility, Medical, Packaging, and Electronics & Electrical
• Monthly chats with experts focused on industry trends and technology developments

UBM Canon will launch a new site, ResinPricingToday.com, and will host its first virtual event and tradeshow in July.  

"We will continue to be the trusted and leading source of business-critical information and plastics processing technology insights, but by leveraging online and digital, we can deliver more content, more perspectives, and more data to more plastics processing professionals throughout the world," said Editorial Director Matt Defosse. "Through a multi-faceted content approach that includes high-quality editorial, vendor-supplied information, and user-generated content, PlasticsToday will be the first true online plastics community."

Jason Brown, Vice President of Digital Media for UBM Canon, will lead PlasticsToday. Editorial Director Matt Defosse will lead the content team and John Guadagno, Sales Director, will lead the account team.

As part of the restructuring, the last print editions of Injection Molding Magazine and Modern Plastics Worldwide will be published in April. Injection Molding and Modern Plastics Worldwide will continue to deliver content via branded e-newsletters and the PlasticsToday.com website.

About UBM Canon

UBM Canon, the leading B2B media company dedicated exclusively to the global $3.0 trillion advanced manufacturing sector, helps support the flow of information, commerce and innovation in such sophisticated segments as medical devices and pharmaceutical development. UBM Canon also addresses cutting-edge developments in broader areas of advanced engineering design and manufacturing, and manufacturing processes and packaging. UBM Canon is part of UBM (UBM.L) a global provider of media and information services for professional B2B communities and markets. For more information, go to www.ubmcanon.com.

About United Business Media Limited

UBM (UBM.L) focuses on two principal activities: worldwide information distribution, targeting and monitoring; and, the development and monetization of B2B communities and markets. UBM's businesses inform markets and serve professional commercial communities -- from doctors to game developers, from journalists to jewelry traders, from farmers to pharmacists -- with integrated events, online, print and business information products. Our 6,500 staff in more than 30 countries are organized into specialist teams that serve these communities, bringing buyers and sellers together, helping them to do business and their markets to work effectively and efficiently. For more information, go to www.ubm.com.

SOURCE UBM Canon