Worldnow Has Record Year with Over 130 Station Deals

NEW YORK, Feb. 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --  Worldnow, the leading online technology, content and revenue-solutions company for local media, has announced they wrapped up 2011 with multi-year extensions with Raycom Media and Young Broadcasting. This caps a record year where Worldnow extended deals with almost 90 stations and formed new partnerships with 46 stations, covering 25 broadcast groups in total. 

"We are excited to have the opportunity to continue supporting both Raycom Media and Young Broadcasting as they aggressively seek to grow their digital businesses," said Craig Smith, EVP Sales and Distribution for Worldnow. "2011 was truly an exceptional year and it is a testament to the advancements we continue to make with our publishing platforms, the revenue we are helping our customers create and the effectiveness of our strategic support to grow audience on all platforms, TV, web and mobile."

Raycom Media renewed 39 stations while Young Broadcasting renewed eight stations. Both continue to utilize Worldnow's website and video publishing platforms that lead the way with publishing workflow and ease-of-use. Additionally, both work with Worldnow's national and local sales support for revenue generation.

"Worldnow's 13 years in the business continues to help us transform our business in this digital era," said Deborah McDermott, President of Young Broadcasting. "We did extensive due diligence and Worldnow continues to be a leader in the field for web content management and has consistently shown their unwavering commitment to helping us grow our digital business.  Their unified system integrates directly with our newsrooms and provides a hands-on approach to customer service and creative ad sales programs."

"Worldnow has made significant strides in opening up their publishing platforms to give us the control we need to grow our business," said Pat LaPlatney, Vice President of Digital Media for Raycom Media. "They also lead the field with a simplified workflow, automation and integrations into critical legacy systems. This is allowing our newsrooms to work more closely together by having a system that makes it easy to contribute. We are now able to have 30 or more people in each of our newsrooms creating better content for our local communities and continued growth for our site and mobile platforms. Their well-integrated solution makes our workflow very easy and helps us tell great stories, allowing for a higher level of engagement and makes a significant difference in driving ratings, web audience and revenue."

"For the past 13 years our goal has been to have the web increase our broadcasters brand and loyalty in their market," said Gary Gannaway, President and CEO of Worldnow. "We are so excited with the development of the local marketplace and understand that our strategic guidance, innovative sales programs and training, and customer service make us a leader in this space."

The following groups extended agreements with Worldnow in 2011:

• Allbritton Communications
• Block Communications
• Cowles California Media
• COX Television
• Dispatch Broadcast Group
• Draper Communications
• Duhamel Broadcasting
• Lockwood Broadcasting
• Midwest Television
• Pappas Television
• Raycom Media
• Saga Communications
• WCAX TV
• Young Broadcasting

The following groups formed new partnerships with Worldnow in 2011:

• Davis Television
• Grant Television
• Heritage Broadcasting
• Hoak Media
• Lilly Broadcasting
• London Broadcasting
• Meredith
• New Age Media
• Reiten Television
• Sagamore Hill Broadcasting
• West Virginia Media

About Worldnow
Worldnow provides industry leading online publishing and revenue solutions for local media. Our cost efficient publishing platforms include innovative CMS solutions for site management, video and mobile publishing. Our online revenue solutions include a national advertising network, packaged local sales programs, classifieds and comprehensive sales training and support. Our online media, technology, and marketing teams have extensive experience in helping local media companies build profitable businesses on the Web. We support our technologies and services with in-depth strategic consultation incorporating market leading best practices for managing successful online businesses. Our full service solutions and support enable our clients to realize greater real-world profitability from their investment. Leverage our experience built over 13 years in partnership with more than 400 local media properties. Current Worldnow customers include: Allbritton, CBS Local Digital Media, Cox, Dispatch, Fisher, Gray, Griffin, Heritage Broadcasting, Hoak Media, Landmark, Lilly Broadcasting, Londen Media Group, London Broadcasting, Max Media, Meredith, New Age Media, Quincy, Raycom Media, Reiten TV, Sagamore Hill, Titan, Waterman, West Virginia Media, and Young Broadcasting. For more information please visit www.Worldnow.com.

SOURCE Worldnow