Canada's Postmedia chain is to cut print production at three of its largest urban newspapers and will also erect paywalls at several titles.
The Toronto-based publisher will cease Sunday issues of the Calgary Herald, Edmonton Journal and Ottawa Citizen. It will also suspend Monday editions of the National Post during the summer months (as it has done since 2009).
After experimenting with a paywall in Montreal, it plans to charge for online access at its papers in Ottawa and Vancouver. And copy-editing functions are to be centralised in Hamilton, Ontario.
Chief executive Paul Godfrey told employees that the company "must accelerate the pace of change."
Postmedia is controlled by a number of investment groups including US-based Golden Tree Asset Management, which acquired the assets of the former Canwest Media for $1bn in 2010 and refinanced the company.
Although the new owners instituted a number of cost-cutting measures, the company lost $13m last year on revenues of just over $1bn, and carries a debt load of about $500m.
Sources: Globe&Mail/gigaom/Financial Post
