Transport giants in paperchase
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• TNT, Newsflow and W H Smith are squaring up for battle in the market over national newspaper distribution contracts.
All three companies have been approached by national newspapers interested in switching their distribution from road to rail (like the News International titles) and ll three have provided detailed quotes.
Tom Bell, general manager A TNT Newsfast, says he is confident that the company will 3e able to make announcements about further national iewspaper distribution contracts in the near future. 'Whether it is in one week or tree months I can't say, but Ne are confident because roads are more cost effective, afficient and flexible than rail."
Bell says his company would offer dedicated distribution to other national newspaper publishers, because the timings of newspapers and distribution centres tend to vary.
Peter Norville is transport manager for W H Smith Wholesale, which handles the roadand rail-based distribution of The Independent newspaper launched last October. His company uses Liverpoolbased Nightfreight for the road part of The Independent contract, and he estimates that 60% of copies are distributed by road alone.
Norville says he is considering switching entirely to road distribution if the national newspaper publishers opt for road distribution: "If more publishers pull out of rail then it's inevitable we will have to make a move towards roadonly distribution," he says. W H Smith Wholesale is offering national newspapers the options of mixed road and rail distribution, which allows for sorting work on long-distance trains, and of dedicated and non-dedicated distribution, which could provide savings.
The newest distribution company, Newsflow, delivers the London Daily News around London. When it was launched in February, the NFC subsidiary pledged to concentrate on getting London right, but the growing interest of the nationals in road distribution is tempting the company to look to national distribution.
Newsflow's Doug Cartin says that in common with most transport companies, his company has had discussions with publishers for some months. Newsflow would like to distribute magazines as well, he says.