Loading

By Editor Morten B. Reitoft 

The Association for PRINT Technologies, APTech announced yesterday the acquisition of WhatTheyThink.com - congratulations to both of you. What that will mean to the American printing industry is a big question, as both organizations, for now, will continue as is. However, when PRINTING United acquired NAPCO years ago, it became clear how an organization owning a media outlet can utilize this to further communication to members - and for APTech, maybe more critical, NONE-members. For WhatTheyThink, perhaps more resources to continue developing content, and I would imagine more viewers/readers for the behind-the-payment-wall content. APTech will also be able to utilize the subscriber base for surveys and information and attract more members.

When I read the press release, I wasn't that surprised, to be honest. I also understand the value of the ownership the two companies will pursue. APTech states on its website that it's a purpose-driven organization and claims to support the entire value chain. APTech, formerly NPES, was the owner of the once-upon-a-time GraphExpo/Print tradeshows in Chicago. When it "lost" the war to PRINTING United, the organization, in my mind, had and maybe still has difficulties finding a real purpose.

With a renewed interest in shows, Amplify Print is an example that I believe will be something APTech will pursue as part of the offerings. Though I have been told that the number of attendees at Amplify Print is considerably lower than anticipated, the specialized events are one of the directions we evaluate will have a future! The post-covid time has already changed a lot. The cancellation of LabelExpo in Brussels is just one example!

For WhatTheyThink, it will, from my perspective, strengthen its position in North America. Still, it will also question their position as an "independent" media - as I find it interesting to see if NAPCO and WhatTheyThink will cover "each other's" events in the future. I doubt it, and it will be interesting to see if this will open for further consolidations - and if it will, who will win the hearts of the readers - and the marketing dollars!

INKISH welcome competition and will continue to deliver more, better, and faster information to the market. North America is an important market for INKISH, and the consolidation the above acquisition represents fuels us to be even better and grow our footprint - so congratulations to APTech and WhatTheyThink - we look forward to competing with you!

Add/View comments for this article →
2 Comments
user

user

Paul Sherfield

Owner

Morton There seems not to be a reply button on your reply to me. Of course feel free to call. You have my number on my email.

Wed March 13th

Trends in packaging con...

4 trends are emerging in 2024: AI, Sustainability, Automation and Talent.

Fri March 8th

Financing

Let's take a deep dive into financing and our very own CEO, Henrik Klem Lassen, who has a Master's Degree in Economics.

Mon March 4th

Hiflow solutions releas...

HiFlow Solutions releases free APP with packaging & imposition for estimators.

Thu February 29th

Printvis announces inte...

PrintVis, the business management MIS/ERP for the printing industry, announces its integration with LoyaltyLoop

Wed February 21st

Will you pay for ai-gen...

With AI, ChatGPT and Language Models it becomes more and more difficult to differentiate human-made from AI - does AI content have value?

Thu February 15th

How to get the most out...

You bought a system a while ago, how do you know you are getting your money's worth?

Wed February 14th

Designnbuy launches des...

Supercharge Your Web-to-Print Business with Unprecedented Personalization, Design Flexibility, and Efficiency

Sun February 11th

Graphic village on the ...

The recent Printing Impressions Top 300 has been an exciting study of how we see value in our industry.

Tue February 6th

Designo v1.8: revolutio...

Join Design’N’Buy for a FREE webinar and discover how their revolutionary technology DesignO V1.8 can transform your print business!

Fri January 19th

Ray stasieczko is a thr...

Keep up the good work, and accept that a stronger end-of-the-day-with-Ray will challenge you on many levels