On the 20th and 21st of May, ppi Media GmbH hosted its annual ppi Days. Representatives of media companies from around the world reported on their publishing strategies and digital trends.

May 24, 2019. This year’s event marked the 19th ppi Days in the history of 35 years ppi Media. The software producer for the publishing and media industry welcomed more than 100 representatives and leaders from well-known publishing houses and media companies at the Hotel Hafen Hamburg. The two-day-program included presentations on strategies and workflow processes of national and international media companies such as Egmont Publishing from Norway and Advance Local from the United States.

Content Stays King

One focus of the program was the practical application of the editorial system Content-X by ppi Media and Digital Collections. SÜDKURIER Deputy Editor in Chief Günter Ackermann, for example, talked about how the publishing house uses Content-X to create their digital strategy and to successfully publish their visual stories online and on mobile devices. Morten Hansen and Ingunn Kristiansen from Egmont Publishing, Norway’s largest publishing house, demonstrated how Content- X optimizes production in an environment with many freelancers and a medium- neutral content management across different publications.

Freedom of the Press and New Business Models

Overall the program of this year’s ppi Days was marked especially by its diversity: Senator h.c. Valdo Lehari Jr. spoke on the current development of freedom of the press and media politics in Germany and Europe; Bernd Riffel, the CEO of Print and Logistics at Mittelbayerischen Verlag, showed how the media company was able to develop new business models with the help of the Business Unit Innovation by ppi Media and innovative methods; Matt Flemming, Enterprise Director of Creative Production and Prepress at Advance Local, the third largest publishing house in the United States, explained how the corporation organizes the production of more than 180 print publications at 14 different printing locations using ppi Media software solutions.

Established Meeting Point for Media Producers

Every year, the ppi Days are visited not only by ppi Media customers but are also a meeting point for media producers from all over Germany and the world. “We are excited to see how much positive feedback our event receives,” says Claus Harders, SVP Key Accounts. “Our customers value not only the program with all the presentations but also the constructive exchange with numerous colleagues from the media industry. During these times of declining visitation rates of trade shows and industry events, our ppi Days have a great standing. We are already looking forward immensely to next year.” Next year’s ppi Days are planned for June 8-9, 2020 in Hamburg.