LONDON, United Kingdom and AUSTIN, Texas – May 19, 2009 – Pluck® Corporation, a subsidiary of Demand Media and the industry-leading provider of social media capabilities to publishers, brands and retailers, today announced that thelondonpaper, a widely read United Kingdom newspaper targeting 18-35 year-olds, read by over 1 million people every week day, and owned by News Corp, has selected Pluck’s SiteLife® platform to power social media interactions across its website. Already a must-read among hip twentysomethings, thelondonpaper is using social media to make even stronger connections with this influential young audience. Since deploying Pluck’s features in early April, the londonpaper has already experienced 24 times more social media engagement among its readers on its website.
Using Pluck’s SiteLife platform, thelondonpaper is the first newspaper in the UK to implement Facebook Connect. Pluck’s support for Facebook Connect is an example of “Social Syndication,” where digital destinations not only offer a social experience to their readers, but also enable those readers to expose their broad circles of friends to the destination’s social experience. Pluck’s platform makes it easy for thelondonpaper readers to share information with their friends via Facebook Feed and through requests and notifications. In addition, a user’s comments on thelondonpaper’s blogs and forums will also be posted directly to their profiles on Facebook, which has seen an uplift of 40 percent in traffic since implementation.
“thelondonpaper captures the attention of an on-the-go audience that is notoriously difficult to reach, so it is important that our readers feel we are offering an experience that makes their lives easier,” said Saalim Chowdhury, head of digital product, thelondonpaper. “Pluck’s deep expertise in implementing social media solutions for international media organizations was a huge factor in our decision. The explosion of social media has significantly changed the way young adults get information. By incorporating Pluck’s solutions onto our website, our readers feel confident we are their premier destination for the latest news and events that are important to them.”
The Pluck social media implementation comes on the heels of a re-launch of thelondonpaper website, completed with the help of UK-based software developer Assanka. Pluck’s social media solutions have been implemented on the new site across all sections ranging from news and sports to entertainment and fashion, giving readers the opportunity to participate in forums, make comments, post videos and photos, and connect with each other.
According to Steve Semelsberger, senior vice president and general manager of Pluck, a division of Demand Media, “We’re thrilled to partner with thelondonpaper, now the eighth major division of News Corp to select Pluck. We’ve been impressed by the innovative, savvy approach of the organization and in the short time since they’ve integrated social media capabilities, it has become clear that their audience are viewing the brand as in step with their desire for information, entertainment and community.”
Pluck SiteLife offers comprehensive social media capabilities and is broadly deployed on more than 350 leading digital destinations. Pluck capabilities are seamlessly integrated via easy-to-deploy widgets and a robust set of platform-level APIs that allow site publishers to tailor social media experiences to the needs of their distinct audiences.
About Demand Media
As the leader in distributed social media, Demand Media™ makes possible more than 3 billion conversations every month. Demand Media’s Pluck enterprise group delivers world-class platform technology and services for integrated social media and currently powers community for leading digital destinations including BSkyB, Condé Nast, Discovery Communications, Kraft, the NFL, RealNetworks, Whole Foods Market, and The Washington Post. The privately held company was founded in May 2006 and is based in Santa Monica, CA, with offices in Bellevue, WA, Austin, TX, New York, NY and London, UK.
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© 2009 Demand Media, Inc. Demand Media, Pluck, and SiteLife are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Demand Media, Inc in the United States and/or other countries. All other trademarks may be trademarks of their respective owners.
