Newspaper agents need improvement

JAKARTA (JP): Newspaper and magazine distributors need to improve their performance in matters regarding financial management and administration in order to face the challenges of the 21st century, the president of the Gramedia publishing company, Jakob Oetama said yesterday.

Speaking at a seminar on 'Agen Tahun 2000 plus' (Distributors in the year of 2000) Jakob suggested that newspaper and magazine distributors should use more high-tech equipment to improve their performance.

"Such equipment would speed up our job. Speed is the key to the press business. If we are slow, we will trail behind our competitors," he said. About 1000 distributors from Jakarta, Bekasi, Tangerang and Bogor attended the one-day seminar, sponsored by Kompas and The Jakarta Post dailies, sports tabloid Bola and the magazines published by Gramedia.

Jakob, who is also chief editor of Kompas, said one of the threats being faced by printed media is audio visual media.

However he believes newspapers and magazines will still survive in the future, given the fact that they have established their own audience.

"Reading a newspaper is better than watching television because reading is more active than watching," Jakob said.

The seminar featured other speakers including Kresnayana Yahya, a statistician, Darwis Ibrahim, the president of PT Boga Mitra Kencana, Jaya Suprana, the president of PT Jamu Jago and Sukyatno Nugroho, the president of PT Es Teller 77.(04)