Licensing FlightCheck technology – AdFast via AdFlight is able to preflight more than 100,000 Regional Press Ads…
SANTA ANA, California – March 3, 2002 – Markzware, the leading developer of FlightCheck quality control software for digital files used in the global graphic arts and printing industries is pleased to announce the number of files electronically transmitted to regional newspapers using the Newspaper Society’s AdFast preflight technology based on FlightCheck has now reached 100,000.
FlightCheck. Via AdFlight, the 100,000th file, a half page Chrysler Jeep advertisement which appeared in the Basildon Evening Echo, was sent by Tony Rose, sales manager at Hadleigh Carport, a dealership in Leigh-on-Sea, Southend. He created and sent the advertisement in under five minutes using an intranet system developed by Chrysler Jeep’s marketing agency, Marketing Drive Worldwide.
The bespoke system enables Chrysler’s 97 dealerships across the country to quickly customize template advertisements to place in their local newspapers. It uses AdFast technology to deliver the resulting PDF file to the newspaper. Preflighting is powered by Markzware FlightCheck.
“The process of personalizing and delivering artwork on behalf of the dealers used to take us between 24 and 48 hours to turn around” said Jon Buckley, group account director at Marketing Drive Worldwide. “Now thanks to a combination of AdFast and the automated system we have developed, the whole process is much more efficient.” “This system has reduced the administrative burden of marketing so that we can get on with our normal business: selling cars,” said Tony Rose.
Jim Fairbanks who handles the day-to-day running of the FlightCheck or preflight department at News quest Basildon said: “We have recently seen a number of new agencies starting to use the system to send artwork to us. AdFast is gaining momentum because it is very user-friendly, utilizing PDF files which are cross-platform and generally quick to transmit.”
Regional newspaper publishers put their collective weight and over £1 million of funding behind the system which will be almost two years old when it exhibits on the Markzware stand, with FlightCheck, at IPEX this year. It is now used by over 1,000 up-loaders and monthly traffic volumes show that the system continues to grow in popularity among the Mac community. Agencies and repro-houses such as Tag@Comma, Barkers, McCann Erickson and TMP are using the system to send advertisements for clients like Sainsbury’s, Weight Watchers and BT, to the regional press quickly, securely and at no cost.
Earlier this year the AdFast offering was extended to PC-users via an application called AdFlight. AdFlight, developed by software provider AdWeb, enables an up-loader to create the artwork as normal in their desktop publishing (DTP) application and users pay only for the cost of a local telephone call to connect to the Internet. There is no charge for follow the step-by-step instructions to use Adobe Press Ready (kindly provided by Adobe for AdFast up-loaders) to create the PDF for transmission. The resulting file is checked against the destination newspaper title’s individual requirements using Markznet, the online pre-flight solution from Markzware.
Travelsphere Holidays is currently sending around 25 ads a week to the regional press using AdFlight, although at heavy stages of a campaign it can be sending up to 60 a week. The direct sell tour operator provides escorted tours all over the world and uses the regional press to promote its European tours which depart from over 160 towns throughout the UK.
Prior to the launch of AdFlight preflight the company’s PC-based graphic designers were posting creative to the individual newspapers which meant they had to build in an extra couple of days to meet press deadlines. Travelsphere’s graphic designer Wayne Hooper switched to AdFast as soon as he discovered its functionality had been extended to PC-users through AdFlight. “I’d been looking out for an electronic method of delivery for a while and AdFlight was just what we needed. I simply downloaded the software from the AdFast website and began using it to create PDFs and transmit them to regional newspapers. It takes about a minute and has improved our internal workflow,” Hooper said.
Travelsphere’s media and promotions assistant, Nina Conn, said “AdFlight gave them greater flexibility for advertising last-minute deals and had saved them money. We can book space on deadline day and know that we will be able to get the copy to the newspapers in good time, eliminating the need for a courier.”
Both Mac and PC operators can see the latest AdFast developments and speak to the AdFast team on the Markzware stand 4-327 at IPEX 2002.
About AdFast
AdFast was funded and launched by the UK regional press though its trade association the Newspaper Society in 1999. It offers advertisers, agencies and repro houses a fast, easy and free1 method of sending artwork to the regional press. The AdFlight software can be downloaded from the AdFast website, www.adfast.co.uk, and is simple to install. Help and support can be obtained online from the AdFlight website, http://www.adflight.net . The Markznet solution is also available to Macintosh users, who can check and upload their PDF files using pages on the AdFast website and a customised Markznet client which is available for download.
About AdWeb
AdWeb is a leading provider of software and network infrastructure services to the UK regional media industry. Clients include AdFast, the Newspaper Society, JICREG, and Tindle Newspapers. http://www.adweb.co.uk
About Markzware
Markzware will have a major presence at IPEX showing new versions of its FlightCheck, MarkzScout and MarkzNet software as well as planning a complete new product release. Markzware is the leading developer of quality assurance, data conversion, and workflow solutions for the international graphic arts, printing, publishing and digital multimedia industries. Markzware is a privately held company based in Santa Ana, California. Markzware B.V., located in Rijswijk, The Netherlands, is the company’s headquarters for activities in Europe, the Middle East and Africa. http://www.markzware.com .
2002 Markzware. All rights reserved. Covered by U.S. Patent # 5,963,641
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