• by Gavin O'Malley  @mp_gavin, January 15, 2008

Gannett Co., the nation's largest publisher of newspapers, as well as a leading operator of broadcast stations and related Web sites, is restructuring its digital media operations. The company named Chris Saridakis senior vice president-chief digital officer on Monday.

Saridakis had been CEO of online rich media developer PointRoll, which is owned by Gannett, since 2005. Online Media Daily took the opportunity to ask Saridakis a number of questions regarding his new role, Gannett's digital future and the state of rich media today.

Question: Gannett acquired PointRoll in June 2005. What are the major consequences/effects of the merger that you didn't see coming at the time?

Answer: There have been no major consequences or effects that impeded our ability to grow. In fact, PointRoll just completed another record-breaking year, and has distanced itself from the rest of the competitors in the field.

Q: It's been nearly five years since you joined PointRoll as chief operating officer, and more than two years since you took over its helm. How has the market for rich media evolved over that period?

A: The market for rich media has evolved quite considerably over the past five years. Five years ago, we were touting the "interactive nature" of rich media to brand managers, publishers and creative agencies. Today, they all understand that the user has total control over their experience. Now it is a matter of finding that user locally, nationally, behaviorally, etc. Rich media is accepted, and the analytics and benchmarks behind it are starting to become accepted by media buyers and their clients.

Q: What is Craig Dubow (Gannett's chairman, president and chief executive) expecting from you as chief digital officer of the company?

A: Gannett's strategy is to grow a robust, international digital division, and Craig is expecting me to make that happen, using all the powerful resources of Gannett--its network of newspapers and television stations as well as the strong foundation already built for the Digital group under Jack Williams.

Q: How will you be joining forces with Jack Williams (Gannett's newly appointed president of digital ventures)?

A: Jack and I will work very closely in growing and developing our money-making business and entering into new businesses. Some of that strategy will involve partnerships, acquisitions and custom development.

Q: How will Gannett distinguish itself in the digital sphere moving forward?

A: Gannett is determined to be a powerful force in the digital arena. We see huge opportunity in the space, and believe we can harness all of Gannett's breadth in location and depth of local content to success. Gannett has always been a leader among its peers--and from a digital perspective, no one has a more diversified audience with localized reach.

Q: How has the explosion in streaming video affected the business of rich media, and are people still drawing a distinction between the two?

A: Video is another way of distributing content--so, to the extent that rich media applications can be applied to video the same way that it is applied to other forms of online content, then people will still make the distinction between the two. For example, a video with an advertisement imbedded like a pre-roll is similar to TV ads, but a video with an interactive element like PointRoll's TickerBoy, a product that we released with AOL, is truly delivering on the promise of the interactive nature of the Web. Most of our successful rich media ads at PointRoll, in terms of time spent with brand and interactivity, have some element of sight, sound and motion wrapped in an interactive envelope.

Q: Where are the greatest opportunities for rich media in the future?

A: The biggest opportunity for rich media in the future is the ability to use that form as a message delivery platform, so it won't just be for brands, but for corporate communications, political messages, clinical trial recruitment for pharmaceutical companies. These are all areas that PointRoll has been working on over the past 12 months and you will hear more about as these products get released. The opportunities are endless for the rich media market.

Q: You were introduced to rich media while with DoubleClick back in the late '90s. What are your predictions for the Google merger, and its impact on the industry at large?

A: I think Google will have a tough time coping with the creative nature that surrounds rich media. I think they have some great technology in DoubleClick and some dedicated people, but the medium is going to move to a more interactive display market, and some of that just can't be jammed into Google's process. Advertising online is truly about having impact and the most impactful applications are rich media-based. Rich media is about creativity.

Q: What's your biggest concern for the online ad business moving forward?

A: My biggest concern for the online ad business is that we do not lose focus on innovation. With the consolidation that has been occurring (DCLK, AQNT, Right Media, etc.), we risk under-investing in the next big idea. Companies like PointRoll were started in April 2000, probably the worst time to start an Internet-based company, especially one that was based on online advertising. Nonetheless, we have always been focused on solving the problems that none of the big companies were willing to address.

Q: They say the grass is always greener on the other side. Now that you're firmly entrenched within Gannett's culture, do you ever fantasize about working for a newer company with less structure and more room for originality?

A: That is funny. The opportunity I have at Gannett is to take a leader like Gannett and help it transform into a leader across all mediums, print, TV, Web, mobile, etc. My passion is to solve this problem and offer our consumers, our advertisers and our partners the best possible solution leveraging all of our assets.