Meredith has hired Martin Reidy as president of its integrated marketing unit, which handles direct and digital programs for clients. The Meredith division has 400 employees and works with Kraft, Pepsi and Honda. Reidy will also be VP of interactive strategy for Meredith's national media group. Reidy is stepping down as CEO of Publicis Modem and Dialog to take the position. He says a major draw for him at Meredith is the close connection its publishers have with their audience, something he experienced first-hand during an earlier stint as an executive at EMI Music. The move is …

Digital is the one bright spot in an overall dark year for consumer magazines. In comparing page views and unique visitor totals from June 2009 versus June 2008, a number of brands made double-digit and even triple-digit percentage gains, while overall U.S. Internet usage was leveling. Condé Nast Digital registered some of the highest gains as many of their titles began from practically a standing start last year. Glamour.com, up 247.5% in unique visitors, became a presence in the fashion news and traffic cycles. Allure.com, up 246.2% in unique visitors, came on strong with celebrity profiles that spiked …

Popular Science, which launched a digital magazine in response to the growing use of e-readers, has decided to offer the magazine for free instead of charging 99 cents per issue. The Bonnier title launched its "Pop Sci Genius Guide" last spring for PC or Kindle wireless readers, incorporating video, animation and hyperlinks. The first issue, which was ad-free and sold for 99 cents, attracted just over 5,000 downloads. Pop Sci publisher Gregg Hano Hano blamed the low response on the buying experience. "To [ask people to] go in and put in your name, address, credit card number for a …

Wendy's has inked an exclusive five-month sponsorship deal with ESPN, using the network's various platforms. Wendy's is now the official sponsor of "Football Fridays," programming that will run for the duration of the professional, college and high-school football seasons. "People are tuning in because they are avid football fans, and if we can surround them with our messaging, we believe that supplies us with great value," says a Wendy's rep. The campaign will include football-related content that will run across ESPN and ESPN2, as well as ESPN.com, ESPN Mobile, ESPN360.com, ESPN The Magazine and ESPN audio. Wendy's commercials will …

When the Newport Daily News in Newport, R.I. started charging people for online offerings, critics thought readers would be gone for good. Instead, they began returning to the newsstand. This summer, the paper began requiring a $345 annual subscription fee for its online news -- $200 more than for the print edition. What happened? First, the phones stopped ringing in the paper's circulation department, as fewer subscribers were canceling home delivery of the paper, something they had been doing in droves. Then, readers would brave driving rainstorms to go out and buy the newspaper. Newsstand sales jumped by 200 …