Europe is fast becoming the home of the free newspaper, and it is no fad. The trend began more than a decade ago when Sweden's Metro International rolled out the first of what would become a worldwide
chain of free dailies. Free papers now account for 20 percent of European newspapers, and are distributed in public-transport systems and in other high-traffic locations. But now comes the next big
thing: Home delivery--free papers delivered straight to your door, in a move that could push the market share of freebies even higher. In Denmark, two free home-delivered dailies have popped up in the
last couple of months, and a third is set for this week. "This will be a test for home delivery," says Aura Iordan, business analyst at France's World Association of Newspapers. Free home delivery was
first tried several years ago in Iceland by 365 Media, and in the past several years, Philip Anschutz introduced it in the U.S. with his
Examiner chain, which now publishes in San Francisco,
Washington and Baltimore.
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