Month: February 2012

The Board of Directors of Arnoldo Mondadori Editore S.p.A. will ask the forthcoming Annual General Meeting of the Shareholders to renew authorisation to effect share buy backs, following the expiry of the previous authorisation deliberated by the AGM of 21 April 2011.
The Annual General Meeting of the Shareholders, scheduled for 19 April 2012 (or 20 April on an eventual second calling), will also be asked to authorise the use of shares involved in such buy back operations or already in the company’s portfolio, as per art. 2357 ter of the Civil Code.

The highlights of the Board of Directors’ proposal are as follows.

Underlying motivation

The underlying reason for the request for authorisation to effect buy backs and make use of company shares is that it will allow the Board of Directors to:
– use company shares, either bought or in the portfolio, for the exercise of rights, also conversion rights, deriving from financial instruments issued by the company, its subsidiaries or third parties;
– use company shares, either bought or in the portfolio, as part or whole payment in any eventual acquisitions or equity investments that fall within the company’s stated investment policy;
– take advantage, where and when considered strategic for the company, of investment opportunities, also in relation to available liquidity;
– use company shares for the exercise of options for the purchase of shares assigned to participants in the stock option plans put in place by the Shareholders.

Duration
The validity will extend to the approval of the Annual Report for the financial year 2012 and, in any case, for not more than 18 months from the date of the resolution.

Cap on the number of shares that may be bought
The proposed new authorisation relates to acquisition of a maximum of a further 12,322,917 shares. Taking account of the shares already held in the portfolio by both the company and its subsidiaries, the authorised buy backs make it possible to arrive at 10% of the company’s share capital.

In particular, given that 10% of the company’s share capital corresponds to 24,645,834 shares and that the company currently holds, either directly or indirectly through the subsidiary Mondadori International S.p.A., a total of 12,322,917 of its own shares, corresponding to 5% of the share capital, the new authorisation would give the Board the faculty to buy back a further 5% of the share capital.

Method of acquisition and the price range
Buy backs would be effected on regulated markets as per art. 132 of the legislative decree of 24 February 1998 n. 58 and art. 144 bis, para. 1, B of Consob regulation 11971/99 according to operating procedures established by the regulations for the organisation and management of the markets themselves, which, does not permit the direct combination of offers to buy with predetermined offers to sell.
Consequently, the corresponding minimum and maximum price of sale will be determined at the same conditions that applied to previous authorisations agreed by the Shareholders, i.e. at a unit price not less than the official market price on the day prior to any operation, less 20%, and not more than the official market price on the day prior to any operation, plus 10%.
In terms of price and daily volumes, acquisition operations will in any case be conducted in line with the norms foreseen by the EU regulation 2273/2003.

From the issue that will appear on newsstands next week, Alfonso Signorini will be the editorial director of Tv Sorrisi e Canzoni, while continuing to maintain his role as the editor of the weekly Chi.

Aldo Vitali, currently the executive co-editor of Tv Sorrisi e Canzoni, will become the new editor of the magazine and Rosanna Mani will remain as the title’s co-editor.

Aldo Vitali, who was born in Milan in 1957, has a degree from the University of Florence. After some initial professional experience, in 1986 he joined the entertainment staff of il Giornale, before moving in 1994 to La Voce and in 1996 to Walt Disney Italia where he was deputy editor of Topolino. In 1999 Vitali was appointed deputy editor of Max and in August 2000 co-editor of GQ Italia.

In 2003 Vitali joined the staff of Tv Sorrisi e Canzoni where he held a series roles of increasing responsibility, becoming executive co-editor in 2008.

First launched in 1952, Tv Sorrisi e Canzoni once again this year confirmed its position as Italy’s most popular weekly with a readership of some 4,398,000, an increase of 3% on the previous official survey (Audipress 2011/III).

Today sees the start of Milano Fashion Design, the initiative promoted by the Mondadori Group, with its titles Donna Moderna, Grazia, Tu Style, the web sites Donnamoderna.com and Grazia.it, and the City of Milan, which this year will take part in the programme with cultural initiatives and events.
Milano Fashion Design will offer the city, until 26 February, and coinciding with the Fashion Week, five days of shows, meetings and performances at the special Fashion House designed by Michele De Lucchi, in Piazza Liberty.

Fashion Show
The programme of Milano Fashion Design will be rich in appointments dedicated to fashion. Until Saturday 25 February, from 3pm to 7.30pm, at the Fashion House in Piazza Liberty, there will be a series of fashion shows organised by Grazia with the participation of personalities from the world of entertainment. Among the performances scheduled today Fornarina, Luna and Luciano Soprani, in addition to a special event by Asus introducing its latest technology. In the coming days it will be the turn of Yes-Zee, Swisses, Cromia, Mangano, Nell & Me, Giorgia & Johns, Kocca, Mazzonetto, Geox, Sisley and Peserico, while Milano-Fiera Macef will promote its exhibition activity with a fashion performance.
Also this year Sunday will be dedicated to children with catwalks between 2.30pm and 4.30pm, presenting clothes by the most prestigious companies in the sector, including Eddy Pen, iDo and Il Gufo.
Grazia.it and the bloggers of the new Grazia IT Blogs network will be on the move around the city to capture and photograph the latest trends in fashion and beauty. Headquartes of the GRazia.it editorial staff will be the Grazia.it POP Up located in largo La Foppa

“Special events”
The extensive programme of activities of Milano Fashion Design begins today with the first of a series of special events on the theme of Donne in scena (Women on Stage), organised by the City of Milan in collaboration with Tu Style.
Until Friday 24 February, from 12.30pm to 1.30pm, at the Fashion House, important protagonists from many of the shows running in Milan’s theatres will provide previews of their work, as part of the cultural encounters initiative presented by the city’s director of entertainment, fashion and design, Antonio Calbi.
Introduced by the city’s councillor for the arts Stefano Boeri, the programme will begin with Valeria Magli and Lina Sotis presenting Soirée Sotis, which will run from 24 to 26 February at the Teatro Elfo Puccini. Tomorrow, Thursday 23 February, Elisabetta Pozzi, Eva Robin’s and Alvia Reale will preview the stage play “Tutto sua mia madre” (Teatro Elfo Puccini, 21 February – 4 March).
On Friday 24 February Maddalena Crippa will talk about “E pensare che c’era il pensiero” (Tieffe Teatro Menotti, 21 February – 4 March), while from 7.30pm, Tu Style will bring to the Fashion House stage the veejay Alessandro Cattelan who will present his book “Quando vieni a prendermi?” (Mondadori).
In addition, for the whole of the event, the stage of Milano Fashion Design in the evenings will be animated by the most famous international companies of street artists taking part in the Milano Clown Festival and, on Saturday 25 February, the Unione Italiana Sport per Tutti will stage a dance show.

Casting and Fashion coach
From tomorrow until Saturday 25 February, from 10am to 12.30 p.m., Donna Moderna will run a series of castings to select the protagonists of the magazine’s fashion and beauty coverage, and above all the women who, on Sunday 26 February will walk an “all-Italian” catwalk at the Fashion House: 20 ‘real women will take part in the show, one from every region of the country, wearing the creations of famous designers. The magazine has also decided to launch, precisely during the most glamorous week for fashion, a new challenge: to sign the Manifesto delle donne vere (Manifesto for Real Women) including their own definition of beauty and truth on the mini-site www.donnevere.donnamoderna.com, on Twitter at hashtag #donnevere, on Facebook or by writing down and placing their description in a box on the Fashion House stage.
At the same time the fashion coach of Donnamoderna.com will change, with just a few moves, the style of all those who want to “learn” something more about fashion. Every day the woman who has most revolutionised her image, thanks to the advice of the personal stylist, will receive as a gift a total look at one of the stores in the city centre.

The partners
Milano Fashion Design has been organised thanks to the support of Regione Calabria – main partner – that tomorrow, Thursday 23 February, at 2.30pm, will present its achievements in the field of fashion and crafts, that will also be on show every day at 2pm during the event.
Renault – main sponsor – will present the new Twingo, also offering visitors the possibility of a test-drive in Via Hoepli.
Event sponsors: Ferrovie dello Stato, Milano-Fiera Macef, Glaming, L’Oréal Paris, also with the “Nail Bar” by Color Riche, L’Oréal Professionnel, Cadey with Staminaline, Asus and Alcatel.
Milano Fashion Design is an event produced by DPR Eventi.

The complete programme for Milano Fashion Design can also be found on the web site www.milanofashiondesign.it.
You can also follow Milano Fashion Design on Facebook.

Donnamoderna.com, having successfully launched the Low Coach blog dedicated to low cost shopping, on the occasion of “Milano Fashion Design” has decided to get even closer to its users by bringing the advice of its personal stylist to the heart of the city, in Piazza Liberty.

During Milan’s most glamorous days, from 23 to 25 February, from 10am to 12.30pm, the “Milano Fashion Design” stage will become the control centre of the editorial staff of Donnamoderna.com and its young web stylist editors who will make available to all those who would like to learn something more about fashion the fashion coach, Valentina Fradegrada, who in just a few moves will change their style.
The woman who has revolutionised her look the most thanks to the advice of the personal stylist will receive exclusively a total look from one of the stores in the city centre.

Donnamoderna.com, in collaboration with Igers Milano, has also created a photo game on Instagram. Using an iPhone or iPad everyone can upload their photos on the theme fashion shoes using the tag #shoeMi – sandals, stilettos, wedges, moccasins, ballerine, boots, sneakers – and sharing the images on a virtual gallery visible in a special section of the Donna Moderna web site.
On Saturday 25 February, at 10am, the best photographs will receive prize gifts during an “Instameetup” organised by Donnamoderna.com at the Fashion House in Piazza Liberty.

The site will also of course include live fashion shows, this year even more up to date thanks to an innovative content curation format that makes it possible to aggregate content and authoritative comment from Donnamoderna.com correspondents and contributors, presented in the form of a continuous flow of videos, text and images. Finally, there will also be the possibility to become a virtual model with the game “Tu in passerella” (You on the Catwalk): choosing a dress and uploading your photo you can have the impression of participating in a fashion show on Milan’s coolest catwalk. The photos can also be voted and share on social networks.

Donnamoderna.com, as well as being very active on Facebook, Twitter and Youtube, is among the first Italian media player to join Pinterest, the social network of the moment, with a range of fashion and beauty news.

Panorama Icon, the male fashion and lifestyle magazine produced by Panorama, got an important award less than a year from its launch. The magazine has been voted “Best in category” in the series “Graphics” of the Annual Design Review 2011 of I.D. Magazine, the American magazine that every year since 1954 brings together the best design projects in a range of industrial sectors, from graphics to furniture and environmental solutions.

The design and layout of Panorama Icon, produced by Leftloft, was selected by the jury for “A very contemporary design with fresh typographic flair” as well as “wonderfully inventive page composition” and “outstanding art direction of photography”.
Over the years the I.D. Annual Design Review has tracked the evolution of design and highlighted its impact on materials and the visual culture. Each edition is overseen by a jury of prestigious professionals who select the best projects in an ongoing survey of the state of the art of and advances in international design.

Panorama Icon, which is edited by Emanuele Farneti and on newsstands with the latest issue on Thursday 1 March, is aimed at readers interested in new lifestyles, trends, travel, shopping and discovering the secrets of the excellence of made in Italy. The title’s great point of strength is the quality of the images, with extensive fashion coverage as well as reportage and portraits by leading Italian and international photographers.

As part of the Milano Fashion Design initiative, from 22 to 27 February, the editorial staff of Grazia.it will move to the centre of the action during the Milan Fashion Week with.it Pop Up, located in largo La Foppa. Also on this occasion the structure, that will be the temporary base for the editorial staff of Grazia.it, will be the reference point for the IT FAMILY of bloggers, friends and contributors who want to get up close to the trendiest event of the year and for those who want to know more about the IT BLOGS project. This new network of young and enthusiastic bloggers (grazia.it/itblogs) provides a space to find out more about the latest fashion and beauty trends and to identify the latest lifestyle (cooking, design, art) through the posts of some of the stars of the Italian blogosphere:

Beauty and the city – Sonia and Valentina Grispo (Beauty)
Blue is in fashion this year – Erica Baldi (Fashion)
Fashion Hall – Elena Schiavon (Fashion)
In the mood for love – BaiLing (Fashion)
Il cavoletto di Bruxelles – Sigrid (Food)
L’armadio del delitto – Cécile (Fashion)
Little snob thing – Alessandra Airò (Fashion)
Look and the city – Valentina Grispo (Fashion)
Rock & Fiocc – Giulia Torelli (Fashion)
The glam side of the life – Loretta Fossati (Beauty)
The old now – Laura Renieri (Fashion)
Trend and the city – Sonia Grispo (Fashion)

Grazia.it Pop Up is also the focal point for a series of activities organised exclusively for the bloggers of IT BLOGS: and three thematic meetings and workshops have been organised that will take place during the Fashion Week that will also involve the Fashion House in Piazzetta Liberty, White in Via Tortona, the fuori sfilate (fringe fashion shows) and all of the coolest locations of the social event par excellence.

For bloggers the workshops will provide an opportunity to meet their peers and develop contacts through an exchange of skills and ideas: Tamu McPherson, head of Grazia.it, will outline some of the tricks of the trade of streetstyler and guide bloggers outside the fashion shows to capture the most exciting moments and colours of the Fashion Week, while the beauty bloggers will demonstrate the techniques for writing a detailed report on the secrets of the perfect make-up. And finally, a chef will stimulate the taste buds of the IT FAMILY with a live demonstration for all present of some of the secrets of haute cuisine.

A week full of appointments for the bloggers of IT BLOG and all those who want to discover how the editorial staff of Grazia.it works during the Fashion Week.

The “Grazia International Network” continues to grow and has now reached 20 editions around the world.
Following the announcement of an agreement with the publisher Media24 to launch before the end of the year Grazia South Africa, from March the magazine will also be available in Slovenia, published under a licensing agreement by Videotop Color Media, a company of the Color Press Group, one of the principal players in the sector in the country.

Unique in the publishing industry in terms of the rapidity of development and the quality of the offer, Grazia brings to four continents – Europe, Asia, Africa and Oceania – the very best of made in Italy luxury, in a unique and innovative formula that has allowed the title to become one of the international leaders in women’s fashion magazines.
Created in 2005, “Grazia International” is in fact one of the most dynamic magazine networks in the world and is already successfully published in Italy, France, Great Britain, Germany, Russia, Holland, China, Australia, India, the Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Indonesia, Thailand, Serbia, Croatia, Bulgaria, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Macedonia.

And precisely because of its strong links with the world of fashion, the “Grazia International Network” will be present at the “Milano Fashion Week” with a “guerrilla” action that will have as its protagonists seven models who will “carry” the “Grazia International” logo at the most important fashion shows.
In addition, on Sunday 26 February, from 5pm to 6.30pm, and on Monday 27 February, from 4.30pm to 5.30pm, as part of “White Milano”, “Grazia International Network”, in collaboration with Campari, will invite the public at its stand to share in a fashion happy hour, during which they can flick through and enjoy all of the magazine’s international editions.

Sale&Pepe, the monthly edited by Laura Maragliano, is celebrating its 25th anniversary and for the occasion a special anniversary issue will be available at newsstands from Tuesday 21 February. Leader among upscale cookery titles – with over 924,000 readers (+4.6%, Audipress 2011/III) – Sale&Pepe is a point of reference for all women who love cooking and are looking for exclusive and refined menu ideas.

“I am proud to celebrate with this special issue the 25th anniversary of Sale&Pepe, a magazine that has been able to combine easy recipes with imagination and high quality images,” stated Laura Maragliano. “To celebrate the progress made from the first issue to today, we took a look at the features from the early days to reinterpret the recipes of the past with a contemporary twist and to show our readers what we do. It seems appropriate that our readers can see who is behind the magazine and who works to make sure that every month is special,” concluded the editor.

An issue that takes another look at some of the features, recipes and places that have made the history of Sale&Pepe from 1987 to today: 25 years of ideas, advice, smells and tastes.

To celebrate this important anniversary there are also a range of new features online: from 21 February a Facebook page dedicated to the anniversary; an iPhone and iPad app with 7,000 recipes, also with video, to share with your friends and the possibility to create your own shopping list; a section with the 25 most original covers; a special dedicated to cakes, complete with background and news on the Sale&Pepe web page.

Completing the offer of the Sale&Pepe system are the cookery courses of the “Cook&Books Academy” in Milan: on the third floor of the Mondadori Multicenter Duomo, loads of occasions for adults and children to try out their talent in the kitchen (www.corso-di-cucina.it ).
Sale&Pepe has also created Sale&Pepe Kids, the first magazine for parents and little chefs. Following the success of the first issue, another will be on newsstands shortly for kids who want to unleash their imagination creating new recipes and for adults who want to have fun while preparing simple dishes with their children.

New recognition by readers of the titles produced by the Mondadori Group, Italy’s leading magazine publisher.

Figures published by Audipress (2011/III) show continued growth in readership for the Group’s weeklies and monthlies and that 82% of the readers of magazines in the country read Mondadori titles.

LEADERSHIP
In particular, according to the survey, every week Italians choose the magazines Tv Sorrisi e Canzoniand Chi: with a readership of 4,398,000 people, an increase of 3% on the previous survey (Audipress 2011/II), Tv Sorrisi e Canzoni confirms its position as Italy’s most widely read weekly; followed byChi, which is in the number one position among women’s entertainment weeklies, with a continuously rising readership (3,614,000 readers, +4.6% compared with Audipress 2011/II).

There were big numbers also for Donna Moderna, which once again is shown to be the most popular women’s weekly (2,710,000 readers, +3.6% compared with Audipress 2011/II).

With a monthly readership of 6,441,000 (+4%), Focus remains Italy’s most widely read magazine.

Moreover, according to the Audipress figures, an increasing number of Italians read Mondadori’s cooking titles, with the company holding 73% share in this market segment. Among the monthlies,Cucina Moderna, is the most widely read (+14% compared with Audipress 2011/II).

Meanwhile Starbene confirmed its absolute leadership (1,532,000 readers), also recording the best performance in the wellness segment (+7.5% compared with Audipress 2011/II).

BEST PERFORMANCE
There was great satisfaction at Mondadori also for the best performances recorded by other titles in the portfolio in the cooking and interiors.

Cucina no Problem recorded the best growth (+17%) in the cooking segment, in which alsoSale&Pepe stands out (+4,6%), appreciated by readers following the recent renewal.

In the consumer interiors segment, in which Mondadori has a 57% share, there was a brilliant result by CasaFacile (+15%), followed by the monthly Casaviva with an increase of +7.4% to reach a readership of 967,000, and recording strong growth particularly among women.

In addition, there was also significant growth by Confidenze (+23.3%), Economy (+20%), Ciak(+13.5%), Guida TV (+11.6%), Men’s Health (+10.1%), Pc Professionale (+8%), which was also the only IT title to be included by Audipress in the segment, and Panoramauto (+8%).

Jacopo Loredan has been appointed the new editor of the monthly Geo. Loredan, who will take over from the March issue, will also continue in his role as editor of the lifestyle monthly Jack.
At the same time Marco Casareto, who is stepping down as the editor of Geo, will concentrate more specifically on growing commitments related to the development of editorial initiatives based around Focus Storia and its system of brand extensions such as Focus Storia Biografie, Focus Storia Wars and Focus Storia Collection.

The new Geo, edited by Loredan, will be an even more international product, on the strength of a brand recognised for excellence in the international world of publishing thanks to the high quality of its images and reportage.

Jacopo Loredan, who was born in Venice in 1957, began his career as a journalist at ANSA where he became a professional journalist in 1982. Two years later he was hired by Lamberto Sechi at the newly-launched Nuova Venezia. In 1987 he moved to Epoca where he remained for seven years: first as a reporter and subsequently as a special correspondent and then as managing editor. In 1994 he was hired as a correspondent by Panorama. Two years later, in March 1996, he went to Focus, the Gruner+Jahr/Mondadori monthly, as deputy editor. In November 1999, having edited the first issue of the quarterly Focus Extra, he was asked to develop the project for Jack, of which he was to become editor.

Marco Casareto, 45, was born in Chelmsford (England). After studying physics at the University of Milan, he began to work with a number of different magazines including, from 1993, Focus. Three years later he joined the staff of the magazine and in 2000 was appointed section chief with responsibilities for the coordination of the brand extension Focus Extra. Managing editor from 2002, in 2004 Casareto became coordinator of the new Gruner+Jahr/Mondadori title Focus Storia, of which he became deputy editor in 2006 and editor in 2008. The same year he was also appointed editor of Geo, a position he held until November 2009, taking it up again in September 2010. He is currently the editor of Focus Storia and its related editorial offshoots, Focus Storia Biografie, Focus Storia Wars and Focus Storia Collection.