A regional publisher is undertaking a company-wide revamp of its websites in a bid to offer readers “faster pages and a better user experience”.
Trinity Mirror has begun moving its digital portfolio on to a new ‘Chameleon’ platform, which adapts automatically depending on whether the website is being viewed on a desktop computer, tablet or mobile phone.
According to TM, articles will load twice as quickly increasing the impact of live blogs on its sites, while the new framework also provides better advertisement viewability.
Get Reading, homepage pictured below, became the first website to fully migrate to the new responsive platform earlier this month, with wharf.co.uk, Get West London and Get Surrey following last week.
The company will introduce the platform across its other regional news sites, including all the former Local World titles, into 2017.
David Higgerson, digital publishing director for Trinity Mirror Regionals, said: “As we continue to grow our audiences we’re always looking at ways of improving user experience.
“These faster, better and more friendly websites aim to continue the trend of local audiences becoming loyal return readers to our brands.”
Chris Russell, product director for Trinity Mirror Digital, said: “While people increasingly access our products on different platforms and our mobile apps, it remains crucial to provide the best possible website product for our users and advertisers, especially on mobile devices.
“As this platform is quickly launched on dozens of websites, users and advertisers alike are going to love the fast-loading pages and improved commercial performance.
“This is great work from our product and engineering teams, with fantastic collaboration by editorial and commercial colleagues, and will provide many new opportunities for further innovation in the future.”
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Any chance someone can point Johnston Press in the direction of this wonderful technology?
I like to read a couple of their awful products online for free (Sunderland Echo and Hartlepool Mail) as both have the ability to make me laugh, cringe and swear at the levels of journalistic incompetence they regularly exhibit.
Sadly, I use one of these new-fangled iPads and the web sites don’t seem to like this cutting edge technology.
I realise iPads are very new and probably won’t catch on (look at how the iPhone has bombed) but get it sorted Ashley. Nobody is buying your papers so at least allow them to read for free.
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If that’s the look, then I’m out.
Actually, Harry’s hit the nail on the head, Until the news offering, and decent journalistic values return, I’m better off not reading or finding the content elsewhere, ie on council and police twitter feeds.
And football-wise, I find better coverage of my local clubs on the BBC website for a start.
Don’t get me started on the rugby or cricket. My local newspaper used to have people covering those sports who knew what they were writing about.
Not the case now, or if it is, they get precious little column inches to do their best.
TM needs to understand the very basic nature of newspapers – even in the digital age.
Because in the last decade or so, it’s shown it has no idea.
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I do hope they’ll keep in mind that if they use large annoying pop up ads on mobile then they will get hammered by Google
http://www.theverge.com/2016/8/23/12610890/google-search-punish-pop-ups-interstitial-ads
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Harry, I believe Ashley Highfield is aware of apple products
https://twitter.com/ashleyhi/status/532941672788021248
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Harry — Perhaps on that new-fangled device you are on, you didn’t notice that the JP sites you mention have been mobile and tablet responsive for almost a year — and also have native iphone and Ipad apps available. Given your clear interest in fact-based journalism, just wanted to make sure to point that fact out to you.
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harry: anyone who calls an iPad “new fangled” is automatically disbarred from commenting on technology.
saddened journo: why do you think anyone gives a monkey’s whether you’re in or out?
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