The preliminary results for the quarter include $56 million in pre-tax severance expenses ($36.1 million after tax or $0.16 per share) related to restructuring and efficiency efforts in the U.S. and the UK. Absent severance expenses in the quarter, the company’s preliminary earnings would have been $0.85 per share. Pre-tax severance expenses and facility consolidation costs totaled approximately $38 million in the fourth quarter of 2007 ($24.4 million after-tax or $0.11 per share).

The preliminary results, however, do not include non-cash charges expected to be recorded in the quarter, which have not yet been finalized, for the impairment of goodwill, other intangible assets and certain other assets. The non-cash charges are expected to total in the range of $5.1 billion to $5.9 billion on a pre-tax basis and $4.5 billion to $5.2 billion on an after-tax basis. In the fourth quarter a year ago, the company recognized a pre-tax, non-cash impairment charge of $72.0 million ($50.8 million after-tax or $0.22 per share).

Commenting on the fourth quarter results, Craig Dubow, chairman, president and chief executive officer, said: “Our results for the quarter reflect the unprecedented turmoil in the economies of both the U.S. and the UK and in the financial markets. Our anticipated non-cash impairment charges stem from recessions in the U.S. and UK and the resultant impact on business conditions and the broad-based downward pressure on equity share values. The impairment charges, while significant, will not impact operating cash flow, our ability to pay down debt or the way we will operate the company going forward. Despite economic conditions, we pressed forward to transform Gannett and position it for the future and more favorable business conditions. To that end, some tough decisions were made during the quarter regarding the size and structure of our operations, and these actions resulted in significant severance expenses.

“The ongoing weakness in advertising demand had a significant impact on our results in both publishing and broadcasting this quarter. However, we benefited from substantially higher politically related advertising revenue in broadcasting as well as solid results in the digital segment. Lower interest expense and taxes also had a positive impact in the quarter while higher newsprint expense moderated results,” Dubow said.

In accordance with the Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 142, the company’s annual impairment test of goodwill and other intangible assets is being completed as of December 28, 2008. Due to the challenges facing the company’s publishing businesses, including recessions in both the U.S. and the UK and their impact on advertising demand, and the decline generally in equity values and specifically its stock price, the company expects to incur non-cash impairment charges in the quarter to reduce the book value of newspaper publishing goodwill, other intangible assets including mastheads, certain property, plant and equipment, newspaper publishing partnership investments and certain other assets. The final amount of the charges will be included in earnings and disclosed in our Form 10-K, which will be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on or before February 26, 2009.

Total reported operating revenues for the company were $1.7 billion in the fourth quarter compared to $1.9 billion in the fourth quarter of 2007. A significant pullback in advertising demand as the quarter progressed across our publishing and broadcast businesses, driven by the recessionary economic environment, was offset in part by strong political advertising in the broadcasting segment. Digital segment revenues were higher for the quarter reflecting the consolidation of CareerBuilder and ShopLocal for the full quarter in 2008.

Reported operating expenses totaled $1.5 billion and were down slightly compared to the fourth quarter of 2007, reflecting continued cost containment efforts in publishing and broadcasting offset by higher severance expenses as well as incremental costs from the consolidation of CareerBuilder and ShopLocal. Excluding severance costs in both years and the impairment charge in the fourth quarter of 2007, pro forma operating expenses declined 6.3 percent for the quarter. Corporate expenses excluding severance were 7.6 percent lower than the year ago quarter.

Reported operating cash flow (defined as operating income plus depreciation and amortization) was $327.6 million. Preliminary net income in the quarter was $158.0 million, before anticipated non-cash impairment charges.

Average diluted shares outstanding in the fourth quarter totaled 229,336,000 compared with 231,877,000 in 2007’s fourth quarter.

For the full year, total operating revenues were $6.8 billion, a decline of 9.0 percent compared to 2007. Advertising revenue related to politics and the Olympics that totaled $94 million and $24 million, respectively, and incremental digital segment revenue from the consolidation of CareerBuilder and ShopLocal was more than offset by softer advertising demand overall due to economic and business conditions that deteriorated during the year. Pro forma operating expenses, excluding severance and impairment charges declined 5.7 percent. Operating cash flow was $1.5 billion. Preliminary results for the full year of 2008 (including impairment charges in the second quarter of $11.08 per share) reflect a loss of $7.81 per share. Excluding impairment charges and restructuring expense, preliminary earnings per share were $3.61.

PUBLISHING

Publishing segment operating revenues were $1.4 billion for the quarter compared to $1.7 billion in the fourth quarter of 2007, an 18.6 percent decline. Advertising revenues were $963.4 million compared to $1.2 billion in the fourth quarter of 2007. This advertising revenue decline of 22.7 percent for the publishing segment was driven by a 17.7 percent decline in the U.S. and a 29.3 percent decline in pounds at Newsquest, our operations in the UK. Retail advertising revenues were 13.9 percent lower, national revenues declined 18.2 percent and classified revenues were down 36.7 percent. For comparison purposes, the exchange rate of the British pound declined over 22 percent year-over-year. If the exchange rate had remained constant, total advertising revenues would have been 19.3 percent lower including declines of 11.9 percent in retail, 16.8 percent in national and 31.8 percent in classified.

Lower classified revenues were driven by declines of 45.7 percent in real estate, 47.5 percent in employment and 30.4 percent in automotive. For U.S. Community Publishing, classified revenues were down 30.7 percent comprised of declines of 32.9 percent in real estate, 46.5 percent in employment and 25.7 percent in automotive. In the UK, classified revenues were 35.3 percent lower, in pounds, reflecting declines of 57.7 percent in real estate, 35.2 percent in employment and 31.2 percent in automotive.

At USA TODAY, advertising revenues were 18.5 percent lower in the fourth quarter compared to the fourth quarter in 2007. Paid advertising pages totaled 788 compared with 1,045 in the same quarter of 2007. The telecommunications, financial and advocacy revenue categories grew compared to the fourth quarter last year but these gains were more than offset by losses in the entertainment, automotive, retail and travel categories.

Total publishing operating expenses were $1.2 billion, a 10.9 percent decline from the same quarter a year ago reflecting cost control efforts, offset, in part, by severance expenses. Publishing expenses, excluding severance expenses and the impairment charge in the year ago quarter, were 6.8 percent lower. Newsprint expenses were 2.0 percent higher for the quarter reflecting a 26.2 percent increase in usage prices which more than offset a 19.2 percent decline in consumption. Operating cash flow in the fourth quarter for the total publishing segment, which includes USA TODAY and Newsquest, was $209.9 million.

BROADCASTING

Broadcasting revenues (which include Captivate) were $212.8 million in the quarter, about even with $212.0 million in the fourth quarter of 2007. Politically related advertising demand of $58.1 million was offset by softness in other categories, primarily automotive and retail.

Operating expenses in the broadcasting segment totaled $120.6 million, relatively unchanged from the fourth quarter a year ago reflecting significant cost control efforts and higher severance. Broadcasting expenses excluding severance were down 4.0 percent. Operating cash flow was $100.7 million in the fourth quarter. Television revenues were 1.7 percent higher and totaled $205.6 million. Based on where we are today, we would expect television revenues to be down in the mid-teens for the first quarter of 2009 compared to the first quarter of 2008.

DIGITAL

The digital segment for the quarter includes results for CareerBuilder, PointRoll, ShopLocal, Planet Discover, Schedule Star and Ripple6 (from the date of its acquisition in November, 2008). Results for CareerBuilder and ShopLocal were initially consolidated in the third quarter of 2008 when the company acquired controlling interest. Results for PointRoll, Planet Discover and Schedule Star, which had been reflected previously in the publishing segment, have been reclassified to the digital segment.

Digital operating revenues totaled $169.9 million in the quarter driven by the consolidation of CareerBuilder, ShopLocal and Ripple6. Operating expenses were $145.8 million. Operating cash flow was $34.2 million reflecting positive results for CareerBuilder, PointRoll and ShopLocal partially offset by investment in other digital properties. On a pro forma basis, operating revenues were 1.4 percent higher while operating expenses excluding severance were 6.3 percent lower. Operating cash flow on a pro forma basis increased 63.5 percent.

NON-OPERATING ITEMS

The company’s equity earnings include its share of operating earnings or losses from unconsolidated investees including the California Newspapers Partnership, Texas-New Mexico Newspapers Partnership, Tucson newspaper partnership and other online/new technology businesses. These amounts included the company’s equity share of results for CareerBuilder and ShopLocal for periods prior to September 3, 2008 and June 30, 2008, respectively, when the company acquired controlling interest.

Preliminary equity income from unconsolidated investees (excluding anticipated non-cash impairment charges) for the fourth quarter of 2008 was $3.6 million compared to $9.4 million for the fourth quarter of 2007. The decline primarily reflects: lower results from our newspaper publishing partnerships; the absence in the 2008 quarter of CareerBuilder earnings which are now consolidated; and increased investments in new businesses including Metromix, Mogulus and Cozi.

Other non-operating items reflect a loss of $7.7 million in 2008 compared with income of $2.7 million in 2007. The decline in non-operating items primarily reflects inclusion of minority interest charges for CareerBuilder for the full quarter, foreign currency translation losses and lower investment income, partially offset by a gain on the redemption of a portion of the company’s notes due in May, 2009, and other asset sale gains.

Interest expense for the fourth quarter was $51.5 million, 10.3 percent lower compared to $57.5 million for the fourth quarter in 2007. The decline was due to lower interest rates and average debt balances.

The company’s effective tax rate on its preliminary earnings for the fourth quarter of 2008 was 22.6 percent compared with 33.1 percent for the fourth quarter of 2007. The 2008 rate benefited from several favorable state tax settlements, the release of certain state tax reserves upon the expiration of statutes of limitation, and from a lower UK statutory tax rate.

In January, the company announced it was offering to sell certain assets of the Tucson (AZ) Citizen. If, however, a sale is not completed by March 21, 2009, the newspaper will be closed. It is one of the two newspapers produced by TNI Partners as part of a joint operating arrangement (JOA) under the Newspaper Preservation Act. The Arizona Daily Star, which is owned by a subsidiary of Lee Enterprises Incorporated, is the second newspaper in the JOA. TNI Partners provides the production, distribution, sales and other non-editorial business functions for both the Citizen and The Star.

At the end of the quarter, Gannett had more than 100 domestic publishing Web sites, including USATODAY.com, one of the most popular newspaper sites on the Web. The company also had Web sites in all of its 19 television markets. In December, Gannett’s consolidated domestic Internet audience share was 24.4 million unique visitors reaching 14.7 percent of the Internet audience according to Nielsen//NetRatings. Newsquest is also an Internet leader in the UK where its network of Web sites attracted more than 68 million monthly page impressions from approximately 5.5 million unique users. CareerBuilder’s unique visitors in December totaled 17.9 million, an increase of 24 percent compared to last year.

All references in this release to “comparable” revenue results and “operating cash flow” are to non-GAAP financial measures. Management believes that this use allows management and investors to analyze and compare the Company’s results in a more meaningful and consistent manner. A reconciliation of the non-GAAP operating cash flow amounts to the Company’s consolidated statements of income is attached.

As previously announced, the company will hold an earnings conference call at 10:00 a.m. ET today. The call can be accessed via a live Webcast through the Investor Relations section of the company’s Web site, www.gannett.com, or listen-only conference lines. U.S. callers should dial 1-888-599-8693 and international callers should dial 913-312-0717 at least 10 minutes prior to the scheduled start of the call. The confirmation code for the conference call is 8694836. To access the replay, dial 1-888-203-1112 in the U.S. International callers should use the number 719-457-0820. The confirmation code for the replay is 8694836. Materials related to the call will be available through the Investor Relations section of the company’s Web site Friday morning.

Gannett Co., Inc. is a leading international news and information company that publishes 85 daily newspapers in the USA, including USA TODAY, the nation’s largest-selling daily newspaper. The company also owns nearly 900 non-daily publications in the USA and USA WEEKEND, a weekly newspaper magazine. Gannett subsidiary Newsquest is the United Kingdom’s second largest regional newspaper company. Newsquest publishes 17 daily paid-for titles, more than 200 weekly newspapers, magazines and trade publications, and a network of award-winning Web sites. Gannett also operates 23 television stations in the United States and is an Internet leader with sites sponsored by its TV stations and newspapers including USATODAY.com, one of the most popular news sites on the Web.

SUNNYVALE, Calif. – Yahoo! Inc (NASDAQ:YHOO) announced the most popular searches, themes, and trends as part of its 2008 Year in Review (yearinreview.yahoo.com), as told through the billions of searches conducted by millions of Yahoo! users around the globe every month.

“Every day, people turn to the web to learn more about the world around them. Their searches reveal which news events, personalities and issues made an impact in 2008,” said Heather Cabot, Yahoo! Web Life Editor. “This year people were captivated by the historic U.S. Presidential election and Olympic triumphs. They also closely followed every facet of the economic downturn and enjoyed a little escapism by devouring celebrity gossip and delving into online video games.”

The Yahoo! 2008 Year in Review not only presents the top ten searches, but overall themes and popular trends that bubbled to the surface, including the economy, politicians, news stories, Olympians, rising celebrities, influential women, and notable deaths. Also included in this year’s review are additional top tens in select areas throughout Yahoo! such as Yahoo! Food, Shine, Tech, Green, Shopping, Travel, Games, Movies, Music, Local, Upcoming, Hot Jobs, most Buzzed-Up stories and clicked-on stories from yahoo.com.

By the Numbers – Top 10 Overall Searches

1. Britney Spears
2. WWE (World Wrestling Entertainment)
3. Barack Obama
4. Miley Cyrus
5. RuneScape
6. Jessica Alba
7. Naruto
8. Lindsay Lohan
9. Angelina Jolie
10. American Idol

Britney Spears has been the most popular search term and person for seven out of eight years. In 2008, she made a comeback with a new album, three MTV Music Awards, a sitcom guest star role and documentary on her rise, fall and career comeback.

Barack Obama was the second most searched for person in 2008. Headlines of his election victory received the most clicks than any other story on yahoo.com this year, and he was the third most searched term overall. Obama soared up the search ranks tremendously as the election campaign moved forward with consumers using Yahoo! Search to get informed, learn more about him and decide how to vote in this critically important election.

This year also marked the coming out party for Miley Cyrus, who discarded her Disney persona of “Hannah Montana” and launched her own album under her real name to make the top five. Jessica Alba’s wedding and new baby spurred additional interest for her this year. With success at the box office and new baby pictures, Angelina Jolie continues to be in the public spotlight. Popular entertainment properties also were in demand, including wrestling (WWE), video games (RuneScape), anime (Naruto) and television (American Idol).

Market Meltdowns – Top 10 Economic Searches

1. IRS Stimulus Checks
2. Oil Prices
3. Gold Prices
4. Gas Prices
5. Dow Jones
6. Sallie Mae
7. Stock Market
8. AIG
9. Foreclosures
10. Debt Consolidation

As 2008 came to a close, the nation’s economic turmoil battled with the presidential election for the hearts and wallets of searchers. In February, the Treasury Department announced it would be disbursing stimulus checks to boost economic activity and taxpayers clamored to know if the check was actually in the mail. The fallout from the subprime mortgage crisis hit Wall Street hard in October as the Dow Jones Industrials fell to its lowest point, producing the biggest point drop in the Dow’s 112-year history. Gas prices marked the only silver lining, falling sharply late in the year after reaching all-time highs during the summer.

Politics As Unusual – Top 10 Politician Searches

1. Barack Obama
2. Sarah Palin
3. John McCain
4. Hillary Clinton
5. George Bush
6. Ron Paul
7. John Edwards
8. Mike Huckabee
9. Arnold Schwarzenegger
10. Mitt Romney

It was an election of many firsts. Not only did the U.S. elect an African American president for the first time but 2008 also had a notable campaign by former First Lady and Senator Hillary Clinton, and the first female nominee for Vice President in the Republican Party, Alaska governor Sarah Palin. Other candidates secured their fair share of searches as well. On the other hand, California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger wasn’t involved in the presidential race, but searches for the “Governator” beat Democratic vice presidential pick Joe Biden and Republican candidate Mitt Romney.

News Stories – Top 10 News Stories

1. Hurricanes
2. Caylee and Casey Anthony
3. Election 2008
4. Pakistan
5. Pregnant Man
6. China
7. Iraq
8. Shelley Malil
9. Patrick Swayze
10. Afghanistan

Natural disasters affected virtually every corner of our planet. Hurricanes Gustav and Ike devastated the southern U.S. and the Caribbean. The fighting in Iraq and Afghanistan continued to be a focus throughout the year. But a few surprises to this list included the human interest stories that captivated the curiosity of the country, such as Caylee Anthony, a missing Florida toddler; the pregnant man who allegedly gave birth to a baby girl; and Patrick Swayze’s battle against cancer.

Counting Olympic Gold – Top 10 Olympian Searches

1. Michael Phelps
2. Leryn Franco
3. Serena Williams
4. Kobe Bryant
5. Shawn Johnson
6. Jennie Finch
7. Misty May Treanor
8. Ronaldinho
9. Alicia Sacramone
10. Nastia Liukin

A worldwide audience couldn’t get enough of the Olympics, hungrily hunting down every detail on the characters playing out sports’ most marvelously unscripted drama. The Olympics was a nightly epic story, in which Michael Phelps played the ideal leading man, with the mystery of his estranged father breaking the list of most clicked on stories of yahoo.com.

New Brat Pack – Top 10 Rising Celebrity Searches

1. Miley Cyrus
2. Vanessa Anne Hudgens
3. Chris Brown
4. Jonas Brothers
5. Rihanna
6. Taylor Swift
7. Jamie Lynn Spears
8. Hayden Panettiere
9. Zac Efron
10. Selena Gomez

In 2008, tabloid staples cleaned up their acts due to court-ordered conservatorships (Britney Spears), pledges of sobriety (Lindsay Lohan), and motherhood (Nicole Richie). As a result, celebrity publications and bloggers shifted their focus to a new, younger set of headline makers, the New Brat Pack. Like their 1980s counterparts, the New Brat Pack celebs appear in each other’s movies, music videos and social circles. They’re all young (21 and under), popular and major money makers. And, their youth subjects them to greater public scrutiny. Disney protégés are coming into their own with huge success, including Miley Cyrus, Vanessa Hudgens, the Jonas Brothers and Zac Efron.

Breaking The Glass Ceiling – Top 10 Searched Influential Women

1. Angelina Jolie
2. Sarah Palin
3. Oprah
4. Hillary Clinton
5. Gina Carano
6. Tina Fey
7. Michelle Obama
8. Katie Couric
9. Barbara Walters
10. Dara Torres

Not only were Sarah Palin and Hillary Clinton closer than ever to the nation’s top elected offices, but many other women were popular among Yahoo! searchers this year. The presidential race fed into a huge rise in popularity for Tina Fey (portraying Sarah Palin on “Saturday Night Live”), Michelle Obama (wife of the President-elect) and Katie Couric (political interviewer and newscaster). Undefeated kickboxing champ Gina Carano also upped her profile in her turn as Crush on “American Gladiators,” then later made television history in the first primetime female fight.

Final Farewells – Top 10 Send-Offs

1. Heath Ledger
2. Bernie Mac
3. Paul Newman
4. Randy Pausch
5. George Carlin
6. Estelle Getty
7. Tim Russert
8. Brad Renfro
9. Isaac Hayes
10. Boyd Coddington

2008 began with the unexpected death of actor Heath Ledger. Ledger’s death launched the world into a stunned Search frenzy over the actor who showed promise of being a Hollywood great. His passing renewed searches for 25-year-old Brad Renfro, a child actor who died in a heroin overdose a week earlier.

To find out more about the Yahoo! 2008 Year in Review go to yearinreview.yahoo.com or search for “2008 Year in Review” on yahoo.com.

About the Yahoo! 2008 Year in Review Methodology

To develop the Yahoo! Year in Review, our editors analyze search queries based upon a number of factors, including absolute volume and growth versus previous periods, to see which themes and trends bubble to the surface. Individual users and their search queries always remain anonymous.

About Yahoo!

Yahoo! Inc. is a leading global Internet brand and one of the most trafficked Internet destinations worldwide. Yahoo! is focused on powering its communities of users, advertisers, publishers, and developers by creating indispensable experiences built on trust. Yahoo! is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California. For more information, visit pressroom.yahoo.com or the company’s blog, Yodel Anecdotal.

Yahoo! and the Yahoo! logo are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Yahoo! Inc. All other names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective owners.

As previously reported, the company acquired all of its partners’ ownership stakes in ShopLocal LLC on June 30, 2008. In addition, the company acquired an additional 10 percent stake in CareerBuilder increasing its ownership to 50.8 percent on September 3, 2008. The results for ShopLocal and CareerBuilder were fully consolidated beginning in the seventh and ninth periods, respectively. Prior to these acquisitions the company’s equity share of CareerBuilder and ShopLocal results was reported as equity earnings. Beginning with the third quarter, a new “Digital” business segment is being reported which includes CareerBuilder and ShopLocal results from the date of full consolidation as well as PointRoll, Planet Discover and Schedule Star. Prior period results for PointRoll, Planet Discover and Schedule Star have been reclassified from the publishing segment to the digital segment.

“While our results this quarter reflect the difficult and volatile economy both here and in the UK, they also highlight our determination to move forward with our strategic plan,” said Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer Craig Dubow.

“Our positive online results confirm, for instance, the importance of digital to our plan going forward. We also were delighted to complete, this quarter, the acquisition of an additional 10 percent stake in CareerBuilder, the largest online job site in the U.S., and the remainder of ShopLocal.

“Within our core operations, revenues from Olympics advertising reflected the strength of our NBC affiliated stations. Political advertising is strong and continues to surge as we move toward November. Meanwhile, we continue to transform our cost structure and create efficiencies as we manage through this economic downturn.

“And there were some headwinds in addition to the weakening economic conditions which impacted ad spending across the board,” Dubow said. “We faced significantly higher newsprint prices and an unfavorable exchange rate.”

Total reported operating revenues for the company were $1.64 billion in the third quarter compared to $1.80 billion in the same quarter a year ago. The decline was due to softer publishing advertising demand resulting primarily from weak economic conditions in the U.S. and the UK, offset partially by Olympic and political ad spending in Broadcasting and revenues from the consolidation of CareerBuilder and ShopLocal. On a pro forma basis, assuming Gannett owned the same complement of properties in the third quarters of 2008 and 2007, operating revenues would have been 10.2 percent lower.

Reported operating expenses declined 2.2 percent in the quarter to $1.38 billion from $1.41 billion in the third quarter of 2007. The decline was driven by continued cost containment and efficiency efforts and lower newsprint expense, reduced, in part, by severance expenses, the consolidation of CareerBuilder and ShopLocal expenses and our accelerated ramp up of our digital initiatives. On a pro forma basis and excluding severance costs, operating expenses declined 5.3 percent for the quarter. Corporate expenses were $14.3 million, 19.2 percent lower than the year ago quarter driven by cost control efforts offset slightly by buyout expenses. Operating cash flow (defined as operating income plus depreciation and amortization) was $324.0 million. Net income in the quarter was $158.1 million.

Average diluted shares outstanding in the third quarter totaled 228,331,000 compared with 232,698,000 in 2007’s third quarter.

PUBLISHING

Publishing segment operating revenues were $1.36 billion for the quarter, a 14.4 percent decline from the third quarter of 2007. Advertising revenues were $977.1 million compared to $1.19 billion in the third quarter of 2007. On a pro forma basis, advertising revenues were 17.6 percent lower. Pro forma advertising revenues declined 14.9 percent in the U.S. and 23.6 percent, in pounds, at Newsquest, our operations in the UK. On a pro forma basis for the publishing segment, retail advertising revenues were 10.1 percent lower, national revenues declined 7.8 percent and classified revenues were down 28.5 percent. For comparison purposes, the exchange rate of the British pound in the quarter declined compared to last year. If the exchange rate had remained constant year-over-year total pro forma advertising revenues would have been 16.5 percent lower including declines of 9.5 percent in retail, 7.3 percent in national and 27.0 percent in classified.

Lower pro forma classified revenues were driven by declines of 41.5 percent in real estate, 34.0 percent in employment and 21.4 percent in automotive. For U.S. Community Publishing classified revenues were down 26.5 percent comprised of declines of 33.4 percent in real estate, 36.5 percent in employment and 18.7 percent in automotive. In the UK, classified revenues were 29.1 percent lower, in pounds, reflecting declines of 51.3 percent in real estate, 25.2 percent in employment and 25.3 percent in automotive.

At USA TODAY, advertising revenues were 7.1 percent lower in the third quarter compared to the year ago quarter. Paid advertising pages totaled 713 compared with 803 in the same quarter of 2007. Growth in the advocacy, financial and home and building categories was offset by softness in the entertainment, travel, automotive and technology categories.

Total publishing operating expenses were $1.18 billion, a 6.6 percent decline from the same quarter a year ago reflecting continued efficiency efforts in the U.S. and the UK and lower newsprint expense offset in part by severance expenses. Pro forma publishing expenses excluding severance expenses were 7.1 percent lower. Newsprint expense declined 3.4 percent for the quarter reflecting a 15.9 percent increase in usage prices which was more than offset by a 16.7 percent decline in consumption. Operating cash flow in the third quarter for the total publishing segment, which includes USA TODAY and Newsquest, was $231.7 million.

BROADCASTING

Broadcasting revenues (which include Captivate) were $197.0 million in the quarter, a 3.9 percent increase compared to $189.5 million in the third quarter of 2007. The increase was driven by almost $24 million in ad spending related to the Olympics on our NBC affiliates and about $26 million in politically related advertising. Online revenue in the quarter was up 15.0 percent. The weakening economy had an unfavorable impact on certain core advertising categories including auto and retail which partially offset the increase from Olympic and political ad revenue.

Operating expenses in the broadcasting segment totaled $113.0 million down 4.3 percent from $118.1 million a year ago reflecting continued efficiencies, offset in part by severance expense. Broadcasting expenses excluding severance were down 6.0 percent. Operating cash flow was $92.5 million in the third quarter. Television revenues were 4.8 percent higher and totaled $192.8 million. Based on where we are today, we would expect television revenues to be up in the low single digits for the fourth quarter of 2008 compared to the fourth quarter of 2007 led by strong political advertising demand.

DIGITAL

As noted previously, the digital segment includes results for CareerBuilder, PointRoll, ShopLocal, Planet Discover and Schedule Star. Results for ShopLocal were included for the entire third quarter while CareerBuilder’s results were included for the last month in the quarter. Results for PointRoll, Planet Discover and Schedule Star, which had been previously reflected in the publishing segment, have been reclassified to the digital segment. Total digital operating revenues from these businesses were $77.6 million in the quarter driven by the consolidation of CareerBuilder and ShopLocal. Operating expenses totaled $71.5 million. Operating cash flow was $10.2 million reflecting positive results for CareerBuilder, PointRoll and ShopLocal partially offset by continued investment in Schedule Star and the ramp up of our digital infrastructure.

NON-OPERATING ITEMS

The company’s equity share of operating earnings or losses from our unconsolidated investees including the California Newspapers Partnership, Texas-New Mexico Newspapers Partnership, Tucson and online/new technology businesses is reported in “Equity income (losses) in unconsolidated investees, net” in the non-operating section of the Consolidated Statements of Income. These amounts include the company’s equity share of results for CareerBuilder and ShopLocal for periods prior to September 3, 2008 and June 30, 2008, respectively.

The decline in equity income from unconsolidated investees for the third quarter of 2008 was due primarily to: lower results from our newspaper partnerships reflecting the challenging publishing advertising environment; continued investment in digital assets like Metromix; and the inclusion of CareerBuilder results for two months in the quarter compared to 3 months in last year’s third quarter.

The decrease in other non-operating items reflects the inclusion of minority interest expense related to CareerBuilder, a reduced level of investment income and foreign currency charges associated primarily with UK pound-denominated transactions.

Interest expense for the third quarter was $46.8 million, a 25.7 percent decline compared to $63.0 million for the third quarter in 2007. The decline was due to lower interest rates and average debt balances.

As expected, some favorable tax settlements of prior year state return positions and a lower UK statutory tax rate impacted the tax rate for the quarter. We expect further favorable tax settlements in the fourth quarter.

At the end of the quarter, Gannett had more than 100 domestic publishing Web sites, including USATODAY.com, one of the most popular newspaper sites on the Web. The company also had Web sites in all of its 19 television markets. In September, Gannett’s consolidated domestic Internet audience share was 25.4 million unique visitors reaching 15.6 percent of the Internet audience according to Nielsen//NetRatings. Newsquest is also an Internet leader in the UK where its network of Web sites attracted more than 85.6 million monthly page impressions from approximately 6.5 million unique users. CareerBuilder’s average unique visitors year-to-date totaled 23.4 million, an increase of almost 6 percent compared to last year.

All references in this release to “comparable” revenue results and “operating cash flow” are to non-GAAP financial measures. Management believes that this use allows management and investors to analyze and compare the Company’s results in a more meaningful and consistent manner. A reconciliation of the non-GAAP operating cash flow amounts to the Company’s consolidated statements of income is attached.

As previously announced, the company will hold an earnings conference call at 10:00 a.m. ET today. The call can be accessed via a live Webcast through the Investor Relations section of the company’s Web site, www.gannett.com, or listen-only conference lines. U.S. callers should dial 1-888-215-7015 and international callers should dial 913-312-1504 at least 10 minutes prior to the scheduled start of the call. The confirmation code for the conference call is 5339774. To access the replay, dial 1-888-203-1112 in the U.S. International callers should use the number 719-457-0820. The confirmation code for the replay is 5339774. Materials related to the call will be available through the Investor Relations section of the company’s Web site Friday morning.

Gannett Co., Inc. is a leading international news and information company that publishes 85 daily newspapers in the USA, including USA TODAY, the nation’s largest-selling daily newspaper. The company also owns nearly 900 non-daily publications in the USA and USA WEEKEND, a weekly newspaper magazine. Gannett subsidiary Newsquest is the United Kingdom’s second largest regional newspaper company. Newsquest publishes nearly 300 titles, including 17 daily newspapers, and a network of prize-winning Web sites. Gannett also operates 23 television stations in the United States and is an Internet leader with sites sponsored by its TV stations and newspapers including USATODAY.com, one of the most popular news sites on the Web.

Certain statements in this press release may be forward looking in nature or “forward looking statements” as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. The forward looking statements contained in this press release are subject to a number of risks, trends and uncertainties that could cause actual performance to differ materially from these forward looking statements. A number of those risks, trends and uncertainties are discussed in the company’s SEC reports, including the company’s annual report on Form 10-K and quarterly reports on Form 10-Q. Any forward looking statements in this press release should be evaluated in light of these important risk factors.

Gannett is not responsible for updating the information contained in this press release beyond the published date, or for changes made to this press release by wire services, Internet service providers or other media.

Figures in brackets show our previous forecasts, issued in Mar 2008 * change in methodology to include classifieds in press

The main driver of these reductions for 2008 is downward revisions for ad spend in four economies: the US, the UK, Spain and China. Elsewhere, the majority of the developed economies are predicted to contribute less than 5% growth, with the impetus – and double-digit growth – coming from emerging economies in Central and Eastern Europe, Central Asia and Latin America.

Commenting on the forecasts, Jerry Buhlmann, CEO of Aegis Media, said: “It’s clear that the worldwide economic issues affecting businesses are having an impact on where and how advertisers spend their money. It is also significant that the US and the UK, as the highest spenders on advertising in their regions, are showing reductions in our forecasts. But overall, the picture is still one of growth.

“The emerging economies of Eastern Europe, Asia and Latin America are predicted to achieve double-digit growth both this year and next. And though their spend is still small compared to North America and Western Europe, these regions are catching up fast.

“Similarly, whilst TV”s share of spend has stabilised, internet advertising is continuing to drive spending ahead of other sectors in nearly every region. Internet is set to overtake radio this year to become the world’s third most popular medium, behind TV and print. But changes in consumer behaviour aren’t the only reason for this. With search now central to the planning and execution of any campaign, online media brings a greater level of accountability not just to itself but to TV, print and other forms of advertising. This is why we are predicting further strong growth for internet, even when advertisers are cautious in many of the other sectors.”

The US, UK, China and Spain

Growth in the US is predicted to slow to 2.1% from our earlier forecast of 3.8%, with newspapers, magazines and radio all having shown declines this year, but there will be growth in TV, thanks to the presidential elections and the Olympics, and in the Internet. The UK’s overall forecast has been cut from 4.3% to 2.5%, with a downward revision of 1.8% points.

China’s growth has been revised downwards by a percentage point for this year, as the true picture of the impact on 2008 of the May earthquake and what will happen to spending post-Olympics becomes clear. 2009 is forecast to see a more significant decline in growth, with forecasts down from 13.2% to 10.9% in what will become the world’s third largest advertising market, though it is important to remember that this growth is still well ahead of predictions for the developed world.

However, Spain’s ad spend forecasts have changed the most, down from 3.8% to -2.3% as a result of local macro-economic trends and the severe housing downturn. The majority of spend is coming out of newspapers, magazines and TV, with forecast declines of -6.2%, -4.5% and -3.9% respectively. The internet is predicted to grow by 25% to make up 7.1% of total spend in the country. The Spanish economy is expected to pick up again in late 2009 with -0.8% growth forecasted.

Regional breakdown

As the above indicates, the trend for growth in the developed regions – North America, Japan and Western Europe – remains below the global figure with 2-3% on average forecast for both 2008 and 2009. The global figure is lifted by the fast growth in emerging economies, most notably Russia (22.8%), India (21.0%) and Mexico (20.0%). Despite the downward revisions since March, China is still one of the fastest growing markets for advertising with growth of 18.2% predicted for this year.

For 2009, the fastest growth regions are Central and Eastern Europe at 15.2% and Latin America at 14.1%.

Sector breakdown

TV is set to grow this year and next ahead of 2007′s performance. Similarly, cinema’s growth is strong, but it comes from a very low base. Only newspapers are predicted to decline on a worldwide basis.

Spending on internet advertising continues to grow ahead of all other sectors, albeit not at the same rate as 2007, and we predict that this slowdown in growth will continue through into 2009. The below chart indicates that the growth of the internet is primarily at the cost of print advertising spend, even though newspapers and magazines together still dwarf internet’s share. TV is predicted to grow its share year-on-year in both 2008 and 2009.

About Aegis Group plc
Aegis Group plc is the world’s fastest growing marketing communications group. Listed on the London Stock Exchange, it operates in media communications with Aegis Media, which includes Carat, Vizeum, Posterscope and Isobar, and market research with Synovate. More information on Aegis Group plc can be found at www.aegisgroupplc.com.

About Carat
Carat was established in 1968 and was the first independent media specialist in Europe. Carat was a pioneer of unbundling – the separation of media services from full service creative agencies. It is now a global independent media communications network represented in 82 countries and offers clients a range of services including: communications planning, sponsorship, interactive, direct, event, pr, consumer research and insight, business to business, International services, regional and global client servicing. www.carat.com.

The new feature doesn’t seem to have propagated in all DFP accounts yet, and the knowledge base doesn’t seem to include any new entries about streaming Silverlight. I’ll let you enjoy the feature announcement in full, below.

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (August 05, 2008) –Today, DoubleClick, a premier provider of digital marketing technology and services, announced the new capability to serve video ads into Microsoft Silverlight 2 video environments. The move is part of DoubleClick’s ongoing effort to help clients maximize the yield on their advertising inventory as they deliver content into emergent online, video and mobile channels.

With this new feature of DoubleClick In-Stream, DoubleClick clients such as NBC Universal Digital Media are able to monetize video content played within the Silverlight 2 player. NBCOlympics.com, a division of NBC Universal, will be one of the first sites to open Silverlight 2 content up to advertisers with DoubleClick In-Stream. The solution carves out new video inventory across 2,500 hours of video content running as part of NBC’s Olympics coverage.

“Microsoft has always had a strong commitment to working closely with partners and the industry to enable them to leverage our tools and platform to deliver great user experiences. With Silverlight, we’ve extended that commitment to the advertising space,” said Scott Guthrie, Corporate Vice President, .NET Developer Division. “We’re pleased to see the investment DoubleClick has made to enable customers such as NBCOlympics.com to take advantage of Silverlight to offer compelling packages to their advertisers.”

DoubleClick In-Stream is a video ad serving solution used by online publishers to deliver exciting new advertising experiences into Flash, Real Media, Windows Media and now Silverlight 2 video players. As part of the DoubleClick Revenue Center, the product is completely integrated into DoubleClick’s core ad serving platform, DART for Publishers. The combined DoubleClick solution enables trafficking, targeting forecasting and reporting for video advertising. By working with DoubleClick to serve ads into Silverlight 2, NBCOlympics.com is able to leverage their existing ad operations workflow and staff to package video ads with other opportunities, such as online display and mobile ads. One platform for online display, video and mobile has made it possible for NBC to create compelling cross-channel packages for advertisers who want to reach the Olympics-viewing audience.

“With hundreds of advertisers, multiple platforms and large site traffic spikes, we needed to work with a partner that could provide an integrated, scalable, robust solution,” said Steven Gold, Vice President, Sales Planning and Operations, NBC Universal Digital Media. “Thanks to DoubleClick In-Stream’s new support for Silverlight 2, we are able to monetize our groundbreaking online video coverage on the same platform we already use for display and mobile advertising. This lets our sales and operations teams work together really efficiently.”

“DoubleClick’s vision is to help publishers grow their revenues by creating great user experiences and providing compelling value to advertisers,” said Google Group Product Manager Ari Paparo. “By expanding the capabilities of DoubleClick In-Stream to work with Silverlight 2, we can make it possible for clients to create unique entertainment and advertising experiences without increasing their workload or creating new complex processes.”

For more information on DoubleClick In-Stream, please visit http://www.doubleclick.com/instream

To learn more about the entire DoubleClick Revenue Center, please visit http://www.doubleclick.com/revenuecenter

About DoubleClick
DoubleClick is a premier provider of digital marketing technology and services. The world’s top marketers, publishers and agencies utilize DoubleClick’s expertise in ad serving, rich media, video, mobile, search and affiliate marketing to help them make the most of the digital medium. From its position at the nerve center of digital marketing, DoubleClick provides superior insights and insider knowledge to its customers. DoubleClick is a division of Google Inc. (NASDAQ: GOOG). Learn more at www.doubleclick.com.

It’s not that I haven’t seen traces of this campaign (bumped into a few roadblock ads, closed them as soon as possible and browsed on) but it was just not memorable enough. Eye-candy, yes. Efficient? I wouldn’t think so.

What is it?

Coca-Cola couldn’t help not to take advantage of this year’s biggest (questionably so) event, the Beijing Olympics. They came up with a collaborative project named WE8 (suggestive, right?) and brought together eight artists from the East and eight from the West side of the world, in an attempt to create new bottle designs and a music track to celebrate the Olympics.

The WE8 name stands for West and East, plus an “8″ as a Chinese symbol of good luck. Or well… 8 for 2008.

I’m not sure this campaign will be a success, since, in my opinion, it kicked off a little too close to the event. Plus, the roadblock ads aren’t really the most user-friendly ones in the world and they really don’t convey much of a message: some pretty bottle designs is all there is to be remembered, if anything.