The fact is, talk of new media on its own is now a thing of the past. A remnant of the days when there was a real battle on between old and new. Now it is a foregone conclusion that behind every bit of new media lies a traditional player or three. New Media launches are now incomplete without boasts of alliances with a handful of old world players, notably publishers and broadcasters. OK it may be a marriage of convenience.
Old media wants a piece of the action and new media offers a cut in return for some distribution.
An example of the trend this week comes with the report that Newsquest, the regional newspaper publisher, has invested in FreeServe Auctions. Notice how FreeServe has become so powerful that it just has to do something interesting with one of its divisions for the share price to shoot up again. It will also incorporate FreeServe Auction into the Web sites of its paper and drop its AuctionHunter brand. The move is an ideal example of the mutual benefits that arise from the mixed media approach. FreeServe needs promotion from a supportive print publisher and Newsquest needs a leg up into the auction market.