Trinity plans job cuts in online shift

Staff were called together this morning to be told of the situation, and a consultation process is due to begin to determine how many of the Trinity Mirror Digital employees will be retained as part of the move.

The reorganisation of its digital services come on the back of a difficult year for the digital arm of the publisher, which produces the Mirror and Daily Record newspapers. It cut 85 jobs in April, and sold the ic24 ISP service to internet investor Brightview for 4.5m in July.

New media spending was capped at 25m for this year and just 15m for next year, after spending almost double this year's amount in 2000.

Netimperative understands the IC branded regional sites - tied in with Trinity's local newspaper network - will continue to carry the branding, while the main newspaper sites will be unaffected.

A spokesman for the company said Trinity recognised the need for continuing to develop a wider digital media service, but that the focus of the newspaper publishing arm must remain.

“We will concentrate on our core business,” he said. “Responsibility for digital media will move into our regional newspaper division and the divisions will be reintegrated as soon as possible.”

He added the company was working to identify what roles would still be required under the move. The digital media arm of Trinity employed 300 people at the start of the year, though that was reduced though April's job cuts.

The move would position the digital media service in a similar platform to Northcliffe's This Is network of regional websites tied into local papers, operating the new media services for parent company Daily Mail General Trust.

It marks the end of a decline for the digital media services at Trinity Mirror, which was promised a 150m war chest by the publishing arm last year.