The OPA, which represents South Africa's major online publishers who account for more than three million readers or unique users on the internet, is a non-profit organisation dedicated to promoting the growth and profitability of the online publishing industry. The organisation is dedicated to setting the highest standards of best practice for online publishing and meeting the needs of marketing and advertising professionals.
OPA chairperson Russell Hanly welcomed SABCnews.com to the OPA as a fully-fledged member, saying it was "a real coup" for the organisation to have the SABC on board.
"Gaining the membership of such an important player in the online space is a real coup and provides clear evidence that the OPA is growing from strength-to-strength. Broadening the base of members has become an important focus this year and every new member cements the organisation's position as the representative body of SA's top publishers of quality online content," says Hanly.
The SABCnews.com joins 15 other online publishers, which include 365 digital, Ananzi, BDFM, CareerJunction, iafrica.com, Independent Online, ITWeb, Johnnic, Mail & Guardian Online, Moneymax, M-Web, Media24 Digital, Moneyweb, Ramsay Son & Parker and Supersport Zone.
Rachel Stewart who heads up SABCnews.com says it is crucial that online publishers approach issues of industry standards with a strong, collective voice.
"SABCnews.com, as one of major players in the internet news field, is pleased to become part of the Online Publishers Association. We believe it important that online news publishers have a strong collective voice on issues pertaining to the industry and that there are common standards in the sector," says Stewart.
SABCnews.com will be part of the new OPA-endorsed readership and traffic measurement standard by Nielsen//NetRatings, formerly known as RedSheriff. The new measurement system means that online publishers in South Africa will for the very first time be measuring and reporting the size and demographic profile of their audiences in a consistent manner, comparable to other media types.
It also means that publishers and advertisers will now have access to advanced statistics and demographics of the online publications in South Africa who are on the system.
Find out more about the OPA @ http://www.opa.org.za.
