(FROM THE WALL STREET JOURNAL 9/2/15) 

Axel Springer Teams

With Samsung on App

 

Axel Springer, Europe's largest publisher, and Samsung, the world's largest cellphone maker, have announced a content partnership in which news stories created and curated by the German publisher will appear exclusively on the South Korean tech giant's phones in Europe.

The stories will be packaged in an app called Upday and will be divided into two sections: "Need to Know" and "Want to Know."

Need to Know will display short articles written by a dedicated Springer editorial team. Want to Know will display algorithmically curated content from partner publishers, with links to those publishers' sites.

J.K. Shin, president of Samsung's IT & Mobile Communications business signed the deal with Axel Springer Chief Executive Matthias Dopfner on Tuesday, and the app launches Thursday in Poland and Germany, with content in both countries' languages.

Axel Springer spokeswoman Sandra Petersen said new editorial teams will be established in every European country to which the partnership expands. Upday currently has 50 employees, with one-third on the editorial operation, the spokeswoman said.

Upday won't be preinstalled on Samsung phones, so users will have to download it from the Google Inc. app store. That is a twist, as Mr. Dopfner is arguably Europe's most vocal critic of Google's market dominance on the continent. He especially opposes its policy of showing snippets from several large German newspapers without paying for the right to post them. Google has historically said it directs huge volumes of readers -- and therefore adds dollars -- to news sites.

-- Amir Mizroch

 

Google Logo Gets

A Brand-New Look

 

The world's largest search giant has a new logo.

The new font for Google Inc.'s name includes the same colors as the previous font, but the new font is a sans-serif variety. There is also a new compact version of the logo that shows just the letter 'G' in the company's red, yellow, green and blue colors.

Google unveiled the changes in a blog post Tuesday. On Google's home page, a hand appears to erase the old logo and write the new one with chalk.

Google's logo makeover is part of a trend of Silicon Valley companies simplifying their logos. "The redesign follows the same pattern of removing extra curves or detailing that Microsoft, Facebook, Twitter and other peers have taken over the past few years," said Michu Benaim Steiner, a partner at In-House International, a design and communications firm.

The decision to use a serif or sans serif font typically has to do with choosing the attributes a company wants to emphasize, according to Richard Westendorf, executive creative director at brand consulting firm Landor Associates. "Sans serif traditionally is thought of as more modern or approachable. And serif conversely more traditional, credentialed and 'serious,'" Mr. Westendorf said.

The company says its new logo reflects the fact that its users now interact with Google from many different gadgets, compared with when the company launched as a search engine that users reached from just one type of device-- their personal computer.

Not everyone loved the change. Some people panned it, including on Google's official blog post.

"A major redesign of an iconic logo often triggers mass rejection almost as a reflex. So it's not surprising that the new Google logo might cause a similar strong reaction," said Ms. Steiner.

-- Georgia Wells

 

Apple and Luxury Are

On Two-Way Street

 

As Ian Rogers's move to LVMH shows, the road between Apple Inc. and the luxury-goods industry is a two-way street.

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SA announced Tuesday that it is hiring the former Apple executive, who created Apple's online radio station Beats 1, as its new chief digital officer.

Mr. Rogers will help brands such as Louis Vuitton, Fendi, Moet & Chandon and Bulgari as they try to catch up in e-commerce and social media.

Mr. Rogers is the highest-profile executive the luxury-goods industry has plucked from Apple.

Apple, on the other hand, has poached several from luxury, notably Angela Ahrendts, formerly chief executive at Burberry Group PLC, and Paul Deneve, who ran Yves Saint Laurent.

Why do Apple and the luxury-goods industry covet each other's leaders so much? They have a lot in common, starting with their customers. The same person who buys a Louis Vuitton bag or a Christian Dior suit is very likely to own an iPhone.

Luxury CEOs such as LVMH's Bernard Arnault often cite Apple as the brand they admire the most. The luxury-goods industry would like to think it shares Apple's characteristics, such as a cult following and iconic design.

-- Christina Passariello

 

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(END) Dow Jones Newswires

September 01, 2015 19:47 ET (23:47 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2015 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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