DOW JONES NEWSWIRES Gannett Co. (GCI) hired David A. Payne as chief digital officer, filling a void left by the April resignation of Chris Saridakis. The move comes as newspaper companies struggle to derive enough revenue from their online operations to offset continued declines in their traditional print businesses as consumers and advertisers shift to the Internet. Gannett in January posted a 5.2% increase in revenue at its digital division, which includes the employment site CareerBuilder, and digital revenue from across the entire company rose by 10.2% to $271 million, or 19% of its total operating revenue. Companywide, the publisher has continued to struggle with stagnant revenue in its print business. Previously, Payne was president and chief executive of ShortTail Media Inc., a video ad technology start-up he co-founded in 2008. He earlier served as senior vice president and general manager of CNN.com, a unit of Time Warner Inc.'s (TWX) Turner Broadcasting. Saridakis now serves as CEO of marketing services at e-commerce and interactive marketing company GSI Commerce Inc. (GSIC). In April, Gannett had disclosed he would leave to pursue other interests. -By Matt Jarzemsky, Dow Jones Newswires; 212-416-2240; matthew.jarzemsky@dowjones.com
