Australia’s biggest newspaper publisher, News Ltd, is about to launch a
major cuddling-up exercise with the newsagents who sell its papers.

News is cutting new deals to give newsagents a bigger slice of the pie
to try to convince them to push its papers harder at a time when all
newspapers are struggling to maintain their circulations.

In Victoria, for example, Crikey understands that News will increase
the delivery fee it pays newsagents by 35 cents for seven-day home
delivery, taking the rate from 60 cents to 90 cents – a 59% increase on
current rates.

Fairfax will probably have little option but to respond with similar increases.