By Dominic Ponsford
The Irish News is set to relaunch as a tabloid in mid-March.
The move comes hot on the heels of the launch of pro-Nationalist
newspaper Daily Ireland on 4 February, but according to the Irish News
it has been in the pipeline since before the rival title was proposed.
It means there will be two Belfastbased “compact” dailies appealing to the Nationalist community.
The
independently-owned Irish News has invested £12 million in a new MAN
Roland press which will be capable of printing 96-page full-colour
editions.
The News changed from broadsheet to mid-size Berliner format, of the type The Guardian plans to adopt in 2000.
The
switch down to tabloid size was partly prompted by the need to have
standard-size presses for the contract printing of other publications.
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