To quote Ted Leonsis from the CEO Panel, "Content doesn't yearn to be free; content yearns to develop ancillary revenue streams". This panel addressed how to develop and grow multiple revenue streams that complement, rather than conflict with each other.

Mike Marchesano from VNU Business Media talked about the marriage of print and online. Maybe that's a good word to describe the relationship, since there will inevitably be some conflict, but the union of the two can still be happy and beneficial to both parties.

Webb Shaw from JJ Keller and Associates described their transformation into a digital-centric publishing model. His key observation: the challenges may not lie where one expects. For Keller, technical issues in moving from semi-annual to daily updates went smoothly; the key challenge was in transitioning the sales strategy to selling a mix of online and print.

Ken Richieri of the New York Times Company thinks that publishers need to view managing the mix of online and other formats as an iterative process, and that the developments in one medium inevitably affect all other media. His advice: consider how new online channels can enhance existing channels. For example, leverage print material and pictures that were gathered for print but couldn't fit in the paper by putting supplemental material online. Create new interactive series, such as the recent firefighting stories in Boston.com that provide historical and contextual data that can energize your community of readers.

TechTarget began its corporate life as an online company, so Don Hawk and his executive team were able to establish itself with a clean focus on serving customer needs, without worries about reorganizing or changing cultures of legacy print businesses. TechTarget uses what ever medium best serves the needs of its reader-clients and advertising-vendor clients. In some segments, customers may prefer to read indepth analytical reports on industry best-practices and print may be the best medium. The appropriate medium may also be a function of where the user is in the buying process. For instance, when users have done some online research, and shortened their list of prospective vendors, they may be ready for face-to-face contact with key vendors. Consequently, TechTarget organizes conferences to bring buyers and sellers together to "close the deal". An interesting twist: although TechTarget unifies its advertising sales across media, they use separate editorial resources for various channels.

Closing remarks from this panel included the common theme that publishing companies cannot stand still; they have to constantly innovate to keep up with information consumption patterns of their audience. Today's readers and advertisers expect more from publishers: faster delivery in a variety of media, interactivity, metrics that demonstrate effectiveness, and distinct value compared to the growing availability of free information. The only way to stay competitive and profitable in this environment is to leverage your content assets across all appropriate media.