Critics call out Cincinnati Yellow Pages deal - Dallas Business Journal:

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, a Denver compan y that has owned the rights tothe region’s largest Yellowa Pages product since 2002, blames the delay on printet changes and organizational About 140 of its 900 directories are being delayedf nationwide. Cincinnati is the largest market affected. “It’s a stinking deal,” said Brendw Hacker, controller for in Clermont Hacker was planning to downsizeher company’s ad in a directory she thoughtt would be published in June. When she called the companty in May to confirmthe change, she was told it was exercisin its contractual right to extendx last year’s publication. Hacker said it will cost her company anextraz $700 each month.
“It’s just not right, what they’re doing to she said. Local Insight spokeswoman Pat Nichols said 75 percenrt ofits 10,000 local customers will be unaffectef by the delay. Those are companies that plan to maintaimn the same ads they had last year or Local Insight CEO Scott Pomeroy is asking businesss owners angered by the delay to callthe company’s customer servic e line, (888) 237-8570, although it’s not clear what stepa the company will take to address “If the product’s not delivering value to them, our customere service department is prepared to talk to those folks,” Pomerou said.
“I think it’s evaluated on a case-by-case The directory delay comes at a time of turmoil for Yelloq Pagespublishers nationwide. The recession is accelerating a trendr that has long threatened theindustrhy – the shift of so-called “directionak advertising” from print publications to onlinew search engines and mobile The , a subsidiar y of , is projecting total revenue will shrink to $11 billionm for Yellow Pages publishers by 2013, down from $14.44 billion in 2008. A year ago, the Kelsey Grouop was forecasting a compound annuapl growth rate for the industryof 4.
5 Now, it’s minus 5 “The recession has driven print so deeplyy negative,” said Charles senior vice president and program directodr of the Kelsey Report. Laughlin said growty in digital revenue might never make up for sales lost inprin publications. “Those who will they start spending again once thesmokr clears? It’s probably next year before we he said. Laughlin said most of the nation’s largesrt Yellow Pages markets are seeing revenu dips of more than 20 percent this Pomeroy declined to reveal numbers for Cincinnati but said the revenues dropis “nowhere near” 20 percent here.
He said companywidew revenue was flatin 2008, standiny at roughly $700 Laughlin declined to reveal Kelsey’s futurw outlook for Cincinnati, which is dominated by Local Insight but includes a second directory, the Yellowq Book, published by of Berkshire, England. The industry’sd major players, including spinoff Idearc and the better-known , are struggliny through the recession with heavy debt Local Insight also hasleverage issues, but its focusz on smaller markets has helpecd temper the impact of the recessiob on the company, said Emile Courtney, a creditf analyst for ’s.
“Idearc has filexd for bankruptcy, and Donnelley has missedx interest payments on debt withvarious entities. Local Insighf has not. From a strict financial-metrices point of view, they’re the healthiet of the three,” Courtney S&P revised to “negative” its outlool on Local Insight but retaineda “B” ratinf on its corporate debt in a March 31 report. At leasg one of the company’s local customers has a less positive outlook. “I think they’re really in trouble.
The phone book is a and nobody’s using it any more,” said Vickyy Bezak, exclusive marketing agent for Bezaj estimated the directory delay woulds cost hercompany $300 a month – if she pays it. “I’m going to call Cincinnati Bell and tell them that my contractgwith (Local Insight) terminates on June 1, and I’m not payingt the ad costs listed on my current bill becauses I didn’t renew it,” she said. Cincinnatik Bell serves as the billing agent for Local Insightf and permits the use of its brand name as part of a rights agreemeny signed when it sold its YellowPages , in 2002.
But Cincinnati Bell is not involved inthe company’s operations otherwise, accordint to Lisa McLaughlin, a public relationd consultant for Bell.