Daily7 and Daily10 launches online newspapers for kids

PRESS RELEASE
Daily7 and Daily10 launches online newspapers for kids
HONG KONG, JUNE 17, 2010:  Step Max Ltd, the leading publisher of English language newspapers for children aged 5 to 11, has launched a digital version of its newspapers. Daily7 and Daily10 are now available online via the company’s website www.daily7-daily10.com. Subscribers can log on to read the news which is updated every day except on Sundays.

Step Max publisher Melanie Holloway said: “Daily7 and Daily10 have been thriving as print publications for more than 6 years now. We decided to offer the paper online so that more children could have access to this valuable resource. The content is fun, interesting, age-appropriate and updated daily.”

In preparation for the launch, Step Max revamped its website to offer more interactive features for children, such as options to vote, take part in a quiz, write book reviews, watch videos, see picture slide shows and read about children from other parts of the world.

The websites also feature online audio, so children can listen to the text being read out by a native English speaker. “This is a valuable element, particularly for those children whose second language is English. It helps them with the pronunciation of words, and the nuances of sentences,” Ms Holloway said.

“Children find it quicker and easier to send their contributions online,” said Ms Holloway. “And they love reading about what other kids are doing. While they’re there, they are reading the news and learning exciting things about the world!”

Ms Holloway said that going digital was a natural response to the changes in the media world. “Our young readers are already interacting socially online, chatting on Facebook, sharing photos with their iPhones, and getting their knowledge about the world from a far different place than we did. We used books and encyclopedias; they go online.”

Ms Holloway said children were also growing up in a fast-moving technological society where instant gratification was becoming the norm. “On websites kids can vote or write their review, push send, and the next day they’re published!”

“What we love is that it’s all totally educational,” said Ms Holloway. “It’s a kind of easy way of encouraging children to read daily, because what we put on the web is so interesting, they want to go back and read more.

“Experts recommend that children read 10 to 15 minutes a day. And while Daily7 and Daily10 readers might not quite meet that exact amount, they certainly come close.”

Founded in 2004, Step Max Ltd publishes Daily7 and Daily10 print and digital newspapers six days a week for children aged 5 to 11 years; My Little Paper, an early education weekly paper for preschoolers aged 2 to 5 years; and cartoon, travel and educational books for children.

Daily7 and Daily10 are widely read by primary school students in Hong Kong and around Asia. Schools, individual teachers, private tutors and learning centres also subscribe to the papers as an aid to the courses that they offer. My Little Paper readers attend preschool or kindergartens in Hong Kong and around Asia. Readership of all papers is an equal mix of first and second language English readers.