MEDIA AND MARKETING: The transformation of the GAA from parish-based amateur organisation to fully fledged advertising vehicle is not yet complete but the new deal between Dublin players and the city's new paper, the Dublin Daily not the Dublin Daily News its promoters point out, appears to push the organisation further in that direction.

The deal, which has seriously irked the new paper's rival, the Evening Herald, is relatively unusual in media terms and potentially controversial in sporting terms.

Several players, yet to be announced, are to give their time exclusively to the Dublin Daily, which launches mid-March, for marketing and advertising purposes.

The cost? Well nobody is saying officially but The Irish Times has learned that it is worth €100,000 over two years to the players.

About six to seven players are likely to be paid under the deal, says the managing director of the new paper, Mr Colm Grealy.

He says what players do with the money is a matter for them, not the Dublin Daily.

It is understood that a sizeable proportion of the money will go towards a holiday fund for the Dublin team.

The players will undertake several tasks for the paper as part of the package, including advertising the title on radio, television and billboards.

Several players will also write columns for the paper, says Mr Grealy.

The deal hammered out in recent weeks is something of a masterstroke, although a disastrous performance by the Dubs in this year's All-Ireland Championship could make it far less appealing.

With the Herald's circulation dropping from 116,000 in 1996 to 105,000 in 2002, there is no doubt the new arrival regards the deal as giving it a serious advantage in the battle for Dublin readers, particularly males.

Whatever about the potential benefits to the Dublin Daily, the cries of treachery from Independent Newspapers would suggest its marketing department is more than miffed at not sealing such a deal in previous years, when the Dublin Daily was only a glimmer in Mr Paschal Taggart's eye. As the paper's editor, Mr Liam Hayes, told NewsTalk during the week: "If we weren't doing it, somebody else would be doing it."

Observers believe the deal represents a clever pitch towards sports-mad male readers but it will not be enough to guarantee the paper a bright future.

That will depend on various other factors, including the paper's ability to grow beyond its target of 25,000 circulation in the first year.

Mr Paul Moran of media and advertising consultancy Mediaworks says the Herald is the title most under threat if the new title gets a foothold in the market.

"The last daily newspaper to launch was the Evening News in 1996.

"That was an attempt to bring average readership of daily newspapers back to 1991 levels of 82 per cent, from the then declining figure of 70 per cent. Although evening titles are a different style of paper, the failure of the Evening News within a few months of its launch leaves me sceptical for the success of a new morning paper," he said.

"As for revenue, 2002 saw a decrease in the share of advertising revenue given over to press. If this continues in 2003, the difficulty of capturing this revenue increases. How long the Dublin Daily will last depends largely upon the depth of its pockets."

Over at GT Media, similar views can be heard. "They are entering a very difficult market place, so they will have to provide something new or else it could be very challenging.

Their predictions for circulation are very conservative, magazines like U are doing far more than that," says Mr Graham Taylor, the agency's media buyer and planner.

Mr Steve Shanahan of the Institute of Advertising Practitioners in Ireland, says the key could be reaching out to the "mobile commuting population" that travels to Dublin every day.

"Maybe if they sell hard in train stations and so on they could tap into a new kind of newspaper reader but they are up against a very formidable competitor in the Independent group."

He says advertisers are usually very conservative when it comes to any new press titles and few agencies are going to rush in.

Mr Taylor believes the new paper will have to be very competitive on price as existing titles are already significantly discounting their rate cards.

Mr Frank Hannigan, sales and marketing manager with the new title, is confident the paper will be competitive, with its rate card set at €4,800 for a colour page and €21 per single column centimetre.

Cover price will also be essential, but Mr Hannigan and Mr Grealy say the product will a "premium" purchase, meaning it will not be cheap.

Mr Hannigan says the company's research suggests there is a major gap for a new title and he rejects the argument that previous failures by the Dublin-centered Evening News and the Leader (admittedly a weekly title) mean any new attempt is doomed.

"There is a younger readership not currently served by the existing titles, particularly young female readers and we will be trying to serve those kind of groups."

He also said €35 million was spent on Dublin radio last year and there was no reason why a new press title could not take a slice of that.

"Virtually all the major cities around the world have a paper of their own, surely Dublin should have one?"

Dublin Daily News Ltd is going to spend €6 million in marketing over the next three years trying to answer that question in the affirmative.

The shareholders in the venture are British newspaper group Archant (20 per cent), a consortium of business people led by Mr Taggart (approximately 40 per cent), and management and staff (40 per cent). However, the regional newspaper group, the Connaught Tribune, is also expected to become a shareholder within days.

• Got any views on media, marketing or advertising subjects, email Emmet Oliver at eoliver@irish-times.ie