STV takes down STV Local sites as it prepares for new local digital services roll out
STV has announced that it is to roll out a number of local digital services as it takes down its STV Local sites.
The content for the new services, which will include news, events, offers and videos from across Scotland's largest cities, will be made available through native iOS and Android apps, as well as desktop and mobile sites to cover Dundee, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Glasgow, later this summer.
Two thirds of STV’s online traffic now comes through mobile devices and in the last 12 months alone STV mobile traffic has increased by 20 per cent. With six in 10 Scots now owning a smartphone compared to four in 10 in 2010, the change in the way people consume content has led STV to commit to a mobile-first approach, while also making the services available as a new-look desktop version.
David Milne, head of digital publishing at STV, commented: "The next generation of digital services reinforces STV’s commitment to serving local audiences, including the News at Six - which broadcasts in Glasgow, Aberdeen and Edinburgh, with a bulletin for the Dundee and Tayside area - and the launch in 2014 of two new city TV channels for Glasgow and Edinburgh."
He continued: "The new city services are designed to offer consumers a vibrant, exciting and fun way to engage with everything happening in Scotland’s largest cities and more details will be revealed ahead of launch later this summer.”
As a result of the new services, STV will deactivate its STV Local sites with users set to be directed to the company's main news page in the interim.