Polopoly and Atex

An Explanation of Who our Technology Partners Are

Published: Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Updated: Thursday, June 18, 2009 12:06

At the first inkling of CP5, CMN spec'd out the qualities of the perfect CMS for a network of newspapers, and conducted extensive market research in reviewing the software options (including open-source technologies). A CMS built by a small Sweden-based technology firm emerged as the clear winner based on its scalability, programming language, and feature set. That technology company was called Polopoly.

At the time, the Polopoly CMS was a java-based publishing platform that served a variety of organization types ranging from major corporate websites to small scale news sites. mtvU, CMN's parent company, was anxious to use this technology for its entire suite of college focused websites, but the application was perfect for College Media Network.

The initial demo and beta phase of development went very smoothly and building CP5 in the beginning of 2008 was on its way.  Meanwhile, the same technology company caught the eye of the largest software provider to media and news in the world, Atex.

Atex, who served as a CMS for print workflow for over 300 U.S.-based commercial newspapers, acquired Polopoly with the aim to make its web CMS the central distributer of content for their suite of products.  At the beginning of the acquisition, Atex began to work with Polopoly to create a version of the CMS that could become a fully hosted and supported solution for its clients in the news business – not unlike College Publisher.

Culminating in the spring of 2009, Atex and College Media Network worked closely to align the two development tracks that Polopoly was working on. And now, CP5 is the result of a year-long development project between CMN, 60 of its newspaper partners (beta testers) and the largest software provider to media. The tool set, which is ever-expanding, is positioned to answer the needs of the college newsroom and commercial newspapers across the country.

Ultimately, together CMN and its technology partner have created the next generation content management system for the news industry.  College students exposed to CP5 at their student newspapers will have the advantage of knowing the software that will power many of the commercial publications' websites.

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