Everything your studio needs, on one page.
Dimensions, weights, colour profiles, delivery routes and deadlines. Written to be printed and handed to whoever is actually making the files.
All Montlior placements are made to a single production standard, whether the file ends on a press in Valcourt or in a newsletter at 06:45. Where a specification here differs from a rate card, this page is the one that governs.
Last revised 12 January 2026 · supersedes all earlier sheets.
Digital display
Four units, served across web, app and the digital editions. Every unit is labelled “Advertisement” by the platform — you do not need to include the label in your artwork, and artwork that imitates our label will be rejected.
| Unit | Dimensions | Max weight | Accepted formats |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billboard | 1920 × 300 960 × 300 (2×) |
180 KB | AVIF, WebP, JPEG, PNG, HTML5 |
| Leaderboard | 1920 × 300 960 × 300 (2×) |
180 KB | AVIF, WebP, JPEG, PNG, HTML5 |
| Feature panel | 1280 × 720 | 220 KB | AVIF, WebP, JPEG, PNG, HTML5, MP4 |
| Rail square | 640 × 640 | 120 KB | AVIF, WebP, JPEG, PNG |
| Colour space | sRGB. Files tagged Adobe RGB or CMYK are converted and may shift. |
|---|---|
| Retina assets | Supply at 2× the stated pixel dimensions; the platform serves the right one. |
| Animation | Permitted on Feature panel only. Maximum 15 seconds, maximum three loops, must come to rest. No flashing above 3 Hz. |
| Video | Feature panel only. Muted autoplay, no sound without a click, visible pause control, 15 seconds maximum. |
| Third-party tags | Accepted from six approved vendors. Tags must be HTTPS, must not set third-party cookies, and must not exceed two additional requests. |
| Click URL | One destination per unit, HTTPS, no interstitials, no auto-download. |
| Not accepted | Expandables, interstitials, page takeovers, audio on load, artwork that imitates Montlior typography or the masthead. |
Montlior News is printed on 45 gsm improved newsprint in Valcourt and on 80 gsm coated stock for Saturday supplements. Supply to the trim sizes below; do not supply artwork already scaled to a bleed box.
| Space | Trim (mm) | Type area (mm) | Bleed |
|---|---|---|---|
| Full page | 289 × 380 | 265 × 356 | 3 mm |
| Half page horizontal | 289 × 188 | 265 × 172 | 3 mm |
| Quarter page | 142 × 188 | 130 × 172 | None |
| Front-page solus | 265 × 60 | 265 × 60 | None |
| Double-page spread | 578 × 380 | 554 × 356 | 3 mm |
| File format | PDF/X-4:2010, one page per file, fonts embedded and subset. |
|---|---|
| Colour | CMYK. Newsprint: ISOnewspaper26v4, total ink 240%. Coated: PSO Coated v3, total ink 300%. |
| Resolution | Newsprint 200 ppi at final size; coated 300 ppi. Line art 1200 ppi. |
| Minimum type | 7 pt positive, 9 pt reversed. Reversed type must be single-colour. |
| Rules & keylines | 0.25 pt minimum on coated, 0.5 pt on newsprint. |
| Proofs | A contract proof to the named profile is required for any spread or colour-critical page. |
| Max file size | 80 MB per page |
Out of home
Fourteen Coravian cities, from sites the Group has held since the 1970s. Most are hand-pasted; the digital sites in Meridale Central and Valcourt Port are the exceptions.
| Format | Size | Supply as | Material deadline |
|---|---|---|---|
| 48-sheet | 6096 × 3048 mm | PDF at 10% scale, 300 ppi | 15 working days |
| 6-sheet | 1200 × 1800 mm | PDF at 25% scale, 300 ppi | 10 working days |
| Arcade panel | 1000 × 1500 mm | PDF at 25% scale, 300 ppi | 10 working days |
| Digital 6-sheet | 1080 × 1920 px | MP4 or JPEG, 10 s static frames | 5 working days |
| Chancery Quay banner | 2400 × 8000 mm | PDF at 10% scale, on request | 25 working days |
Keep essential type 150 mm inside the trim on all pasted formats. Digital sites carry no audio and no motion faster than one frame every eight seconds.
Branded content
The Studio writes, designs and builds every commission, so there is very little for a partner to supply. What we do need is listed below, and we need it before the reporting starts rather than after.
| Brand marks | Vector SVG or EPS, plus a one-page usage note. Used once, in the sponsor line. |
|---|---|
| Access | Named contacts for interview, and site or archive access where the piece requires it. |
| Data | CSV or XLSX with a data dictionary. We publish the method alongside the piece. |
| Factual review | One round, five working days, limited to statements of fact about the partner. |
| What is not supplied | Copy, headlines, imagery direction, or approval over the argument, the sources or the conclusions. |
Labelling
Every Studio piece carries a label above the headline reading “Paid content — produced by Montlior Media Studio for [partner]”, in the same type size as the standfirst. This is not negotiable and does not vary by campaign.
Film & audio
| Master | ProRes 422 HQ, 3840 × 2160, 25 fps, Rec.709 |
|---|---|
| Web deliverables | H.264 MP4 at 1920 × 1080 and 1280 × 720, 8 and 4 Mbps |
| Social cutdowns | 1080 × 1080 and 1080 × 1920, 15 s and 30 s |
| Audio | Stereo, −23 LUFS integrated, true peak no higher than −1 dBTP |
| Captions | Burned-in and separate WebVTT. Captions are required on every film. |
| Safe area | Type within 90% of frame; no type in the lower 12% where the player bar sits. |
| Host-read script | 60 words maximum, supplied 10 working days before the episode. |
|---|---|
| Produced spot | WAV 48 kHz 24-bit, 30 seconds, −16 LUFS, no music bed under the host segment. |
| Disclosure | Every sponsored segment opens with a spoken sponsorship line read by the host. |
Delivering files
Where to send
Everything goes to the production desk at production@montliorgroup.example, with the booking reference in the subject line. Files above 20 MB should go to the transfer account named on your booking confirmation, never as an attachment.
Naming convention
MM-[booking ref]-[partner]-[unit]-[width]x[height]-[version].[ext]
For example: MM-24817-corvane-featurepanel-1280x720-v2.avif
Deadlines
All times are Meridale time. A booking deadline is when the space is committed; a material deadline is when a correct file must be with the production desk.
| Placement | Booking | Material | Cancellation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Digital display | 5 working days | 3 working days | 5 working days |
| Daily print | 7 working days | 4 working days, 12:00 | 10 working days |
| Saturday supplement | 6 weeks | 3 weeks | 6 weeks |
| Out of home | 4 weeks | 15 working days | 4 weeks |
| Newsletter slot | 10 working days | 4 working days, 12:00 | 10 working days |
| Studio commission | On signature | Per schedule | 50% at brief |
| Summit partnership | 12 weeks | 4 weeks | 12 weeks |
Why files are rejected
We reject roughly one file in nine on first submission. Almost all of them fail for one of these six reasons, and almost all are fixed within an hour once the studio knows.
-
The file imitates editorial
Montlior type, a rule that reads as a masthead, or a layout designed to be mistaken for a story. This is the only rejection we will not negotiate.
-
It is over weight
Usually an uncompressed PNG where an AVIF would do. Our performance budget is the same one the newsroom lives under.
-
Colour is wrong for the stock
CMYK supplied for a digital unit, or a coated profile sent to newsprint. Ink limits matter more than people expect.
-
Type is below minimum
Legal copy set at 5 pt on newsprint will not survive the press, and we will not print something a reader cannot read.
-
Motion breaks the rules
Looping without rest, flashing, or audio on load. Anything above 3 Hz is rejected on accessibility grounds.
-
The click destination changed
One destination per unit, declared at booking. Redirect chains and interstitials fail the check.
Production
Not sure your file will pass?
Send it early. The production desk will check it and tell you what to change, at no cost and with no obligation to book.