Community Newspaper Holdings, Inc. (CNHI) has selected CityXpress' eMarketplaceXpress platform to host a classified marketplace for 89 of its newspapers. The CNHI marketplace is scheduled to launch in mid-June.

CityXpress' eMarketplaceXpress platform will provide a single Web site for the CNHI marketplace, but the site will display branding that matches the visitor's home newspaper. Shoppers will have access to items and merchandise from all participating CNHI newspapers. Print classified listings from the participating papers will be imported into the site. Online advertisers may also purchase listings in print, increasing the reach of the listings.

"Creating an online marketplace with eMarketplaceXpress gives us tremendous opportunity to expand our local brands while leveraging geographically related classifieds on a shared platform that crosses all of our community sites," said Bill Blevins, CNHI vice president of Internet operations.

CNHI is the parent company of daily, weekly and semi-weekly newspapers published in more than 200 communities throughout the United States.

CNHI is the second major newspaper group to announce an agreement with CityXpress this month to deploy the eMarketplaceXpress platform. Earlier in May, CityXpress announced an agreement with Tribune Interactive and Classifieds to host the expansion of Tribune's Los Angeles-based Recycler.com.

CNHI's marketplace will be able to offer sellers up to 500 characters of text description and one photo for free. Two enhanced packages are also available, which offer up to 2,000 characters of text description, additional photos, as well as fixed price and best offer transaction capabilities. Other up-sells include a bold headline, more photos, priority positioning in search results, and business profiles. All listings, including free and enhanced, run for seven days. Features include online ad placement and payment options, ecommerce transaction capabilities, browse and search capabilities, and a listing feedback system.

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