One of the largest local newspaper groups, Archant, whose own property portal is powered by Zoopla, has announced plans to support OnTheMarket.

Archant’s portal, homes24.co.uk, will continue to be run in partnership with Zoopla – but alongside the publisher’s commitment to advertise OnTheMarket heavily, both before and after launch in all its newspapers and magazines.

The move by Archant carries with it the possibility that, despite the ongoing relationship with Zoopla, some agent advertisers will carry just the OnTheMarket logo.

Archant has more than 50 newspapers and is one of the largest publishers of regional and local lifestyle magazines and associated digital media, plus property portal homes24.co.uk

The publisher has recently signalled that its strategic priority is to bring content to the top of its agenda, ensuring that it is relevant, timely and cost-effective.

Johnny Hustler, Archant executive director, said: “The property market continues to be a key focus for us, both in print and online. We want to have the best local content.

“Estate and letting agents hold the key to some of the most valuable content in the form of the details of the properties they are marketing for their clients.

“We’ve seen more and more of our agent advertisers signing up to OnTheMarket and we envisage it growing rapidly.

“We see a major opportunity for our consumers, for our business, for our agent advertisers and for OnTheMarket by supporting the venture in a practical way.”

“Agents have fantastic content. We reach property-searchers who are actively in the market.

“There’s clearly a win-win opportunity if we work smartly together to harness the content in a way that is appealing to consumers, value-adding to our advertisers and of course profitable and brand-enhancing for our own nationwide stable of publications and websites.”

The initiative will include advertising space for OnTheMarket across all Archant newspapers and magazines in order to promote the new brand, as well as providing editorial coverage.

As an incentive to agents to run incremental co-branded advertising, Archant will also commit to match such advertising.

Ian Springett, chief executive of OnTheMarket.com, said: “We are delighted at such a ringing endorsement from Archant, one of the strongest publishing groups and which is most valued at a local level by our member agents as well as by home-seekers.

“We have been impressed by Archant’s strong commitment to concentrate on the quality of its property-related content.

“There are strong ties between Archant titles and our members and it makes sound commercial and strategic sense to build on these ties in the interests of our two businesses, our agents, their clients and the broad property-seeking public.”

Archant is the fifth largest local newspaper publishing group with its stronghold in East Anglia based on Norwich. It also owns the ‘Ham & High’ (Hampstead & Highgate Express) in north London and papers in the west country and Kent.

News of Archant’s support of OnTheMarket comes after another group, Johnston Press, which also has a property website powered by Zoopla, denied that it would ban the OnTheMarket logo from its own publications.

Eye carried the story here

Meanwhile, this is what popped up on Twitter yesterday, showing how some agents will be advertising OnTheMarket: