Trinity Mirror, the newspaper publishers, has bought Liverpool-based web development studio Rippleffect, in a move aimed at diversifying away from traditional print media and into digital media services.

The owner of The Mirror newspaper said Rippleffect is being bought for an initial £3.2 million, and is expected to generate around £3 million in sales and an unspecified level of profit in the first full year of ownership.

The idea behind the deal is to help boost alternative forms of revenue at a time when the future of classified advertising, on which the profits of Trinity Mirror's regional portfolio depend. Worries about the migration of classified to Google at a time when the economy is turning down have weighed heavy on newspaper group shareprices, although national newspapers like The Mirror have so far been less badly affected.

Rippleffect's best known clients are football clubs Everton, West Ham, Sunderland and Fulham, although the company's range of business is broader. Trinity Mirror already publishes football related fanzines in the North West, and wants to grow this business in particular.

Trinity Mirror shares are down 12 per cent this year, a performance worse than the 7 per cent decline experienced by Daily Mail and General Trust, which is more diversified. But it is better than Johnston Press, publisher of the The Scotsman, which is only in regional titles. Johnston's shares have plunged 52 per cent, with the negative sentiment about local newspapers coupled in this case with worries about Johnston's debt levels.

A further £2.6 million will be paid out to Rippleffect's owners depending on the achievement of "specified operating targets" over the next three years. Sly Bailey, Trinity Mirror's chief executive, said that the deal "brings together Trinity Mirror's specialist sports publications and Rippleffect's specialist sports web development under one roof" which said would help enhance revenues.

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