Sign of the Times

Hey: newspaper publishing news that sounds pretty good:

The New York Times Co. said Wednesday that January advertising revenues for its business units rose 3%, while total revenue increased 3% as well, compared with January 2005.

That's not too ba--...Oh, wait:

However, excluding About.com, which the Times acquired in March 2005, ad revenue decreased 0.3% while total revenue increased 0.7%.

Ad revenue for the New York Times Media Group, which includes the flagship New York Times, decreased 0.8%....

Oops. And the kicker:

The Internet continues to generate solid gains for the company, with ad revenue up 22%, with strong growth in display and classified advertising. Ad revenue for About.com skyrocketed 124% in January, due to strong growth in cost-per-click advertising.

Doh!