With the end of 2025, an era comes to an end for Plastics Information Europe (PIE). After 1,185 editions, the printed version of Plasteurope.com will be discontinued at the turn of the year. Starting in January 2026, the KI.PIE Group will focus exclusively on online offerings. These already provide a wide range of relevant information for decision-makers in the plastics industry along the entire value chain. The end of print reflects the rapid transformation in B2B media communication: even among corporate executives, print is losing significance.

Unlike many other plastics trade media, digital development has long been an integral part of KI.PIE Group’s DNA. More than 30 years ago, the first online platforms were introduced. Today, our company operates the most widely used information platforms in German and English for the European plastics industry – with more than 5,000 daily visitors and nearly 14,000 users, all of them paying subscribers. The flexible and customisable ways our content can be used far surpass what the biweekly printed edition of Plasteurope.com could offer.

So, there is no reason for Helmut Hertsch, founding editor of PIE’s sister publication Kunststoff Information (KI), to wax nostalgic about the printed pages. On the contrary, the staff in Editorial, Market Intelligence, Marketing, Sales, IT, and Administration are signalling a real spirit of optimism.

“Everywhere, people are working on new projects and features, reviewing tried-and-true methods and optimising them where necessary, analysing customer usage behaviour and content interests with tools developed in-house, and experimenting with new ideas on many levels,” says Hertsch The focus is always on concrete customer benefits: “With the consistent switch to digital-only models, increased investment in digital infrastructure and the further development of journalistic offerings, subscribers should be able to find what is most important to them around the clock and through excellent service – at the KI.PIE Group, the market leader in European plastics trade media.”

In this context, pricenxt will soon be launched as a new digital Software as a Service (SaaS) platform for analysing and visualising price developments and raw material markets. Buyers, analysts, and decision-makers in the plastics industry will be able to explore data and market movements even more efficiently and personally. Artificial intelligence is playing an increasingly important role in pricenxt and our Polymer Price Forecasts.

Nevertheless, AI tools for research, data analysis, translation, and more will not replace the people in the Plasteurope.com editorial team. As experts, we stand for quality journalism – providing not just news and facts, but context, interpretation, and exclusive insights.

Even as we leave the printed pages behind, the spirit that has always defined Plasteurope.com endures – curious, committed, and connected to our readers as we write the next chapter together in the digital age.

Your Plasteurope.com Editorial Team

Helmut Hertsch (82) is the founding editor of PIE’s sister publication, Kunststoff Information KI, the first printed edition of which appeared almost 55 years ago, on 1 April 1971. Until 2003/2004, he was KI’s Editor-in-Chief and Managing Partner of what is now Kunststoff Information GmbH. Since stepping down from operational duties, he has been advising the family business as a partner on strategic and publishing-related issues.