timesofmalta.com, the news website of the Allied Group started a new chapter this morning, with an enhanced design and improved content. 

Adrian Hillman, executive director of Allied Newspapers, together with Vincent Buhagiar, managing director, launched the new service.

"This  is an historic day as we are going down a path where we will be able to supply trusted and verifiable  news on demand not only in text but also in audio visual format, " Mr Hillman said.

The website is a stablemate of The Times and The Sunday Times, also published by the Allied Group.

The newspapers continue to feature on the website but there is now a stronger focus on the day's  local and foreign news, business and sport. The site had also started featuring audio-visual content on a regular basis.

timesofmalta.com was launched in June 2000 and has over 22,000 individual  readers every day.

Kurt Storace, who led the design team, explained that the new website features improved navigation and gives advertisers the facility to use audio-visual commercials for their messages.  

"timesofmalta.com will be making better use of the news gathering resources of the Allied Group, which enjoy unrivalled credibility in Malta" new timesofmalta.com editor Christopher Scicluna said.

timesofmalta.com will also be featuring blogs by leading politicians and personalities from the media and entertainment sectors.

"We are inviting our readers to submit talking points and letters on general subjects, as well as photos and video clips on news@timesofmalta.com," Mr Scicluna said.

He said advertisers had reacted exceptionally well to the new  medium.

timesofmalta.com also includes a downloads section which today features excerpts from the new album by Scream Daisy and trailers from Heroes in the Sky.

The website's own formula one and careers sections have been retained along with the lifestyle sections carried in the newspapers. New sections are in the pipeline.