MONTREAL, March 21 -- Transcontinental today announced the launch of its new free classified listings portal for Quebec. Using innovative WEB 2.0 technologies enabled by Vortex Solution, the French-language portal will go live next month and will enhance Transcontinental's offering to the local communities it already serves through its 63 print weeklies, the largest such network in Quebec, as well as the 600,000 unique monthly visitors to its community websites. In addition to the standard classified website features, the site will include such exclusive, innovative services as: free postings with up to 1000 words of text plus photos, user control of listings, live bidding, auction capabilities, e-mail alerts, sophisticated statistical reports for each listing, and instant PDF conversion for bulletin board posting. Sellers and buyers will benefit from several listings packages, to be announced at next month's launch. "This new portal is another key component in Transcontinental's digital development strategy, one of the issues identified in our Evolution 2010 business plan," said Marc Ouellette, senior vice president of Transcontinental Media's Newspaper Group. "Along with the recently launched Canadian version of AskMen.com and other projects currently underway, Transcontinental is once again proving its reputation as an innovator in its markets." For his part, Yves Daoust, general manager, new media for Transcontinental Media, explained: "Thanks to the WEB 2.0 technology supported by our inventive supplier in this venture, Vortex Solution, this new free classifieds portal will differ significantly from other websites of its kind. Along with general merchandise listings, the portal will include job, home and automotive listings, community announcements and retail services. The launch of this site reflects Transcontinental's commitment to community, giving neighbours a way to come together around local needs and interests, thereby building new communities online."