Members of Australia's The Newspaper Works have launched a by-invitation exchange to sell print advertising inventory online.

The new exchange, dubbed Bid on Print, kicks off today with more than 140 newspaper titles and the promise of more to come. It has been created by TNW and Sydney media representation company Publisher's Internationalé.

Newspaper Works chief executive Mark Hollands says the aim is to create commercial efficiencies for media agencies and publishers: "Media agencies can bid and book a print advertisement with a click of the mouse, and this will give publisher sales teams more time on premium solutions.," he says.

During publisher trials with agencies prior to its market launch, the site transacted more than $350,000. Hollands says the exchange is not a programmatic or real-time bidding exchange - publishers select inventory, apply a floor price and set a timeframe in which the ad must be bought. Buyers can bid or click a 'buy now' button.

While The Newspaper Works had been an integral partner in establishing Bid on Print, it is up to each individual publisher to participate, Hollands says: "We are simply providing another commercial option for publishers and media agencies to work together."

Publishers are unable to see competitors' offerings, while agencies and publishers can create their own hierarchy of transparency and transacting limits for staff within their organisations. The individual commercial relationship is between publishers and Publisher's Internationalé.