The StreamFold, which produces a quarter fold in newspapers, will be launched officially at next month's Ifra event, but was showcased at a press launch in Switzerland this week.

The machines, which run at a speed of 60,000 copies per hour, will be available from early 2010 and are expected to cost around €170,000 (£156,000).

In Europe, where subscription newspapers are more popular, the machine will be used to fold newspapers down to a smaller, more mail-friendly product.

However, according to Markus Walty, sales manager at Ferag, the StreamFold could be a popular product for UK newspaper manufacturers looking to save money.

He said: "You can produce an A5 booklet with this machine – perfect for a TV guide. This is something that is usually done outside of the newspaper printer, so they could bring that in-house. We have had a lot of interest from the UK and I would expect to be following up this interest."