Like just about any other newspaper publisher, the New York Times (NYSE: NYT) Co. must achieve “a balancing act” between its digital growth and its print declines. President and CEO Janet Robinson, speaking at the UBS Global Media & Communications Conference, sought to provide an outline of its successes so far and the company’s continuing challenges:

-- Strategy so far: If she were writing the headlines on how the NYTCO has done in meeting its goals through September, Robinson said they would read “Online Revenues Up 24 percent,” “Circulation Revenues Up 2 Percent,” “Costs Decrease Almost 1 Percent,” “Asset Sales Total $615 Million,” “Acquisitions Equal $35 Million” and “Dividend Increases: 31 Percent.”

-- Behind the headlines: The company’s positive circulation revenues were mainly due to price increases for home delivery and at the newsstand. As for online, display advertising and the acquisitions to the About.com unit played significant roles in the company’s revenue picture through September. Display accounts for 46 percent of online revs, while classified makes up 23 percent, followed by search (15 percent) and “other (16 percent), which includes online archives. About.com’s ad revenues grew 30 percent from January through September, with its acquisitions providing 5 percent of those ad dollars.