Commentary

Reader Based Print Revenue Based On High Quality Journalism

According to the results of WAN-IFRA’s annual survey, the shift to reader-based revenue continues to depict an industry that is increasingly building loyal audiences around its high-quality journalism. In its 2017 World Press Trends study, WAN-IFRA estimates that globally, 56% of newspapers’ overall revenue came from circulation sales (print and digital) in 2016.

Global Newspaper Revenue (2016)

  • Audience Revenues           $ 86 Billion
  • Advertising Revenues        $ 68 Billion

Source: WPT Analysis, Zenith Optimedia, PwC, Media Outlook, June 2017

Vincent Peyrègne, presenting the key findings from the global study at the 69th World News Media Congress and 24th World Editors Forum, said “… the shift from advertising to reader-based revenue is reshaping the fundamentals of our industry… as the share of reader-based revenue continues to grow, newspapers are intensifying their efforts to foster loyalty and build communities of faithful readers… we have entered a pivotal moment… and more than ever our focus needs to be on our audience and producing high-quality, engaging journalism…”

Mr. Peyrègne called on the news industry to take seriously the increasing number of surveys showing that people around the world are losing their trust in societal institutions, among them the news media: “… the decline in trust is the biggest risk we face as industry… all our efforts must be with the aim of getting it back… ”

“We used to trade in attention. But trust is our new currency,” Mr. Peyrègne said. “Any decline in trust erodes the foundation of our business: credible, first-rate journalism.” “The decline in trust is the biggest risk we face as industry, and all our efforts must be with the aim of getting it back.”

The issue of trust has also clear business implications, says the report. An increasing number of surveys shows that many people, and especially the young, are prepared to pay for journalism online – provided they see the publication as a reliable source of news and bond with its mission and purpose.

A fundamental shift in the newspaper business model took place two years ago, when reader revenue became the biggest source of revenue for news publishers. Global audience revenues grew by 2% between 2015 and 2016, and by 7% between 2012 and 2016.

Global digital circulation revenues grew by 28% from 2015 to 2016, and a full 300% from 2012 to 2016, with the upward trend expected to continue.

Global Newspaper Digital Revenues ($MM, Circulation+Advertising; CAGR +16.5%)

Year

Digital Revenue

2012

$ 8,229 MM

2014

10, 973

2016

13,806

2018

16,890

Source: WPT Analysis, Zenith Optimedia, PwC, Media Outlook, June 2017

Meanwhile, global advertising revenues declined by 7% from 2015 to 2016, and by 21% between 2012 and 2016.  Although advertising revenues continue to decline in most markets, there are notable exceptions in Asia, Africa and Latin America, and rates of decline vary greatly between different markets. Overall, total global newspaper revenues fell 2% in 2016 from a year earlier, and are down 8% over the last five years.

Global Newspaper Traditional Revenue Sources (Digital & Print Circulation; Digital and Print Advertising/CAGR -2%)

Year

Revenue (Millions)

2012

167,326

2014

160,754

2016

154,191

Source: WPT Analysis, Zenith Optimedia, PwC, Media Outlook, June 2017

For additional information from WAN-IFRA, please visit here.

 

 

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