Shaping the Future of the Newspaper Blog

Will Murdoch's paywall strategy 'work'?

Thu, 02 Sep 2010 16:53:42 -0600

It is still unclear whether News International's paywall for The Times' and Sunday Times' is "working," as the paywall is just two months old, and the websites have not yet made statistics public.

In the Independent today, the tagline for Ian Burrell's article on Rupert Murdoch's much discussed paywall states: "advertisers don't like it. Analysts are unconvinced. The paywall at News International may not be winning many fans, but the man behind it is determined to keep it standing." But François Nel, director of the Journalism Leaders Programme at the University of Central Lancashire's School of Journalism, Media and Communication in the United Kingdom, and also an SFN research partner, crunched the numbers, and the result is that the paywalls may be doing better than most people think. A lot better.

Metro.co.uk enters into video content deal with ITN

Thu, 02 Sep 2010 14:45:36 -0600

UK free commuter daily Metro has entered into a video content deal with ITN to expand its online offerings, Journalism.co.uk reported yesterday.

Beginning today, Metro.co.uk is now offering its online readers with "up-to-the-minute" videos from ITN, spanning multiple genres that include UK news, world news, sports, showbiz, music, fashion and video gaming, DigitalSpy.co.uk reported

Apple device sales hit 120 million

Thu, 02 Sep 2010 14:22:59 -0600

Apple has sold 120 million iPods, iPads and iPhones since 2007, when it launched its iOS operating system, chief executive Steve Jobs announced yesterday, paidContent revealed.

This represents an increase of 20 million in the last three months. Every day, the company is activating an average of 230,000 devices, Mashable reported. These numbers only include activations and not system upgrades, Jobs said.

Steve Jobs presented Apple's results during an event in San Francisco. Photo: paidContent

Washington Post to launch iPad app in 'coming weeks'

Thu, 02 Sep 2010 11:08:02 -0600

The Washington Post plans to launch its iPad app "in the coming weeks," following The New York Times' and Wall Street Journal's efforts on the Apple device, The Upshot reported.

"Mobile continues to be a key distribution platform for our content, utility for our readers, and, a core enabler of our growing digital business," Ken Babby, chief revenue officer and general manager for Washington Post Digital stated in a staff e-mail Wednesday.

Photo: AP/Pablo Martinez Monsivais

AFP goes mobile?

Thu, 02 Sep 2010 10:09:58 -0600

L'Agence France-Presse (AFP) has announced it plans to offer readers direct access to AFP content on digital devices rather than just a "Business to Business" model. AFP is the third largest news agency in the world, tailing the Associated Press and Reuters, and is undoubtedly an influential force in the print industry, providing articles to about 5,000 newspapers in six different languages. Yet Emmanuel Hoog, CEO of AFP, admits that the company is behind the digital trends. Hoog commented to Le Monde "It's absurd that the third largest news provider does not have an application for the iPad, the smartphone, or the internet...How have the AP and Reuters launched mobile apps in French and not AFP?"

Along with much of the print world, AFP has felt the ramifications of a changing industry. Several newspapers have decided to stop using content from AFP, which has affected the news company's primary source of revenue. While Hoog believes the majority of newspapers will continue their contracts with AFP, Hoog asserts his company is in the position to offer content directly over the Internet and mobile devices.

For more on this story, visit our sister publication, editorsweblog.org.

FT launches global campaign targeting corporate subscribers

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 14:24:02 -0600

Following its recent creation of print and digital circulation metrics and its collaboration with U.S media monitoring service provider BurrellesLuce, the Financial Times is launching a global press campaign targeting business subscribers, MarketingWeek.co.uk reported today.

The global press campaign launched today under the tagline, "Some tools aren't a luxury." It is designed to boost corporate subscriptions by showing off the financial daily as an essential business tool companies cannot live without.

Image: Mediaweek.co.uk

Tribune forms committee to oversee reorganisation plan

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 11:13:58 -0600

Lawyers for the publisher told a Delaware bankruptcy judge weeks ago that JPMorgan Chase and distressed-debt specialist Angelo, Gordon & Co. had dropped out a settlement agreement, which would have left them among the company's new owners, Philly.com reported.

Jornal do Brasil ends print edition today

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 09:45:16 -0600

Starting today, one of Brazil's oldest newspapers will be available online-only. Due to mounting debts and low circulation, the Jornal do Brasil has stopped publishing a print version, the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas reported.

"Quality. Interactivity. Respect for Ecology. Alignment with the future. Innovation," the publication stated in defense of its switch to online-only. The decision was the result of lengthy analysis and a reader survey. "In these last weeks, some readers of JB - and especially many non-readers - have expressed legitimate and democratically in favour of maintaining the paper version of the newspaper ... In their arguments, there have been references to the story of JB, its great characters, the glorious career as a space for freedoms. The fact is that these assets are not lost, but expanded again in the electronic medium," the article states. "They can not choose to close their eyes - not to the future - but to the present media around the world: the way, relentless and increasing the digital age ... The JB will still exist - agile, modern and influential."

Metro Canada websites to integrate Foursquare buttons

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 08:07:09 -0600

Canadian Metro websites, Journalmetro.com and metronews.ca, will be integrating "Add to Foursquare" buttons on their website, Newspaper Innovation reported today.

The newspaper partnered with Foursquare earlier this year and began offering location-based restaurant tips to its followers.

UK ad authority expands control to social networks, corporate sites & mobile apps

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 07:36:58 -0600

The UK-based Advertising Standards Authority will be expanding control to corporate websites, social networks and mobile applications from March 2011, the Financial Times reports. The ASA will have the right to ask that paid-for links leading to banned ads be removed and will be able to include ads announcing that certain advertisers are not complying with regulations, according to MediaGuardian.

The new guidelines will permit the ASA to give ads on sites like YouTube and Facebook the same attention as ads on TV, radio or in newspapers. Google is supplying the ASA with £200,000 funds for the extension and the rest will come from the 0.1 percent voluntary levy on paid-for ads, MediaGuardian explained.

Russian daily Kommersant to launch TV channel

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 06:47:11 -0600

Russian publishing house Kommersant will launch a TV channel that may be available on cable or the Web, Lenta.ru reported today. The channel's website outlined that it will focus on socio-political news content and that stories will "strictly" include only the facts and expert opinions.

RBC Daily wrote that Kommersant General Director Andrei Galiev confirmed the project will soon come to life and that the firm is looking into the various steps that should be taken to realise Kommersant TV. According to experts, initial investment in the project would have to be between US$2 million to $5 million, while the yearly budget must amount to $2 million, rg.ru noted.

Three Irish weeklies shut down

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 06:11:36 -0600

The Alpha Newspaper Group, which is the largest weekly publisher in Northern Ireland, on Monday closed the Roscommon Champion, the Longford News and the Athlone Voice, the BBC reported.

The company said the decision was taken after a severe decline of circulation and advertising revenue, RTE.ie informed. In recent months, several staff members were laid off and the design and layout departments were centralized to reduce costs.

The Internet blurs the line between TV and newspapers

Wed, 01 Sep 2010 06:03:22 -0600

The defined line between newspapers, radio and television has become blurred in the online sphere, as all types of news sources have their respective websites, putting all media domains in direct competition. Glenn Beck, for example, a conservative media icon for Fox News in the United States, just launched his "News and Opinion" website The Blaze. As more people get their news from television than newspapers, it will be interesting to see how TV icons fair in competition with newspapers' websites.

Glenn Beck is widely known for his racy commentary on his television show. He is expanding his media empire online after already dominating radio, TV, and book publishing reports the Financial Times. The Blaze was released online Monday after Beck's "Restoring Honor" rally in Washington. "Too many important stories are overlooked. And too many times we see mainstream media outlets distorting facts to fit rigid agendas," Glenn comments on his website.

For more on this story, visit our sister publication, editorsweblog.org.

Pew: Social media use surges among U.S. adults 50+

Tue, 31 Aug 2010 15:44:00 -0600

Social media usage surged among U.S. adults ages 50 and up, according to a latest survey by Princeton Survey Research Associates on behalf of the Pew Internet & American Life Project, Media Post reported.

The survey also suggested social media may be an effective advertising and marketing platform to reach older Internet users.

Photo: Tim Boyle/Getty Images

Deseret News to restructure, coordinate operations

Tue, 31 Aug 2010 15:29:24 -0600

Considering the major shift of readers from traditional news sources to digital media, changes were announced today at Utah's longest publishing daily, Deseret News. The U.S. newspaper will reduce its newsroom staff numbers by nearly half and introduce new strategic initiatives to serve massive audiences globally, TheSaltLakeTribune.com reported today.

Like many other newspapers, Utah's second largest daily faced a difficult choice - to either reduce staff and reinvent itself or to stop publishing. The newspaper chose the former; and despite declining ad revenues, the newspaper's readership showed an increase of 20 percent in 2009, the highest growth rate experienced by any newspaper in the country, according to a blog post by the newspaper's editorial page editor, Jay Evensen.