digital news the challenge of delivery

The digital revolution moves so quickly that it is sometime difficult to assess the new trends.

Still one thing is getting obvious: the news websites depend more and more on the social media. This unexpected change forces powerful newspapers like the New York Times to reorganize completely their delivery policy.

What happens is that the way people in the US and in Europe consume news is chnaging dramatically. Now, close to 50% of the users rely on mobiles and mostly smartphones, much more popular than the tablets.

Also about half of the readership comes from the social media and usually, Facebook. The homepage of newspapers websites is not popular anymore. So, it was not a big surprise to see the NYT strike a deal with Facebook for an Instant article delivery. Many American and British publications are following.

In France, the same process is coming with Les Echos as a pioneer but many others willing to go for it to save their readership.

A big question is whether Facebook and some others will gain a kind of control of the medias. Will they practice some censorship on pieces of news they won't like? We 'll go back soon to this very crucial matter.

Newspapers the new digital challenges

The digital landscape moves on at a terrific speed. What seemed obvious two years ago for newspapers editors does not work anymore to day. Here are some tips on 2015 situation.

The major role of social networks. For a long time, it made common sense that the homepage of news websites was all important. Journalists and tehnicians devoted a lot of time and thought to their improvement. It is not true anymore. Now, more of 50% of users access to information through the social networks and mostly Facebook. The Web giant is discussing with the N Y Times to g provide directly the news of the Grey Lady. Others will follow in the US and in Europe. Facebook could become the main news provider without hiring any journalist.

The dominance of smartphones. When the tablet was launched by Apple, five years ago all news editors were convinced they had found the magic formula to offer their content in a user friendly device. Paid subscription to newspapers read on I Pad was the solution. To day, it appears that the smartphone has won. A great majority of readers under 40 prefer to browse on the small screen of their phones , so light and easy to carry. Once again, Facebook has understood earlier what was happening and attracted most of the readership and advertising.

The success of paywalls. News websites have thought hard and much too long to attract ads. It appears now that contrary to what made legacy media so profitable a long time ago, advertising will play a minor part in the financing of news and for two reasons. First, Google and the social networks attract most of the cash through their gigantic audiences. Then the small screens of smartphones are not attractive to advertising. The main anglo saxon media, the NY Times, the FT, the WSJ have built up a profitable subscription system with big figures, 900000 subscribers for the NYT, 800000 for the two others.  For getting a quality news service, people will have to pay.

Last but not least, pure players are offering successful alternatives to legacy media websites. Think of Huffington Post, Buzzfeed, Vice, Quartz and also Politico. In France, Mediapart is thriving. Ther will be other players in a crowded field. The battle for information is not over.

new york times and washington post a slight improvement

The two main newspapers of the East coast published this week their results for the second quarter. They were not very good but could have been worse.

The NYT announced a net income of 20 millions dollars against a loss of 87 millions last year. Advertising keeps going down like in Europe but the circulation revenue is up by 5%. Now the newspaper has 700000 digital subscribers, plus 35% from 2012. A confirmation that  the digital policy of the Times is a success. The sale of the Boston Globe for 70 millions dollars is another sign of the strategy of the group to focus on the flagship newspaper and its international publication the Herald Tribune renamed this fall International New York Times.

The Post group has a revenue of 1billion for the second quarter with an income of 44 millions thanks mainly to local television stations. The circulation of the daily keeps going down by 7% but the online revenue keeps growing by 15% to 30 millions. The newspaper is finally starting a paywall which should be less successful than the NYT.

So, the lengthy and painful process of reorganization of the press, moving slowly from print to digital is going on. Still, one must not forget thet in the US as in Europe, digital publications cannot afford the huge newsroom necessary to cover comprehensively the current affairs of the world.

It gives also food for thought that the biggest success of digital publications in Washington, which is Politico, doesn't belong to the Post.

Murdoch and the digital revolution

Rupert Murdoch has been the most powerful media mogul of the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st. So his decision to quit his position of chairman of the London Times added to his previous parting of his group in two branches, one devoted to television and the new media and the other one including the old media, i.e. newspapers, gives a lot of food for thought.

In a recent article in the New York Times, the Reuters media correspondant speculates that it means the sale of the print publications of the group and specially the Times. Yet the big question is: who could buy these old fashioned and deficit ridden print products. They are not profitable but they still carry some power and influence: one could imagine that a foreign investor, Chinese, Russian or Indian could be tempted to enter the field. It would be a rude blow for the British estabilshment.

However, a recent study from the Pew research center would justify Murdoch's decision. In 10 years, in the US, the proportion of people who look for information in the print press has gone down from 41 to 23%. 55% of the readers of the New York Times use the digital edition. 71% of the population keeps informed thanks to TV news.

The social networks are still informing a minority but they grow steadily, from 9 to 19%.

In Europe, the figures would be lower but they move in the same direction. Television is the dominant media. Internet is more and more popular thanks to mobiles and tablets. Face book and Twitter attract people under 35. Old Murdoch is probably right to stick to Fox and BskyB.

the New York Times and Twitter

Last Sunday, the New York Times presented its new supplement that replaces the week in review. It is focused on opinions and long papers aiming at explaining the current news. It seems that this new presentation is fairly successful, as people are looking for an assessment of the plethoric informations that reach their computers or their smartphones.

In a way, the gray lady is trying to make for the frustration brought by Twitter or the other social networks. For educated readers it is exciting to discover that every minute, something is happening on the Planet but is it enough or even necessary? Will several unchecked news of 140 signs replace a comprehensive analysis of Strauss Kahn legal case? If you want to understand and not just to know, you cannot be happy with the current newsflows.

So the attempt of the NYT is worth considering. If it works, many other newspapers will follow this exemple or, at least, I hope so.