It’s easy to get carried away by the hype about the ipad and similar tablets and ereaders, and dazzled by the many ways that content can be placed in front of readers. The examples of newspapers and big global media owners using the web, mobile and ereaders are glitzy enough, but what about the independent businesses, the consumer specialist and business to business publishers – how are they planning to adapt their business to the new media world? A recent survey commissioned by the Specialist Media Show has focussed on how independent media owners see their future – here are some of the top level findings:
• Charging for online content and making money from digital editions are the issues that are keeping media owners awake at night, with declining ad yields and converting free to paid close on their heels
• Subscriptions are expected to replace one-off issues – with a swing from print news-stand to subs, and growth anticipated in online and digital editions subs, and also non-newsstand one-offs and specials.
• Advertising will continue to be tough, with declines across print, online and events, with growth only in contract publishing and other commercial activity
• Consumer print will be more resilient than b2b. 88% of publishers believe there will always be a market for well-produced specialist consumer magazines; but 25% believe that b2b magazines will not exist in print in 5 years, and 18% in the next 20 years.
• Publishers are already experimenting with new digital media: 25% are charging for online content, and 54% expect to in future. 25% have a mobile app, and 47% are planning one.
• Many are looking at new content formats: 39% are planning an e-reader version in the next 2 years; 48% plan to digitise their archive, and 64% want to add online video or audio content. Almost half plan to charge for this content
• Live events, including b2b conferences, consumer shows and training, are expected to continue to be an important source of revenue, with 23% planning a consumer event launch and 58% a b2b event launch
• Building databases and cross-selling products is increasingly important, with 56% expecting their consumer database to grow by more than 20% in the next 2 years, and a wide range of products and services being cross-sold, from subs to events to directories, books and training.
The full results of this survey are being presented at the conference at the Specialist Media Show on 25 May. See the full conference programme, and book now to be part of the debate.
Alongside the conference, the Specialist Media Show provides more glimpses into the future of media, with workshops on mobile, ipads, social media, events, subs and 1-1 advice centres on SEO, video, ecommerce.
