Just to foster some discussion I wanted to throw out this information about how the newspaper industry did in 2008.
To put it mildly….it Stunk !
While our company is very Internet dependent and we have no financial interest in the newspaper industry, we do have a lot of respect for the print industry. Especially the ones who have been forward looking and been trying to find new ways to value add their print offerings with effective Internet partnerships. We work with many newspapers to syndicate our auction content and it can turn into a very lucrative revenue partnership for all parties to be involved.
Here are some posts from some of the influential bloggers who cover the Newspaper Industry.
From Reflections of a Newsosaur
“In the worst year in history for publishers, newspaper shares dropped an average of 83.3% in 2008, wiping out $64.5 billion in market value in just 12 months.”
From Fitz and Jen covering Lee Enterprises who own many of the agriculture related newspapers in the Midwest
“Lee Enterprises Inc.’s bottom line for 2008: Net loss of $879 million, or $19.83 per diluted share. In 2007, Lee recorded a profit of $1.77 per diluted share.
Lee’s operating loss for the year was $1.049 billion, chiefly on huge non-cash impairment charges totalling more than $1.175 billion”
“Lee’s annual report also warns that its cash flow in 2009 will not be sufficient to pay off the $142.5 million in so-called Pulitzer Notes that come due in April. It is in talks with lenders to handle the impending default possibilities, Lee said.”
From the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press
“Currently, 40% say they get most of their news about national and international issues from the internet, up from just 24% in September 2007. For the first time in a Pew survey, more people say they rely mostly on the internet for news than cite newspapers (35%). Television continues to be cited most frequently as a main source for national and international news, at 70%.”
What does 2009 hold in store?
According to the Newspaper Association of America their revised forecast is another 9.7% drop in revenue
After a high in 2005 of 47.4 Billion in advertising revenue, they are expecting 2008 to be around 36 Billion.
With companies such as Tribune already in bankruptcy and many others reduced to penny stock status they will continue to stagger under crippling debt loads.
What does that mean to most advertisers?
Newspapers will be more than willing to negotiate with you to keep ad dollars rolling into their newspapers.
Is this print’s last gasp before the Internet takes over?
Print will survive but in what format will be the question to be answered in 2009
