How the internet challenges media companies
However you look at it, traditional print media is being forced into a major evolutionary change - embrace the internet, or else face falling sales and circulation.A number of publications have a long-standing history of major targeting of online audiences.
The New York Times is a premium example of a publication which not online moved online successfully, but also ensured aggressive use of internet marketing techniques.However, other publishers have taken time to understand the significance of the internet and how to leverage it for publishing purposes.
The result is that many have only finally decided to arrive on the internet as the window of opportunity to develop a strong presence is closing.
Already a number of specialist internet publishing companies have arrive on the scene, usually targeting specific niches. Brite Media is an example of one company which has already developed a significant presence in a range of finance and technology news niches.However, other publishers are challenging the migration onto the internet, and instead have started online only to them look to publish offline.
The conditions for all approaches remain challenging.A particular problem is that monetising websites is traditionally harder than monetising print media. However, print media is now suffering from lower cost inventory, as marketing budgets are pushed into other channels, not least internet marketing channels.Another approach some companies are taking is to reduce costs by targeting user generated content.
Certainly Amazon is more strongly associated with book sales, yet what many people overlook is that Amazon is the world’s biggest single publisher of book and film reviews.The tact Amazon has taken - and recently expanded on by publishing user forums - is to target User Generated Content (UGC).
While this offers the lowest approach to cost, it also invites quality issues, so costs are still involved with editorial policing of UGC content.Even still, it remains a viable method of generating content for publishing content online, and ensuring some degree of marketshare.Overall, the internet is radically changing the face of publishing.
It’s not simply the case of print media vs internet media, or one advertising model over another. The challenge is a more complex one of adapting to a completely different communications environment, in which not simply the method of publishing is challenged, but also the source of content to be sourced.
