More people read newspapers than ever before, thanks to the many ways they now can be read, but publishers have not yet found ways to match that growth with revenues from digital platforms, the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) said Monday in its annual update of World Press Trends.
According to the data, more than half the world’s adult population read a newspaper: more than 2.5 billion in print and more than 600 million in digital form. That represents more readers and users than total global users of the internet.
“The facts are hard to dismiss: newspapers are pervasive, they are part of the fabric of our societies. Our industry is stronger than many imagine,” said Larry Kilman, Deputy CEO of WAN-IFRA, who presented the figures Monday at the annual World Newspaper Congress and World Editors Forum, the global summit meetings of the world’s press.
“At the same time, newspapers are changing, and must change, if they are to continue fulfilling their traditional role as watchdog, and as the provider of credible news and information that citizens need to make informed decisions in society. The problem is not one of audience. We have the audience. The challenge is largely one of business, of finding successful business models for the digital age.”
Newspaper print circulations continue to rise strongly in Asia and the Middle East, offsetting declines in print circulation in Europe, North America and Latin America. Global circulation increased by 1.1 per cent between 2010 and 2011, according to the World Press Trends update.
At the same time, newspaper advertising revenues have been declining as revenues lost in print have not been replaced by digital advertising. The study found that this decline correlates with a lack of “intensity” when it comes to digital news reading – digital news consumers spend less time and visit fewer pages on digital platforms than they do in print. This lack of intensity is reflected in newspapers’ share of digital revenues.
Newspapers in many markets are taking steps to correct this by finding ways to increase usage online. “This is an area where publishers can lay the groundwork for increasing revenues from digital – finding ways to increase the intensity of the user experience is at the base of increasing revenues,” Mr Kilman said.
WAN-IFRA”s World Press Trends survey is the largest of its kind, containing circulation data from more than 150 countries and advertising revenues from more than 90 countries, representing more than 90 per cent of global industry turnover.