The Business of News

Question 1

Revenue Sources

Answer 1

• subscription models (paywalls, micro-payment)
• license fees (public broadcasters)
• donations, membership systems
• support from non-profit-organizations
• advertising
• support from billionaires

Question 2

Traditional news organizations are in a difficult economic situation becuase of

Answer 2

• change in consumer behavior
• deterioration of the avertising market, decline in avertising rates and revenues
• decrease in circulation, leading to layoffs and financial losses
• challenged by news aggregation sites, blogs and social media
• automation of services that used to be essential parts of the news, bypassing the professional reporter
• expensive transition from paper to electronic distribution

Question 3

Survival Strategies

Answer 3

• cutting costs where possible: cut jobs, reduce print frequency, reduce number of articles, force savings from suppliers, share premises or facilities
• concentration, consolidation in the newspaper markets (M&A)
• creating new field of business
• serve niche markets
• attract more/ younger readers
• team up with social media

Question 4

News organizations are in a double-bind

Answer 4

As a business, they have to

• be profit-oriented
• compete with other media
• respect the interest of its several stakeholders

As the so-called Fourth Estate, they should

• be indenpendent
• be immune to vested interests
• ignore financial objectives