I was just listening to an interesting interview with NZ author Bob Jones on the death of the daily newspaper, and it seems the weekly magazine.
Now, most of us recognize that electronic media is putting immense pressure on printed media through loss of circulation, which in turns decreases advertising rates and so the death spiral begins. But according to Bob, one of the other key drivers is the high cost of delivering the weighty printed matter. I can certainly attest to that, having shipped books around the world. Printed material is very dense, in that it has a high weight per cubic meter. This makes shipping more expensive that most other items of the same volume.
Many daily newspapers are now going weekly, and some even giving away print altogether and relying on online advertising to make a profit. The other advantage with online advertising is that it is easier for advertisers to precisely target their market. Whilst newspapers offered some form of segmentation, it is at a much higher level than possible with online media which can be targeted at individual level.
The final nail in the coffin is that most people today do not have time to read a daily newspaper, which is why the weekend papers have both significantly higher distribution and circulation.
The signs are there – the end is near.
