A new study by the Innovation International Media Consulting Group for the World Association of Newspapers (WAN) claims that newspapers which take their classified advertising onto the Web do not lose print revenues.
The study looked at online classified advertising predicted that for the foreseeable future, print classified will remain a mainstay of the newspapers’ business and should not be neglected as management attention shifts to the Internet.
“This report is based on the experience of newspapers in 10 countries operating in a wide variety of markets. All of them sell classified advertising on the Web, and none of them reports that the print business has suffered as a result,” said Timothy Balding, the Director General of WAN.
“These experiences contradict some predictions that newspapers would have to ‘kiss their classifieds goodbye,'” said Mr Balding. “Newspapers are optimistic about the future of Web and print classifieds – they believe the combination clearly produces added value for customers.”
