The Inside Line: The UK Quality newspaper market
This week’s edition of “The Inside Line” looks at the UK Quality newspaper market. Each week we will take a key media topic and ask the industry for their opinion.
This week’s question:
Anthony Gibson-Watt – Buying Director, Zed Media
“I hate to say it, but I can’t help but think the economic climate that we face may bring about a radical change in the Quality marketplace. Certainly as it stands, INM can no longer justify shouldering the loss making Independent.
“The Quality marketplace does require further evolution and this may see a reduced number of qualities. However, there is plenty of scope under new ownership.
“With brave investment and opportunities for further shared resources there is plenty of life in the brand yet – how we access it may be quite different.”
Frank Hall – FOB Consulting
“Current speculation surrounding the Independent titles seems to owe far more to the level of holding company debt and shareholder politics than it does to any structural over-supply within the quality newspaper sector. Certainly most of the Qualities’ circulation and revenue figures don’t make particularly jolly reading, but in an increasingly complex publishing world these data provide only part of the picture. All of the quality dailies can now boast unique monthly user figures for their online products that dwarf their reported NRS readership.
“Most publishers haven’t yet mastered the trick of turning these online audiences into meaningful revenue streams but the traffic levels clearly indicate that there is still both an appetite and a future for authoritative, quality journalism, both within the UK and worldwide. And I don’t think we have yet reached the point where the strong brand identities of any national newspaper could be sustained without its hard copy edition.
“If we are to see any national newspapers close, (rather than just change owner), I think it is likely to be a Sunday title. NMR figures show that more than £1 in every £4 spent in national press comes from retail, a sector still firmly focused on Thursday to Saturday editions.”
Steve Goodman – Managing Director Print Trading, GroupM
“No. The segmentation of the marketplace into Qualities, Mid-Market and Populars is becoming increasingly outdated. The lines between what has been called a Mid-Market paper and a Quality for instance, are becoming increasingly blurred, and this has been escalated by the change in format of many of the traditional broadsheet papers.
“Consumers choose their papers, and are motivated by editorial content and design, cost, ease of purchase and added value. There are now more opportunities to target and have relevance to more discreet audiences, and this combined with the general decline in circulations over the last few years will mean that there are potential consumers who are currently not catered for, and readers of existing papers who might be persuaded to read a title more relevant to them instead of, or possibly in addition to, their current chosen title.
“Equally, advertisers continue to pursue more cost effective ways of reaching these audiences in relevant environments.”
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