Thursday, August 13. 2009
Pay-to-view website to launch in November; all News Corp websites to charge within a year
With advertising revenues falling dramatically in the face of one of the deepest economic downturns for decades, Rupert Murdoch has decided to use Britain’s most popular weekend newspaper - The Sunday Times (circulation 1m) - as a testbed for a radical new strategy designed to transform the finances of his British newspaper business by charging for online content. Murdoch has claimed that consumers are willing to pay for celebrity scoops and exclusive stories.
No announcement has been made as to the model of charging, which is to be a key factor in the scheme’s success. The plans form part of a wide-ranging overhaul of Murdoch's titles, including the Sun and News of the World. By flagging up one of the biggest strategic shifts in the history of News International so publicly, one must assume he is baiting competitors to follow his lead.The British media will always have the BBC to contend with, who have a commitment to provide a free service. Nevertheless, it appears online opinion is split – some will avoid paying for content that is free elsewhere, but others will pay – if the content is worthy. Business-to-business and speciality content remain areas where people will pay, but it's a mistake to believe that the success in B2B publishing with paid content can (or will) be replicated with general news and consumer content.
B2B publications provide business-specific information that isn't available in the general press, making readers more likely to pay for it in print and online. Incidentally, this is why advertising revenue in B2B publications is more likely to stay healthy as sector-specific advertisers maintain access to a relevant and engaged audience. Murdoch will have been swayed by the Wall Street Journal and the FT who both charge for online content, as they firmly believe business and sport news are among the few kinds of content internet readers have shown a willingness to pay for.
So what does this mean for the online broadcasting industry? Recently, users online video usage has exploded with BBC iPlayer, YouTube and, to a lesser extent SkyPlayer, being extremely popular. A study on behalf of Deloitte found that the most viewed genres of online video were news and comedy, which 34% said they watched. Music ranked second, watched by 30%, with sport and documentaries/factual programming ranked third equal with 23% each.
Murdoch’s move is likely to fail unless the content is unique (and presumably visual) – users are unlikely to pay for news that is freely available on hundreds of other sites. But will they pay for comment? Time will tell.
Continue reading "Murdoch's online revolution"
Wednesday, November 12. 2008
This time last week we witnessed the finale of one of the most historic elections the world has ever seen. Obama is now getting to work on running the United States of America – soon to be all in a day’s work! "It's been a long time coming, but tonight... change has come to America," Obama declared.
After months of campaigning, Obama finally beat his closest rival, John McCain in a landslide victory. So a fresh start for the US and the world – the first ever black American President, and a time for ‘change’.
Obama achieved this by using ad space wisely, including placing ads on video games and TV. According to adweek.com, Obama’s television ad placement ‘was achieving 98 per cent reach and a frequency rate of 20 to 25 exposures a week to viewers 18-plus with his messages….McCain was reaching the same audience levels but with only about 10 exposures a week.” Adweek went on to say ‘Obama was completely saturating those markets….He got his messages across, about his character, the issues and differences between him and his opponent. And for constituents who want to learn more, he directed them to Web sites…’
Relying on blanket advertising is fine if your target audience is every adult in the population and you have a budget bigger than the turnover of many companies, but Barack Obama is also undoubtedly an excellent communicator with the personal touch, but what is also clear from this election is his unprecedented and progressive outlook in communicating via modern media channels to gain electoral support, coverage, younger/new voters, and even sponsorship. By launching his own website, online TV channel ‘Barack TV’, Obama blog, not to mention his infamous facebook site, enabled Obama to engage with a much wider and larger audience.
A prime example of how to communicate successfully, using a targeted campaign with both online and traditional media channels to compliment one another. A master class in effective PR Broadcast.
So a new President and young family in The White House from January 2009...and apparently a puppy too. A ‘first dog’ - things certainly do change! A historic time to witness and be part of – and definitely one to tell the grand kids….how long before the Presidential puppy has its own Facebook group?
