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The decline continues

IRE60

Via the Campaign site - report on the worsening state of print. (Cant find it on Neilsons' site). Some of the budget cuts are savage:

Newspaper revenues fall amid talk of joint ad sales

The national newspaper advertising slump has worsened since the Brexit vote, with revenues crashing 18% year on year in August, making it the worst-performing month of the year so far.

Print ad sales dived 14%, or £95m, in the first eight months of the year to £575m from £670m in the same period a year ago, according to Nielsen.

Newspapers got a brief respite around the Brexit referendum, when ad sales fell only 4.5% in June and 11% in July. Every other month this year has seen a fall of at least 14%.

The newspaper print ad market fell 13% in 2015 and 9% in 2014.

A number of high-profile brands abruptly slashed their print ad expenditure in favour of Facebook and other digital channels.

Tesco cut spend by 85% year on year in the first eight months of 2016 to £1.8m, O2 reduced its outlay on print ads by 45% to £4m and Marks & Spencer dropped its spend by 28% to £7m.

Worsening revenues will add to pressure on newspaper owners to consider pooling their ad sales in a single sales house in order to gain scale in their negotiations with media agencies, improve efficiency and cut costs.

News UK, Trinity Mirror, Telegraph Media Group, Guardian Media Group, DMGT and Northern & Shell have been in talks since at least May, when Campaign first reported that discussions had begun.

Steve Booth, chairman of MC&C and co-founder of BLM, has been leading the initiative, dubbed Project Juno.

Newspapers are understood to have commissioned Enders Analysis and lawyers to report on how a joint ad sales house might work and the likely obstacles emerging from a Competition

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Loafing Oaf

Seemingly a load of 'newsagents' round Dublin city centre have stopped selling newspapers and magazines

https://www.thejournal.ie/newspaper-sales-ireland-2-6134929-Aug2023/

Seemingly the move relates to issues with delivery charges that it may be possible to address but still a pretty ominous development for the industry...

JTMan

Updated sales figures for the Indo after many years.

https://archive.is/QO6i8

"The Sunday Independent is now selling just over 102,000 copies, down from 143,000 at the beginning of 2020. The Sunday World was down to just under 75,000 from nearly 110,000 in the same period. The Irish Independent from Monday to Friday had average sales of barely more than 30,000, down from 46,000, while the Saturday edition had fallen from 91,000 to 64,000."

Such a huge drop in sales. No wonder Mediahuis say they will be digital-only by 2030.

IRE60

I make a token gesture each month to the ABC's - my lack of enthusiasm stems from the numbers becoming increasingly worthless!

However, maybe the decline is really continuing - dmgMedia have not issued a cert for the Mail or Mail on Sunday for April - thus far. If they have withdrawn, perhaps it will accelerate to abandonment of the ABC certification altogether.

(no - I was too quick to judge! Published today 18/05)

drserious4

You need only look at the mistake ridden regional papers to realise just how poor the product now is, presumably for economic reasons. How many full time staff on your average regional now, I wonder, and are they are all quadruple-jobbing?

jmcc

Seems that Mediahuis is looking at a Digital first strategy with those recent comments on RTE about ceasing print in about seven years. If Mediahuis is talking about this now, how bad can things be for other newspaper publishers?

Regards...jmcc

JTMan

More job cuts at Mediahuis. "Big changes on the way". Time to say goodbye to The Herald and some of the regionals?

https://www.irishtimes.com/business/2023/03/28/irish-independent-publisher-plans-voluntary-redundancies/

eguiney

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119830439#Comment_119830439

News Corp moved to the ex-INM City West site - except for The Times which was already in Portadown

The Guardian/Observer are at the Irish Times

The Mirror left the Celtic Media plant in Navan a few years ago and moved to the Irish Times. The Navan plant is now also closing.

The Express and the Star are currently in Newry

L1011

I'm sure I saw a stat some years ago that every single printing op in the country - Smurfit/Newscorp (gone), INM (now gone with that closure and closing/selling Citywest etc before it), Crosbie/SBP Webprint and the Irish Times - could have printed every single daily paper on one of their plants. There was that much excess capacity; and that was with much higher circulations.

We're now down to two of those - and far less papers being printed. There are also still regional printing ops outside of those big two.

Who did Newscorp move to for their print requirements here; and who does the Reach titles (and the Guardian/Observer who use Reach in the UK)?

John_Rambo

https://www.independent.ie/business/irish/mediahuis-ireland-to-close-newry-print-site-and-contract-printing-42021569.html

Never was there a more apt thread name.

dulpit

I think i saw its the last edition for at least David Walsh, so should become apparent in the next week or two...

Loafing Oaf

Little sign of the upheaval at ST in today's edition: usual amount of Irish content, departing Stephen O'Brien and Denis Walsh all over it. Looks like they might be able to manage the 'transition'...

jmcc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119372325#Comment_119372325

A print edition is easier to share among multiple readers who may not want to use a tablet or laptop to read it. Losing the editors is not a good thing. Columnists are not a major loss by comparison.

Regards...jmcc

Loafing Oaf

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119372082#Comment_119372082

I'm not sure. If you're someone who wants a big wodge of content for 'leisure reading' of a weekend, are you likely to prefer that in print or digital form? Plus if you're otherwise occupied on a particular Sunday you can skip that print version.

I wonder is this mass exodus of staff going to kick in straight away. If so we're going to be getting a pretty shoddy product in return for our 4 quid for the next while until they recruit replacements and get their act back together.

https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-40923656.html

The source added that “people are confused as to how they’re going to put out a paper”, given the scale of the redundancies.

jmcc

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119371401#Comment_119371401

Makes sense. Digital subs for a daily version would be hard to sell and retain agains the IT and the Indo. They are Irish focused and this is their primary market. The weekend digital version might be easier to market but the weekend print edition may continue to be the main seller for a while yet.

Regards...jmcc

Loafing Oaf

Had missed that they already announced this

https://www.independent.ie/business/news-ireland-to-cease-publication-of-its-times-ireland-daily-service-41799799.html

So presumably their trumpeted 'digital strategy' is now in tatters and their entire 'strategy' for the Irish market involves charging a big wodge for the (presumably now skimpier) Sunday edition...

drserious4

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119369884#Comment_119369884

Quality has to nosedive.

marno21

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/119369884#Comment_119369884

Upto €4 a pop now

Loafing Oaf

Big to-do at Times/Sunday Times Ireland

https://www.irishtimes.com/business/2022/07/21/eleven-journalists-leave-the-sunday-times-and-times-ireland-as-cost-cuts-trigger-staff-exodus/

Almost a dozen journalists, including some of its best-known writers, are set to depart the Sunday Times Ireland and Times Ireland amid a cost-slashing restructuring of the news publisher’s operations described as “brutal” by staff.

Wonder will it still be worth the €3-whatever a go when all that is done & dusted...

Loafing Oaf

Interesting article throwing light on the issue discussed upthread of whether it is worthwhile for British newspapers without Irish editions to distribute in the Irish market

https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/media-player-its-hard-to-see-the-i-making-any-inroads-into-the-irish-newspaper-market-w2b3x8jtd

The i is cutting its price to €1 in a bid to attract 'price sensitive' customers. Commentator points out that the Daily Mail can justify circulating the title in Ireland by piggybacking on its existing distribution network...

drserious4

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/117966107#Comment_117966107

Journalism ain't what it used to be. The number of typos alone (in books as well as newspapers) is really shocking but probably a reflection of the reduction in staffing levels.

NIMAN

I see the Indo have this clip on their website, yet its 6 years old. Way to go. Do they employ someone to trawl the internet for stories or clips?

https://www.independent.ie/videos/why-do-you-have-euro-in-ireland-american-presenter-shocked-when-learning-ireland-doesnt-use-english-pounds-40906556.html

Gloomtastic!

Interesting development over at Business Post where they've just bought Red C, the pollsters.

https://www.irishtimes.com/business/media-and-marketing/business-post-group-buys-polling-company-red-c-for-7m-1.4670496

Someone there seems to be able to look way over the trees. Fair dues to them.

[Deleted User]

I think this might fit in here. The newspaper printing plant in Kells is to close.

"The plant produces editions in Ireland for the Sunday Times and Irish Sun, which are owned by News UK & Ireland. It also prints editions for other newspaper publishers, including the Irish Daily Mail and the Financial Times"

https://www.rte.ie/news/business/2021/0831/1243830-news-uk-and-ireland/

[Deleted User]

I have seen another lately. Copy and paste a press release and put their byline on it. And yet another that has a one line sentence introducing a press release and then the press release in quotes

X TD said he welcomes funding for Y project "full press release" and say it is by one of their writers. Pathetic

[Deleted User]

dohboy wrote: »

Maybe don't get your news from a radio station's website then? Or at least have zero expectations if you do.

I never said i got my news from a radio station website. Most local papers are the same, very little news, a lots of political press releases from TD's. "X TD welcomes Y development" . And press releases sent in by organisations . They don't even bother to call the organisation and interview him/her about his press release.

yosser hughes

dohboy wrote: »

Maybe don't get your news from a radio station's website then? Or at least have zero expectations if you do.

So set your sights low and you won't be disappointed. Is that it?

dohboy

Maybe don't get your news from a radio station's website then? Or at least have zero expectations if you do.

[Deleted User]

Most content now are just recycyled press releases, it is very poor. I read a story on a radio website re a crime and it was just a copy of the garda press release.

Gloomtastic!

Loafing Oaf wrote: »

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/tv-radio-web/hugh-linehan-reports-of-the-death-of-the-newspaper-have-been-exaggerated-1.4570569
Hugh Linehan ruminates on the future of printed newspapers, points out that they have outlasted many of the prophecies (and indeed prophets) of doom

Most interesting bit is this quote from Peter Vandermeersch of Mediahuis Ireland on their strategy for the coming years: “we think, sooner or later, maybe five, maybe seven, maybe 12 years, we go to a system here in Ireland where we have very big and important Saturday and Sunday papers in print, combined with digital during the week. That’s basically the whole strategy of the company, to prepare for that future.”

Or maybe two Peter. It’s what I do now.

Loafing Oaf

https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/tv-radio-web/hugh-linehan-reports-of-the-death-of-the-newspaper-have-been-exaggerated-1.4570569
Hugh Linehan ruminates on the future of printed newspapers, points out that they have outlasted many of the prophecies (and indeed prophets) of doom

Most interesting bit is this quote from Peter Vandermeersch of Mediahuis Ireland on their strategy for the coming years: “we think, sooner or later, maybe five, maybe seven, maybe 12 years, we go to a system here in Ireland where we have very big and important Saturday and Sunday papers in print, combined with digital during the week. That’s basically the whole strategy of the company, to prepare for that future.”