Regional publisher Northcliffe Media has announced it is bringing its digital operation back under its direct control.
Northcliffe Digital, which oversees the thisis and Local People website networks, has operated as a standalone business unit within parent company A&N Media since it was set up in January 2010.
However from today its general manager Lee Williams will now report to Northcliffe group chief executive Steve Auckland.
Meanwhile online deals platform Wowcher has been split off into a separate business unit, to be headed by former Northcliffe Digital MD Roland Bryan.
Said Steve: “This is a great move for both our print and digital teams. Separating the businesses was the right decision to allow them to focus on immediate priorities.
“Over the last 18 months, the print teams have changed significantly and have made strong progress that is now translating through to the profit line.
“I’m looking forward to working with Lee to ensure that the print teams continue to fully support the comprehensive range of digital products that have been developed over the last 18 months.”
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allow me to translate steve’s comment:
‘Over the last 18 months we have cut a lot of jobs and merged a lot of offices, meaning we are now making more money.
“I am looking forward to working with Lee so that the print reporters continue to contribute 95 per cent of the websites’ content, but none of the money those websites bring in.”
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correction: but *get* none of the money those websites bring in.”
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Non-existent staffing and horrible templates. Stuck in the dark ages I’m afraid, no matter who is in charge.
Where are the interactive, pay-as-you-go, page-turning tablet applications etc?
They’re cheap, simple and ensure that at least the most fundamental app provision for regional newspapers. If, shock horror, anybody under the age of 40 does search for their local Northcliffe title on a smartphone or tablet they have access to nothing other than the appalling websites – which work even less smoothly on new platforms.
What a mess.
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Regional Press investment in the digital arena is proving to be a canny tax avoidance scheme.
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Traffic Chaos, the ‘horrible’ templates give more visual impact for advertisers, you know, the people who pay everyone’s wages. This means the websites now make money, albeit a small amount, which is more than they did under the direct editorial control of the newspapers for the previous six years. Yes, I agree, they still need some work but maybe this change at the top will bring some much-needed joined-up thinking across both platforms. Also, apps are not that cheap or effective. As I understand it, the sites are soon to be created in HTML5 which will allow the screen to adapt to any browser, whether it’s phone, pad, PC or Mac. This way you don’t have to pay app designers and coders, you don’t lose any revenue to iTunes or another third party and you don’t put people off by making them have to pay for it in the first place. The paid-for news model is in it’s death throes, especially at a regional level. What Northcliffe needs is a cohesive strategy between the papers and digital, with both still doing their own thing. The newspapers would still use the websites to desperately plug the paper as many editorial staff don’t get that it’s a different market. If the online audience don’t get what they want from a Thisis site, they’ll go to another site. They won’t buy the paper instead! Also, Anne, the websites may get the content for free, but the local centres now have no associated cost with maintaining and running a website, yet everything the local sales teams sell adds to the bottom line of the local business.
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To Oliver, who said “This means the websites now make money, albeit a small amount, which is more than they did under the direct editorial control of the newspapers for the previous six years.”
Really, Oliver. So what’s the wage bill of the website? One man and a dog in each centre. Remarkable performance by these guys, maintaining the websites AND writing hundreds of stories each week. Fact is, these horrible websites are propped up by the activities of the print journalists. Take their contribution away and let’s see how much money is made.
I love the line that the local centres don’t have the costs of running a website. So why don’t we have agreement that the newspapers pay for their website and the websites pay the wages of the journalists? Reason, the websites make sod all.
It is my view that the websites which make money are those which directly require the customers to spend money – eg Easyjet.
News websites don’t. Is there a news website anywhere in the world which exists in its own right and with its revenue paying all its journalists, costs etc not propped up by anything else, eg print publication, licence fee, broadcast adverts etc?
My experience is the web is far too fragmented to generate the volume of ad revenue needed to prop up any news operation.
Marcus
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But Oliver, who pays the wages of the journalists who prop up these ‘money making’ websites. Fact is, take away the content an they are dead ducks.
Come to think of it, is there a news website anywhere in the word which stands on its own feet, not dependent on free or aggregated content or propped up by print publications, broadcast ads, licence fee or whatever??? And, which pays its staff a wage.
Answers please.
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Marcus, I think we all heard the first time – I can’t see a need to bark your question out just an hour later in the hope it will bait a response.
I don’t mind the new site layout. It’s not what I’d have gone for personally as I’d have given far more prominence to newspaper content but they are certainly more eye catching, and from what Oliver says I can see why that would make them more appealing from an advertising stance. I think the body of them can be a bit sloppy and confusing but it seems to vary a lot from site to site – they are certainly infinitely better than they were when they were first rolled out.
I must admit that I find the generally line of ‘disgruntled hack’ comments on HTFP a little tiresome. I wouldn’t have a problem with it if people were offering solutions but to just complain about the state of the industry seems fairly redundant. Yes, times are tough, but complaining that times are tough does nothing to make them easier.
The reality is that ALL newspaper journalists are now working in a struggling industry, like it or not print journalism is on the way out – that is just the reality of this. Common sense, therefore, would say that in order to ensure you don’t go under you find a way to adapt or evolve, and that means finding ways to significantly increase digital revenue streams – which is exactly the course Northcliffe have taken by introducing new websites and focussing efforts on digital ventures like Wowcher.
From what Oliver says, and methinks he is probably a man in the know here, steps are also being taken to move towards apps (which can then be monetised in some way) and improve the websites for multiple platforms.
To be frank, Marcus, I really don’t see the point of your comments. Northcliffe are clearly setting themselves up for a major, major step away from relying on print revenue. And if they weren’t you’d probably be complaining about the company going under a few years from now
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The real problem is that Northcliffe management has let the market move away from them be it in print or online!!
That is a sad truth.
When you cut staffing levels (commercial and editorial) so viciously and so quickly you not only loose invaluable skills but even more worryingly you have lost the flexibility to respond to the “new” markets that are moving in to replace the previous ones!!
I’m sorry to say that Northcliffe has a history of employing very expensive outside “help” when they could on many occassions have used the existing talent within the company. Alas that talent has more or less disappeared!
Cura ut valeas
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First of all, apologies for the repeat posting. I wrote the original and the page appeared to crash so i re-posted then they both appeared.
Anyway, the real point.
I have watched regional journalists (as an insider and an outsider) over 10-15 years flounder around, with strategies after strategies which don’t work.
I agree solutions are needed. For me, it is hard to imagine a day when there will be enough ad revenue from a website to sustain a proper news service for a large city, which probably needs at least 50 paid members of staff (editorial/accounts/IT/commercial/cleaners) plus a hefty rent. The web is simply too fragmented to be appealing.
I think the answer is for news organisations to look at imaginative ways of making their core publications appealing and accessible. They spend so much time being distracted by media partnerships and suchlike nonsense that many regional dailies simply do not connect with their readers.
Couple this with more and more reporters who have no connection or empathy with the city and you suddenly have a publication which has a broken relationship with their readers.
For me, I would break up the traditional Mon-Sat model, produce a high quality publication which is cheap and easily accessible … I’m not sure that even having a website in its current form makes much sense.
Can I go back to my current point … is there a news website anywhere which stands on its own feet. If there’s not, is having a news website a viable option at all???
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Hello Marcus. I’m not saying the websites currently make enough money to stand on their own feet editorially, but they are slowly growing standalone revenue without cutting staff budgets. You may have seen all the recent adverts for part-time freelance publishers to provide additional content for these sites too. However, on your point about the cost of wages and the running of the websites, you’re missing the vital ingredient… advertising. Forget cost, this is where both make money so they need each other at present. One to provide the platform and the other to provide the majority of content for it. Yes, print remains the leading revenue stream for Northcliffe, but it’s profitability is only being retained by cutting costs, particularly frequency and staff. When they can be cut no further, it would be wonderful, but naive, to think that all those print journalists who are cast aside would still be employed but working to a web-first publishing strategy. The harsh truth is that if even some of them get the chance to do just that as the investment in digital grows, then at least there’s some sort of future for regional journalism.
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