Transcript Document

The Impact of the Internet
on Mass Media (the press)
1
2
5 most often used Lithuanian Web sites, SIC
Gallup Media, Spring 2002 (%)
3
Trends observed …
Media-morphosis (Roger Fidler)
Media convergence (Nicholas Negroponte, 1980)
Broadcasting
Computers and telecommunications
The Press
4
According to Colin Sparks, University of Westminster
(Sparks, 2002):
The Internet means change for
the media (the press) in …
5
1.
A common delivery technology (… because of media
convergence)
2.
Reduced distribution costs
3.
Altered patterns of consumption
4.
Erosion of advantages of place
5.
Removal of advantages of time
6.
Competition for revenue streams
7.
Separation of editorial and advertising
8.
Direct relations between advertisers and consumers
6
1: A common delivery technology
Offline media have clear and distinct delivery technologies:
In material (e.g. broadcast or printed: two most common formats
for the online media)
In time (e.g. daily newspaper v. monthly magazine)
In function (e.g. radio while driving v. TV while relaxing)
In place (e.g. newspaper at work, television at homes: morningevening hours)
Online technology all comes through one delivery mechanism, at
any time, and potentially to any place (infra-red access
technology?)
7
2: Reduced distribution costs
The symbolic material of the offline media is expensive to
distribute:
Newspapers and magazines must be printed and shipped
TV and radio must pay for spectrum and build and run
transmitter networks
Online media have no need for these mechanisms:
The company needs to rent server space
But the audience buys the PC and pays the telecom’s costs
(which are becoming less and less expensive).
8
3: Shifts in news consumption patterns
Existing patterns of consumption are embedded in patterns
of life:
TV is a primary leisure activity, often in a family setting
(the most typical mass medium)
Radio is more a background to other activities
The periodicity of publications fits rhythms of life
(morning-evening newspapers)
9
Online media have as yet no well-established
consumption patterns:
Usually consumed alone !!! (that’s why television
looks different on the Internet)
Available at any time of the day or night (if
archived)
10
4: Erosion of the importance of place
Offline media are tied to particular places:
Newspapers bounded by the distribution area (bringing the
community together)
Broadcasters depend on the configuration of the transmitter
mechanism (restrictions in transmission)
11
Online media operate on a global scale:
Consumption is not determined by distance or by
geopolitics (www.lrytas.lt as a ‘virtual meeting place’
or a new channel for participation)
Media are no longer sheltered by location (new
models of tele-working, distance working, e-learning)
12
5: Erosion of temporal advantages
Offline media are produced and distributed at definite times:
Morning and evening newspapers have different agendas
(In Lithuania: mostly morning newspapers, no Sunday press)
The time of major TV and radio programmes is carefully
calculated (who will watch these? Prime-time television
programs: soap-operas, reality TV shows)
13
Seasonal differences in TV viewing, Spring 2002
Source: SIC Gallup Media.
14
TV viewing by time zones, Spring 2002
Source: SIC Gallup Media.
15
Online media are available all the time:
News can be updated regularly (www.vz.lt, www.delfi.lt,
www.omni.lt)
All material can be accessed at any time (www.delfi.lt),
although there may be restrictions: www.lrytas.lt (5
days)
16
6: Competition for revenue streams
Offline media traditionally have three main sources of
revenue:
Subsidy (e.g. licence fee for broadcasters ??? (an ongoing
discussion for/against “subscription-fee”); exempt from
taxation in press)
Subscription (particularly for the printed material)
Advertising (the most dominant form): display advertising
and classifieds
17
Online media challenge some of these:
Subscription (some claim that it is not yet feasible as there is
no relevant content on the Internet; while others see this as
the only valuable model for the ‘quality-Web’:
www.cnn.com)
Subsidy (or sponsorship): www.omni.lt (‘Omni Laikas’), or
all conventional newspapers
Advertising (classifieds are well suited to the online world,
banners, pop-up windows, background advertizing,
intermercials): www.lrytas.lt (however, this may end in
“cannibalization”)
18
7: The disaggregating of editorial and advertising
Most offline media package a range of both advertising and
editorial content together:
Advertising between television programmes, display advertising
next to editorial material in printed media, etc.
The two depend upon each other (the media messages are sold both
to audiences and advertizers).
19
The searchable nature of the online world allows the two
to be separated:
Audiences can bypass advertising material??? www.delfi.lt ?
(less and less , because online media employs new more
‘aggressive advertising strategies’: www.vg.no)
Audiences can seek those kinds of advertising they are
interested in at a particular moment
20
8: Direct relations between providers and consumers
Offline, the media are necessary:
The only way that the audience can access editorial content is
through the media package: news, classifieds, display ads,
editorial content.
The only way the advertiser can access consumers is through the
media package
… thus, newspapers operate in two markets – for audiences and
advertizers
21
With Online, there are other routes:
The audience can go directly to news sources (as in
verticals)
Advertisers can go directly to consumers (employ different
marketing strategies: ask questions, collect information
from what countries and at what times per day users access
the Web)
22
Summary of the effect of online media
Taken together, these developments pose major
challenges to the offline media (provoke the mediamorphosis):
They challenge their self-identities
They challenge their market niches
They challenge their revenues
23
… but the online media face major challenges, too:
They lack independent credibility
They have no record of delivery in commercial
terms …
… as a consequence, they find it hard to make
money (www.aftonbladet.se, 2mln.)
24
http://www.solutionconscious.com/vmu/excercise3.htm
25
The example of the newspaper
Most newspapers are “bundles” of different kinds of
content (in Lithuania: drifting towards the ‘middle’ – a little bit of
everything)
Newspapers have a definite periodicity and circulation
area
Newspapers are overwhelmingly commercial enterprises
They get the majority of their revenues from advertising
(display advertising, classified advertising)
26
The newspaper
Weather
News Features
Display
Advertisements
Leisure
Sport
Classified
Advertisements
27
From offline to online
14.00
16.00
22.00
24.00
07.00
08.00
Gather
news
Edit
news
Print
news
Distribute
news
Sell
news
Read
news
‹--------------------------Limited by distance-----------------------›
00.00 -24.00
00.00 -24.00
00.00 -24.00
00.00 -24.00
Gather news
Edit news
Upload news
Download news
‹------No geographical limits-------›
28
The Virtuous Offline Circle
Offline
advertising
Offline news
source
Editorial
Department
Advertising
Department
Offline Newspaper
Purchase
Offline
readership
29
The Vicious Online Circle
Online news
source
Online
advertiser
Online
newspaper
Online
alternative
Logon
Online
readership
30
The online newspaper bundle?
News Weather
Registration Features
Classified
Advertisements
Sport
Leisure
Services
Transactions
31
The Online Newspaper

Is a complement rather than a substitute for
offline media
Consequently increases rather than decreases costs

Has similar but not identical contents
Consequently needs additional staff

Major business issues
Cannot (yet?) attract subscription revenues
Is a vehicle for similar forms of advertising to the offline
media
Faces competition particularly for classified advertising
32
Consequences for costs
Impossible to abandon offline presence for the
foreseeable future
Therefore there will be additional costs
A successful online presence needs specialised material
and design
Therefore these costs will be substantial
A `sticky’ site needs a great variety of material
Therefore there will be a premium on those sites that aggregate
content from different sources
33
Attracting and keeping visitors
A strong brand offline supports a strong brand online
(BBC, CNN, WSJ, NYT etc.)
Not true in all cases
There are some examples of pure online brands
A big and dynamic site is more attractive
Frequent updates mean frequent repeat visits
Rich content means different people visit
Rich content means the same people visit often
The Internet is on the side of the big battalions
34
Making money from visitors
Basic news content is very hard to sell
Many competing free outlets
Low intrinsic value of news (and falling?)
Premium services can be sold
Not necessarily the ones that have high status (e.g. cartoons,
crosswords)
Specialised, high value-added material can be sold
Visitors can be sold
Those who visit frequently, do a lot and spend time on a site
are valuable sources of customer data
Advertising can be sold (but not for much)
Uncertain effectivity
Many competitors
35
Social implications
Critics of the traditional media have often said
they are limited because:
They are controlled either by the state or a few
large corporations
The are dominated by professional
communicators
They are primarily one-way communication
Only a limited range of views are ever present
36
Proponents of the democratising function of the
internet often say:
It is impossible for either state or large corporations to
control it
It gives everyone an equal voice
It is necessarily dialogical communication
It opens the way to the representation of all views
37
The likely outcomes


The technological potential for new entrants and
increased diversity is unlikely to be realised in
commercial practice
 Strong offline brands produce strong online
brands
 Rich offline content translates into rich online
content
 High offline production values translate into
high online production values
 Powerful offline marketing complements
powerful online marketing
(Almost) anyone can have a web presence, just as
anyone can spout at Speakers’ Corner, but
38
Therefore …
Online media are widely present
They operate according to a different logics than offline
media
Nevertheless, the offline/online link is extremely important
(helps to increase traffic in both versions)
There are major questions about the long-term commercial
viability of online media
Online media are unlikely to transcend the limitations of
offline media from the point of view of public life
39
Kam reikia interneto Lietuvoje?
ALF tyrimas, 2001
http://politika.osf.lt
40
Pusė mokančiųjų naudojasi juo ir darbo, ir asmeniniais
reikalais; Kas trečias – tik asmeniniais reikalais; Kiek
mažiau nei kas penktas – tik darbo reikalais.
Asmeniniais reikalais:
Spaudai, publikacijoms, elektroninėms knygoms susirasti ir
skaityti – 50,4%;
Elektroniniam paštui – 49,8% ir darbo paieškai – 42,5%.
Paieškai duomenų bazėse – 29,5%, nuotoliniam mokymuisi
29,2% ir medicininėms konsultacijoms – 29,2%.
41
20,8% naudoja ir norėtų naudoti internetą prekėms pirkti ir
parduoti; 17,7% – kompiuterių programoms ieškoti ir
parsisiųsti;
16,9% – atostogoms planuoti; 15,7% – ekonominio pobūdžio
informacijai ieškoti (kainoms, biržų indeksams ir pan.);
15,5% – komunalinėms ir administracinėms paslaugoms;
15,1% – informacijai apie vartotojų teises ir jų gynimą gauti;
14,2% – banko sąskaitoms tvarkyti.
Ieškotų informacijos apie Europos muziejus ir kultūrinį
palikimą – 10%, apie politiką – 9,5%, ir tam, kad galėtų
dalyvauti politiniuose debatuose – 3,7%.
42
Koks šiuo metu yra aktyviausias IT vartotojas?
Internetu naudojasi bent du kartus per savaitę -- 8,5% (iš viso
apie 300.000 piliečių).
Amžiaus ribos – 15- 49 m. ir tai sudaro 87,6% visų,
besinaudojančių internetu. Amžiaus vidurkis – 32 metai.
43
Informacinės visuomenės piliečio išsilavinimas aukštasis
(53,4%), rečiau vidurinis ar specialusis vidurinis (34,6%). Didelė
tikimybė, kad jis gyvena Vilniuje ar Kaune (šiuose dviejuose
miestuose gyvena daugiau kaip pusė visų interneto naršytojų,
56,9%).
Šis pilietis dažniau yra vyras (54,4%) nei moteris (45,6%).
Jis gauna didesnes nei 500 Lt/mėn. pajamas (41,9%).
Interneto vartotojai yra turtingesni nei vidutinis lietuvis.
Internetu jie naudojasi dažniau darbo ar mokymosi vietoje
(82,4%) nei namuose.
44
Kada iš tikrųjų gyvensime įtinklintame pasaulyje?
Aktyviausia informacinės visuomenės grupė – 15-19 metų.
86,5% šios amžiaus grupė respondentų moka naudotis
kompiuteriu, 62,7% moka naudotis internetu.
Dauguma – 97% – nemokančiųjų nori išmokti dirbti
kompiuteriu.
45