{"id":647298,"date":"2013-03-18T14:45:32","date_gmt":"2013-03-18T18:45:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/paidcontent.org\/?p=226095"},"modified":"2013-03-18T14:45:32","modified_gmt":"2013-03-18T18:45:32","slug":"the-ft-has-crossed-over-to-become-a-digital-business-but-can-anyone-else-replicate-that-feat","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/647298","title":{"rendered":"The FT has \u201ccrossed over\u201d to become a digital business \u2014 but can anyone else replicate that feat?"},"content":{"rendered":"

A new profile of the Financial Times is the latest piece to hold up the company as a model for traditional publishers that want to create a digital-era business. It sounds great, but it\u2019s not very realistic.<\/p>\n

The piece in question <\/a>is by media analyst Ken Doctor who notes the FT is the first newspaper to have \u201ccrossed over\u201d by amassing more digital subscribers than print ones. As of February, the respective numbers were \u00a0316,000 to\u00a0286,000; the feat fulfills the FT\u2019s prediction<\/a> at paidContent 2012 that the cross-over would occur in 2013. (You\u2019ll be able to hear more digital-media industry predictions at\u00a0paidContent Live<\/a> on April 17).<\/p>\n

As Doctor explains, the accomplishment results from shrewd business decisions such as persuading companies to buy individual subscriptions for their employees: \u201cRather than leaving B2B customer\u00a0sales relationships<\/em>\u00a0to aggregators like Lexis Nexis and News Corp.\u2019s Factiva, the FT began converting corporate FT buyers to direct relationships.\u201d<\/p>\n

Doctor acknowledges that daily newspapers don\u2019t have the same corporate opportunities, but says that they can follow the FT and Politico in creating a valuable niche: \u201cIf dailies\u2019 news and information are as critical locally as the FT\u2019s is to a global business clientele, why not test a new model? .. [Politico]\u00a0Pro works several niches. Mr. and Ms. Publishers, what\u2019s your niche?\u201d<\/p>\n

If a publisher can come to occupy such a niche, they may enjoy the same virtuous cycle as the FT where margins rise with digital revenue while distribution costs stay nearly fixed.<\/p>\n

But it\u2019s hard to see how the FT case study can apply to anyone other than the FT. Recall that even the New York Times<\/em> is struggling to \u201ccross over;\u201d its digital revenues are rising but, overall, the paper\u2019s overall operations are shrinking. The Wall Street Journal<\/em>, with a similar global business niche, may be the only other publisher with a hope of crossing over this year.<\/p>\n

Doctor also cites the FT\u2019s 30-person data and analytics team as integral to the company\u2019s digital transition. He points out that such teams can supply critical intelligence about customer targeting and revenue optimization. But do other publications, which can no longer afford copy editors, have the means to hire dozens of data scientists? Probably not.<\/p>\n

How many other newspaper and magazine brands can you name that even stand a chance of making this crossover?<\/p>\n

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