Industry News
SELECTED ITEMS OF INTEREST TO THE MEDIA COMMUNITY
Are longer promotional periods for new subscriptions short-sighted?
Many publishers offered aggressive Cyber Monday promotional deals, betting that months of low-cost or essentially free subscriptions will convert down the road. But longer promotional periods may also make it difficult to accurately predict how many new subscribers will stay when promotional offers expire -- and what price they’ll be willing to pay. Among the findings in a Toolkits survey of the 100 most popular subscription sites for U.S. consumers:
- The average promotional period offered to new subscribers on November 28 (Cyber Monday) was 165 days, 14% longer than the 145-day average offered on November 10.
- The average subscription price available to new subscribers dipped 17% on Cyber Monday to reach $0.079 per day.
- On Cyber Monday, 48% of publishers offered new subscriptions of various lengths for a commitment of $1 or less.
Read the complete Toolkits story here.
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A Surprise Rise in News Subscriptions
Contrary to widely held expectations, the boom in subscriptions to local news publications in the U.S. during the height of the pandemic hasn't abated, according to the Medill Subscriber Engagement Index. Despite many COVID-related restrictions ending and inflation impacting consumer spending, subscriptions have continued to rise at small, medium, and large newspapers even though page views and unique visitors to local news sites have declined. Industry experts say digital marketing is key to acquiring new subscribers, but caution that retaining them requires providing differentiated and curated content.
Go here to read more of the Medill findings.
#media #strategy #consulting
Unlikely Combatants: Librarians and Publishers Battle Over E-Book Loans
Librarians and publishers have staked out opposing views on e-book "windowing," a practice that prohibits libraries from loaning more than one copy of a new e-book until eight weeks after its release. Librarians say the resulting long waits, especially for bestsellers, threaten the fundamental mission of public lending libraries. Publishers believe that the increasing popularity of borrowing e-books hurts their profits -- and affects the financial survival prospects of authors, too. The e-book debate echoes developments in the music industry, where musicians and labels have had to adapt to the boom in streaming.
Listen to the Planet Money podcast here.
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