This morning, I had the privilege of attending the Press Gazette Media 100 Network at the Gherkin in Central London with my colleague Stephan Heck
The keynote speech was with Jim Mullen CEO of Reach plc the company who owns The Mirror, Express, OK, Manchester Evening News and many other publications. The topic of the conversation focused around the following areas:
Media Profitability:
The media industry requires a strict focus on profitability to ensure independence, journalistic jobs and a secure a long-term future. As the market pivots and is threatened by AI the need for stability and profitability has never been higher.
Current Business Performance
General improvement in business performance compared to last year.
2023 was challenging, but 2024 is looking better.
Political events like elections helped boost revenue, especially in digital and regional markets.
Advertising Trends:
Publishers are becoming more assertive in making the case for brand safety in advertising.
AI Impact on Journalism:
AI seen as transformational, though initial excitement has waned as publishers strive to develop useful case studies.
AI is increasingly answering real-time questions, potentially taking traffic away from publishers which is a major threat.
This highlights the Importance of maintaining relationships with audiences and requires a need to focus on subscriptions and first-party data.
Programmatic Advertising:
There is a shift from market-set prices to tailored, higher-priced advertising based on user data. This highlights the importance of increasing the amount of first-party data.
Subscription Model:
Jim discussed the challenges of subscription models, especially for mass-market publishers like Reach Plc. This emphasises the importance of providing free access to news to keep local communities informed.
Thanks to Richard Jamieson who gave us the opportunity to be a sponsor of this event.