The sore point
Guest commentary Advertising clients do not want to and will not cross-subsidize newspaper publishers' investments in the future, warns Jürg Siegrist.
Guest commentary Advertisers do not want to and will not cross-subsidize newspaper publishers' investments in the future, warns Jürg Siegrist.SWA President Gérard Stalder took the liberty of saying in a speech to members of the association and invited guests that our media diversity is in reality an oligopoly and that advertising prices have risen around five times faster than inflation since 2000 in some cases. He also expressed doubts about objective advice from media agencies, which receive discounts from publishers, and the reaction from the Swiss Press Association was massive: "Untrue, indecent, aggressive attitude ..." This despite - or precisely because - the statements themselves can hardly be refuted. Why so vehement? Discussions about ownership, market shares and prices hardly ever get people in a rage in this country. So where is the sore point?
The basic problem facing newspaper publishers is of a technical and social nature: the fact that advertising revenue for the press is declining is just one consequence of the fact that print media circulation has long since passed its peak. Daily newspapers in particular are losing their importance as a source of information among the younger generation. Teens and twens turn on the TV or radio briefly when they get up, then surf through the online world and have information from their areas of interest sent directly to their cell phones.
At the SWA annual meeting, Marcel Meier from Microsoft gave an impressive demonstration of what the new Windows platforms will bring: the de facto fusion of TV, computer and Internet, including SMS and all the trimmings. And this is not a dream of the future, but technology that is just around the corner.
Of course, newspaper publishers have long recognized this challenge: They are expanding the online editions of their newspapers, keeping regular readers loyal with low subscription prices (at the expense of high insertion prices) and diversifying into other media at the drop of a hat. This makes perfect business sense.
The SWA fully understands the publishers' approach. However, advertisers are also thinking entrepreneurially - and are by no means prepared to be saddled with the costs of this development. Instead, they will always advertise where they can establish the most effective and favorable contacts with their customers. And they expect newspapers to offer flexible and up-to-date services.
If publishers become aware of this, the basis for objective negotiations will be in place.
> Jürg Siegrist is Director of the Swiss Advertisers Association (SWA).
The basic problem facing newspaper publishers is of a technical and social nature: the fact that advertising revenue for the press is declining is just one consequence of the fact that print media circulation has long since passed its peak. Daily newspapers in particular are losing their importance as a source of information among the younger generation. Teens and twens turn on the TV or radio briefly when they get up, then surf through the online world and have information from their areas of interest sent directly to their cell phones.
At the SWA annual meeting, Marcel Meier from Microsoft gave an impressive demonstration of what the new Windows platforms will bring: the de facto fusion of TV, computer and Internet, including SMS and all the trimmings. And this is not a dream of the future, but technology that is just around the corner.
Of course, newspaper publishers have long recognized this challenge: They are expanding the online editions of their newspapers, keeping regular readers loyal with low subscription prices (at the expense of high insertion prices) and diversifying into other media at the drop of a hat. This makes perfect business sense.
The SWA fully understands the publishers' approach. However, advertisers are also thinking entrepreneurially - and are by no means prepared to be saddled with the costs of this development. Instead, they will always advertise where they can establish the most effective and favorable contacts with their customers. And they expect newspapers to offer flexible and up-to-date services.
If publishers become aware of this, the basis for objective negotiations will be in place.
> Jürg Siegrist is Director of the Swiss Advertisers Association (SWA).
