Financial media in the stock market crash
Stocks and Moneycab are confident of survival despite adverse environment
Stocks and Moneycab are convinced of their survival despite the adverse environmentBy Daniel Schifferle When investors run away from the stock market, the financial media must fear for their audience. But Stocks and Moneycab, the two children of the stock market boom, believe in their future despite the stock market crash.
The stock market hype brought them out, will the stock market crash take them away again? For Stocks and Moneycab, the two children of the long-term bull market, the environment had already changed radically with their launch.
Stocks was launched at the beginning of November 2000 - but as soon as the new magazine from the HandelsZeitung publishing group was on the market, the stock market party was already over. Despite the adverse environment, publisher Ralph Büchi told WerbeWoche in April: "The magazine is rock solid."
Now that the stock market has plummeted again, Büchi still sees no reason to revise this commitment. "What helps us decisively is the high proportion of wealthy people in Switzerland who remain invested in the stock market despite the slump and continue to ask for financial information. We also have the most subscribers in this public segment," explains Büchi (see also the interview below). In the pitch-black month of July, only 200 to 300 subscriptions were lost. In contrast, the stock market crash left deep marks on newsstand sales. Büchi: "At the moment, Stocks is selling an average of around 1500 copies per issue at newsstands; in normal times, this figure would be around 3000 to 4000 copies."
Despite the continuing poor performance of the international stock markets, Büchi sees no danger for Stocks. "We practice lean publishing, the operating losses at Stocks are in the six-figure range and not in the seven-figure range. This gives us a very good chance of quickly earning back the investments made in good years." Nevertheless, time is now running out to reach the operating break-even point, which the company wanted to achieve within three years, as the halfway point on the way there has long since passed. Nevertheless, Büchi remains optimistic with regard to this goal: "If the second half of 2003 is good, we will very quickly be in the black operationally."
Even before the stock market crash of the past few weeks, the Moneycab website, which was launched in spring 2001, was already in a tight spot. However, contrary to expectations, the additional gloom on the stock markets did not lead to a loss of customers. "We are not experiencing any negative effects," says Fredy Hämmerli, Managing Director of Moneycab. "In the short term, the effects were even positive for us. We have never had so many hits on our site as at the time when the stock market crash was at its worst."
He also does not anticipate any negative effects in the future due to the weakened stock market. Moneycab is primarily a portal for economic information and is not primarily used by those who just want to call up stock market prices. "That's why we haven't lost any users at the moment," says Hämmerli.
Finanz und Wirtschaft (FuW) also benefited from the stock market boom. Between 1996 and 2000, its circulation increased by over thirty percent or a good 12,000 copies. The wild climb only came to an end in 2001. After years of an unbroken upward trend, a good 2500 copies or five percent of the circulation were lost.
However, Tamedia spokesman Peter Hartmeier does not expect the market to crumble any further. "FuW is not the organ of those who jumped on the stock market boom at the last minute. It is the critical and analytical newspaper for long-term stock market players - and they know very well that the stock market will remain a crucial part of our country's economy in the medium and long term." For this reason, Hartmeier is convinced that the majority of FuW's readership will remain loyal in the future.
The stock market hype brought them out, will the stock market crash take them away again? For Stocks and Moneycab, the two children of the long-term bull market, the environment had already changed radically with their launch.
Stocks was launched at the beginning of November 2000 - but as soon as the new magazine from the HandelsZeitung publishing group was on the market, the stock market party was already over. Despite the adverse environment, publisher Ralph Büchi told WerbeWoche in April: "The magazine is rock solid."
Now that the stock market has plummeted again, Büchi still sees no reason to revise this commitment. "What helps us decisively is the high proportion of wealthy people in Switzerland who remain invested in the stock market despite the slump and continue to ask for financial information. We also have the most subscribers in this public segment," explains Büchi (see also the interview below). In the pitch-black month of July, only 200 to 300 subscriptions were lost. In contrast, the stock market crash left deep marks on newsstand sales. Büchi: "At the moment, Stocks is selling an average of around 1500 copies per issue at newsstands; in normal times, this figure would be around 3000 to 4000 copies."
Despite the continuing poor performance of the international stock markets, Büchi sees no danger for Stocks. "We practice lean publishing, the operating losses at Stocks are in the six-figure range and not in the seven-figure range. This gives us a very good chance of quickly earning back the investments made in good years." Nevertheless, time is now running out to reach the operating break-even point, which the company wanted to achieve within three years, as the halfway point on the way there has long since passed. Nevertheless, Büchi remains optimistic with regard to this goal: "If the second half of 2003 is good, we will very quickly be in the black operationally."
Even before the stock market crash of the past few weeks, the Moneycab website, which was launched in spring 2001, was already in a tight spot. However, contrary to expectations, the additional gloom on the stock markets did not lead to a loss of customers. "We are not experiencing any negative effects," says Fredy Hämmerli, Managing Director of Moneycab. "In the short term, the effects were even positive for us. We have never had so many hits on our site as at the time when the stock market crash was at its worst."
He also does not anticipate any negative effects in the future due to the weakened stock market. Moneycab is primarily a portal for economic information and is not primarily used by those who just want to call up stock market prices. "That's why we haven't lost any users at the moment," says Hämmerli.
Finanz und Wirtschaft (FuW) also benefited from the stock market boom. Between 1996 and 2000, its circulation increased by over thirty percent or a good 12,000 copies. The wild climb only came to an end in 2001. After years of an unbroken upward trend, a good 2500 copies or five percent of the circulation were lost.
However, Tamedia spokesman Peter Hartmeier does not expect the market to crumble any further. "FuW is not the organ of those who jumped on the stock market boom at the last minute. It is the critical and analytical newspaper for long-term stock market players - and they know very well that the stock market will remain a crucial part of our country's economy in the medium and long term." For this reason, Hartmeier is convinced that the majority of FuW's readership will remain loyal in the future.
