Shaking your head over the fifth free sheet
Gratispresse II Tamedia wants to launch a second free newspaper. But its concept is (still) so vague that it hardly convinces media planners.
Gratispresse II Tamedia wants to launch a second free newspaper. But its concept is (still) so vague that it hardly convinces media planners.
Tamedia, Espace Media and Basler Zeitung Medien want to launch a new, joint free newspaper in tabloid format, which is to be placed on newspaper boxes in Zurich, Basel and Berne before the end of this year. However, the new project, which is still at the planning stage, appears vague and contradictory. Here are just a few of the rumors: According to previous announcements, the content of the new paper will focus on news for quick readers, yet the texts will be longer than those of 20 Minuten, and it will contain fewer pictures. The three publishers hope to appeal to a "young, well-educated and affluent readership". However, the paper will only have a central editorial office, probably in Zurich. "There are no plans for actual regional editions. However, the editions for Basel, Bern and Zurich will be regionally adapted and will also highlight the most important stories in the three daily newspapers," says Tamedia spokesperson Christoph Zimmer. The paper will apparently have to do without its own primeurs. "Background information and commentary as well as information from the region will continue to be published exclusively in BaZ", according to the press release on www.baz.ch. It is doubtful whether this can be attractive from a journalistic and reader perspective.
It is not least such conceptual somersaults that cause media agencies to shake their heads. Sandro Prezzi, Managing Director of the media agency Mediaedge:cia, raises further questions: "Is it really enough to simply put another box next to the 20 Minuten box for the new paper?" And: "How should the newly found young readers be attracted to Tagi, BaZ or BZ? Just by touching on topics in the new newspaper and then referring to articles in the respective main paper? I don't think that would work," says Prezzi.
Stephan Küng from Initiative Media Western agrees with him: "The Tagi didn't even succeed in tying in teenagers and young adults with the youth supplement Ernst at the time," he recalls. He also sees the fact that the free paper is to be combined with the Metropool in terms of advertising as a further catch in the concept: "This only increases the price of the Metropool, which is already too expensive," he says. Furthermore, it makes no sense to enrich the Metropool with a young target group. "It would be better to focus on the existing readership of Tagi, BaZ and BZ and deepen it even further," he says.
Ueli Christen, Managing Director of mm&b, also points out that around 50 percent of 20 Minuten's readership already consists of 14 to 34-year-olds. "Tamedia and Espace Media, the owners of 20 Minuten, already reach the young target group, so they don't really need the new title," he says. His conclusion: "They are probably mainly interested in squeezing .ch out of the market." Most of the other respondents agree.
In many places, people are surprised that Tamedia is accepting the risk of cannibalizing 20 Minuten. "I was surprised to hear that Tamedia is attacking its own cash cow 20 Minuten, especially shortly before the planned increase in circulation there," says Dominique Schilling, media planner at Generation Media. Although she welcomes diversity, "I personally really wasn't waiting for another tabloid," she says. Schilling also points out that the free newspaper euphoria abroad is already on the wane. She continues: "The cut-throat competition in Switzerland is neither in the interests of the agencies nor the advertising customers. I would like to see more constructive approaches to new products," she says.
However, opinions within the agencies differ as to whether the local market can tolerate further free titles. Sandro Prezzi, for example, "does not want to deny in principle that there is also a chance for the new title, provided the new concept is adapted". Peter Hofstetter is more pessimistic. "Although there is a trend towards free content, I doubt that five free titles can exist side by side. At the latest when the economy takes a turn for the worse, one or the other will go out of business." Especially as the concepts would not actually differ greatly.
Ronny Schmid takes a completely different view. In his opinion, it is not so much the free titles that are at risk as the subscription titles. "Subscription dailies will find it increasingly difficult, they are the discontinued models. Ringier has already demonstrated this with Cash," he says. And he has also noticed this change of attitude in himself. "I'm a regular reader of a subscription newspaper. But I'm now quite prepared for a daily free newspaper, as long as it reports in more detail than, say, 20 Minuten," admits Schmid. In this respect, .ch or the new free paper from Tamedia, BaZ and BZ could certainly suit him, he says.
Markus Knöpfli
Tamedia, Espace Media and Basler Zeitung Medien want to launch a new, joint free newspaper in tabloid format, which is to be placed on newspaper boxes in Zurich, Basel and Berne before the end of this year. However, the new project, which is still at the planning stage, appears vague and contradictory. Here are just a few of the rumors: According to previous announcements, the content of the new paper will focus on news for quick readers, yet the texts will be longer than those of 20 Minuten, and it will contain fewer pictures. The three publishers hope to appeal to a "young, well-educated and affluent readership". However, the paper will only have a central editorial office, probably in Zurich. "There are no plans for actual regional editions. However, the editions for Basel, Bern and Zurich will be regionally adapted and will also highlight the most important stories in the three daily newspapers," says Tamedia spokesperson Christoph Zimmer. The paper will apparently have to do without its own primeurs. "Background information and commentary as well as information from the region will continue to be published exclusively in BaZ", according to the press release on www.baz.ch. It is doubtful whether this can be attractive from a journalistic and reader perspective.
It is not least such conceptual somersaults that cause media agencies to shake their heads. Sandro Prezzi, Managing Director of the media agency Mediaedge:cia, raises further questions: "Is it really enough to simply put another box next to the 20 Minuten box for the new paper?" And: "How should the newly found young readers be attracted to Tagi, BaZ or BZ? Just by touching on topics in the new newspaper and then referring to articles in the respective main paper? I don't think that would work," says Prezzi.
Stephan Küng from Initiative Media Western agrees with him: "The Tagi didn't even succeed in tying in teenagers and young adults with the youth supplement Ernst at the time," he recalls. He also sees the fact that the free paper is to be combined with the Metropool in terms of advertising as a further catch in the concept: "This only increases the price of the Metropool, which is already too expensive," he says. Furthermore, it makes no sense to enrich the Metropool with a young target group. "It would be better to focus on the existing readership of Tagi, BaZ and BZ and deepen it even further," he says.
Ueli Christen, Managing Director of mm&b, also points out that around 50 percent of 20 Minuten's readership already consists of 14 to 34-year-olds. "Tamedia and Espace Media, the owners of 20 Minuten, already reach the young target group, so they don't really need the new title," he says. His conclusion: "They are probably mainly interested in squeezing .ch out of the market." Most of the other respondents agree.
In many places, people are surprised that Tamedia is accepting the risk of cannibalizing 20 Minuten. "I was surprised to hear that Tamedia is attacking its own cash cow 20 Minuten, especially shortly before the planned increase in circulation there," says Dominique Schilling, media planner at Generation Media. Although she welcomes diversity, "I personally really wasn't waiting for another tabloid," she says. Schilling also points out that the free newspaper euphoria abroad is already on the wane. She continues: "The cut-throat competition in Switzerland is neither in the interests of the agencies nor the advertising customers. I would like to see more constructive approaches to new products," she says.
However, opinions within the agencies differ as to whether the local market can tolerate further free titles. Sandro Prezzi, for example, "does not want to deny in principle that there is also a chance for the new title, provided the new concept is adapted". Peter Hofstetter is more pessimistic. "Although there is a trend towards free content, I doubt that five free titles can exist side by side. At the latest when the economy takes a turn for the worse, one or the other will go out of business." Especially as the concepts would not actually differ greatly.
Ronny Schmid takes a completely different view. In his opinion, it is not so much the free titles that are at risk as the subscription titles. "Subscription dailies will find it increasingly difficult, they are the discontinued models. Ringier has already demonstrated this with Cash," he says. And he has also noticed this change of attitude in himself. "I'm a regular reader of a subscription newspaper. But I'm now quite prepared for a daily free newspaper, as long as it reports in more detail than, say, 20 Minuten," admits Schmid. In this respect, .ch or the new free paper from Tamedia, BaZ and BZ could certainly suit him, he says.
Markus Knöpfli
