Trend of print media in Singapore

Newspaper is the most common source of print media whereby it is easily accessible to all readers. The one of the first thoughts that came to our mind when we mentioned “newspaper” is probably Singapore Press Holdings (SPH).

This is because SPH alone publishes up to 18 newspaper titles in four languages  and print are its main business. There are 3 million individuals or 77 per cent of people age 15 years old and above, reading at least one of SPH’s news publications daily. With more than 1,000 journalists, including correspondents operating in 20 cities around the world, SPH is well-equipped with the talent and network to deliver quality news and information that covers both domestic and international markets.

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(Source: Yearbook of Statistic Singapore 2012)

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(Source: SPH Annual Report 2011)

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(Source: SPH Annual Report 2011)

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(Source: SPH Annual Report 2011)

Building on Print

SPH’s key challenge is to continue to achieve healthy circulation figures and generate good revenue from  its core print products in this digital information age.

Despite competition from other media platforms, SPH print media held its ground firmly with a total newspaper circulation averaging 981,339 copies per day for FY 2011, a slight year-on-year decline of 0.2 per cent.

But there was a growth in circulation for several of their papers. The Straits Times’ average daily circulation registered year-on-year growth of 0.6 per cent to 354,654 copies. The Business Times’ circulation also increased by 1.5 per cent vis-à-vis the previous financial year, while Tamil Murasu continued to enjoy robust growth of 15.3 per cent to 16,747 copies.

SPH continued to introduce new products and rejuvenate existing ones to keep up with changing market needs.  Its Chinese flagship daily Lianhe Zaobao launched a fortnightly Chinese publication, Thumbs Up Junior, for primary one and two student in March, adding to its portfolio of student newspapers which comprises zbCOMMA and Thumbs up. The Central Integrated Newsroom of Shin Min Daily News and Lianhe Wanbao also launched Victory Trail, a bilingual racing guide.

Newsprint Cost Risks

SPH’s financial performance is susceptible to newsprint price volatility. The cyclical fluctuation of newsprint prices has a substantial impact on newspaper publishing costs, and a significant spike in newsprint price or a reduction in the availability of newsprint can adversely affect the company’s core business. Failure to adopt mitigating measures, such as advance stockpiling or appropriate inventory management measures and purchasing strategies, may result in SPH incurring higher production costs and lead to lower operating margins.

Trend of print media in Taiwan

In Taiwan, newspaper publishers have been faced with an ageing readership, declining revenues, sinking circulation figures and a fragmented sense of mission. In particular, hard copy newspapers risk losing a large segment of their readership that exhibits a preference for electronic information and entertainment sources, namely the younger generation who form the majority of Internet users (Nicholas at al., 1997). Elsewhere it has been noted that newspaper readers, who are enviably affluent, educated and middle-class, are getting old and are not being replaced in sufficient numbers (Financial Times, 1995).

Taiwan’s traditional media platforms, especially the newspapers, have the luxury of liberation since Taiwan’s democratization in 1987. With the policy on freedom of press and speech, conversations including topics on the government and military, are openly discussed by the mass media. Currently, in a market of 23 million, Taiwan’s media landscape is bustling. It houses seven 24-hour news stations, more than 4,000 magazine publishers, approximately 200 radio stations, and about 2,500 newspaper publishers.