(HNM) - Digital transformation is identified as an inevitable trend and takes place in all areas of social life, including press and media. In other words, "digital transformation is the life and death decision of the press". Below are the opinions of some press agency leaders on this issue.
Journalist Nguyen Hoang Nhat - Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Vietnam Plus electronic newspaper:
Digital transformation helps newspapers diversify revenue sources
2,350 euros is the cost of attending a 3-day course in London (UK) organized by the World Association of Newspapers and News Publishers (WAN-IFRA) in July, with the topic of how to increase revenue for digital journalism. The main contents of the course include: "Why digital makes a difference", "Journalists and business", "Content strategy and product thinking", "How to operate an electronic newsroom", "How to do data business" ...
It is difficult to say whether the above costs are expensive or cheap (not including travel and accommodation costs), but it is evidence that digital transformation is helping press agencies diversify their revenue sources, as WAN-IFRA noted in its 2021 Insights Report.
In fact, reader revenue (including subscriptions, donations, membership fees, etc.) and advertising revenue are still considered the two main pillars of journalism. However, digital transformation has brought opportunities to create new revenue sources, including data trading, partnerships with digital platforms (such as YouTube), or providing technology solutions. Even during the period when the whole world was closed due to the pandemic, many news agencies were still able to organize events through the online seminar model.
Or just looking at advertising, when traditional advertising models such as direct booking, PR articles, banners... are declining, digital transformation has helped press agencies create new replacement products. The important thing is that these products bring much better communication efficiency than traditional products.
Advertisers and brands themselves are also more excited about the achievements of digital transformation. In the book "Creating Journalism" published by the FIPP International Media Network, experts once stated that "Targeted advertising is much more valuable than advertising position". And to have targeted advertising, it is necessary to have data about readers and customers. Therefore, any press agency that can take advantage of the large resources from reader data (which are also customers) will have many advantages in the race for revenue.
And, in that race, standing still is suicide!
Thu Hang 's summary
Journalist Dinh Tuan Anh - Deputy Editor-in-Chief of Lao Dong Thu Do Newspaper:
Economic development of journalism is an urgent issue.
In September 2022, the Ministry of Information and Communications coordinated with Google to organize an intensive training program on digital transformation of journalism and journalism economics. The four main topics are: Developing readers, building and exploiting data, optimizing advertising revenue, and building revenue from readers. The program was attended by representatives from nearly 200 press agencies, showing how hot the press is about this issue.
"Change or die" is what experts often say. In the past, newspapers and radio stations held a monopoly in publishing and advertising, bringing in quite abundant sales, but now, surviving and developing with a stable source of self-generated finance is not easy.
Traditional forms of content organization face many challenges with the emergence of social networks. Traditional journalism is being competed by content platforms created by non-professional users. That forces press agencies to change. Just like businesses, press agencies must keep up with the digital transformation trend to comprehensively change newsroom operations, from management thinking, human resource management, data optimization to content production and distribution processes. Digital transformation is closely linked to the digital economy, which is to diversify revenue sources and increase the competitiveness of press agencies with new media platforms.
Media experts still affirm that digital transformation is the life-or-death decision of the press. However, it is also necessary to understand that digital transformation of the press is not a rosy picture. Before deciding to “invest”, think carefully about what you can really do. Digital transformation is not a piece of jewelry…
Thu Hang 's summary
Ms. Duong Thi Minh Chau - Head of Communications Department of Hanoi City Social Insurance:
Press helps raise awareness of social insurance
In the trend of digital transformation, the press must both meet information requirements to compete with other digital information platforms, especially social networks, and take care of the "food and clothing" of workers. In reality, it poses an economic problem for many press agencies, especially financially autonomous press agencies. Therefore, many ministries, departments, branches, and localities, including the Hanoi Social Security, have been coordinating with a number of press agencies to implement propaganda contracts on key contents for each year and each period...
With Hanoi Moi Newspaper, Hanoi Social Insurance has always trusted to coordinate information and propaganda on the implementation of social insurance, health insurance, and unemployment insurance policies over the past many years. We are basically satisfied with the press products provided by Hanoi Moi Newspaper. Many products of Hanoi Moi are collected, shared, and promoted by us on the Electronic Information Portal, Fanpage, and Zalo OA channels of the unit, helping people, businesses, and workers participating in the policy to have correct awareness and multi-dimensional understanding, increasing interaction and exchange on issues of interest to them.
Hopefully, in the coming time, press agencies will have a strong and comprehensive digital transformation, changing the way of reporting towards multimedia, multi-platform, multi-device, bringing the public new and more attractive information products. The press economy can also prosper thanks to that.
Minh Ngoc summary
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