How do changes in media consumption affect newspaper revenue? : Suggestions on earning more revenue, with a special attention to the Nordic region

Abstract

This thesis is concentrated on the changes in consumer’s newspaper consumption and its impact on newspaper’s revenue in order to find out how printed news can earn more money. This thesis has a special attention on the Nordic region newspaper industry. The aim of this thesis is to explain how changes occurred in news consumption habits of users has impacted on newspaper firms’ revenue in order to find new strategies for newspaper firms for earning more money to remain survived. The research questions of this thesis are: 1. How has media consumption changed during recent years? 2. What was newspaper revenue before the change in media consumption? 3. How have newspaper companies responded to these changes? 4. How can newspaper revenue be increased in this situation? The methodology used in this study is qualitative research. Online interviews are conducted to ask standardized, open-ended questions to get answers to the research questions. The interviewees are newspaper managers and newspaper associations from four Nordic countries, Finland, Sweden, Denmark and Norway. In this thesis, eight articles used as the theoretical framework and those articles along with the other literatures were to completing, supporting or challenging the information obtained from the interviews. By analyzing the interviews, four new strategies are introduced, to help newspaper firms earn more revenue, namely, content marketing, native advertising, emergence of international, digital new brands, and concentrating on local content.