Publishing plus: Industry transformation laid bare

In an industry where newsrooms are shrinking, The Guardian has seen an expansion, doubled its revenue over the last three years and grown its unique audiences 29% month on month to 5.38m.

But, with a new strategic goal to reach two million paying memberships within the next three years, how will the publisher track, analyse and develop its audience funnel? Essentially, how do they think they are going to reach two million paying members?

In this session, The Guardian Australia’s managing director Dan Stinton will reveal the different ways The Guardian is monetising journalism, how a business model which doesn’t revolve around advertising can be successful and why The Guardian believes it can be successful with a reader revenue business model.

Custom content has long been seen as a significant opportunity for publishers to boost revenue, but is the real win one step further down the path?

In an age where content can come from anywhere, publishers have had to fight hard to maintain their audiences and capitalise on their strengths. It’s led to some interest pivots and new business models in the industry, none more so than the opening of creative agencies and studios by publishers.

Marketers are now not only turning to publishers to create their desired content but some such as VICE and Bauer Media have created in-house studios and agencies, born from journalistic roots, to further service those clients far beyond traditional custom content.

Does this mean publishers are becoming a threat to ad agencies? In this session hear from publishers who have pivoted their business model to service these new opportunities and the brands that have worked with them.

When technology giant Apple announced the launch of Apple News+ in March it was met with mixed reactions, with some opting not to participate in the news aggregating subscription product. While some legacy publishers argue Apple will eat into their subscription businesses and erode their relationships with consumers, others declared that the subscription service will give them mass reach. So, is this good or bad news for the publishing industry?

With the technology behemoth promising to deliver current events coverage from trusted sources, there are still questions about the company’s ability to help publishers increase their revenue opportunities. What can publishers learn from Apple’s new subscription model? What should Apple be learning from publishers? How should Apple work with publishers and what will this do to revenue?

In this session hear from some of the industry’s most senior leaders as they unpack what Apple News+ means, who should be signing up and what the industry can learn about subscriptions from the tech giant’s news play.