Newspaper Publishers Industry Profile

Companies in this industry are engaged in operations like producing and distributing newspapers, and also include writing news and selling advertisements. The newspapers published are in both print and digital?forms. Major companies include US-based Gannett, McClatchy, MediaNews Group, and News Corp. Other major companies outside the US are Axel Springer (Germany), Asahi Shimbun (Japan), and the Daily Mail and General Trust (UK).

Global newspaper annual revenue from circulation (subscription and single-copy sales) and advertising is an estimated $140 billion. Global revenue is declining by about 3% each year, with decreasing print advertising revenue accounting for much of the drop, according to the World Association of News Publishers. Growing digital ad revenue is, to some extent, offsetting the drop in print ad revenue. Paying news audiences reached some 640 million per day worldwide in 2018.

The US newspaper publishing industry includes about 7,500 establishments (single-location companies and units of multi-location companies) with combined annual revenue of about $23 billion.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Corporate spending on advertising and consumer disposable income drive demand. The profitability of individual companies depends on effective marketing and efficient operations. Large companies benefit from economies of scale in administration and by providing a range of outlets for advertisers. Small publishers can compete successfully by serving desirable markets. The US industry is concentrated: the top 50 companies generate about 75% of revenue.

Competition for reader attention and advertiser spending comes from companies in ...