Industry Analysis Paper

511110 Newspaper Publishers

This industry comprises establishments known as newspaper publishers. Establishments in this industry carry out operations necessary for producing and distributing newspapers, including gathering news; writing news columns, feature stories, and editorials; and selling and preparing advertisements. These establishments may publish newspapers in print or electronic form.

Profile

The US newspaper publishing industry includes about 5,000 companies with combined annual revenue of about $35 billion. Major companies include Gannett, McClatchy, Advance Publications, Tribune Company, The Washington Post Company, and The New York Times Company. The industry is highly concentrated: the top 50 companies control almost 80 percent of the market.

Internationally, the newspaper industry generates revenue of about $160 billion and includes nearly 15,000 newspaper titles in circulation. Top publishers headquartered outside the US include Italian holding company COFIDE, Germany's Axel Springer, Japan's Asahi Shim bun Company, and the UK's Daily Mail and General Trust. Sweden, Japan, the UK, and Canada boast the highest per capita newspaper readership.

Products

Products include daily, weekly, monthly, and Sunday newspapers; Internet news services; and distribution services. Large circulation newspapers are usually produced daily; community newspapers are usually produced weekly. More than 70 percent of industry revenue comes from sales of advertising space ("advertising revenue"), and only about 20 percent from subscription and single-copy sales ("circulation revenue"). Some papers are controlled-circulation papers – they're free to a targeted audience and receive revenue only from advertising.

Local news is usually gathered through a network of reporters and correspondents, and through regular public sources such as police, fire, court, and legislative proceedings. Regional, national, and international news are acquired through correspondents (if...