Welcome back to Twipe’s Weekly News Digest!
This week, you can find articles that explore the latest Digiday research on publisher revenues, unpack the impact of dwindling news aggregator traffic, and assess the potential of social media algorithms to unite rather than divide. Plus, we look at Meta’s ad-free offering in the EU and how consumer behavior is shaping digital subscription trends. Here are our top stories:
1. WhatsApp Channels and Audience Engagement for News Publishers
WhatsApp Channels emerges as a fresh tool for news publishers to engage audiences by broadcasting content directly to subscribers, evidenced by successful adoption by leading publishers like The Daily Mail and Le Monde. As part of a suite of platforms including Artifact, Threads, and Telegram, WhatsApp Channels offers a new avenue for news distribution and community building.
Learn how publishers populate their Channels
2. Digiday’s Definitive Ranking of Publishers’ Revenue Sources
Digiday’s annual survey of over 200 publishers’ revenue sources has been published. It revealed that direct-sold ads and branded content are the leading revenue streams for publishers, with content licensing, sales, and subscriptions also showing growth. Video advertising and connected TV are emerging revenue sources, despite their small share compared to direct ad sales.
Find the full study
3. Referral Traffic Decline from News Aggregators
Publishers have noticed a decline in referral traffic from news aggregators, leading to a reevaluation of their content distribution and revenue-sharing deals. This trend comes amid overall lower referral traffic from large social platforms and could signify a saturation point for news aggregators.
Read the Full Article
4. Growing Digital Subscription Trends
Research by Toolkits and National Research Group shows a growing trend in U.S. digital publication subscriptions. Approximately 29% of consumers increased their subscriptions last year, with a significant interest in news, entertainment, and lifestyle content. This uptick suggests opportunities for publishers to create bundled packages and attract a younger audience, indicating a healthy market for digital content consumption.
Read the article here
5.Facebook and Instragram Offer Ad-Free Subscription Model
Meta is introducing a new paid subscription service across the European Union that allows users to remove ads from Facebook and Instagram. Priced at approximately €9.99 monthly on the web or €12.99 on iOS and Android, this move is in direct response to EU concerns about ad targeting and data collection practices.
Learn more about this subscription model here
Join us next week for more insights and trends from the news industry!
