SINGAPORE- While Singapore Press Holdings (SPH) news platforms are not declining in quality or readership, the challenge faced by its media business today stems from its inability to monetise its gains in attracting and retaining readers on digital platforms.
These trends – which affect SPH, Mediacorp, and the global media industry – are expected to persist and widen, said Minister for Communications and Information S. Iswaran in Parliament on Monday (May 10).
Speaking during a ministerial statement on SPH’s proposal to hive off its media business into a not-for-profit entity, Mr Iswaran noted that SPH’s papers, like Mediacorp’s broadcast channels, continue to be trusted and valued sources of news that are well read.
SPH’s overall reach and readership has never been higher, with total newspaper circulation holding steady and digital circulation growing more than 20 per cent year-on-year, he noted.
SPH papers’ total circulation has also grown by 5 per cent from 2017 to 2020, he added. Within this period, The Straits Times’ print and digital circulation has grown by about 20 per cent.
As at August last year, the daily average circulation of ST on print and digital platforms was 458,200, up from 386,100 a year ago. Digital circulation for ST, which was to close to 300,000, exceeded that of print.
Lianhe Zaobao’s daily average circulation on digital platforms has also grown to 44,500 at at August 2020, up from 36,200 a year ago.
Significant investments have also been made to build digital capabilities and grow readership. This amounts to about $50 million a year for the last five years, said Mr Iswaran.
SPH has also equipped its newsrooms with a wider range of tech capabilities, such as data analytics and product development, modified operations to generate content around the clock, and been recognised internationally for its excellent data visualisation and interactive graphics, multimedia and photojournalism, added Mr Iswaran.
Last year, it emerged as the biggest winner at the Asian Media Awards, with The Straits Times and the Chinese Media Group earning accolades in breaking news, infographics and newspaper design, among others.
But despite rising readership, SPH’s media business has been steadily losing revenue, said the minister.
Its media business had lost half its operating revenue in the past five years, and posted its first ever loss of $11.4 million last year.
“The loss would have been deeper without the Government’s Jobs Support Scheme (JSS) grant,” added Mr Iswaran.
Trends expected to worsen; SPH faces constraints as listed company
SPH expects these trends to persist and widen, with print advertising revenue falling as media consumption progressively shifts online, noted the minister.
“Rising digital advertising will not compensate for the fall in print advertising revenue. And there is limited scope to grow digital subscriptions given our small domestic market and global competition,” he said.
These trends, which affect SPH, Mediacorp and the global media industry, will also be compounded by the lingering economic impact of Covid-19, with businesses cutting ad spending and consumers reluctant to pay for content, he said, explaining the Government’s support for SPH’s proposal to restructure itself and transfer its media business, SPH Media, to a company limited by guarantee (CLG) pending shareholder approval.
His ministry had said last week that the Government is prepared to provide funding support to the CLG to help accelerate its digital transformation and build capabilities for the future.
Mr Iswaran also noted that SPH, as a listed company, has been under persistent pressure to account to shareholders for the poor financial performance of its media business.
The company has implemented several cost-cutting and retrenchment exercises in recent years, but SPH has assessed that any further cuts would impair its ability to maintain quality journalism, he said.
“SPH has also spoken of its constraints… to make significant and sustained investments in digital and newsroom capabilities, which may not yield near-term payoffs,” he added.
