Hsiang Iris Chyi

Willingness to Pay for Online News: An Empirical Study on the Viability of the Subscription Model

As no business models seem to generate reliable revenue streams for online news services, many publishers see the subscription model as a last resort for survival although little evidence suggests users are ready to pay for online news at this moment. A random-sample telephone survey of 853 Hong Kong residents found very few users actually responded to paid content and most had no intent to pay in the future. Hierarchical regression analysis showed that age and newspaper use are related to paying intent, whereas income is not. Online publishers may consider the economic implications before adopting the subscription model.

News and the Overloaded Consumer: Factors Influencing Information Overload Among News Consumers

News producers continue to increase their volume of production and delivery platforms in an effort to reach and maintain news consumers. However, consumers may not necessarily find more news desirable. Previous studies have suggested that information surplus can lead to negative outcomes for consumers, but research of outcomes related to news production and consumption has been scant. This study explores novel areas of news surplus and overload, empirically examining factors associated with the degree of perceived overload across a broad spectrum of news delivery platforms. The findings reveal that the majority of todays news consumers feel overloaded with the amount of news they are confronted with. Gender, news interest, and the use of specific news platforms and outlets predict the degree of that overload. News access through platforms and outlets such as computers, e-readers, and Facebook is positively associated with overload, whereas other platforms such as television and the iPhone are negatively associated with overload. Implications for media psychology and news consumption are discussed.

ONLINE NEWS CONSUMPTION: A structural model linking preference, use, and paying intent

While media scholars tend to take “media use” as an indicator of popularity or diffusion, media use alone does not fully capture the complexity of online news consumption. For instance, given free online news offerings in most cases, consumers do not always use what they prefer, and most are not willing to pay for what they use. This study identifies from the literature three distinct factors—preference, use, and paying intent—as well as two key demographic variables—age and gender—each helping to explain a specific facet of online news consumption. While previous research has uncovered a number of relationships among these factors, a holistic model that weaves different empirical findings together is lacking. To address the interplay among the key factors, this study presents two theoretical models via structural equation modeling. The goal is to clarify the interrelationship among preference, use, and paying intent for online news, which helps to explain why most newspapers have difficulties monetizing online usage. Applying new conceptual and methodological approaches, this study synthesizes previous studies and advances research on the economics of online news consumption.While media scholars tend to take “media use” as an indicator of popularity or diffusion, media use alone does not fully capture the complexity of online news consumption. For instance, given free online news offerings in most cases, consumers do not always use what they prefer, and most are not willing to pay for what they use. This study identifies three distinct factors -preference, use, and paying intent -each helps explain a specific facet of online news consumption. To date, media research on the economics of online news consumption has uncovered a number of relationships among these factors. Nonetheless, a synthesizing model that weaves different empirical findings together is lacking. To address the interplay among the key factors, this study presents two holistic theoretical models via Structural Equation Modeling. The goal is to clarify the interrelationship among preference, use, and paying intent for online news, which help explain why most newspapers have difficulties monetizing online usage. Applying new conceptual and methodological approaches, this study synthesizes previous studies and advances to the next level research on the economics of online news consumption.

NEWS ON NEW DEVICES: Is multi-platform news consumption a reality?

News organizations worldwide now deliver content through multiple electronic devices such as computers, smartphones, e-readers, and tablets. While multi-platform news delivery is widely prevalent, is multi-platform news “consumption” a reality? This study examines the extent to which people own, use, and enjoy these electronic devices. Results of a national survey of US Internet users suggested that despite the excitement about newer, more portable devices, not all devices are equally “newsful.” Most people use only one electronic device for news purposes on a weekly basis. We identified the predictors of device ownership and multi-platform news consumption and discussed the implications for multi-platform news publishing.

Use of Online Newspaper Sites Lags Behind Print Editions

Analysis of newspaper market research data found that the newspapers print edition reaches far more local readers than does its online counterpart across each of the 68 metro dailies examined.

A matter of life and death?: Examining how newspapers covered the newspaper "crisis"

During 2008–2010, US newspapers covered the financial issues confronting their own industry extensively. Such coverage drew attention to the state of the newspaper but also raised questions about whether journalists over-reacted to this market downturn. This study examines how the Wall Street Journal, USA Today, and the New York Times framed the newspaper “crisis.” Results show that coverage focused on short-term drama over long-term trends, lacked sufficient context, shifted blame away from newspapers themselves, invoked “death” imagery, and altogether struggled to capture a holistic portrayal of newspapers’ troubles. The implications of this analysis for self-coverage and business journalism are discussed.

Demystifying the Demand Relationship Between Online and Print Products under One Newspaper Brand: The Case of Taiwan and the Emergence of a Universal Pattern

This study uncovers a universal pattern regarding the oft-misunderstood demand relationship between online and print products under one newspaper brand. Growing from the portfolio management perspective and building on previous research conducted in the US and Hong Kong, this study examines the newspaper market in Taiwan. Secondary analysis of survey data collected from 7706 Web users confirmed that: (1) the print edition attains a much higher penetration relative to its online counterpart, suggesting that more people would rather consume the print edition over free Web offerings; and (2) compared with the general public, readers of the online edition were more, not less, likely to read the same newspapers print edition. Such counter-intuitive findings carry important theoretical and managerial implications regarding the management of multiple product offerings under one newspaper brand.

Competing with Whom? Where? and Why (Not)? an Empirical Study of U.S. Online Newspapers’ Competition Dynamics

AbstractAs a newspaper Web site theoretically may compete with anything and everything, online and offline, this study empirically examines the nature, degree, and locale of online newspaper competition. Based on online reader survey data collected from users of 27 local U.S. newspaper Web sites, this study seeks to capture the competitive relationship between the local newspaper site and other online/offline news sources among local and long-distance users. A competitive relationship between the newspaper site and its print counterpart in the local market was found among about one third of the cases, after controlling for demographics and Internet use. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.Abstract As a newspaper Web site theoretically may compete with anything and everything, online and offline, this study empirically examines the nature, degree, and locale of online newspaper competition. Based on online reader survey data collected from users of 27 local U.S. newspaper Web sites, this study seeks to capture the competitive relationship between the local newspaper site and other online/offline news sources among local and long-distance users. A competitive relationship between the newspaper site and its print counterpart in the local market was found among about one third of the cases, after controlling for demographics and Internet use. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.

Reality Check: Multiplatform newspaper readership in the United States, 2007–2015

Twenty years into US newspapers’ online ventures, many are stuck between a shrinking market for their print product and an unsuccessful experiment with digital offerings. Since readership is the foundation for subscription and advertising revenue, this study, through a longitudinal analysis of readership data (2007, 2011, and 2015) of 51 US newspapers, provides an up-to-date review on these newspapers’ online and print readership. Results indicated that the (supposedly dying) print product still reaches far more readers than the (supposedly promising) digital product in these newspapers’ home markets, and this holds true across all age groups. In addition, these major newspapers’ online readership has shown little or no growth since 2007, and more than a half of them have seen a decline since 2011. The online edition contributes a relatively small number of online-only users to the combined readership in these newspapers’ home markets. These findings raise questions about US newspapers’ technology-driven strategy and call for a critical re-examination of unchecked assumptions about the future of newspapers.

The Rise of Online News Aggregators: Consumption and Competition

The rise of news aggregator sites is a notable phenomenon in the contemporary media landscape. Outperforming traditional news outlets, online news aggregators, such as Yahoo News, Google News, and the Huffington Post, have become major sources of news for American audiences. Facing economic hardships, some news organizations cast blame on news aggregators for stealing their content and audiences. However, the relationship between news aggregators and traditional media outlets on the demand side has not received sufficient scholarly attention. Through a national survey of 1,143 U.S. Internet users, this study integrates the uses and gratifications paradigm and an economic approach to predict aggregator consumption and examine market competition. In terms of consumption, among demographic factors, age and ethnicity are the two major predictors of aggregator use. Among psychological factors, opinion motivations is the only non-predictor of aggregator use, suggesting that users do not seek opinion-driven content when they visit aggregator sites. In terms of competition, this study uncovers non-competitive relationships between three major news aggregators and 13 major TV, print, and social media news outlets. Such findings are at odds with industry sentiment and the proposed model serves as a basis for further theorizing news aggregator consumption.