To answer that
question, let us start by saying that not all Arab newspapers exploit an online
platform. Some 15% of them just
don’t. If we take the Arab countries as
a whole, the percentage of revenue coming from online is about 2% (source: Arab
Media Outlook, by Dubai Press Club) as opposed to some 13% for US papers and even more for UK papers. The bravest companies in the West have gone
even further, like the Scandinavian group Schibsted which claims to have
crossed the 50% threshold, mostly due to online classifieds. McClatchy has gone from 11.6% to 16.2% in
just one year and the most innovative groups will be approaching the 20% mark
in 2010 and 2011.
One could argue that the lack of broadband explains the very low percentage of digital revenues generated by Arab newspapers. In fact, given that domestic broadband penetration in Western Europe and the USA is in the 60-70% range (with the States ranking highest), whilst in Arab countries it is 12% (according to Informa TM), perhaps the 2% share of digital revenues is acceptable. The surprising part is that Qatar, UAE and Bahrain can boast broadband penetration rates above USA and the EU yet still a meager 2% of advertising revenues come from online.
Is it because people in the Arab countries are accustomed to getting news from newspapers and online is just an option for social purposes and entertainment? Not really, since users in Egypt, Lebanon, KSA and UAE use the Internet as much as newspapers as their news source. The reason is probably more complex. First, it has to do with the inertia of advertisers and agencies. Beyond that, the situation is also conditioned by the very products being delivered by editors.
In my conversations with different players in the Arab world, some individuals seem too relaxed because the language barrier plays in their favor and therefore “we have more time”. I have worked in mature and in developing markets with different languages and I am convinced that that reasoning has a certain degree of wishful thinking. The average Arab user has shown during the last few years an incredible ability to surf as the Western one. Many Arab users are constantly exposed to quality products and they expect the same from local brands.
As for the language barrier, in my opinion it provides less protection than generally thought. Some 65% of Arabic speakers prefer to read in Arabic and the figure goes down slightly to 62% in the case of Internet browsing (Nielsen). This means that users feel more and more comfortable surfing in English. Local news brands have to take note and be decisive in pushing their online projects since users may be already getting part of the newspaper content elsewhere.
Newspapers, in any
physical form, have a role to fulfill in our societies. The community needs (the best of) them. We
all share a responsibility in making sure that they build bridges to their
future, and the digital world is part of it.
For newspapers to make a successful transition, digital revenues have to
increase fast. Moving from 2% to 5% is feasible, because broadband penetration
will grow at 38% for the next few years (Value Partners). Reaching 10% and beyond gets harder and
requires innovation to reach users who are becoming banner blind. Other
formulas have to be used, but that is another topic I will cover in the future.
