Cable television and portal Web sites are well-positioned to dominate the online news market, according to a new report from JupiterResearch.
While most online consumers still get their national and international news from television, 30 percent of online consumers turn to cable TV news sites for their national and international news versus 29 percent for print newspapers.
"The Future of News," the new report from JupiterResearch, examines the trends and identifies steps news organizations must take to succeed within the changing media landscape.
News Web sites must make some key changes over the next couple of years to remain competitive, including embracing features such as syndication, aggregation, outside-the-site linking and feedback that link Web publishers to each other and their readers more closely.
Web news publishers must consider their fundamental product to be the story and not their site, said JupiterResearch analyst Barry Parr. Web sites are experienced as individual pages that serve as entry points, not as a coherent product, he said.
The popularity of Web content over offline newspapers means newspapers must adapt to meet the needs of their changing audiences. Newspapers are advised to look to the Web not just to retain their older, offline user base, but to attract a younger — and in many cases, entirely different — group of users as well. Taking a predominantly local approach is another necessity for newspapers, because television and cable TV news sites already attract the most national and international news seekers, according to JupiterResearch.
For more information, visit www.jupiterresearch.com.
