BusinessWeek has an article online about how Germany's papers are doing fine despite the ad flight to the Web.
The article cites the success of Bild, a Berlin daily with 12 million readers had it most profitable year in 2007 and the national-affairs daily Die Welt, which made its first profit since it started 60 years ago:
It's not as if Bild hasn't been hit by the same problems as U.S. papers, including advertisers lost to the Web. So it's tempting to credit Bild's double-digit profit margin solely to sensationalism. The day I met Diekmann, Bild's lead story concerned managers of public health-insurance funds helping themselves to free Viagra. One of the top online stories asked: "Which female celebrity has the nicest breasts?"
But Germany's prestige papers are doing reasonably well, too. National-affairs daily Die Welt, a chronic money-loser that, like Bild, is part of the Axel Springer empire, made the first profit in its 60-year history last year. "I wouldn't say we don't have challenges, but we are not nearly as hard-hit by the advertising crisis as the U.S.," says publisher Peter Wurtenberger.
The article notes that most of the success at German papers comes from a downturn in the German economy in 2001 that caused many papers do things their US counterparts are doing now. The economic downtown also forced them to readjust their advertising strategies as ad spending slumped.
Bild has also had success building a mobile channel (Bild Germany's No. 1 mobile Web news destination according to the article). They have also maintained their ground by focusing on original content.
Discussion
By Henk Gianotten on Aug 19, 2008
Adam, I think that the German newspaper publishers were willing to invest in print quality improvement too. Most of the German coldset printers print now according to ISO 12647-3. The investments were done in 2002 and 2003. Equipment, training and testing. Several plants have now an IFRA or Fogra certificate to prove the advertisers that product reproduction has a top priority.
By Adam Dewitz on Aug 20, 2008
Henk, thanks for mentioning that point. Selling print advertising has to be easier when the print looks good!
By Jim on Aug 21, 2008
It would be nice to know what "things" the German papers started doing in 2001.