Print Publishers Waiting To See About This Internet Thing

from the not-really-sure-where-it-goes... dept

It appears that many print publications really have no clue about how the internet is going to impact their business, and aren't doing much to plan one way or the other around the future of digital content. Instead, they're just waiting and seeing. While jumping in too fast obviously has its problems, you would think that a smart publication would make a bit more of an effort to be aware of how digital content might change their business model, so they can prepare for a future where they might still be around. Of course, the study also comes with some suggestions - not all of which make sense. They suggest that more content sites start using registration systems to track users for advertising purposes, which ignores the fact that, for all but a few top sites, putting up a hurdle to reach your basic content will make the amount of advertising inventory drop precipitously. Besides, having a little more info about registered users (much of which will probably be fake) does little to change how much advertisers will be willing to pay. They might be willing to pay a bit more, if the info provides evidence of a specific, highly desirable niche, but the decrease in traffic causes more harm. Even without registration, it shouldn't be all that difficult to figure out the demographic that a site attracts. Putting up the registration hurdle may just confirm the educated guess, but it does so at the cost of most of your visitors.