Can Technology and BPO Save the Newspaper Industry?
Lee Ann Moore, Chief Marketing Officer
The music video of the song “Video Killed the Radio Star” was the very first ever shown on MTV when the music channel debuted at 00:01 on August 1, 1981. And while video didn’t actually kill radio, it certainly pressured the radio industry to work harder and smarter to compete in the dynamic world of visual media and information. The newspaper industry is facing a similar challenge. It has been widely publicized that the subscriber base and ad revenue are waning. At the same time, the newspaper industry’s revenue model is morphing and becoming more complex, with classified advertising and static one-half page advertisements withering away and being replaced by other revenue models including pay per click and gain share.
I recently spoke with Vivek Sharma of Infosys after its outsourcing relationship with a large newspaper client received recognition from the Shared Services and Outsourcing Network. Infosys currently provides this client with finance and accounting services, but one development really caught my eye. It was an offering called ‘Newspaper in a Box’. The concept is intriguing. Infosys is developing a service built on SAP’s IS Media Module and other software systems to manage processes such as order booking, inventory, advertising, rate setting and discounts – essentially the order-to-cash process. Infosys owns and manages the platform and the infrastructure for these relationships.
Mark Trepanier, EquaTerra managing director, has worked extensively with clients in the media and newspaper industry. I was interested in his view of this service, and he shared the following, “The concept behind the Newspaper in a Box is sound. Provide an operating platform and technologies which support organizations that need to make fundamental changes to their business, without the need to make a capital investment. Whether customers will be willing to sacrifice customization for standardization remains to be seen. We are closely watching the progress of this service to determine the viability for our clients.”
We will keep you updated as this service continues to develop.
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