Mirror publisher to put up paywall as AI hits readership
Reach, which also owns regional titles including the Liverpool Echo and the Manchester Evening News, said it will roll out digital subscriptions across its outlets this year as part of a pilot.
The company said it would not put all its articles behind a paywall but would experiment with different models, including tiered subscriptions that charge for some stories.
Readers could also be offered the opportunity to pay to view stories without intrusive adverts.
Piers North, the chief executive of Reach, said the company would remain predominantly an advertising-funded business targeting 'mass-market Britain'.
But he added: 'I'm confident we have enough in our content set to offer value. That might be a value exchange in advertising or it might be a value exchange in some kind of payment ... but I think generally there's the support for us to do it.'
It follows similar moves in recent years by both the Daily Mail and GB News, which have made some of their online stories, pictures and videos exclusive to paying subscribers.
Google driving down readership
It comes as Reach and other online news publishers are grappling with changes to Google's algorithm and the introduction of AI functions that have dented reader numbers.
Recent research by Enders Analysis found publishers' visibility on Google has declined sharply over the last five years, with the trend accelerating since April, when the tech giant launched AI Overviews.
This service summarises search results, leading to fewer readers clicking through to articles.
Enders said the Mirror had suffered the biggest impact, with visibility dropping to just 20pc of January 2022 levels.
Mr North said a further Google update earlier this month that hurt traffic had been 'on the worse side', but insisted the company was adapting to such changes.
Falling traffic contributed to a 3pc fall in revenues to £256m in the first half of the year. A decline in print, which still accounts for the majority of the group's revenues, offset slight growth in digital revenue. Operating profit remained flat at just under £45m.
In addition to rolling out paywalls, Reach outlined plans to boost its video and podcast output in an effort to attract larger audiences.
The fresh revenue drive comes even as the publisher continues to slash jobs. The National Union of Journalists said it was 'deeply concerned' after Reach placed more than 100 roles at risk of redundancy this month.
It follows sweeping cuts at the news group under previous boss Jim Mullen, who stepped down abruptly earlier this year after slashing more than 800 roles at the end of 2023.
Mr North declined to provide assurances that the latest changes would not lead to further cuts.
The Reach boss said: 'Today marks the beginning of a new chapter for our business, as we launch the priorities that will fuel our growth. These include initiatives to reach new audiences, increase our video content and accelerate our tech and AI capabilities.
'Crucially, we'll do more work to diversify our revenues, putting a serious focus on adding subscriptions to our revenue mix.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Independent
32 minutes ago
- The Independent
Badenoch says Truss ‘carries quite a lot blame' for Tory record of as war of words continues
Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has said Liz Truss 'carries quite a lot of' responsibility for the party's record amid a row over the party's direction. Responding after former prime minister Ms Truss accused her of 'repeating spurious narratives', Badenoch said she was 'very focused on what the Conservatives are going to do now'. The Leader of the Opposition faced questions about Ms Truss's claim that under the Conservatives, 'the economy was wrecked with profligate Covid spending by (Rishi) Sunak' and that 'the huge increase in immigration has been a disaster'. Mrs Badenoch told ITV Anglia: 'I know that, as a former prime minister and a former foreign secretary, (Ms Truss) carries quite a lot of that blame. 'The party's now under new leadership. 'I wasn't in charge during those 14 years; she was. 'That's a criticism she's probably levelling at herself.' The Tory leader also said she was 'telling the truth' about her party's record. 'I'm telling the truth that immigration was too high – that's why we have much tougher policies to fix immigration,' she continued. 'I am telling the truth that taxes were too high, that we were putting a lot of regulation on businesses, and what we're seeing is Labour making every single thing worse. 'They're doing that because they haven't learned many of the lessons that we learned. They haven't learned from our mistakes. They're making worse mistakes.' The Labour government's mistakes include making 'no cut in spending at all – the books were not balanced', Mrs Badenoch claimed. 'We're spending more on welfare than we are on defence – that cannot continue,' she said. Mrs Badenoch had previously told The Telegraph that 'for all their mocking of Liz Truss, Keir Starmer and Rachel Reeves have not learnt the lessons of the mini-budget and are making even bigger mistakes'. Ms Truss, who spent 49 days in Number 10, hit back when she said that 'instead of serious thinking', Mrs Badenoch was 'repeating spurious narratives'. She continued: 'I suspect she is doing this to divert from the real failures of 14 years of Conservative government in which her supporters are particularly implicated. 'It was a fatal mistake not to repeal Labour legislation like the Human Rights Act because the modernisers wanted to be the 'heirs to Blair'. 'Huge damage was done to our liberties through draconian lockdowns and enforcement championed by Michael Gove and Dominic Cummings. 'The economy was wrecked with profligate Covid spending by Sunak. The huge increase in immigration has been a disaster.' Mrs Badenoch also took questions about her identity, after she told the Rosebud podcast: 'I have not renewed my Nigerian passport, I think, not since the early 2000s. 'I don't identify with it any more, most of my life has been in the UK and I've just never felt the need to.' The North West Essex MP told ITV Anglia: 'I am definitely an Essex girl, that is a fact.' A London Assembly member before she took her Commons seat in 2017, Mrs Badenoch said: 'I represent an Essex constituency, these are my people. 'I was a Londoner, but Essex people asked me to be their MP, and I want to make sure that I do them proud. And I love this part of the world. 'It's fantastic being here. It's a rural community, and I've been talking to the farmers here. I talked about how my grandfather was a farmer, it's very hard work. 'The people of Essex and East Anglia – they are grafters. 'They work hard, and I want to make sure that we do right by them.' Mrs Badenoch spent Tuesday morning at a farm in Little Walden, where she tried her hand at harvesting wheat using a Claas Lexion combine harvester. She told farmers: 'A lot of farming just feels like constant interference. 'Everything is interfered from the minute you wake up.' Examples of interference included 'chemicals and insecticide, people you're hiring, how much you've got to pay them', plus changes to 'employers' NI (national insurance), then somebody wants to put pylons on, there's compulsory purchase, it's impacting the cost of the land, if you want to add a new farm building, there's planning applications', she said. 'It's just endless constant Government saying, 'You can't do this, you can't do that, you can't move forwards'. 'And the burden in my view has now crossed the threshold.'
Reuters
32 minutes ago
- Reuters
Clay valued at $3.1 billion in latest fundraise as AI continues to run hot
Aug 5 (Reuters) - AI startup Clay's valuation more than doubled in about three months to $3.1 billion in its latest funding round, as investors continue to pour money into artificial intelligence companies. Clay operates an AI-centered platform to automate sales and marketing operations, and counts Google and Reddit as customers. The startup raised $100 million in the round, led by Google-parent Alphabet's (GOOGL.O), opens new tab independent growth fund, CapitalG. About three months ago, the company was valued at $1.5 billion in an employee tender offer. Dealmaking activity for the first seven months of the year hit the highest since the 2021 pandemic-era peak, as investors have poured billions in AI and its applications, betting on the technology to enhance productivity and reduce costs. Last week, when most Big Tech companies reported their earnings, AI turned out to be a bigger driving factor behind demand across internet search, digital advertising and cloud. The funding will be used to accelerate its product development, the company said. Clay plans to launch tools that allow clients to scan data such as sales tickets and video calls with potential customers, co-founder Kareem Amin told Reuters in an interview. The company is also working on a "signals" offering that will provide sales representatives insights on when to message potential leads, Amin added. Existing investors who also participated in the round included Sequoia, Meritech Capital, and First Round Capital.
BBC News
33 minutes ago
- BBC News
Hull businesses encouraged to apply for grant funding
Businesses are being encouraged to tap into city centre grant funding made available to refurbish vacant properties and create City Council has relaunched the scheme after it said part of the original £7.5m allocated for city regeneration remained authority said 31 businesses have made use of the funding, including ResQ, which received £750,000 towards its £3m refurbishment of the former Hammonds of Hull Paul Drake-Davis, portfolio holder for economic renewal, housing and organisation development, said: "This grant scheme has helped to realise the fantastic potential of our city centre." The £7.5m came from a £19.5m pot of government funding, awarded in November 2021 to "level up" the city now occupies four floors and has welcomed hundreds of new employees as a council said the grant scheme had helped to bring 19 buildings back into use and restored 14 heritage buildings, as well as occupying 18,399sq m (47,653sq km) of previously unused floor space and supporting close to 900 new jobs across the said it had also helped to bring almost £13m of private investment to the applications for the scheme will be assessed on a case-by-case basis and will need to be supported by a credible and deliverable business plan. Listen to highlights from Hull and East Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, watch the latest episode of Look North or tell us about a story you think we should be covering here. Download the BBC News app from the App Store for iPhone and iPad or Google Play for Android devices
