Is Print on its Way Out?
The printing press has been around for centuries and since its inception it has created a multi-billion dollar industry. Ever since the development of printed media, publishers have been making money, but the birth of the technology era has faced publishers and media corporations with the struggle to compete with online and social media. We’ll lay out the facts and let the you decide.
- Social Media has changed the way receive our information.
Whether it is Facebook, Twitter or even Pinterest. People are receiving the information that they want in a plethora of online strains. The convenience of RSS feeds lets websites “page” followers snippets of the news they want to hear about. Because all of this is relatively free, a majority of the tech-savvy population has switched to social media and RSS feeds to receive they daily information.
- Printing companies have recorded losses in recent years.
Print giants such as Lexmark, Xerox, Hewlett Packard and more have had their shares slowly start to diminish recently. The wave of online media has made printing companies raise their prices to combat lower volume that in turn has made companies find alternative solutions to printing. Major corporations such as Telus, Bell and more have also been starting to only do e-billing which is cutting out a major cut of business for the printing companies.
- Adapt or Perish is the new motto for print media.
Almost all major print media corporations in the world now have either an online site for news, an iPhone/Android app, and most likely a Facebook and Twitter page where their readers can catch up on their stories in their most convenient method. Print media corporations have realized that their newspaper’s readership is taking flight to new technological conveniences and they must service them before they begin to lose interest in a paper’s primitive options.
The printed press does not show the reporter asking the question. What is peculiar to television is that the intrusiveness is part of the story.
Anonymous
The facts state that print media and publications are at a threat in this technology and social media fueled era. Though many may argue it’s not going down without a fight. Countless readers still cherish their handheld printed news, books and media and can never replace the feel of the way they enjoy them in their printed state.