Table of Contents
Executive Summary
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- The consumer
- Nearly half of people read news online
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- Figure 1: News consumption methods, December 2015
- Brand is still central as three quarters go directly to a news website/app
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- Figure 2: Access method, December 2015
- Social media is first news stop for many
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- Figure 3: Attitudes towards social media, December 2015
- Many are willing to accept adverts
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- Figure 4: Attitudes towards online news, December 2015
- Over a fifth are interested in using news aggregators
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- Figure 5: Interest in news services, December 2015
- What we think
Issues and Insights
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- Ad blockers worry the news industry
- The facts
- The implications
- New news aggregators present challenges and opportunities
- The facts
- The implications
The Market – What You Need to Know
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- Mobile device ownership continues to grow
- Cover prices rise
- The Sun drops its paywall
- Apple supports Ad blockers
- IPSO turns a year old
Market Drivers
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- Mobile device ownership continues to grow
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- Figure 6: Household ownership of selected digital devices, October 2014 and September 2015
- Cover prices rise
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- Figure 7: Basic UK cover prices for national newspapers, January 2016
- The Sun drops its paywall
- Apple supports Ad blockers
- IPSO turns a year old
Key Players – What You Need to Know
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- The Times is the only national newspaper to grow circulation
- Despite circulation declines The Sun remains the UK’s largest print newspaper
- Mail Online dominates among online newspapers
- The BBC leads the way on social media
- Major media players focus on news aggregators
- City AM bans ad blockers
- The Sun launches political SunNation website
Market Share
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- The Times is only national newspaper to grow circulation
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- Figure 8: National newspapers’ average print circulation per issue, 2014 and 2015
- Despite circulation declines The Sun remains the UK’s largest print newspaper
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- Figure 9: Average UK print circulation per issue, November 2014 and November 2015
- Sunday People sees largest declines
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- Figure 10: National Sunday newspapers’ average print circulation per issue, 2014 and 2015
- Mail Online dominates among online newspapers
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- Figure 11: Average daily unique visits to national newspaper websites, November 2014 and November 2015
- The BBC leads the way on social media
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- Figure 12: Social media presence of select major online news sources, January 2015
- The Guardian is the most followed national newspaper
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- Figure 13: Social media presence of select major UK newspapers, January 2015
Launch Activity and Innovation
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- Major media players focus on news aggregators
- Facebook launches Instant Articles
- Apple updates its News app
- Moments collates most important news stories on Twitter
- Tipsy allows readers to pay what they wish for content
- City AM bans ad blockers
- The Sun launches political SunNation website
The Consumer – What You Need to Know
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- Preferred news format varies across age groups
- Daily Mail remains the most popular online newspaper
- BBC News is the most popular online news source
- Most are still going straight to a news site/app
- Friends are influencing the news people read
- Younger people do not mind adverts on news websites/apps
- Over a fifth are interested in using news aggregators
News Consumption Methods
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- Nearly half of people read news online
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- Figure 14: News consumption methods, December 2015
- Traditional media still used by most older people
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- Figure 15: Weekly use of traditional media to consume news, by age, December 2015
- Figure 16: Weekly use of online news sources, by age, December 2015
Paid and Free News Sources
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- Two fifths of news consumers pay to read national newspapers
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- Figure 17: News sources, December 2015
- Over-55s are the group that is paying
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- Figure 18: Use paid national newspapers in a typical week, by age, December 2015
Access Method
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- Brand is still central as three quarters go directly to a news website/app
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- Figure 19: Access method, December 2015
- 16-24s are the most likely to use social media to access news
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- Figure 20: Access news websites/apps via social media in a typical week, by age, December 2015
National Newspaper Websites/Apps Visited
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- Daily Mail remains the most popular online newspaper
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- Figure 21: National newspaper websites/apps visited, December 2015
- Women prefer Mail Online
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- Figure 22: Websites/apps accessed in a typical week, by gender, December 2015
- Nearly a third of people only regularly use one website/app
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- Figure 23: Repertoire of online news sources used weekly, December 2015
News Websites/Apps Used
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- BBC News is most popular online news source
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- Figure 24: Online news sources used, December 2015
- Huffington Post and BuzzFeed appeal to women
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- Figure 25: Visit news website/app in a typical week, by gender, December 2015
- 16-24s use a new form of news site
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- Figure 26: Visit BuzzFeed in a typical week to consume news, by age, December 2015
Social Media
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- Facebook is important for news consumption
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- Figure 27: Use of social media sites or apps to find out about news in a typical week, December 2015
Attitudes towards Social Media
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- Social media is first news stop for many
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- Figure 28: Attitudes towards social media, December 2015
Attitudes towards Online News
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- Free online news is impacting print sales
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- Figure 29: Attitudes towards online news, December 2015
- Younger people are willing to accept adverts
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- Figure 30: Do not mind seeing adverts on news websites/apps if they are free, by age, December 2015
- There is also a willingness to pay for in-depth content
- Online Guardian and Telegraph readers are put off by exaggerated headlines
Interest in News Services
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- Over a fifth are interested in using news aggregators
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- Figure 31: Interest in news services, December 2015
- Younger people are more interested in a personalised feature on social media
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- Figure 32: Interest in feature on social media that gathers news content, by age, December 2015
- Men are more interested in video news and virtual reality
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- Figure 33: Interest in features, by gender, December 2015
Appendix – Data Sources, Abbreviations and Supporting Information
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- Definition
- Abbreviations
- Consumer research methodology
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