The report is drawn from WAN-IFRA’s World Press Trends database, which includes national reports and tools to export the data in customized reports. For those who need more flexibility than the written report provides, the World Press Trends database is available through subscription.
Despite economic and social pressures, news media are flourishing. Print circulations continue to grow in many developing markets. And while print circulations are declining in mature markets, consumers are turning to digital platforms not only to consume, but to interact with news media.
Each day, more than half the world’s adult population read a daily newspaper: 2.5 billion in print and more than 600 million in digital form. The newspaper industry generates over $200 billion of revenue globally.
The newspaper publishing sector is a significant business worldwide, but newspapers are more than just businesses: most importantly news media have always been at the heart of society’s evolution.
World Press Trends provides an overview of how news publishers are delivering this potent societal force, and it also provides insights into how publishers need to develop for the benefit of their societies. Strong news media are a necessary foundation for all economic, cultural and educational development.
All data is available on the World Press Trends interactive database: www.wptdatabase.org.
About World Press Trends
WAN-IFRA collects accurate data for more than 70 countries, which represent more than 90 per cent of the global industry base, thanks to the very positive support of national newspaper and media associations and other contributors.
We also draw on data from a wide range of global partners:
- Zenith Optimedia, who provide extensive data on national advertising trends, but also support in country data across a wide range of industry parameters.
- IPSOS, which provides data on national print audience levels. IPSOS has been particularly instructive this year in providing data on Middle East markets, where there are major issues regarding press freedom and development.
- ComScore has provided extensive data on digital audience behaviour, one of the most important issues for our industry.
While the industry gathers extensive data on the analogue – print – world, it continues to face problems getting a true picture of the rapidly emerging digital world, across computers, mobile platforms and tablets.
WAN-IFRA regards the establishment of standard, transferable measures of digital behaviour as a major priority.