Three topics dominate the current discussion in the Indian print and newspaper industries: AI, diversification, and resilience. I have received the two AI books recommended by Daniel Hulme at the INMA conference – The Technological Singularity by Murray Shanahan and The Economic Singularity – Artificial Intelligence and The Death of Capitalism by Calum Chace. I have read the first thirty pages of the former, a thinner and smaller book, a kind of primer on the subject, although the second title is more interesting.
I must warn you that both the books are quite old, and though perhaps necessary to read before updating oneself on the subject, it will be difficult for most of us to resist trying out the many available open-source tools. For instance, the AI tools recommended by Puneet Gupt at the INMA conference, rather than trying to understand the subject scientifically and objectively, evaluate its usefulness and societal implications.
The second topic of interest – diversification, is discussed in other articles in this issue. Suffice it to say that newspapers must improve or enhance their business models.
The third topic – resilience – is of interest to discuss further in light of the slightly more optimistic feedback we are receiving from some senior news media professionals. While we still maintain, based on the poor and stagnant consumption of offset plates, inks, and newsprint, that the newspaper professionals’ optimism may be more seasonal than real – it is true that they have learned to manage their viability by reducing pages, editions, and circulations. There is an increase in the ratio of ads to editorial content with pages without advertising immediately cut from any print run. In the words of an industry insider, “They are evolving to protect their profitability.”
In all fairness, some efficiencies come from the skills of the industry’s longtime engineers in their ability to run old and well-depreciated presses as they continue to track alternative sources of spare parts. Workflows have been streamlined with prepress software such as Assura normalizing the cellphone photography of far-flung journalists.
The color quality of the Indian dailies still ranks among the best in the world across imported and locally manufactured presses. The same advertisements that adorn the high-brightness jackets across the dailies of every major city stand out with their standardized high quality. Credit must be given to the Wan-Ifra International Color Quality Club in which the dailies participate enthusiastically with their achievements matching those of global leaders.
There is some basis for a bit of optimism although it is debatable if the optimism is merely the seasonal hope of the media or a general upsurge in the impact or reach of their product. Sectors such as real estate, automobiles, jewelry, and cell phones seem to be buoyant and often ready to pay the premium rates for high-brightness jackets, compelling many dailies to run two sections so that they can offer two front pages. The big real estate companies are now ready to sign long-term or annual contracts.
Although the production heads claim they have prepared for the upsurge of the holiday season with spare parts and consumables given the stressed supply chain, especially for old presses, the consumable manufacturers do not perceive any real improvement in demand. It is now increasingly accepted that newspapers are unlikely to return to their earlier circulations of five years ago and that younger and newer audiences are forever lost to other channels. Serious thinking and agility are needed. Apart from diversification, perhaps consolidation is also on the cards.
