MV Shreyams Kumar, managing director of the Kerala-based Mathrubhumi Group, was elected president of the Indian Newspaper Society (INS) for 2024-25, replacing Rakesh Sharma of Aaj Samaj. A former Rajya Sabha MP and a two-time MLA from Kerala, Kumar has been instrumental in expanding the presence of the Mathrubhumi group’s publications in the media landscape.
In an interview with Indian Printer & Publisher’s Nilutpal Thakur, Kumar talks about various subjects, including the future of print media, the rise of alternative media, big tech, digital laws, and the Mathrubhumi International Festival of Letters.
Indian Printer & Publisher – Print media took a major hit during the Covid pandemic, with almost zero circulation for some media houses and plunging revenue for nearly all of them. Yearly results suggest things are looking better. However, there are diverse opinions about the recovery of print and ad ex projections. Is the picture rosy ahead? Or is a hybrid existence with digital the future?
MV Shreyams Kumar – Yes. The pandemic affected print media across India. Maybe Kerala was the least affected. Though advertising revenue has not reached the pre-pandemic levels, we see a steady growth in revenue for most of the print houses. In the first half of 2024, print advertising saw a 5% rise compared to the same period in 2023, marking a steady recovery for the traditional medium. In the face of evolving digital trends, print advertising has managed to hold its ground, with the automotive, education, retail, and telecom sectors powering the growth in the first half.
Print media, especially magazines, faces challenges. While digital has grown at a much faster rate, the digital news publishing industry’s share of the advertising pie is marginal. There is a shift in advertiser preferences in the way they are advertising on digital platforms.
Even today, advertising revenue is a major source of revenue for print publishers. The way forward for digital is subscription and advertising revenue. Some media houses have started subscriptions in a small way. However, it is way below the international benchmark. Publishers are pushing for higher digital revenue.
To thrive in today’s digital landscape news publishers must adopt a total audience monetization strategy. This requires more than just tactical changes such as hybrid existence – it demands an integrated approach to strategy, organizational structure, and technology.
IPP – Most newspapers cut down on pagination to reduce cost as newsprint is one of the biggest expenses. Some have increased pages again but others still have a reduced pagination. The INS has been demanding a cut in customs duty on newsprint. Many newspapers have increased cover prices to make up for some of the losses—your thoughts?
Shreyams Kumar – Pagination is in proportion to the advertisements. If the ad volume goes up, you require more pages. Yes. There has been a reduction in the number of pages. Some have gone back to the original pagination. The biggest cost for a newspaper publisher is based on the newsprint price. The volatile market condition induced by the Ukraine war and the West Asian crisis, and the availability of newsprint, poses a major problem, resulting in a steep increase in newsprint prices. This coupled with rising energy charges and the increase in freight costs is a high burden for print publishers.
It is difficult for newspapers to carry the additional burden of a 5% customs duty on imported newsprint. India does not produce enough newsprint for domestic consumption. The quality of indigenous newsprint is a big question. The higher grammage newsprint produced by Indian manufacturers is unsuitable for high-quality production. Hence, Indian publishers are heavily dependent on imported newsprint. INS has been asking the central government to do away with the 5% customs duty on newsprint imports.
IPP – The slowdown in readership or circulation surveys has put newspapers in a tight spot vis-a-vis advertisers. IRS, it seems, is set to resume soon. Is there a need to relook at the measurement metrics to gain the confidence of advertisers?
Shreyams Kumar – The last IRS was in Q4 of 2019. Since no recent data is available, saying readership has come down is based on an assumption. Hopefully, the new survey may throw some light on this.
IPP – Many print media houses are looking to recalibrate their offset machines for other purposes such as book printing. Some are even looking at packaging. How do you see this switch? Does Mathrubhumi have any expansion plans in terms of printing equipment and software?
Shreyams Kumar – Most of the print media houses have additional capacity. Yes. There is a need to diversify. The present offset machines are not equipped for packaging. Newspaper publishers have gone in for book printing and job printing work. Most of them are equipped with the latest software. Packaging is an option but is highly competitive. Mathrubhumi is also looking at diversification.
IPP – The big shift to digital and new media such as YouTube is a matter of concern for print media. Content consumption is moving online. Many legacy print houses have taken to digital. How do you see the challenge for print in general and Mathrubhumi in particular?
Shreyams Kumar – Consumption has changed in the last decade. Tech platforms are posing a major challenge. However, there are concerns in terms of revenue share. Since there is a shift, every media house has to focus on digital in a big way. We are also looking at expanding the digital business. To keep up with the rapid changes in the digital landscape, media houses need to invest more in technology. Right now, the ROI is unfavorable, but that is the way forward.
IPP – Many legacy brands and digital news outlets have gone behind a paywall for premium content and even for the ePaper. However, is convincing online readers to pay a challenge?
Shreyams Kumar – As I said earlier, digital news publishers need to garner more revenue from subscriptions. The ePaper is already paid. We are giving free access to digital news. Convincing readers to pay for news is a challenge. Quality journalism and premium content are the way forward. With the proliferation of fake news in the digital space, curated content will gain momentum in the long run.
IPP – Grabbing the attention of the young audience, which is moving away from news, is an uphill task. What measures do you take to onboard new subscribers and retain them – both print and digital?
Shreyams Kumar – Getting the younger audience to the news is a major challenge. We are trying different strategies to attract them to digital and print. Deeper insights about consumer preferences are required. More and more youngsters are moving towards reels, shorts, etc., for storytelling. Video is preferred over text. Creating informative content on video is important. More in-depth consumer insights will drive strategy formulation.
IPP – Artificial Intelligence (AI) is the big buzzword these days. Many media houses are using it for content and videos and others to optimize operations. How do you see AI in news media?
Shreyams Kumar – AI in publishing can generate text, images, speech, music, and video. However, it cannot change the fundamental, which is journalism. AI can copy some of the repetitive tasks of human journalists. Individual tasks such as proofreading, translating, editing, page-making, etc., can be automated with AI.
However, a journalist on the field witnesses events and happenings, researches the subject, offers an interpretation, and writes an objective piece. This cannot be automated. AI cannot replace cutting-edge Journalism. AI can assist journalists in crafting good stories. AI can also customize content for specific audiences by analyzing reader preferences.
Digital publishers must work out inspiring and positive news stories and drive home the point that their news is worth paying attention to, and worth paying for. To ensure this, the fundamentals of journalism must be strong. AI can supplement and not supplant this.
Having said this, AI technologies must be used responsibly and transparently. AI has the potential to create a minefield of misinformation and can turn into a repository of plagiarism. Instances have been reported where articles of news publishers are being inappropriately reused and modified by search-linked services.
For instance, Japan’s Newspaper Publishers and Editors Association expressed concern over the generative AI services offered by IT giants such as Google having a high likelihood of copyright infringement by AI–generated responses that closely resemble their articles.
Governments are contemplating legislative measures to curb copyright infringement in AI-generated responses by tech giants such as Google, and Microsoft.
IPP – Journalists and editors have asked the government to roll back and repeal provisions of various new press and digital laws, saying they infringe or curtail press freedom.
Shreyams Kumar – Press bodies have urged the central government to withdraw laws aimed at curbing the freedom of the press. There are apprehensions of control and regulation and unreasonable restriction that could impact the citizen’s right to know, especially certain controversial provisions of the Broadcast Services (Regulation) Bill, 2023, the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, the Press and Registration of Periodicals Act, 2023, and the Information Technology Amendment Rules, 2023.
The government must ensure that the right to know is not trampled upon. The practice of repeated internet shutdowns not only impinges on the citizens’ right to information but also seriously affects journalists’ ability to report news and views.
IPP – Extracting some reasonable compensation by news media companies from Big Tech in lieu of the content they share is emerging as a big issue. Australia and Canada are already doing it in the form of a bargaining code. Do you see any such possibility in India?
Shreyams Kumar – The INS and other news industry bodies have approached the Competition Commission of India. We hope the government will bring legislation to enable a level playing field and a fair and transparent system. The Australian Government recently announced plans to levy a tax on big tech companies for failing to reimburse Australian media companies for the news hosted on their platforms.
A large majority of advertising revenue goes to tech behemoths Alpha and Meta with hardly a pittance for digital news publishers. Content aggregators also come into the picture and create a dent in news publishers from getting their due share in the ad pie. These days, people want to get more news from fewer apps. Not paying the due share for the content is not only detrimental to the media industry but also to democracy at large as news becomes the monopoly of a few. The basic postulate of our democracy is the plurality of news and views. We have seen M&As taking place in different proportions. All this affects plurality. The coexistence of big, medium, and small news publishers is essential for democracy to survive.
IPP – Kerala is emerging as a hub of literary activities. The Mathrubhumi International Festival of Letters is emerging as a leading literary event. There are similar festivals in the state. Please tell us about the coming edition.
Shreyams Kumar – Kerala is not only high in terms of literacy, but also in literary meaning, and reading habits. The Malayali audience reads not only in Malayalam and English but also translations from other Indian and foreign languages. The preferences of a Keralite are diverse. Literary festivals offer a great opportunity to introduce writers from different languages to the Kerala audience. Today, many organizations – big and small – are conducting literary festivals and the numbers are increasing. We see literary festivals even in small towns in Kerala.
The Mathrubhumi International Festival of Letters [MBIFL] was started in 2018 and has been a success. The sixth edition will be held from 6-9 February 2025. Unlike other literary festivals in Kerala, we charge a delegate fee so that only the discerning, serious, and truly interested audience come for the festival. This enables much larger engagement among attendees. The Theme for MBIFL 2025 is ‘Currents of Change.’ To ensure inclusive involvement, ideas suggested by individuals from various walks of life are considered while deciding on the sessions. Ideas and feedback from those who evaluated the previous five editions, along with suggestions from recent public consultations, are being incorporated into the festival content. It will become a festival that reflects the spirit of the Malayali audience. At a time of rapid changes, and the continuous current of transformation, the festival will address a variety of topics covering literature, economics, science, sports, social issues, politics, and cinema.
