“There have been developments in the citizen media forum, which are posing real competition to traditional media,” he said. “There is a radical difference from the media environment of 10 years ago.”

Mike Smith, executive director of Northwestern University’s Media Management Centre, discussed content and revenue development opportunities through partnerships between internet portals and newspapers. Using Yahoo as a case study, some of Smith’s main points were:

• The challenge is whether newspapers will be able to successfully change their culture to adapt to the changing media environment.
• This case study revealed a huge opportunity for online growth in advertising and content distribution on both a local and global basis.
• The core of news in the future is an increase in news gathering and a decrease in distribution.
• The partnership gives newspapers another piece of ammunition for young people to look local newspapers.

Erik Nord, deputy CEO of Telenor Broadcast in Norway spoke about mobile opportunities for newspapers. He said:

• Media consumption is rising and with increased consumer demand for mobile contents media companies require new strategies.
• There has been a growth in television and mobile platforms as a result of the growth in multi-platform business, which follows users wherever they go and to whatever they want.
• Move to digital platforms, including MP3s TV and game consoles which are interactive with new media platforms.
• It’s one of today’s essentials. It’s always ready to use, it’s personal and it’s possible to target user groups.

By Kim Hawkey and Bate Felix, Wits University Journalism