When Orvesto’s latest reach report came out on Wednesday, it confirmed the dire trend that many newsrooms had been seeing in their internal statistics. The decline of paper newspapers has been going on for some time, but now there is also a serious decline in digital reading. For several magazines, this meant a decline in digital reach of more than 50 percent in just one year.
The magazines most affected include Leva & bo from Expressen, but also several titles from the Aller Media group. For example, Svensk Damtidning and Hänt Extra each fell by almost 300,000 digital readers compared to the same period last year, and magazines such as Elle, Femina and Allers also show alarming figures for both paper magazines and digital magazines.
Mikael Makkonen is Media and Brand Manager at Aller Media Nordic and points out that it’s not just about their magazines, but that the picture looks about the same across the industry. He believes Orvesto’s statistics do not give a complete picture.
“We obviously take the Orvesto numbers seriously, but our own traffic data shows a more stable trend,” he replies to DN via email.
Aller Media’s strategy is to evolve content rather than reduce the number of titles in the hope that the storm will subside.
He, like many in the industry, believes the explanation for the violence lies in the changes Google has made recently.
– The entire industry is affected by changes in the prioritization of digital traffic flows, not least changes to Google Discover. In addition, the competition for people’s attention from social media, influencers, streaming services and many other content formats is tougher than ever, he says.
Also Kerstin Neld, Svenska Tidskrifter, CEO of the industry organization, believes that the acute crisis is largely due to the search giant Google.
– From our perspective, this loss of digital reach is partly due to algorithm changes in Google Discover and the fact that Google AI Overviews was launched last year. Many websites are experiencing a decline in traffic as a result. These are factors over which we have no control and that is worrying, she says.
The development has led to frustration and impotence among Swedish publishers, and the problem is not limited to magazines but affects the country’s media industry in general, including daily newspapers, she points out.
Discussions are currently underway in Europe about using the EU’s new regulatory framework, the Digital Services Act (DSA), to put pressure on the tech giants.
– When you’re as big as Google, you have to be friendly. Then the big technology companies are very difficult to negotiate with. “Maybe you can force them to comply better with the legislation using the tools that DSA has provided us,” says Kerstin Neld.
She says magazines’ biggest titles – those that focus on topics like fashion, beauty, clothing and gardening – are the sweatiest right now. The competition from the endless stream of free material on platforms like Instagram and Tiktok is relentless.
– The more niche magazines there are, the easier it is to find and retain an audience. Because there isn’t the same competition there, she says.
Mikael Makkonen is When it comes to industry survival and the imminent threat – or opportunity – of AI-generated searches, we are on exactly the same track.
– Quality journalism will remain a crucial and differentiating factor in an AI-driven environment. “We see both opportunities and challenges in the development of these technologies,” he emphasizes.
Neither Kerstin Neld nor Mikael Makkonen believe that the younger generations will be lost on social media forever. The paper newspaper has shown surprising endurance.
– Print follows a long-term downward trend, it is well established and expected. But at the same time, the print is doing much better than many would have predicted a few years ago, says Makkonen.
Kerstin Neld takes off presented new findings from the Youth Barometer about a new saturation around screen time.
– The very youngest generation expresses a longing away from screens and the digital world. There is a desire for a little more depth, quality and “cocooning”, with many people having a positive attitude towards paper. Crossword puzzle magazines, for example, have never sold as well as they do now, says Neld.
She believes that the Swedish magazine market has also proven to be extremely resilient in the past.
– Sometimes I feel like we’re like that kind of doll where you knock down with a straight right mouse button and get back up. We have lived with constant threats over the past decades. It’s not hopeless, but it’s difficult.
