From: nikhil.kamath
The question of whether old school media is dying and if digital creators will take over is largely answered [00:00:00]. At a high level, any business that fails to transform itself every five to seven years is likely to cease to exist [00:00:31]. The average lifespan of a company on the S&P 500 is only about 15 years, suggesting that all businesses are, in a sense, “destined to die” [00:00:37].
Historical Significance and Current Decline
Historically, the newspaper was the first widespread medium through which people accessed information [00:00:58]. This liberation of society from more dictatorial systems marked a significant era [00:01:02]. However, across the globe, newspaper readership and print circulation are experiencing a steady decline [00:01:18].
“If you look at any place in the world newspaper readership is dying… print circulation is dying or slowly dying.” [00:01:18]
Digital Transformation and the Paywall Model
In response to these trends in media and content consumption, many “smart companies” within the newspaper industry are adapting by moving their content behind paywalls, offering very premium digital content [00:01:25]. Notable examples include The Economist and The New York Times [00:01:33].
The view is that newspapers must significantly morph their business model [00:01:37]. While physical print might remain as an “add-on,” their primary business will increasingly need to be digitally driven [00:01:41]. This parallels the transformation of TV into digital content platforms, where devices are becoming smart and IP-based delivery is replacing traditional broadcast [00:01:48], [00:02:08]. This shift empowers personalized content consumption [00:03:07].