As local media looks for new revenue opportunities and innovative distribution methods, we may need to look back to the future at a format that has flown under the radar for 30 years. For lack of a better description, I call them digital news dailies.
These products combine print familiarity with the convenience of digital delivery — offering a unique solution for publishers and readers alike.
Digital news dailies are daily news products delivered electronically as PDFs or e-editions, formatted for 8.5” by 11” viewing. This design allows easy reading on tablets or printouts without the need for zooming or scrolling. Two notable examples currently define this niche: Times Digest from The New York Times and Daily Clips, a free local media industry publication.
John Kelly, the creator of Daily Clips, stumbled upon this format almost by accident in the late 1990s. “I started it when I was the retail manager at McClatchy,” Kelly explained. “It was just for myself and my team, but then people started sharing it with their customers.” This organic growth hints at the untapped potential of digital news dailies.
The appeal of this format lies in its ability to maintain print-style economics while eliminating significant costs. Publishers can preserve traditional ad rates and circulation pricing models without the burden of print distribution expenses. This could be a game-changer for many local publishers struggling with digital revenue.
Kelly’s experience with Daily Clips illustrates the potential. With nearly 19,000 direct recipients via email, another 2,000 via LinkedIn, and a lot of secondary distribution, Daily Clips has grown while many legacy publications have seen audience declines. “Through COVID and the layoffs, Daily Clips has grown,” Kelly notes, highlighting the format's resilience.
From a reader’s perspective, digital news dailies offer a familiar newspaper-like layout without the physical bulk. The format works particularly well on tablets, recreating the feel of reading a print newspaper. For those who prefer physical copies, the option to print provides flexibility.
Implementing a digital news daily doesn’t require a significant technological investment or workflow adjustments. Kelly’s experience shows that it doesn’t necessarily demand a large team. “I may have a couple of people, but it’s primarily me,” he said, describing his operation.
The Times Digest, a 10-12 page digital news daily serving a different audience, follows a similar format. Both publications demonstrate a market for concise, curated news in a familiar layout.
The Times Digest, launched as a pre-internet product more than 30 years ago as Times Fax is a non-consumer-facing product targeted at the hospitality, cruise and corporate markets as an enterprise product so as not to compete with the newspaper or digital newsletters. According to the website, Times Digest reaches 190,000 readers a day.
Better than a newsletter?
While the local media industry is heavily relying on newsletters as its digital growth product, digital news dailies offer significantly more ad opportunities. The Daily Clips runs around 30 pages daily in PDF format, with roughly 10 pages of content and 20-plus pages of ads.
Kelly shared that he has maintained a print pricing model with average rates of about $1,500 per display ad while maintaining a robust recruitment ad business. Many of us in the industry who rely on it see the same advertisers month after month, which speaks to its effectiveness.
Better than a website?
When we launched The New York Times e-edition in the early 2000s, our research showed that consumers at that time placed a value on a digital subscription for something that was “tangible,” where there was a sense of “ownership.” A digital edition has a beginning, middle and end to it, unlike a website.
Digital news dailies solve a problem that many, if not all, websites don’t solve. They capture a single moment in time and history. They capture what happened on a single day, the events and sentiment of a community, for future generations to look back on. They allow libraries to print and store copies in their archives. This is history that will be lost forever in news deserts once digital sites go out of business.
Back of the envelope math
Because the concept of “days” or issues exists in a subscription model, assigning a value of $.50 vs. a single copy of print at $2.00 seems more justifiable than access to a website. A subscription price of $15 ($0.50 x 30 days) now seems like a deal for a digital product. A subscription base of 5,000 now is $900,000 in annual circulation revenue.
If you were to follow an ad model, a 20-page edition with 10 ad pages at a $25 CPM base and a 10,000 circulation free distribution digital news daily is $912,500 in annual ad revenue. That's at a $250/page ad rate.
For those doing the math in your head, a 10,000-circulation paid digital news daily with ads would generate $2.7 million in annual revenue with minimal production and distribution cost.
Despite the potential, digital news dailies face challenges. Reader adoption can be slow, especially in markets accustomed to traditional newspapers or web-based news. Advertisers may need education on the value of this hybrid format. Publishers must also balance this offering with their other digital products.
Looking ahead, digital news dailies could find a significant niche in local markets. They offer a way for local publishers to leverage their existing content and relationships in a format that bridges the gap between print and digital.
I could not find more besides The Times Digest and Daily Clips. If you know any, please drop me an email. I asked Kelly why there weren’t more. He could not think of a reason.
As the media landscape evolves, digital news dailies represent an intriguing opportunity. Combining the best of print and digital offers a unique value proposition for both publishers and readers. For local media executives looking to innovate, this format deserves serious consideration.
Guy Tasaka is a seasoned media professional with a 35-year track record of leading change in the industry. He has collaborated with renowned organizations such as Macworld Magazine, Ziff-Davis and The New York Times, where he honed his expertise in research, strategy, marketing and product management. As the former chief digital officer at Calkins Media, Guy was acknowledged as the Local Media Association's Innovator of the Year for his work in advancing OTT and digital video platforms for local news organizations. He is also the founder and managing partner of Tasaka Digital, specializing in helping media and technology companies navigate business transformations using his extensive experience and forward-thinking approach. Guy can be reached at guy@tasakadigital.com.
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