Categories: OLD Media Moves

FT attracting more digital subscriptions

Financial Times parent Pearson PLC reported earnings for the first half of the year, and Robert Andrews of PaidContent.org notes that iPad and mobile applications now account for 22 percent of the business newspaper’s Web traffic and 15 percent of its subscriptions.

Andrews writes, “FT added 34 percent more digital subs (up to to 230,000) and 49 percent more free registered users (up to 3.7 million) over the last year, according to parent Pearson’s half-year earnings.

“Pearson says ‘digital subscriptions (are) now the engine of the FT Group’s growth.’

“Digital and services now make up 46 percent of FT Group revenue, content-related revenue (ie. not advertising) makes up 57 percent. Advertising grew “modestly” but is something the FT is happy not to rely on.

“Web visits to Economist.com, jointly owned by Pearson, are up 33 percent in the year to 140 million annually, print circulation is up 3.7 percent.

“FT Group adjusted operating profit is up three percent to £31 ($50.58) million on six percent higher revenue of £203 ($331.25) million.”

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Chris Roush

Chris Roush was the dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He was previously Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.