Publishers see no threat in New Media

In Manila Bulletin, there’s an article about “Publishers see no threat in online newspaper”:

Media experts attending the Publish Asia 2007 conference at the historic landmark Manila Hotel yesterday said the era of print media will not end with the advent of technological innovation such as the online newspaper.

“I don’t think the print media will die because of technological advancement,” said Reiner Mittelbach of Ifra- Germany.

“Newspapers will continue to grow because there are now new ways of presenting contents to suit the needs of contemporary audience,” Mittelbach said.

He said the emergence of the Internet is more of an advantage than a disadvantage when utilized wisely.

“The future expects the newspaper industry to grow with the developments in technology and I think newspaper owners should look at their own business and integrate better ways of using the digital technology for them to improve their business and become profitable,” he said.

I suppose these media experts have read research studies and surveys on online newspapers before making such complacent statements. Others are saying that in the next 50 years, print will be obsolete.

I’d agree. To think that only 10 years ago in the Philippines, no one was reading the local news online. I had newspaper subscriptions to PDI in my dorm and the internet was just in its infancy. Anyway, I hope I’ll still be around in 50 years to witness this.