A report held at the end of 2023 looking at trends in journalism and media for the year ahead revealed that 80 percent of industry leaders believed that subscriptions would be the most important digital revenue stream for news companies in 2024. This marked an increase of four percent from the share who said the same at the end of 2020 when asked about trends in 2021. Subscriptions were cited as publishers' revenue stream in all four years shown, although display advertising and events are growing in importance. Attitudes on the importance of e-commerce and native advertising remained relatively unchanged year over year.
Most important digital revenue streams for publishers in the year ahead according to industry leaders worldwide from 2021 to 2024
Characteristic
2021
2022
2023
2024
Other (selling technology, content syndication, government support)
20%
5%
5%
-
Micropayment (incl. digital wallets)
6%
5%
6%
6%
Related businesses (e.g. property, jobs, betting)
14%
16%
15%
16%
Donations/suport from philanthropic funds/foundations
10%
15%
18%
15%
Donations or crowdfunding (one-off or recurring donations from consumers)
14%
17%
20%
15%
E-commerce
29%
30%
26%
29%
Funding from platforms (content licensing or innovation projects)
23%
29%
33%
20%
Events
40%
40%
38%
49%
Native advertising (sponsored content)
61%
59%
58%
61%
Display advertising/sponsorship
66%
73%
75%
72%
Subscription (ongoing regular payments for content, premium features, or both)
among those holding senior positions (editorial, commercial, or product) in traditional or digital-born publishing companies
Method of interview
Online survey
Supplementary notes
*Surveys held in December of each year, data refers to year ahead.
Participants came from organizations with a print background, digital-born media, B2B companies, or news agencies, or represented commercial or public service broadcasters.
Data for previous years come from earlier reports.
Missing data was not provided by the source.
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Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. (January 9, 2024). Most important digital revenue streams for publishers in the year ahead according to industry leaders worldwide from 2021 to 2024 [Graph]. In Statista. Retrieved October 15, 2024, from https://www.statista.com/statistics/1249566/most-important-revenue-streams-for-digital-news-worldwide/?utm_campaign=20-ways-to-monetize-your-newsletter&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=blog.beehiiv.com
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. "Most important digital revenue streams for publishers in the year ahead according to industry leaders worldwide from 2021 to 2024." Chart. January 9, 2024. Statista. Accessed October 15, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1249566/most-important-revenue-streams-for-digital-news-worldwide/?utm_campaign=20-ways-to-monetize-your-newsletter&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=blog.beehiiv.com
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. (2024). Most important digital revenue streams for publishers in the year ahead according to industry leaders worldwide from 2021 to 2024. Statista. Statista Inc.. Accessed: October 15, 2024. https://www.statista.com/statistics/1249566/most-important-revenue-streams-for-digital-news-worldwide/?utm_campaign=20-ways-to-monetize-your-newsletter&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=blog.beehiiv.com
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism. "Most Important Digital Revenue Streams for Publishers in The Year Ahead According to Industry Leaders Worldwide from 2021 to 2024." Statista, Statista Inc., 9 Jan 2024, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1249566/most-important-revenue-streams-for-digital-news-worldwide/?utm_campaign=20-ways-to-monetize-your-newsletter&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=blog.beehiiv.com
Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, Most important digital revenue streams for publishers in the year ahead according to industry leaders worldwide from 2021 to 2024 Statista, https://www.statista.com/statistics/1249566/most-important-revenue-streams-for-digital-news-worldwide/?utm_campaign=20-ways-to-monetize-your-newsletter&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=blog.beehiiv.com (last visited October 15, 2024)
Most important digital revenue streams for publishers in the year ahead according to industry leaders worldwide from 2021 to 2024 [Graph], Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism, January 9, 2024. [Online]. Available: https://www.statista.com/statistics/1249566/most-important-revenue-streams-for-digital-news-worldwide/?utm_campaign=20-ways-to-monetize-your-newsletter&utm_medium=referral&utm_source=blog.beehiiv.com