Looking at News UK's CMS Choices Through a Product Lens PLUS How Product Thinking Led Schibsted to rethink front page formats

October 01, 2021

A newsletter full of product thinking today, which is just how I like it. The Press Gazette has a piece looking at the CMS decisions News UK stablemates, The Sun and The Times, and how both have made different decisions with different trade offs. It shows how thinking about your products - print, digital, audio, video, newsletters, push, etc. - help you make smart decisions about trade-offs. As a product manager, one of the skills that I've really worked on is discussing trade-offs more productively. As products have proliferated, developing the systems to manage them to meet audience needs and engage audiences has become much more complex. When I first started doing product, old-school editorial managers had a very Boris Johnson view of things that they could have their cake and eat it too. That might have worked in days where publishers and broadcasters had a single platform and a fairly simple product portfolio, but it hasn't worked for a while.

We also have a great piece from The Fix newsletter featured by What's New in Publishing about a panel discussion with African and Nordic publishers about their product thinking. there is an interesting discussion about WhatsApp in Africa and e-editions, and Schibsted has a fascinating idea that leverages the behaviour of their audiences in engaging with their front page.

The other major piece of news is how a US public broadcasting powerhouse in Chicago has signed a letter of intent to buy a local newspaper. Public media has been acquiring digital outlets and consolidating and collaborating regionally, but this marks the first time that a public media group has made a move for a legacy print property.

PLUS an interesting interview with a Conde Nast exec on how their European titles are taking lessons from their US operations and how she uses unexpected moments to rethink their approach.

Also, is there a formula behind the Google News Showcase? Is Facebook advertising a waste of money? Is digital media outlet Ozy a falling house of cards? When is programmatic advertising a good strategy?

Press Gazette has been reporting on British journalism without fear or favour since 1965. Our mission is to provide a news and information service which helps the UK journalism.

A really good look at the trade-offs between different approaches to CMSes.

Insights on product thinking from across the world of media Recently, I had the privilege to moderate a journalism panel with intriguing guests from three different continents. It was a panel during the hybrid IPI World Congress in Vienna. First, let me tell you how awesome it was to attend a real life event in almost …

Some really interesting product thinking here. One thing I really liked was that Schibsted noticed something that I think that all product managers have seen - half of front page visitors never read a story. They leveraged that insight to rethink story formats on the front page.

There’s not much this industry can kick up that the Natalia Gamero del Castillo hasn’t already faced in some shape or form.

Using unexpected observations to rethink your approach.

Press Gazette has been reporting on British journalism without fear or favour since 1965. Our mission is to provide a news and information service which helps the UK journalism.

Parent company shifts to programmatic ad sales to drive pivot to profit.

Brands wasted $54 million in digital advertising spend between July and September, almost half on Facebook, a study of marketing spend has claimed.Analysis of 67 companies found the retail sector was the biggest culprit, investing $15 million on advertising that failed to work, according to auditing platform Prometheus.Prometheus, launched in May by Melbourne-based digital agency […]

Google News Shh-owcase: Publishers break silence over secret deals behind $1bn scheme Buckle up, kids. This is a long one. Press Gazette has pulled together all the information it can find, plus some juicy comments from media executives all around the world, to try and draw a comparison of how Google’s News Showcase is being …

Ahead of a potential IPO, the $4 billion startup is transforming itself as competition from tech giants intensifies.

Top executives of the Chicago Sun-Times and the parent company of public radio station WBEZ 91.5-FM confirmed a report here Wednesday that talks are underw

Press Gazette has been reporting on British journalism without fear or favour since 1965. Our mission is to provide a news and information service which helps the UK journalism.

Forbes found that Ozy Media's most visible product made wildly-inflated ticket sales and exaggerated celebrity appearances.