News Corp gives away free tablets to grow digital numbers claiming strategy is ‘profitable’
Eales
Australia’s largest newspaper publisher has launched a major marketing push across its tabloid newspapers giving away a Samsung tablet, in an effort to bolster digital subscriptions.
News Corp marketing boss Damian Eales, who was earlier this week was promoted to head the publisher’s sales function on a “temporary ” basis, said that despite the upfront costs of giving away the tablet devices the promotion was profitable because consumers were being asked to pay for a 12 month subscription upfront.
“All of these subscriptions are significantly profit positive over the lifetime of the relationship,” Eales told Mumbrella. “Because the customer is buying an upfront 12 month subscription there is no churn in the first 12 months. That enables you to give customers greater value and we earn a greater return for our shareholders. It is profit positive from day one.”
Synergies
Is Damien Eales the brother of rugby legend John Eales?
“significantly profit positive” A sound significantly bullshit positive term.
They have thrown everything at trying to get more digital subscribers, with very limited success. It’s like their marketing budget is unlimited. Or, much like with The Oz, they don’t care if they make a loss, as long as News’ political influence carries on through their rags.
News Corp are either completely clueless, or in denial.
People are resisting subscribing because they can’t subscribe with their privacy respected.
Nobody wants News ‘peering over their shoulder’, taking notes about what they read and selling that to 3rd parties.
Acknowledge and respect readers’ privacy, sell prepaid subscriptions to at newsagents and their subscriptions will skyrocket.
Or waste your money on Samsung tablets that nobody wants and remain in a holding pattern. Go backwards more likely.
No Mike,
People aren’t subscribing because it’s not worth paying for, it’s essentially free anyway and the paywall is easy to bypass.
Anyone can sell a tenner for a fiver.
Good luck with the churn in 12 months
Ahhh News… remember the glory days of 2009 when print was bundled with this excitable new thing called digital? Remember when consumers actually cared about your product? I have to note: ‘how the mighty have fallen’
As Fraser says above, anyone can sell a tenner for a fiver – how innovative is giving away a Samsung tablet (everyone uses iPad’s anyway??!!)?
Of all the cheap product pushes, this is the one of the worst.
Keep fighting the good fight over there (ha ha ha!)
I was recently interviewed for a role within news…it reeked of desperation.
feels like the old book of the month club or the music ‘columbia house’ model. Logic is you sign as many up as possible with the immediate free tablet carrot and then hope in 12 months they forget to cancel their direct debit.
@The Magus – Yes, he is.
News is hated in the online space.
There’s a constant sharing of tactics on how to avoid giving News money, or even linking to News content.
You can’t buy that level of bad will.
“We don’t go into into the detail of what Mediacom offered,” said Eales.
“But suffice it to say we saw there were economic benefits of the synergies that GroupM can provide us with but they are across multiple businesses owned by News Corp.
The weather will be 22 degree’s today… and Mediacom value banks. Does Mumbrella have something against Mediacom? They were exposed to a practice done by a few at the agency and many in the industry… is it not time to move on?
Hi Whatif,
Thanks for the comment. I see you’ve been a regular contributor in the Mediacom issues in the comment thread.
We certainly don’t have anything against Mediacom, but we are obliged to ask questions and investigate certain practices affecting the industry where relevant, including value banks, and this will be ongoing.
Cheers,
Alex – editor, Mumbrella
Does Mediacom now provide preferential treatment and recommend News for other clients?
I’d bank that value.
Well that is one way of boosting you AMAA audited digital numbers. Ticks the proof of purchase box. But is anyone accessing the site? If there is no uptick in audience then it will be hard to explain.
I’m not sure why people find this controversial,
Foxtel have been doing it for years with iQ boxes, as have mobile phone retailers with their ‘subsided’ handsets. It seems to make complete sense in the long-term.