Issues and challenges in the evolution of multimedia: The case of the newspaper

Futures

Volumn 29, Issue 3, 1997, Pages 193-211

  Molina, Alfonso ^a  

^a UNIVERSITY OF EDINBURGH   (United Kingdom)

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[No Author keywords available]

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EID: 0004902276     PISSN: 00163287     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1016/s0016-3287(97)00001-3     Document Type: Article

References (108)

1. Fidler, R., Commencement Address, School of Journalism, Colorado University, 13 May 1994. E-mail collected via Internet on May 18, 1994. Mediamorphosis is defined as 'the evolutionary transformation of print media from ink-on-paper to digital displays, and the technological merging of media that will occur within the next two or three decades'.(Fidler, R., Mediamorphosis: The Coming Transformation of Newspapers. Boulder, Colorado, IDL, 1993, p. 2.)
2. See Financial Times, 30 May 1994, p. 9. In Fidler's words, '[e]arly in the next decade, or perhaps sooner, portable tablets the size and weight of a standard printed magazine are likely to be at least as common-place as cellular phones and digital machines are today. It should be possible to use them while lying in bed, riding on a subway, or sitting on a park bench. These devices can be expected to combine the readability and ease of using paper with the interactivity of personal computers and the compelling qualities of video and sound. They will have many uses. Some will be used as personal organisers and notepads, but mostly they will be used as portable media for viewing and interacting with all kinds of formatted documents'. (Fidler, R., The digital newspaper: building on the document model in IFRA (eds), Newspaper Techniques (Munich, IFRA, January 1994), pp. 4-9, quotation p. 8).
3. See Financial Times, 30 May 1994, p. 9. In Fidler's words, '[e]arly in the next decade, or perhaps sooner, portable tablets the size and weight of a standard printed magazine are likely to be at least as common-place as cellular phones and digital machines are today. It should be possible to use them while lying in bed, riding on a subway, or sitting on a park bench. These devices can be expected to combine the readability and ease of using paper with the interactivity of personal computers and the compelling qualities of video and sound. They will have many uses. Some will be used as personal organisers and notepads, but mostly they will be used as portable media for viewing and interacting with all kinds of formatted documents'. (Fidler, R., The digital newspaper: building on the document model in IFRA (eds), Newspaper Techniques (Munich, IFRA, January 1994), pp. 4-9, quotation p. 8).
4. Ibid. 'The Knight-Ridder electronic newspaper will make in-depth information available. By touching the screen, consumers will be able to reveal story stacks, and additional information such as charts, tables and videos. Even advertisements will be stacked in layers to entice the consumer. Readers will be able to obtain additional information about a product, activate video commercials and order products with a built-in device'. (Financial Times, op cit, ref. 2, p. 18).
5. Ibid. 'The Knight-Ridder electronic newspaper will make in-depth information available. By touching the screen, consumers will be able to reveal story stacks, and additional information such as charts, tables and videos. Even advertisements will be stacked in layers to entice the consumer. Readers will be able to obtain additional information about a product, activate video commercials and order products with a built-in device'. (Financial Times, op cit, ref. 2, p. 18).
6. Knight-Ridder's 1995 economic performance was severely affected by a long-running strike at the newspapers Detroit Free Press and Gannett Co.'s Detroit News. 'Largely due to the Detroit situation, operating revenue in the newspaper division was up less than one percentage point last quarter, operating income fell by 63% and advertising revenue was flat.' (Case, T., Severe cutbacks at Knigth-Ridder Newspapers, E and P. Web Edition, 4 November 1995).
7. The idea for the Media Lab, modelled on MIT's successful Al Lab, was conceived in 1979 but, Negroponte says, 'it took five years to raise trie money and build the lab'. (The Guardian, 22 July 1993, p. 19).
8. Brand, S., The Media Lab: Inventing the Future at M.I.T. (Penguin Books, NY, 1988), p. 36. A demonstrator of NewsPeek was produced but it had limited personalisation, it could not be individualised for each visitor to the Lab and that was 'a significant frustration, since the idea of intense personalization to the user is at the heart of most of the Lab's projects.' (Ibid, page 37).
9. Brand, S., The Media Lab: Inventing the Future at M.I.T. (Penguin Books, NY, 1988), p. 36. A demonstrator of NewsPeek was produced but it had limited personalisation, it could not be individualised for each visitor to the Lab and that was 'a significant frustration, since the idea of intense personalization to the user is at the heart of most of the Lab's projects.' (Ibid, page 37).
10. C.E.C./DGXIII, Main Events and Developments on the Electronic Information Services Market. Annual Report 1992 (Brussels, IMPACT, C.E.C./DGXIII, 1992).
11. See Financial Times, op cit, ref. 2, p. 9. Also, Financial Times, 13 March 1995, p. 13.
12. See Financial Times, op cit, ref. 2, p. 9. Also, Financial Times, 13 March 1995, p. 13.
13. Simpson, P. (ed.), European Newspaper Industry (London, PIRA International, February 1994). Found in Internet address http://mediator.pira.co.uk/NewspaplndPira/index.html.
14. Personal Computer World, Digital Dailies, September 1993, pp. 390-394, quotation p. 390.
15. Financial Times, 13 January 1995, p. 16.
16. Ibid.
17. EuroBusiness, February 1995, p. 7. 'An OECD report says that demand for paper products from its members will grow from 150 million tonnes a year now to 200 million tonnes a year by 2010. But trees don't grow any faster, so if you want paper, you will have to be prepared to pay for it - prices in Europe rose by 20% between 1993 and 1994.' (MacFormat, November 1995, p. 48).
18. EuroBusiness, February 1995, p. 7. 'An OECD report says that demand for paper products from its members will grow from 150 million tonnes a year now to 200 million tonnes a year by 2010. But trees don't grow any faster, so if you want paper, you will have to be prepared to pay for it - prices in Europe rose by 20% between 1993 and 1994.' (MacFormat, November 1995, p. 48).
19. Outing, S., Newsprint savings present a cyber opportunity, Editor and Publisher Web Edition, 13-14 November 1996, (electronic magazine).
20. Outing, S., Report from San Diego: don't do it alone, Editor and Publisher Web Edition, 4 October 1995, (electronic magazine).
21. Noticias de la Comunicacion, 15-21 Noviembre 1993, p. 6.
22. Financial Times, op cit, ref. 11.
23. Simpson, op cit, ref. 9.
24. Financial Times, 8 July 1993, p. 22.
25. The Internet is a worldwide network of computers which can exchange information with one another. There are several areas in the net, including the World Wide Web (WWW), FTP, Gopher and Usenet. By far, the most popular sector is the World Wide Web, 'a simple multimedia format originally developed at CERN to provide a mechanism for sharing information between collaborative researchers. The Web's attraction is its graphical interface, point-and-click interactivity and hypertext links. Compared with the realtime interaction found on CD-ROM, it is definitively clunky in response, but then you have access to a lot more information than can fit onto a 600Mbyte CD-ROM' (MacUser, 26 May 1995, p. 77).
26. Ibid.
27. Simpson, op cit, ref. 9.
28. See also Business Week, 27 February 1995, pp. 34-40, for a special report on the Internet,
29. MacUser, op cit, ref. 20.
30. Financial Times, 21 August 1995.
31. MacUser, op cit, ref. 20, p. 69.
32. Outing, S., When newspapers meet TV on the Web, be prepared, Editor and Publisher Web Edition, 6 December 1996, (electronic magazine).
33. Ibid.
34. Business Week, 13 November 1995, pp. 52 and 54.
35. The Sunday Times Innovation Web, 3 September 1995.
36. Byte, June 1995, pp. 147-156, quotation p. 147. See also The Sunday Times, 15 October 1995, p. 12.
37. Byte, June 1995, pp. 147-156, quotation p. 147. See also The Sunday Times, 15 October 1995, p. 12.
38. See INES, Newspapers on World Wide Web (Internet address: http://www.gt.kth.se/ines/newsstand.c) The first count was dated 8 October 1995, the second 12 October 1995.
39. Internet adress http://www.mediainfo.com/edpub/
40. Outing, S., Join the party! 300-plus newspapers are online, Editor and Publisher Web Edition, 21 August 1995. (electronic magazine).
41. Outing, S., US news media continue march onto Web, Editor and Publisher Web Edition, 6-7 November 1996, (electronic magazine).
42. See survey results at Mensing, D., Profit strategies for online newspapers: a preliminary report on the costs and revenues of daily Web newspapers (1996), found in Internet address http://unr.edu/homepage/ dmensing. Mensing's survey involved 82 US newspaper online editors from a total sample of 187 who were sent the survey - two-third had circulations over 100000. The survey was conducted during April-August 1996.
43. This question did not receive an answer by 25% of those who returned the survey.
44. The Guardian Online, 23 June 1994, p. 5.
45. Cracknell, D., News in the World Wide Web (Warwick University, England, 1995), electronic version. Journalism diploma project on the future of electronic newspapers found in Internet address: http://www.warwick.ac.uk/guest/cracknel/index.html.
46. Financial Times, 15 May 1995.
47. Sikes, A., President of the New Media and Technology Division of Hearst Corp. Quoted in Advertising Age, 11 April 1994, p. 6.
48. Ingle, R., President and executive editor of the San Jose Mercury News. Quoted in the Financial Times, 29 August 1994, p. 12.
49. Advertising Age, op cit, ref. 41.
50. Ward, J., President of Meredith Multimedia Interactive. Quoted in Advertising Age, op cit, ref. 41.
51. Quoted in Personal Computer World, op cit, ref. 10, p. 392.
52. Chronis, T., News In Motion: An International Electronic Multimedia Newspaper in IFRA, op cit, ref. 2, pp. 28-30, quotation in p. 29.
53. Financial Times, 27 February 1995, p. 12.
54. Mercury Center 'costs $9.95 a month for five hours' use. Extra hours cost $3.50 each. Access to our electronic library costs extra. We charge 80 cents a minute from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, providing us with an interesting test of the potential for such a service among small businesses. All other times, it costs just 10 cents a minute. Early results suggests that there is an enthusiastic market for parents helping kids with their homework, not to mention jobs applicants researching potential employers and sports fans tracking their teams.' (Mitchell, B., First Steps in the Electronic World for the 'San Jose Mercury News' in IFRA, op cit, ref. 2, pp. 16-19, quotation pp. 17-18) Digital Ink also charges $9.95 a month, with five free hours and additional hours costing $2.95 each (W. Webb, Washington Post Debuts Digital Ink, Editor and Publisher Web Edition, 29 July 1995, electronic magazine.). In turn, Personal Journal charges a monthly fee of $12.95 in the US - which includes the first edition of Personal Journal every business day. Updates are then available around the clock every business day, weekends and holidays for an additional 50 cents fee. (Personal Journal site in the Internet - http://bis.dowjones.com/pj.html)
55. Mercury Center 'costs $9.95 a month for five hours' use. Extra hours cost $3.50 each. Access to our electronic library costs extra. We charge 80 cents a minute from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, providing us with an interesting test of the potential for such a service among small businesses. All other times, it costs just 10 cents a minute. Early results suggests that there is an enthusiastic market for parents helping kids with their homework, not to mention jobs applicants researching potential employers and sports fans tracking their teams.' (Mitchell, B., First Steps in the Electronic World for the 'San Jose Mercury News' in IFRA, op cit, ref. 2, pp. 16-19, quotation pp. 17-18) Digital Ink also charges $9.95 a month, with five free hours and additional hours costing $2.95 each (W. Webb, Washington Post Debuts Digital Ink, Editor and Publisher Web Edition, 29 July 1995, electronic magazine.). In turn, Personal Journal charges a monthly fee of $12.95 in the US - which includes the first edition of Personal Journal every business day. Updates are then available around the clock every business day, weekends and holidays for an additional 50 cents fee. (Personal Journal site in the Internet - http://bis.dowjones.com/pj.html)
56. Advertising Age, op cit, ref. 41.
57. Outing, S., Paying for content on the Web: an opposing view, Editor and Publisher Web Edition, 20 September 1995, (electronic magazine).
58. MacUser, op cit, ref. 20.
59. See Pathfinder Home Page in the Internet (http://www.gnn.com/gnn/wic/news.04.html)
60. Outing, S., Media alliances conference wrap-up: part 2, Editor and Publisher Web Edition, 5 October 1995, (electronic magazine).
61. Financial Times, op cit, ref. 42, p. 12. On concepts of advertising for multimedia, see S. Stefanac, Interactive advertising, New Media, April 1994, pp. 34-52 and Financial Times, 23 May 1994.
62. Financial Times, op cit, ref. 42, p. 12. On concepts of advertising for multimedia, see S. Stefanac, Interactive advertising, New Media, April 1994, pp. 34-52 and Financial Times, 23 May 1994.
63. Financial Times, op cit, ref. 42, p. 12. On concepts of advertising for multimedia, see S. Stefanac, Interactive advertising, New Media, April 1994, pp. 34-52 and Financial Times, 23 May 1994.
64. MacUser, op cit, ref. 20.
65. Outing, S., How to make money on the Internet: don't sell ads!, Editor and Publisher Web Edition, 29 August 1995, (electronic magazine).
66. Outing, S., Using an online service to strengthen the newspaper, Editor and Publisher Web Edition, 29 September 1995, (electronic magazine).
67. Moritz, B., New Media World: If They're Ready, Papers Stand to Win, 22 May 1995, electronic report found on PIRA site on the Internet. 'Daniels attributes the growth to Nando Land. The paper is receiving more than a million calls per week via computer modems. Of that number, 60 percent of the 'hits' are from the United States, 15 percent are local and the remaining 25 percent are foreign enquiries.' (Ibid.)
68. Two students broke the supposedly secure encryption almost immediately after its introduction by Netscape.
69. For a discussion surrounding the implications of control and use of the 'unbreakable' Clipper chip, see Denning, D., Resolving the encryption dilemma: the case of Clipper, Technology Review, October 1995. Electronic version found on Internet address http://pathfinder.com/@@XT1ecnFR4AAAQElM/ pathfinder/ pulse/news/techrev/techrevhome.html. Clipper uses Skipjack encryption algorithm and keys of 80 bits -24 bits longer than Data Encryption Standard (DES) keys which was adopted as a federal standard in 1977. The extra 24 bits provides 224 or about 16 million times the security against trial-and-error guesses at keys.
70. Financial Times, 4 October 1995.
71. Another method is used by Infoseek who sells information about the Internet, Infoseek 'doesn't use secure Netscape technology; instead, it gets would-be subscribers to dial a number in the US and tap in their credit card details. The automated answering service gives the caller a reference number to use as a password which lets Infoseek refer the credit card number to the Web authorisation process.' (MacUser, op cit, ref. 20, p. 70)
72. Financial Times, 20 March 1995, p. 13. See also Interactive Age, 1 November 1995.
73. Financial Times, 20 March 1995, p. 13. See also Interactive Age, 1 November 1995.
74. Financial Times, op cit, ref. 42.
75. Mitchell, op cit, ref. 48.
76. Ibid.
77. For a discussion challenging some of the present efforts aiming at providing, for instance, teleshopping and information delivery through Interactive TV, see Schwartz, E., Forum: the misdirection of interactive TV, Technology Review, November/December 1995. Electronic version found on Internet address http://pathfinder.com/@@XT1ecnFR4AAAQElM/pathfinder/pulse/news/techrev/ techrevhome.html. Schwartz argues that people associate TV with games and entertainment. 'People watch television first and foremost for entertainment. It stands to reason, then, that the applications that enhance this experience, such as interactive game shows and video action games, have the best chance of succeeding in the new TV market. GTE has learned that lesson the hard way. After ten years of developing and testing education, information, and time-saving features, the telecommunications giant has found that people like its cable-based 'mainStreet/ brand of interactive TV for the games. The GTE customers 1 visited near Boston are interested in using their remote control to register answers to game shows, compete in trivia games, predict during football season whether the quarterback will pass or run the ball, and participate in events such as voting for their favorite actors on Oscar night. Coming soon: betting fake money on horse races.' (Ibid.)
78. For a discussion challenging some of the present efforts aiming at providing, for instance, teleshopping and information delivery through Interactive TV, see Schwartz, E., Forum: the misdirection of interactive TV, Technology Review, November/December 1995. Electronic version found on Internet address http://pathfinder.com/@@XT1ecnFR4AAAQElM/pathfinder/pulse/news/techrev/ techrevhome.html. Schwartz argues that people associate TV with games and entertainment. 'People watch television first and foremost for entertainment. It stands to reason, then, that the applications that enhance this experience, such as interactive game shows and video action games, have the best chance of succeeding in the new TV market. GTE has learned that lesson the hard way. After ten years of developing and testing education, information, and time-saving features, the telecommunications giant has found that people like its cable-based 'mainStreet/ brand of interactive TV for the games. The GTE customers 1 visited near Boston are interested in using their remote control to register answers to game shows, compete in trivia games, predict during football season whether the quarterback will pass or run the ball, and participate in events such as voting for their favorite actors on Oscar night. Coming soon: betting fake money on horse races.' (Ibid.)
79. Bender, W., Read all about it in the Daily You, Communicating Business (London, UK, Forward Publishing, Winter 1994/95). Electronic version found in News in the Future Internet site http://nif.www.media.mit.edu
80. Potts, M., The Washington Post Company's View of the Future of Electronic Publishing in IFRA, op cit, ref. 2, pp. 19-22.
81. Bender, op cit, ref. 68.
82. See Cracknell, op cit, ref. 39.
83. Financial Times, 10 March 1994, p. 18.
84. Personal Computer World, op cit, ref. 10, p. 391.
85. This section relies heavily on Outing, S., Should new media be part of newsroom operation? Editor and Publisher Web Edition, 12 October 1995, (electronic magazine).
86. Ibid. This is the case of the Washington Post's Digital Ink, the News and Observer Co.'s NandO.net, and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution's Interactive Studio.
87. Ibid.
88. Financial Times, 15 June 1994, p. 16.
89. Negroponte, N., Personal communication with A. Torres (ICT, NewsPad), 1 July 1993. See also El País, 16 Noviembre 1993, for an interview with Jerome Rubin, responsible for the News in the Future programme.
90. Negroponte, N., Personal communication with A. Torres (ICT, NewsPad), 1 July 1993. See also El País, 16 Noviembre 1993, for an interview with Jerome Rubin, responsible for the News in the Future programme.
91. From News in the Future Home Page in the Internet (http://nif.www.media.mit.edu/)
92. Outing, op cit, ref. 15. 'Among the newspaper groups in these various alliances are Cox Enterprises, Dow Jones, Gannet, Knight-Ridder, Newhouse, News Corporation, Times-Mirror, the Tribune and the Washington Post Companies.' (J. Tewlow, New Technology Create New Markets - An Overview in IFRA, op cit, reference 2, pages 9-12, quotation in page 10)
93. Outing, op cit, ref. 15. 'Among the newspaper groups in these various alliances are Cox Enterprises, Dow Jones, Gannet, Knight-Ridder, Newhouse, News Corporation, Times-Mirror, the Tribune and the Washington Post Companies.' (J. Tewlow, New Technology Create New Markets - An Overview in IFRA, op cit, reference 2, pages 9-12, quotation in page 10)
94. Financial Times, op cit, reference 8, The six are A H Belo Corporation, based in Dallas; Central Newspapers of Indianapolis, Cowless Media Company of Minneapolis; two California based companies, Freedom Communications of Irvine and McClatchey Newspapers of Sacramento; and the Pulitzer Publishing Company of St Louis. The combined circulation of Pafet papers is about 4m daily. (Ibid)
95. Financial Times, op cit, reference 8, The six are A H Belo Corporation, based in Dallas; Central Newspapers of Indianapolis, Cowless Media Company of Minneapolis; two California based companies, Freedom Communications of Irvine and McClatchey Newspapers of Sacramento; and the Pulitzer Publishing Company of St Louis. The combined circulation of Pafet papers is about 4m daily. (Ibid)
96. New Century Network was formed by Advance Publications, Cox Newspapers, Gannet, Hearst, Kinght-Ridder, Times Mirror, Tribune and the Washington Post. The companies own 185 daily newspapers with a total Sunday circulation of more than 23 million and expect to put all but their smallest newspapers on-line within the next three years. (Scotsman, 20 April 1995, page 20)
97. Ibid.
98. Quoted in ibid.
99. S. Outing, New Century Network Ready to Go with National Ad Network, Editor & Publisher Web Edition, 20-21 November 1996, electronic magazine.
100. From Individual Inc. Home Page in the Internet. (http://www.bookwire.com/individual/description.html)
101. IT Focus, August/September 1994, page 6.
102. Internet Telecom Observer Home Page in the Internet (http://telobs.com), October 1995. Partners include Hewlett Packard, Kodak, CERN, Le Monde, The Guardian, The Economist, Advertising Age, and Tribune de Genéve. (Ibid)
103. Internet Telecom Observer Home Page in the Internet (http://telobs.com), October 1995. Partners include Hewlett Packard, Kodak, CERN, Le Monde, The Guardian, The Economist, Advertising Age, and Tribune de Genéve. (Ibid)
104. Internet Telecom Observer Home Page in the Internet (http://telobs.com), October 1995. Partners include Hewlett Packard, Kodak, CERN, Le Monde, The Guardian, The Economist, Advertising Age, and Tribune de Genéve. (Ibid)
105. INES Literature (INES Media Concepts, Darmstadt, Germany), no date.
106. Ibid.
107. Outing, op cit, reference 15.
108. M. Fitzgerald, Strategic Alliances by the Numbers, Editor & Publisher Web Edition, 7 October 1995, electronic magazine.