Mobile navigation

News 

DC Thomson Media joins Google subs initiative

DC Thomson Media has been chosen to take part in this year’s Google News Initiative (GNI) Subscriptions Lab which kicked off yesterday.

DC Thomson Media joins Google subs initiative
Richard Neville: “The specialist knowledge and insight this programme will provide will give our newsroom a real boost and help us to drive revenue through our digital content.”

DC Thomson Media is one of eight publishers chosen from more than 50 applicants to what is the second European cohort of the intensive programme that will cover all aspects of digital subscriptions.

The transformation programme for DC Thomson Media’s News Brands, Apollo, has seen the organisation make substantial changes to their publishing model, focussing on driving digital growth and subscriptions. Participation in The Lab will further enhance the skillsets within the business and bring to life the subscription cycle of a digital audience, says DC Thomson Media.

Richard Neville, Head of News Brands, said, “We are delighted to be taking part in the GNI Subscriptions Lab. Our focus is on delivering quality content to our readers. We want to engage our audiences with relevant stories delivered to them when and how they want to consume them. The specialist knowledge and insight this programme will provide will give our newsroom a real boost and help us to drive revenue through our digital content. To extend our network of like-minded European publishers will also give us access to even more help, advice and good practice to learn from.”

DC Thomson Media is the only UK publisher to be selected for the programme and will be joined by seven other European publishers for The Lab, which is designed to strengthen and accelerate growth of subscriptions and help European publishers deliver customised plans such as optimising the sales funnel and developing new monetisation strategies.

Also taking part are:

  • Deník.cz (Vltava Labe Media), Czech Republic
  • Irish Independent (Independent News & Media), Ireland
  • Le Journal du Dimanche (Lagardère Media News), France
  • OÖNachrichten (Wimmer Medien), Austria
  • El País (Prisa), Spain
  • Público (Público Comunicação Social), Portugal
  • Ruhr Nachrichten (Lensing Media), Germany

“This is an outstanding class of European publishers, at similar points in their subscription journeys, and now the hard work begins,” said Earl J. Wilkinson, Executive Director and CEO of INMA. “Discovery, sharing, deep dives, identifying North Stars, and rolling up our sleeves and working with each publisher to move the needle and build on the knowledge of advancing digital subscriptions.”

DC Thomson Media says that it has been revolutionising how the newsroom approaches digital content, investing in people, technology and resources to deliver ground-breaking digital storytelling that will engage audiences and drive digital subscriptions.

Keep up-to-date with publishing news: sign up here for InPubWeekly, our free weekly e-newsletter.