World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 The annual global survey, analysis and report on publishers’ business and predictions WAN-IFRA Report | January 2026 https://www.stibodx.com/ Empowering the multimedia hybrid movement With the CUE media enterprise platform, media organizations are equipped to create and publish content across current and future channels, audiences and formats. By enabling story-first planning, asset centralization, and multimodal production, CUE streamlines workflows and enhances collaboration, all while offering the scalability and efficiency needed to stay ahead as a multi media organization. Learn more on stibodx.com https://www.stibodx.com/ 3World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Empowering the multimedia hybrid movement With the CUE media enterprise platform, media organizations are equipped to create and publish content across current and future channels, audiences and formats. 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Learn more on stibodx.com Imprint World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Published by: WAN-IFRA Rotfeder-Ring 11 60327 Frankfurt, Germany wan-ifra.org CEO: Stig Ørskov COO: Thomas Jacob Director of Insights: Dean Roper Contributors: Damian Radcliffe, Dr. François Nel, Teemu Henriksson, Dean Roper Editing: Dean Roper, Teemu Henriksson Design: Gordon Steiger Special thanks to our report partner 3World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 https://www.stibodx.com/ https://www.stibodx.com/ 4 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Table of Contents Table of Contents About the Report ................................................................................ 6 Report Methodology ............................................................................ 7 Executive Summary ........................................................................... 10 Key Performance Indicators............................................................... 12 Chapter 1: Business Outlook ............................................................. 18 Mid-Term business prospects ................................................................... 19 Revenues in the next 12 months .............................................................. 20 State of play: The role of AI ...................................................................... 22 State of play: Search ................................................................................ 24 State of play: Creators and the creator economy ...................................... 25 State of play: Relationships with tech platforms ........................................ 27 Chapter 2: Revenue Trends .............................................................. 32 The big picture ......................................................................................... 33 Preparing for the post-print era ................................................................. 33 – Digital reader revenue ............................................................................ 36 – Digital advertising .................................................................................. 40 – Other revenues ..................................................................................... 42 5World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Table of Contents Chapter 3: The Cost of Staying Competitive..................................... 48 Costs and outgoings ................................................................................. 49 Investment priorities ................................................................................. 51 Chapter 4: Media Freedom ................................................................ 56 Overview .................................................................................................. 57 What our data shows ................................................................................ 58 How media freedom is being threatened .................................................. 58 Unpacking the causes and moving forward .............................................. 63 About the Contributors ...................................................................... 65 Endnotes ........................................................................................... 66 6 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 About the Report Resilience. Confidence. Those two words bounced around in my brain long after our Congress in Krakow last May. Speaker after speaker in the CEO track of the event either used them or projected them in their presentations about their news organisations. My disingenuous detector was on high alert, but some- how this did not sound like or feel like typical conference rah-rah. They clearly acknowledged the mountain of challenges to overcome, both historical ones (like declining tradition- al revenues or the hard work of change, not to mention waning trust) and those game-changing newer ones (the friends/foes dilemma of AI and creators). But there was more of a “let’s control what we can control” vibe in that auditorium than there was “let’s see what happens next” doubt. Much of the data and analysis from this year’s World Press Trends Outlook certainly could give pause to the bravest of publishers. Seed some doubt. It is a shrinking industry in two key historical areas: traditional revenue and overall paying audiences. Trust in news media continues to wane. Press freedom is under siege. The uncertainty of AI’s impact on the industry at large, audiences, search, advertising and more looms large. The potential audience shift towards the Creator Economy. All daunting. All real. But all said, our report does not read like an industry in retreat or retrenchment, instead one that is innovating and recalibrating. Yes, resilient, even confident. As we were putting the final touches on the report and preparing for the upcoming promotion of it, some of us were discussing and sharing our own takeaways. I loved this one from (Dr.) Francois Nel, who has helped us with World Press Trends for a number of years now, crunching and correlating survey responses and data into sensible insights. At the end of his piece, he wrote: “In a vola- tile and often hostile environment, stability achieved through innovation rather than inertia is progress. News media is not standing still – it is adapting with clearer intent, even as the constraints remain real.” Here are just a few examples from our report that show how publishers are innovating and projecting that resilience and confidence. W When we asked publishers about how they view their business prospects in the next year, nearly 63% said they were optimistic, and even more so for the next three years at 65%. W 41% of news organisations in our sample said they had actually increased their staffing over the past 12 months, at a time when news of layoffs seems like a daily occurrence. W To address the ongoing structural decline in tra- ditional revenue, publishers continue to focus and invest in securing other forms of revenue streams such as events, content services, platform partner- ships. This bucket of revenue made up 25.4% of publisher revenues in 2025, almost doubling what it was (13.2%) in 2021. W Publishers are making AI and automation (93%) a top investment priority, as well as data analytics and intelligence (90%), positioning these as foun- dational capabilities rather than experiments. W On the creators front, the majority of publishers (60.3%) view creators as opportunities for col- laboration, 30.9% view them as a talent pipeline from within their own newsrooms, and 23.5% are hiring creators directly. One of the most humbling aspects of working for a global association and on a massive report like World Press Trends is indeed connecting with our members who share their insights, strategies, and data. We are incredibly grateful. As it is a global report, many of our findings and data may not match up with your compa- ny, market or region. But innovation knows no bound- aries and we hope you learn something valuable here. Lastly, a huge thanks to our sponsor Stibo DX for their continued support, and to Francois, Analyst Damian Radcliffe, who did the heavy lifting of writing and researching most of this report, and the steady hands of WAN-IFRA’s Teemu Henriksson, who coor- dinates and manages this massive project. – Dean Roper, Director of Insights, WAN-IFRA https://www.stibodx.com/ 7Report MethodologyWorld Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 A further 13 % of survey participants are Executive or Managing Editors providing a valuable editorial-led perspective, while 14 % work in commercial or strategy leadership. The remaining 21 % represent senior manag- ers and specialists in areas with a focus on delivery such as operations, product, and innovation. Collectively, this sample of survey respondents ensures that our research findings are grounded in insights which offer valuable perspectives from both editorial and busi- ness leaders. This combination gives us a holistic view of the challenges – and opportunities – faced by news me- dia companies around the world, and it’s these insights which form the core of this report. Respondent geography Alongside offering insights from across the C-Suite and other leadership roles, our survey sample captures per- spectives from different markets around the world. This includes participants coming from advanced, high-in- come, markets such as Germany, France, the USA and Japan, emerging markets like Argentina, Nigeria, South Africa and India, as well as conflict-affected or transi- tional economies such as those seen in Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) and Ukraine. The World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 report draws on findings from a global online survey conduct- ed by WAN-IFRA during the summer of 2025, tar- geting senior news media executives across different media markets worldwide. Respondent profile A total of 172 respondents completed the full survey. These media industry leaders work on five continents and 66 different countries across the globe. This diversity ensures that the findings of this study are the product of robust international participation, offering insights from diverse media markets in both developed and developing economies. Over half of respondents (52 %) hold C-Suite leadership roles such as CEO, Publisher, or Managing Director. Their input ensures that our survey results reflect a strategic, organisation-wide, perspective. Executive Editor, Managing Editor 13 % Commercial Director, Head of Strategy 14 % Other 21 % CEO, Publisher, Managing Director 52 % Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey Survey participant profiles Report Methodology 8 Report MethodologyWorld Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Using World Bank classifications, 50.3 % of respondents are based in high-income economies, while 49.7 % come from developing regions. This geographic balance and economic diversity affords us a nuanced understand- ing of the varied realities seen across the news industry worldwide. Moreover, the balance between respondents from high-income and developing economies allows us to make some valuable comparisons, as we explore where market realities and priorities diverge, and where they align. Respondent organisational ownership New for our 2025-26 report, we asked respondents for the first time about the ownership structure of their organisation. The results for this question are not necessarily representative of the global media industry. Nevertheless, these findings offer us further valuable context about the working lives of our survey participants and WAN-IFRA’s global membership base. We note that two-thirds of survey participants (66 %) come from privately owned media, underscoring WAN- IFRA’s relationship with commercial publishers world- wide. Just under a quarter (22 %) of participants are based at independent media outlets, with a further one in ten (10 %) being publicly listed. Just 2 % of respondents work for state-owned media. Together, these survey participants reflect a diverse cross-section of commercially driven and editorially independent news organisations. It is their perspectives which form the basis of this report, and offer the back- bone of this annual study. We remain grateful for the time, expertise and honesty with which they answered our survey questions. Organisation ownership profile Publicly listed 10 % Government/State owned 2 % Privately owned 66 % Independent 22 % Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey 9Report MethodologyWorld Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Data sources and analysis As with previous studies, the World Press Trends Outlook 2025-6 incorporates responses from WAN-IFRA’s latest proprietary survey as well as historical data from pre- vious reports. Longitudinal data from previous editions of this annual survey enables us track shifts over time in areas such as respondents’ revenue mix, investment priorities, attitudes towards platforms, and wider digital transformation efforts. These research findings are further supported by evi- dence from other WAN-IFRA research initiatives and events, as well as case studies curated from around the world, and data provided by leading external sources such as PwC. Developed Developing Ownership by economic development status 0 % 20 % 40 % Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey 60 % Publicly listed 47 % 53 % Government/ State owned 67 % 33 % 80 % Independent owned 46 % 54 % Privately owned 47 % 53 % By blending primary and secondary data in this way, WAN-IFRA’s annual World Press Trends report series continues to deliver a comprehensive snapshot of the challenges and opportunities confronting news publish- ers. In doing this, this report offers readers a rounded, evidence-based picture of the evolving priorities, pres- sures, and possibilities shaping today’s global news business. We hope you find these insights as valuable and thought-provoking as we do. 10 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 This is the 36th annual World Press Trends Outlook report, an annual study from WAN-IFRA (World Association of News Publishers) that offers an in- depth look at the current and future state of the global news media industry. As in previous years, this study is grounded in findings from a comprehensive survey of senior media executives and newsroom leaders. This data is supplemented by a rich cornucopia of case stud- ies from around the world, which help to illustrate and add further depth to our survey findings. A total of 172 respondents participated, rep- resenting five continents and 66 countries. Between them, these participants come from some of the world’s wealthiest nations, such as Japan, Luxembourg, Norway, and the United States, emerging markets like India, Brazil and the United Arab Emirates, as well as some of the challenging and troubled parts of the world such as Palestine (West Bank and Gaza) and Ukraine. Between them, input from this global sample pro- vides valuable insights into areas such as revenue streams, digital transformation efforts, invest- ment priorities, attitudes towards relationships with platforms and Generative AI, as well as the state of media and press freedom. In keeping with recent editions of this report, roughly half of our survey respondents are in developed economies with the other half based in what the World Bank classify as developing markets. Blending expert insights from senior media leaders around the world with case studies from different markets, this report offers a valuable snapshot of the health of today’s media landscape and the global news industry. Key Findings Business Outlook W Confidence among media leaders has strengthened for the third consecutive year in 2025, reflecting growing belief in adaptation and recovery from the COVID crisis. W Short-term optimism (next 12 months) has risen (as shared by 62.9 % of our sample), and long-term optimism (the next three years) remains solidly above 65 %. Revenue Trends W Print advertising is still worth more than digital advertising: Revenues from online advertising (17 %) are still behind income from print advertising (21.2 %) among our sample, even if the gap is closing. W Print income still matters: Although digital income streams are significant, monies from print advertising and circulation still account for 43.6 % of our sam- ples’ revenues. This is a marginal drop from last year (44.6 %). W Digital now accounts for 31 % of publisher reve- nues: Last year our sample revealed that digital rev- enues represented almost an identical figure (31.6 %) of total publisher income. This suggests that digital growth has stalled, despite continued investment in this space. Among our survey participants nearly six in 10 news organisations (58.5 %) worldwide now offer digital subscriptions. W The print + digital paradigm: In 2025, based on data provided by our sample, print remains the biggest platform for revenue (43.6 %). A typical publisher’s revenue mix is increasingly finding a narrowing gap between income from digital sources (31 %) and other activities (25.4 %) such as events, business services and partnerships. Executive Summary 11World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 W Revenue diversification remains a priority: There are a wide range of opportunities for publishers to diversify their income streams. These “other sources,” such as partnerships and content services, constituted 25.4 % of publisher reve- nues in 2025. Over the past five years, revenues coming from “Other” sources has almost doubled, up from 13.2 % in 2021. This represents a major structural shift in a short space of time, and highlights the importance of ensuring ongoing income from sources beyond advertising and subscriptions. Expenditure and Investment W Cost structure: Editorial and content production remain – by some margin – the largest single area of expenditure (32.5 %). This is followed by print production and distri- bution, activities which continue to absorb a notable share (14.4 %) of total costs, although this is only just ahead of expenditure on administration (13.5 %), IT and Technology (13.4 %) and Advertising/Sales (13 %). W Strategic investment: Not surprisingly, investment in AI and Automation was listed as a Top 3 priority area of invest- ment in 2025 by more than 9 in 10 (93 %) of respondents. This was closely followed by data analytics and intelligence (90 %) reflecting how these tools are integral to the workings of modern-day newsrooms. W Diversifying income: Given the need to reduce churn and grow revenues beyond advertising, more than eight in ten respondents (82 %) ranked areas such as a focus on reader revenue, product development and other revenue streams as key attention areas over the coming year. W Investors in people: Although the industry continues to see layoffs worldwide, our survey reveals that 41 % of news or- ganisations in our sample had seen an increase in staff over the past 12 months. Digital Transformation and Innovation W AI adoption levels: Publishers are seeking to harness AI across their businesses. Adoption appears strongest in news- room operations, and weakest in areas of monetisation and audience engagement. W AI maturity: Generally speaking, nearly half (46.2 %) of publishers in our sample described the adoption of AI as “emergent” with a further third (29.2 %) describing adoption as “advanced.” These figures nevertheless mask a variance – as outlined above – in the adoption of AI technologies across different business practices. W Embracing the creator economy: Most pub- lishers (60.3%) view the creator economy as an opportunity for collaboration, with only 16.2% seeing influencers as a threat. W Strategic integration of influencers: One- third of publishers see opportunities in pro- ducing creator-like content within their own newsrooms, while nearly a quarter (23.5%) are hiring independent creators directly. Media Freedom W Attacks on media and press freedom con- tinue to be seen around the world. Nearly half (45.5 %) of our survey respondents say media freedom has worsened in their country over the past year. Just over one in ten (10.6 %) said this situation had improved. W Developing markets are witnessing great volatility: Although 16.7 % of respondents in developing markets said that press freedom had improved in the past year, nearly half of participants from these markets (47.2 %) reported the opposite: that levels of press free- dom had declined. A further third (36.1 %) said that levels of media and press freedom had stayed more or less the same. Moving Forward The latest edition of WAN-IFRA’s World Press Trends Outlook demonstrates the continued pressures felt by the global news industry; and their responses to these critical challenges. This includes ongoing work to diversify revenues, adopt new technologies such as AI, and navigate issues of media freedom. That said, with more than six in 10 of our sample reporting confidence in the future of the industry, sentiments that have grown for the third consecu- tive year, we see a growing resilience and confi- dence among our survey participants about their ability to navigate these waters. It is their story, and the lessons that can be learned from it, that we tell in this report as we continue to chart the state of the news media in 2025-26 and beyond. This chapter looks at how publishers’ core revenue streams have developed over the past few years, and where they are heading. According to PwC and our calculations, publishers continue to face the conundrum of how to ramp up digital revenue, stem the historical declines of print, while diversifying their business models. Key Performance Indicators 12 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Key Performance Indicators 13World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Key Performance Indicators Much of this report is based on our annual publisher survey as well on many other sources, research and case studies. We have partnered with PwC for a number of years, highlighting some of the aggregate performance indicators gleaned from its annual Global Entertainment and Media Outlook. Through our analysis of that data and our historical data, the above snapshot serves as our best estimate of news media’s (largely newspaper pub- lishers) monetary value. In 2025, that value comes to US$ 125.7 billion, just slight- ly down (-0.01%) from 2024. Considering the continuing structural decline of traditional revenue sources on the print side, it is clear that news publishers are innovating and investing on the digital side of the business, and increasingly in diversification. As many news publishers strive to become digitally sustainable businesses – and there have been some even recently that have achieved this envious goal – the not-so surprising reality is that most still rely on print revenues (print representing 65% of total revenues, according to this data) to not only survive but to help finance their digital aspirations. Just as other industries have had to adapt the way they work and cater to ever-shifting customer needs in a ubiquitous digital world, generative AI has only accel- erated that pressure – especially for news media. And these estimates predate the oncoming and potentially full negative impact of AI-mediated search and discovery on traffic and monetisation. But the industry is not sitting still, particularly on the AI front. Continued gains on the digital side and diversifica- tion, combined with relatively stable declines on the print side seemingly puts publishers in a position to weather the potential negative impacts of AI and other threats in the next year(s) – at least on the business side. How they continue to innovate with AI and seriously address the news creator economy, for example, will go a long way toward shaping their journalism – and their future. Source: WPT analysis of WPT Outlook survey and historical data. * Figures based on daily and weekly publications.Source: WPT analysis of WPT Outlook survey and historical data. * Figures based on daily and weekly publications. Revenues from traditional sources – advertising and circulation $107.7 billion (-1.25 % YoY) Circulation revenue $10.2 billion (+7.91 % YoY) Advertising revenue $15.7 billion (+2.9 % YoY) Digital circulation (paid audience) 72.6 million (+8.08 % YoY) Circulation revenue $48.5 billion (-2.39 % YoY) Advertising revenue $33.3 billion (-3.94 % YoY) Print circulation 490.5 million (-2.39 % YoY) 2024-2025 Overall paying audience 564.1 million (-1.22 % YoY) Overall revenues from circulation, advertising & other sources $125.7 billion (-0.01 % YoY) Other revenue streams (Events, licensing, etc.) $18.0 billion (+1.6 % YoY) 14 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Key Performance Indicators Here is a closer look at how PwC projects the news me- dia’s circulation and advertising revenue development over seven years. (Note: this does not include weekly publications). And what we see is an industry that has been on a path of steady decline for quite some time now. In fact, that downward turn dates back 15-20 years. Over the five years to 2025, global daily newspaper rev- enues fall from US$86.2bn (2020) to US$75.4bn (2025) — a decline of US$10.8bn, or around 12.5% of the market. The year-on-year drops are incremental, but the cumu- lative effect is unmistakable: the industry has shed more than one in every eight dollars of revenue since 2020. Interestingly, PwC’s projections differ significantly with that of our publisher survey, where the global aggre- gate resulted in a nearly even split of circulation reve- nue (about 36%) and advertising revenue (about 38%). According to PwC, news publishers’ circulation revenue is about one-third more than that of advertising revenue. Naturally, this picture varies from market to market, region to region, publisher to publisher. There are some markets that rely more heavily on advertising and some that focus primarily on circulation revenue. What is miss- ing here is, again, the increased focus on other revenue streams that is offsetting much of this historical decline. Also, as much as there are continued positive develop- ments in digital advertising and circulation, they still are not on a global level offsetting the steeper declines of print revenue. Newspaper circulation and newspaper advertising revenue development (in US$ mn) The continued decline of circulation and advertising revenue Newspaper advertising Newspaper circulation 0 25,000 50,000 75,000 100,000 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 (forecast) 49,999 49,387 47,961 46,780 45,662 44,637 43,715 36,208 34,416 33,289 32,323 31,508 30,808 30,216 Source: WPT analysis of data from PwC Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2025- 2029 15World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Key Performance Indicators 0 10,000 50,000 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 (forecast) 43,300 42,039 39,923 38,048 36,239 34,496 32,833 Global daily newspaper circulation revenue trends (in US$ mn) 20,000 30,000 40,000 49,999 49,387 46,780 45,66247,961 44,637 43,715 6,700 7,347 8,037 8,732 9,423 10,140 10,882 Digital circulation Print circulation Total circulation Steady uptick in digital circulation revenue still falls short of deeper dips in print circulation revenue Circulation or reader revenue would seem to be a more reliable prospect for publishers in terms of sustainable, predictable revenue, compared to the more volatile nature of advertising. Whether it is digital subscrip- tions, memberships, donations, bundles, etc., there is an appetite in many parts of the world for consumers to pay for access to trusted journalism, premium products and differentiated digital experiences. According to PwC, digital circulation revenues will almost double from US$ 6.7 billion in 2020 to nearly US$ 11 billion in 2026. But while the pace of that growth when stacked up against print would appear to be impressive, it has cooled in the last few years. It is not only the slower pace of growth, but the sheer disparity in total revenue that one digital subscriber brings in vs. that of a print subscriber/purchaser in different markets. Not to men- tion that the market is maturing, and easy subscription gains are increasingly harder to find. By contrast, print revenue will constitute about US$ 32.8 billion this year for daily publishers worldwide, nearly tripling that of digital circulation revenue. Yet it has declined almost 25% from 2020 to 2026. Still, it is for the foreseeable future, a significant revenue stream that publishers, by and large, simply cannot survive without. That decline above also underscores the cost pressures of print production/distribution and frequency reductions facing them worldwide – as well as the change in reader habits – and the urgency to grow digital reader revenue models and other revenue streams. It’s the ongoing conundrum for publishers: How do we smartly transition from a heavily reliant print business to a more digital, diversified one? Source: WPT analysis of data from PwC Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2025- 2029 16 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Key Performance Indicators If you squint at the advertising development picture on the next page, it is easy to confuse that chart with that of the circulation development chart on page 15. And you could almost cut and paste the same analysis from circulation to this advertising analysis: print advertising is in deep decline, while digital advertising has increased, but at slower rates. Despite overall advertising still contracting, it declined at a slower rate heading into 2026 – from -4.95% in 2021 to a forecasted -1.92% this year. As the decline eases, it might suggest a gradual stabilisation, but the immense challenges of platform competition and how AI search will impact referral traffic to publishers’ sites, do not bode well for publishers banking on big ad spend. All that said, advertising is still considered a significant and important revenue stream for publishers today and for the foreseeable future. Publishers that have a solid data infrastructure and have embraced AI, especially in the area of personalisation, are positioned to be compet- itive for ad spend. And trusted journalism will always offer advertisers a safe space to reach quality audiences. Digital advertising is still growing, but the rate is steadily slowing – from +3.58% in 2021 to a forecast of +2.54% in 2026. This reflects a maturing market and rising compe- tition from platforms and AI-driven environments. Print advertising continues its long structural decline, with annual losses easing only slightly – from -8.58% in 2021 to -5.01% in 2026. The erosion remains deep and persistent. Advertising development mirrors that of circulation 0 % -5 % 5 % -10 % 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 (forecast) 9.66 % 9.39 % 8.64 % 7.91 % 7.61 % 7.32 % -2.91 % -5.03 % -4.70 % -4.75 % -4.81 % -4.82 % Year-on-Year change in digital and print circulation revenues Digital advertising Print advertising 10 % Source: WPT analysis of data from PwC Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2025- 2029 17World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Key Performance Indicators 25,401 23,222 21,725 20,400 19,238 18,207 17,294 0 10,000 50,000 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 (forecast) Daily newspaper advertising revenue trends (in US$ mn) 20,000 30,000 40,000 36,208 34,416 32,323 31,50833,289 31,808 30,216 10,807 11,194 11,564 11,923 12,270 12,602 12,921 Digital Aadvertising Print advertising Total advertising 0 % -5 % 5 % -10 % 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 (forecast) 3.58 % 3.30 % 3.11 % 2.91 % 2.71 % 2.54 % -8,58 % -6.45 % -6.10 % -5.70 % -5.36 % -5.01 % Year-on-Year change in digital and print newspaper advertising revenues Digital advertising Print advertising Net result: Once again, digital gains are not accelerating fast enough to offset ongoing print losses, keeping overall ad revenue on a downward trajectory. As we will see later in our report, many of the forecasts for global advertising and digital advertising spend over the next few years show increases YoY. But drill down and those projections are not so kind to news media. Source: WPT analysis of data from PwC Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2025- 2029 Source: WPT analysis of data from PwC Global Entertainment & Media Outlook 2025- 2029 In this chapter, we dive into how publishers feel about the year ahead, and some of the factors shaping these feelings. Business Outlook Chapter 1 18 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook 19World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook Mid-Term business prospects Despite the multiple headwinds that the news media in- dustry faces in 2025, the mood in the C-Suite and among senior editorial leaders is surprisingly buoyant. Nearly two-thirds (62.9 %) of executives who responded to our survey are optimistic about the next 12 months. These confidence levels grow slightly, to 65.2 %, when looking at a three-year horizon. All in all, despite the challenges of AI, threats from the creator economy, as well as continually shifting advertis- ing markets and consumer habits, optimism levels have hit a three-year high. This shows that although disrup- tion continues, publishers increasingly feel that they will be able to weather the storm. However, this sentiment is not uniform. Although consol- idated data across all markets points to a picture where publishers are confident about the future, when we dive into revenue projections some divergence can be seen. Overall projections remain positive with revenue growth projected to rise by 17 %. That’s a very positive increase (up from 10.6 %) since our last survey (2024-25) when publishers were less optimistic about revenue projections. Within this, anticipated revenue growth among respon- dents in developed markets is remarkably consistent. Expectations show some variance, with revenues projects being 9.1 % for 2024-2025 and 7.5 % for 2025-2026. This slight decline implies that publishers in mature markets anticipate growth levelling off. In contrast, developing markets – which were the slowest to bounce back from COVID – show both volatility and ambition. Projecting the strongest growth by far, their expectations increase from 11.9 % (2024-2025) to 24.8 % (2025-2026), a sizeable 12.9-point increase. How do you feel about your company’s business prospects... For the next 12 months? For the next 3 years? 2025 vs. 2024 62.9 % 37.1 % 65.2 % 34.8 % Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey 61 % 39 % 64 % 36 % 20 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook As we shall see, while publishers globally remain optimis- tic, their business models vary, shaped by the markets they are in, and responses to it, rather than universal trends. Revenues in the next 12 months Attitudes among news business leaders are inevitably bound to be shaped by revenue projections. Here we see some divergence among our sample. In developed markets, reader revenue continues to be the priority and nearly half of publishers (48.3 %) said they envisaged it would be their leading source of income in 2026. This belief reflects investment in areas such as subscriber retention, paywalls, and efforts to understand audience habits and needs. At the same time, this ranking can also be partly attribut- ed to the continued downturn of revenue from advertis- ing. Consequently, even if reader revenues stay static for some publishers, it will be likely to constitute a greater share of overall income, due to declining advertising monies. As a result, publishers will need to offer flexible, com- pelling, packages that will help to drive reader revenue. As demonstrated by outlets such as The Guardian, this includes welcome offers, ad-free packages, opportunities to pause subscriptions, access to additional content, and other benefits. Conversely, survey participants in developing markets told us that advertising – rather than reader revenues – would be key for them in the next 12 months. Just under half (46.7 %) of respondents said that advertising would be their top revenue source in the year ahead. Expected revenue growth compared to previous year, by market What are your overall revenue expectations compared to the previous year? 6.7 % 4.6 % 10.3 % 2021 13.7 % 7.6 % 24.0 % 2022 15.2 % 8.1 % 24.6 % 2023 10.6 % 9.1 % 11.9 % 2024 17.0 % 7.8 % 24.8 % 2025 Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey Overall Developed Countries Developing Countries 0 % 5 % 10 % 15 % 20 % 25 % 21World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook This reflects the challenges (outlined in Chapter 2 on Revenues) of getting audiences in developing economies to pay for news, as well as the continued dominance of advertis- ing (e.g. from government sources) in these markets. Respondents across our global sample ex- pressed an optimism for the role that “other” income sources would play in their revenue mix. Although they trail behind more tradi- tional income streams such as advertising and subscriptions, respondents suggest that “other” revenue streams would be worth more than a third (34.2 %) of all income in the year ahead. These figures demonstrate the extent to which publishers have diversified their core reve- nues, and the continued efforts that are being invested in maintaining and growing these incomes. It’s notable that income from “other” sources is discernibly higher in developing markets. Other Sources 34.2 % Reader Revenue 29.4 % Advertising 36.4 % Over the next 12 months, what percentage of your overall revenue do you estimate to come from the following sources? Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey Over the next 12 months, what percentage of your overall revenue do you estimate to come from the following sources? 29.4 % 36.4 % 34.2 % Overall 48.3 % 24.1 % 27.6 % Developed Countries 13.6 % 46.7 % 39.7 % Developing Countries Reader Revenues Advertising Other Sources 0 % 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey 22 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook There “other” revenues will make up 39.7 % of antic- ipated monies for the next 12 months, compared to developed markets where these additional revenue streams are nevertheless still worth more than a quarter (27.6 %) of all income in the year ahead. State of play: The role of AI Our research reveals that publishers are actively implementing AI across their business operations, but adoption levels vary across organisations and workstreams. This reflects how fast this field is developing, as well as different levels of maturity in implementation. Overall, just under half (46.2 %) of publishers de- scribe their efforts as “emergent” with a further third saying that implementation was either “advanced” (29.2 %) or sophisticated (1.5 %). A further quarter noted that efforts were either “nascent” (18.5 %) or “seriously lagging” (4.6 %). Digging deeper into specific uses of AI, confidence lev- els are highest in workflows associated directly with the newsroom, where over three-quarters (75.8 %) of respondents said that AI adoption at their organisa- tion was “advanced” (30.3 %) or “emergent” (45.5 %). AI workflows in newsrooms can help to automate tasks from story discovery (trend spotting, data mining) to creation (summaries, translations, headlines, transcription) and distribution (personalised feeds, multi-format content). For example, Hearst Newspapers, one of the biggest media groups in the USA, is using an AI-powered,1 Slack-based tool to help with optimising headlines and SEO. In Argentina, Chequeado, a non-profit digital media outlet founded in 2010, has integrated an AI-powered assistant into Google Docs, to support fact-checking.2 The areas where adoption is seen as the weakest relate to monetisation and audience engagement. As it relates to monetisation, more than half our sample (53 %) described their efforts as “nascent” or “seriously lagging.” By the same token, when it comes to audience engagement, just under half (44.6 %) placed their work in these same categories. Beneath these headline figures, however, there is meaningful variation between developed and developing markets. In developed markets, uncertainty dominates monetisation, with 40 % describing their position as neutral and 20 % as negative, pointing to caution and consolidation rather than experimentation. In developing markets, sentiment is more polarised: while confidence is slightly higher at the positive end, 22.2 % report negative views on monetisation, suggest- ing greater exposure when strategies fail. Screenshot via The Guardian showing different tiers and mechanisms for reader support. https://journalists.org/resources/case-study-how-hearst-newspapers-built-an-ai-powered-slack-based-tool-to-help-with-digital-content-production/ https://www.journalismai.info/programmes/innovation/innovation-challenge-2024/chequeado https://support.theguardian.com/uk/contribute?pre-auth-ref=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2F 23World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook A similar pattern appears in audience engagement, where 28.6 % of developing-market respondents report negative or very negative assessments, compared with 23.3 % in developed markets. In short, adoption gaps are wide- spread, but they are more volatile in developing markets and more restrained – yet embedded – in developed ones. It will be interesting to see if this changes in the year ahead, or if outlets will continue to struggle to harness AI in their efforts to build sustainable revenue and deep audience relationships. For many outlets, platforms, and membership bodies like WAN-IFRA, addressing this imbalance may well be an area of focus in the coming year, as news outlets seek to harness the potential of AI across the full spectrum of their editorial and business operations. How would you characterise the adoption of AI technologies across your news organisation? 0 % 10 % 20 % 30 % 40 % 29.2 % 46.2 % 18.5 % Overall 4.6 % 1.5 % 30.3 % 45.5 % 18.2 % Newsroom 3.0 % 3.0 % 6.1 % 40.9 % 31.8 % Monetisation 21.2 % 0.0 % 28.8 % 40.9 % 15.2 % Product Development 13.6 % 1.5 % 13.9 % 36.9 % 23.1 % Audience Engagement 21.5 % 4.6 % Sophisticated Advanced Emergent Nascent Seriously lagging Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey 24 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook In doing this, new publishers will be looking to develop in-house capabilities in the form of skills and products, especially in areas such as agentic AI,3 as well as continu- ing to develop relationships with platforms. There has been a recent flurry of activity in this space.4 As part of this end of year momentum, Google an- nounced5 in early December that it was partnering with companies such as the South Korean news agency Yonhap, the Associated Press and the Brazilian newspa- per Estadão, to incorporate real-time news and informa- tion directly into its Gemini app. The tech titan is also piloting new commercial partnerships to experiment with new features in Google News. Participants include Der Spiegel, El País, Infobae, Kompas, The Times of India, and The Washington Post. State of play: Search Search continues to be a critical but uneven and inconsis- tent driver of traffic for news publishers. In developed markets, there are a number of factors at play. Structural changes such as AI-powered snippets and chat bots, coupled with wider shifts in how audiences find and content, as well as on-going algorithm chang- es,6 are impacting referral traffic in terms of volume and clickthrough rates. In responses, publishers are prepar- ing for “Google Zero,” a world7 where traffic is no longer referred from Google Search to third-party sites. To appreciate the size of this shift, the BBC notes that “An estimated 68 % of internet activity starts on search engines and about 90 % of searches happen on Google.” “If the internet is a garden,” they wrote, “Google is the Sun that lets the flowers grow.” Not everyone, including Google, agrees with this progno- sis. The media commentator Simon Owens, for example, has argued9 that “Not all users who come to Google are looking to answer a quick question that can be addressed in a few short sentences.” “A huge portion of users come looking to conduct deeper research,” he adds, “and for that they’ll often seek out primary source material.” Besides,” he adds, “without that source material, all the LLMs will eventually become useless.” Nevertheless, these moves reinforce the importance of diversifying traffic sources (for example, looking more to platforms like Reddit, YouTube and TikTok), focusing further on direct relationships with audiences (through newsletters, subscriber only content and events), as well as doubling-down on distinctive content that provides the depth and engagement that AI cannot replicate. In the meantime, our data shows a highly divergent picture when it comes to the importance of Search, which continues to be an important route to eyeballs for pub- lishers, even if that importance varies and in some cases is waning. When looking at our global sample, just over four in ten respondents (41.2 %) said traffic from Search had in- creased in the past year. At the same time, over a third of participants (36.8 %) said that traffic levels had declined. One in five (22.1 %) reported no change year-on-year. Image via Google Image: Research8 from the Pew Research Center on how AI summaries on Google Search are shaping online behaviours https://journalists.org/resources/case-study-how-hearst-newspapers-built-an-ai-powered-slack-based-tool-to-help-with-digital-content-production/ https://pressgazette.co.uk/platforms/news-publisher-ai-deals-lawsuits-openai-google/ https://blog.google/products/search/tools-partnerships-web-ecosystem/ https://blog.google/products/search/tools-partnerships-web-ecosystem/ https://blog.google/products/search/tools-partnerships-web-ecosystem/ https://blog.google/products/search/tools-partnerships-web-ecosystem/ https://www.theverge.com/24167865/google-zero-search-crash-housefresh-ai-overviews-traffic-data-audience https://videos.brightedge.com/research-report/BrightEdge_ChannelReport2019_FINAL.pdf https://gs.statcounter.com/search-engine-market-share https://www.linkedin.com/in/simon-owens-77030514/ https://simonowens.substack.com/p/why-i-dont-believe-in-google-zero?utm_source=substack&publication_id=9873&post_id=169798632&utm_medium=email&utm_content=share&utm_campaign=email-share&isFreemail=true&r=1dxpm&triedRedirect=true https://blog.google/products/search/tools-partnerships-web-ecosystem/ https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2025/07/22/google-users-are-less-likely-to-click-on-links-when-an-ai-summary-appears-in-the-results/ 25World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook If we dig deeper, however, we find that search engines (primarily Google) are becoming less valuable for news publishers in developed markets, at the same as they become more important for referral traffic in developing countries. In developed markets, 41.9 % of respondents said that their organisation was losing traffic from search, while a third (32.3 %) said they had witnessed growth in refer- rals over the past year. This equation was reversed when we looked at developing markets. There almost half (48.7 %) reported that traffic from search had increased in the past year. Conversely, a third (32.4 %) told us they had witnessed declines. For publishers in developing markets, Search is still a growth opportunity. As more audiences come online, it’s likely that search is part of the how they discover the news. Some of these markets may also be less saturat- ed than in developed economies, allowing bigger news brands to punch through and continue to rank highly in search results. Overall, our data points to a polarising landscape where search remains a growth channel for many publishers in emerging markets but is becoming less reliable in mature ones. Responding to these differences is important for publishers, and reminds us that publishers can’t apply the same approach everywhere. Global strategies must respond to local needs and markets. There is no one size fits all solution, for Search, or any other business activity. State of play: Creators and the creator economy The relationship between traditional publishers and independent digital content creators is evolving rapid- ly.10 These moves reflect the rise of the Creator Economy, and the fragmentation of audiences, many of whom increasingly gravitate away from legacy news brands towards more independent, personality-led, propositions. Goldman and Sachs has previously11 predicted that the creator economy could roughly double in size to $480 billion by 2027, and that there are north of 50 million content creators worldwide. How has your traffic from search evolved compared to 12 months ago? 36.8 % 65.2 % 34.8 % Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey 61 % 39 % 64 % 36 %32.4 % 22.1 % 41.1 % 48.7 % 18.9 % 41.9 % 25.8 % 32.3 % Overall Developed Developing Reduced No change Increased https://digitalcontentnext.org/blog/2025/12/18/from-skepticism-to-strategy-media-adapts-to-the-creator-economy/ https://digitalcontentnext.org/blog/2025/12/18/from-skepticism-to-strategy-media-adapts-to-the-creator-economy/ https://www.goldmansachs.com/insights/articles/the-creator-economy-could-approach-half-a-trillion-dollars-by-2027 26 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook “We’re still at the beginning of this shift to online cre- ator-led media,” observed13 the Reuters Institute in a recent report covering news influencers in 24 different markets worldwide. “How it plays out will at least partly depend on the role platforms play in promoting valuable and useful content, the further development of business models to support these creators, and the continued interest of audiences around the world.” Alongside these factors, the responses of publishers may also matter. Decisions about whether and how news organisations engage with creator-led formats, through competition, collaboration, or adaptation, may further shape how this part of the news ecosystem evolves. Perhaps the biggest challenge for news publishers is to determine different partnership models, and ensuring that creator-led experimentation and other efforts are clearly aligned with editorial values and revenue strat- egies. Creator-led news formats are increasingly part of audience’s news and information habits, and this trends looks only set to continue. A minority of publishers (16.2 %) view creators and influ- encers as a threat, but this is not the predominant narra- tive. Instead, the majority (60.3 %) of our respondents see opportunities to collaborate with creators. Nearly a third of survey participants indicated that they see opportunities to identify creators, and to produce creator-like content from their own newsrooms. This means treating star journalists as internal creators, as more mainstream media outlets lean into “Personality- First Journalism.” Almost a quarter (23.5 %) of our sample told us that they hire creators directly to work with their news brands. In doing this, the U.S. based Local Media Association notes12 that “Influencers aren’t a replacement for a smart social or video strategy. They’re a supplement.” “If your newsroom doesn’t already have a short-form video strat- egy, don’t start with influencers,” they caution. “But once your foundation is set, influencers can serve as powerful amplifiers – with the right vetting, alignment, and clear goals.” How does your news organisation currently view or engage with news creators and influencers? Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey 39 % 64 % 36 % 16.2 % A threat 60.3 % Opportunity to collaborate 30.9 % Opportunity to identify creators from your newsroom 23.5 % Hire them for your brands 8.8 % Other https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/news-creators-influencers/2025/mapping-news-creators-and-influencers-social-and-video-networks https://localmedia.org/2025/05/what-newsrooms-need-to-know-about-collaborating-with-influencers/ 27World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook Publishers therefore have must not only engage with this sector, but also continue to learn from it, and the formats, editorial practices, distribution strategies, and audience relationships it has developed. State of play: Relationships with tech platforms At first glance, the relationship between publishers and tech platforms appears stable. More than half (54.3 %) of respondents say their relations with platforms haven’t changed over the past year. A further quarter (27.9 %) say that relationships have improved, with under one in five (17.8 %) saying that relationships have worsened. However, once again, we do see variances based on geography. In developed markets, platform-publisher relationships have essentially plateaued. Nearly two-thirds (62.8 %) report no change in these relationships over the past year, with just one in five noting improvements (18.8 %) and a similar number suggesting a decline (18.4 %). This sug- gests that publishers in mature markets are experiencing an element of stability, despite the upheavals of the AI- age and changes in algorithms and traffic referrals. Developing markets tell a very different story. Here, rela- tionships are far more fluid. Over a third (35.5 %) report improved relations in the past year, almost double the rate seen in developed economies. Yet, at the same time, only 47.1 % report stability. This difference may reflect ongoing investment from platforms in some developing markets, as they continue to grow their user base. In turn, this may offer more – or different – opportunities for partnerships. When we look beyond these aggregated figures to ex- amine specific platform categories, we see an even more pronounced range of relationships. Across nearly every major platform category except social media, publishers report weaker year-on-year relations in 2025 compared with 2024. In many cases, these declines are substantial. Publisher confidence in generative AI platforms dropped from 53.5 % to 44.4 %. Messaging platforms saw an even steep- er fall, from 47.8 % to 30.5 %. Relationships with podcast platforms declined from 39.3 % to 24.6 %, and those with cloud services from 40.9 % to 30.7 %. In the past year, how have relations with various tech platforms evolved in your respective country? Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey 64 % 36 % 27.9 % Overall 17.8 % 54.3 % 18.8 % Developed 18.4 % 35.5 % Developing 17.4 % 47.1 % Better No change Worse 62.8 % 28 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook These numbers point to an industry that has seen relationships with a number of tech players cool consid- erably over the course of the past year. The one bright spot is a modest increase in relationships with social media companies, as iden- tified by 25 % of our sample, up from 22.6 % in 2024. Breaking this down further still, we see that respon- dents in developing coun- tries cite better relationships with tech players than their developed world counter- parts. The exception is in relations with news aggre- gators, which fell even more than in developed markets. In the past year, how have relations with various tech platforms evolved in your respective country? % of respondents who say relations have improved 40.9 % 30.7 % Cloud Service 2024 2025 0 % 20 % 30 % 40 % Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey 31.0 % 24.6 % Digital Payment 23.8 % 24.5 %E-commerce 53.5 % 44.4 % Generative AI 47.8 % 30.5 %Messaging 27.6 % 21.6 % News Aggregators 27.8 % 19.4 % Online Advertising 39.3 % 24.6 %Podcast 10 % 29.0 % 24.6 % Search Engines 22.6 % 25.0 %Social Media 42.7 % 37.1 %Video 29World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook In the past year, how have relations with various tech platforms evolved in your respective country? % of respondents who say relations have improved 0 % 20 % 30 % 40 % Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey 10 % 13.8 %Social Media 25.0 % 34.3 % Overall Developed Countries Developing Countries 16.7 % Search Engines 24.6 % 31.4 % 34.5 % Generative AI 44.4 % 52.9 % 20.7 %Video 37.1 % 51.5 % 13.8 %Podcast 24.6 % 34.4 % 12.5 %E-commerce 24.5 % 34.5 % 15.4 %Messaging 30.5 % 42.4 % 21.4 % Cloud Service 30.7 % 38.2 % 10.7 % Online Advertising 19.4 % 26.5 % 32.0 % News Aggregators 21.6 % 11.5 % 15.4 % Digital Payment 24.6 % 32.3 % 50 % 30 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook This apparent near collapse in aggregator relations over the past year stems from major and ongoing tensions between these two parties. Issues contributing to this picture include traffic declines, algorithmic changes and revenue partnership models. As a result, our survey data suggests that for many publishers, aggregators are deliv- ering diminishing returns, both financially and in terms of traffic. This is reflected in a staggering net sentiment of -64.7 %, by far the steepest decline across all platform categories that we surveyed. Outside of this, when analysing platform sentiments in more detail, it’s noticeable that some of the newer dynamics – such as those associated with Generative AI, video platforms, cloud services, and messaging apps – tend to show a net positive. In contrast, sentiment has declined the most in areas where relationships have arguably been in place for longer. 0 % 24.5 % 30.7 % 24.6 % 24.6 % 37.1 % 30.5 % 19.4 % 24.6 % 25.0 % 21.6 % 44.4 % -25 % 25 % 50 % -50 % -75 % -3.8 % -4.8 % -4.9 % -5.3 % -6.5 % -6.8 % -17.5 % -19.4 % -29.2 % -32.8 % -64.7 % Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey In the past year, how have relations with various tech platforms evolved in your respective country? % of respondents who reported improved vs. worsened relations Social Media Search EnginesGenerative AI Video Podcast E-commerce Messaging Cloud Servic e Online Advertisi ng News Aggregators Digital Payment 31World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Business Outlook Search engines register a net sentiment of -29.2 %, meaning that more publishers report worsening relations than improving ones. Social media platforms, despite an upward curve in confidence levels across our whole sample, still show net negative sentiment of -32.8 %. Online advertising platforms register -19.4 %, the same percentage as those who indicated that relationships had improved, reflecting continued instability in ad markets, as reflected in our section on Revenues (Chapter 2). Overall, what emerges from this data is a series of depen- dent, yet strained, relationships. Publishers know that they need these platforms to reach audiences and gener- ate revenue. However, they also tell us that in many cases these relationships are deteriorating. This tension is most pronounced in areas where publishers are most familiar, relationships with platforms related search, distribution on social networks, advertising revenues, and third party news aggregators. Offsetting this by building effective relationships with newer platforms and verticals will take time. But if relationships with traditional platform providers (we recognise that some of these newer activities are in space owned by the same companies) then this may just encourage publishers to accelerate the moves that are already underway to engage with audiences in new ways, and double-down on their efforts to monetise these moves. The publisher-platform relationship has long been a complicated and complex one. If our data shows us any- thing, it’s that this fragile state of affairs only looks set to continue. This chapter explores how revenue strategies are continuing to change and evolve. These dynamics include a continued concentration on diversification, manifested in the growth of digital, the declining – yet ongoing – significance of print, as well as moves to grow ancillary revenue streams in areas such as events, licensing and e-commerce. Revenue Trends Chapter 2 32 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends 33World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends The big picture While print remains the largest single revenue source at 43.6%, the balance is shifting as digital income (31%) and other streams increasingly dominate the total financial mix. Based on our survey data, digital revenues, when com- bined with monies from “other” sources such as events and licensing, are responsible for 56.4 % of publisher’s total revenues. With “other” sources accounting for 25.4 % of publish- er revenues in 2025, this finding demonstrates how a blend of digital and other income streams are increas- ingly the financial reality for a growing number of news organisations. As we enter the second half of the decade, publishers are increasingly gravitating away from print and becom- ing digitally-led, with their finances following suit. The financial pillars of reader revenue, data-driven digital advertising, and diversified income streams, are increas- ingly the norm for many media companies. That said, as we have cautioned in previous years, print’s impact and value should not be ignored. Print circulation is the second-largest individual source of income for our survey respondents. It is still worth almost a quarter (22.4 %) of all revenue, though this percentage continues to decline. Print advertising not only remains considerably more profitable on a per reader basis, based on the experience of our survey participants, print advertising also con- tinues to bring in more monies than digital advertising (21.2 % vs. 17 %). Outside of these two strands (advertising and subscrip- tions), revenues from other sources continue to be core to the financial health of many publishers. Once again, these revenues are worth around a quarter of income for news publishers (25.4 % in 2025 and. 23.8 % in 2024), showing how integral they are for many outlets. As a result, many publishers are persisting in efforts to nur- ture and expand these secondary income streams, given their continued contribution to the financial picture of many organisations. Preparing for the post-print era In recent years, monies from print circulation and print advertising, traditionally the two biggest revenue pillars for publishers, have both steadily declined. Just four years ago, print circulation represented 25.9 % of revenues among our survey respondents. This had dropped slightly to 22.4 % by 2025. Over the same period, print advertising dropped from 30.3 % to 21.2 % of pub- lisher revenues. Taken together, that’s a 12.6 % decline of overall revenues coming from print in four years, demon- strating that while these monies remain important, it is incumbent on publishers to move away from a reliance on print, while - at the same time - also seeking to pre- serve this income stream for as long as possible. This shift from print has been driven by both advertising revenues and reader attention moving online. Looking at readership alone, global print newspaper and magazine readership has fallen sharply from 2.1 billion in 2017 to 1.4 billion in 2025. This audience is expected to fall further still to just 1.1 billion by 2030, suggests14 Statista Market Insights. Other Sources 25.4 % Print Advertising 21.2 % Digital Advertising 17.0 % What percentage of your total revenue comes from the following sources? Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey Print Circulation 22.4 % Digital Circulation 14.0 % https://www.statista.com/chart/35520/estimated-print-advertising-revenue-in-the-us/ 34 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends Yet, at the same time, data from WARC finds15 that spend- ing on news brands worldwide has dropped 33.1 % since 2019. It’s still a $32.3 billion market, but that is a major fall. As WARC’s researchers put it: “The advertising industry has a breaking news problem. Today’s abundance of hard news stories – from trade wars to armed conflicts – draw audiences but not ad dollars to content publishers and broadcasters.” These moves continue to echo trends that we have seen in previous years, with global advertising spend continuing to swell, while news publishers’ shares of these spoils continue to diminish. Print advertising was forecast to fall -3.1% in 2025, WPP projected,16 to $45.5 billion. At the same time, global advertising grew at an anticipated 6 % in 2025, with total 2025 ad revenue reaching $1.08 trillion. Within this, dig- ital was expected to account for 73.2 % of global ad reve- nue in 2025. This rises to 81.6 % when “digital extensions” such as streaming TV, Digital Out Of Home (DOOH), and digital print are included.   And, as if to pour salt into the wounds, more than half of content-driven advertising revenue was expected to come from platforms like TikTok, YouTube, Kuaishou, and Instagram Reels in 2025. In contrast, digital readership continues to grow, primar- ily driven by adoption of smartphones. This audience has risen from 900 million in 2017 to an estimated 1.4 billion in 2025. By the end of the decade online readership is projected to hit 1.7 billion in 2030. And advertising bud- gets have, naturally, followed suit. Image via Statista Image via WARC https://www.warc.com/SubscriberContent/article/global-ad-trends-advertisings-breaking-news-problem/en-gb/en-GB/159999? https://www.wppmedia.com/news/tyny-midyear-2025 https://www.statista.com/chart/35520/estimated-print-advertising-revenue-in-the-us/ https://www.warc.com/SubscriberContent/article/global-ad-trends-advertisings-breaking-news-problem/en-gb/en-GB/159999? 35World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends Classifying these channels as “creator-generated reve- nue,” WPP predicted these revenues would hit $184.9 billion in 2025, up 20 percent from 2024. Furthermore, by 2030, they expect this to more than double to $376.6 billion, accentuating the challenge faced by traditional publishers to access advertising dollars. Bringing this back to print, jointly, total income from print dropped from 56.2 % of overall revenues among our survey participants in 2021 to 43.6 % in 2025. That’s a 22.4 % decline (shown as a percentage decrease) in under half a decade. Put another way, it’s a 12.6 % drop as a share of total revenues. Whatever way you look at it, the rapid erosion of print revenues for most publishers has been noticeable; and as we have known for some time, digital advertising is never going to be a like-for-like replacement, making the need for revenue diversification an on-going strategic imperative. As a result of print’s decline, American news outlets such as The Atlanta Journal-Constitution (AJC) and the Portland Tribune have announced moves to become online-only publications.17 “Relying on printing presses and delivery trucks to distribute the news simply isn’t the best way for the AJC to serve you anymore,” wrote18 Andrew Morse, AJC’s President and Publisher, in a note to subscribers. The decision by AJC to become a digital-only outlet came 157 years after the paper first started and followed double-digit digital subscriber growth and investments in areas such as product development, engineering, data, marketing, and newsroom modernisation. Meanwhile, the UK-based B2B travel trade magazine TTG revealed in October that it was to close its print edition after 72 years. According19 to Press Gazette, print brings in about 15 % of the company’s revenue, with digi- tal (45 %) and events (40 %) contributing the lion’s share of their income. These moves, and others like them around the world,20 highlight how some news publishers are navigating print’s decline, by pivoting to other ventures, both in terms of revenue streams as well as routes to eyeballs. Images via Statista Screenshot via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution https://www.ajc.com/opinion/2025/08/a-new-chapter-for-the-ajc/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/andrew-morse-476b9324/ https://pressgazette.co.uk/publishers/b2b/travel-magazine-ttg-closes-print-title-to-focus-on-digital-and-events-growth/ https://www.statista.com/outlook/amo/advertising/print-advertising/worldwide https://www.ajc.com/about-us/2025/08/the-atlanta-journal-constitution-to-become-exclusively-digital-in-january-2026/ 36 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends Digital reader revenue In contrast to the uneven picture seen across revenues from print, among our survey sample, we continue to see a consistent growth in income from digital sources. Digital circulation grew consistently from 9 % in 2021, to 14 % in 2025, a percentage increase of 55.6 % in under five years, underscoring its strategic importance for news publishers. For many news outlets, the cornerstone of these efforts are the recurring reader revenues that come from digital subscriptions. Across our sample, just under six in 10 news organisations (58.5 %) now offer a digital subscrip- tion, rising to more than seven in 10 outlets (72.9 %) in developed markets. Efforts to garner and maintain subscribers continue to grow more sophisticated, as AI technologies support efforts to reduce churn and publishers embrace the need to avoid a “one size fits all” approach. Le Monde, for example, has introduced tailored offers based on data analysis and subscriber behaviours so that subscription offers reflect different user profiles and price sensitivities. Subsequently, “we’ve seen a 10 percent increase in digital subscriptions alongside a 12 percent rise in revenue,” Flavia Barbosa Ferreira, Head of Marketing Retention at Le Monde, said24 at WAN-IFRA’s annual World News Media Congress in Krakow. More widely, although some of the biggest news sites in the world continue to see an uptick in digital subscrib- ers – data from Press Gazette25 earlier in 2025 pointed to growth of 13 % at the 50 leading paywalled news publish- ers in the world – for others the going is a little tougher. As the latest Digital News Report26 put it, “In most coun- tries we find traditional news media struggling to con- nect with much of the public, with declining engagement, low trust, and stagnating digital subscriptions.” Reflecting on a sample of ongoing subscription levels in 20 different (mostly western) countries, they recounted that these numbers had more than doubled in the past decade. This growth has leveled off and “looks to have hit a ceiling.” “Publishers have already signed up many of those prepared to pay,” the authors wrote, “and in a tight economic climate it has been hard to persuade others to do the same.” This rate of change and the shift away from print con- sumption and revenues varies on a market by market basis, with some places such as India bucking the trend. In the first half of 2025, a number of both English and Hindi dailies recorded a growth in circulation.21 The website Adgully, which is based in Mumbai, has point- ed to innovations across India’s print sector that have helped with this endurability, although many of these ideas (such as “cross-media strategies, integrated print with digital offerings, and … hyper-local and regional editions”) are not unique to the sub-continent, and have not necessarily seen the same results elsewhere. Perhaps more strikingly, the site notes22 that “industry experts point to a growing perception of print as a trust- worthy and less cluttered medium in an era dominated by digital misinformation.” “Newspapers,” they write, “by virtue of their editorial standards and verification mechanisms, continue to enjoy high credibility among readers – a factor that increasingly differentiates them in the media ecosystem.” These factors are not necessarily unique to India. Media Voices’ Peter Houston authored a report, Inside the Print Revival,23 which examined the resurgence of print magazines, arguing that print is “thriving, adapting to fit growing audience demand for premium products that deliver curated, collectible experiences in direct con- trast to digital’s endless scroll.” By the same token, San Francisco-based Palladium Magazine has contended that “The printed page is not obsolete, but the antidote to an increasingly ephemeral, frenetic, and exploitative online reading experience.” These examples show that there is still life in print, and some publishers are finding the medium more resilient than others. However, arguably, these are the exceptions, rather than the rule. For most media companies, print continues to be an important part of their portfolio, but it’s also one that is typically offering diminishing returns year-on-year. https://www.linkedin.com/in/flavia-barbosa-ferreira-49707bb2/?originalSubdomain=fr https://wan-ifra.org/2025/05/le-mondes-smart-pricing-drives-10-subscription-growth/ https://wan-ifra.org/events/world-news-media-congress-2025/?pagetype=programme https://pressgazette.co.uk/paywalls/digital-subscribers-100k-club-ranking-worlds-biggest-paywalled-news-publishers-2025/ https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/digital-news-report/2025 https://indianexpress.com/article/india/2-77-jump-in-newspaper-circulation-for-jan-june-period-this-year-abc-10244858/ https://www.adgully.com/post/6378/print-media-holds-strong-times-of-india-dainik-bhaskar-lead-as-circulation-grows-in-h1-2025 https://www.linkedin.com/in/phousty/ https://voices.media/printrevival/ https://voices.media/printrevival/ https://letter.palladiummag.com/p/why-we-launched-the-print-renaissance 37World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends In response, it is imperative for publishers to innovate, offering fresh packages and mechanisms to entice audi- ences into taking out subscriptions. Bundling27 offers one such route, combining in-country and global content from the same stable, or as a result of content-sharing partnerships. News Corp brought togeth- er28 three of its best-known publications in October 2025, enabling subscribers of The Australian to also be able to access The Times of London and The Wall Street Journal. A number of European publishers have partnered29 with The New York Times to offer their subscribers access to the NYT’s suite of content. Partners include Politiken in Denmark, El País in Spain, Italy’s Corriere della Sera and The Irish Times (Ireland), as well as Le Monde.30 The Gray Lady has also continued to expand its partnerships with other U.S. publishers.31 Does your organisation have some form of ... 0 % 20 % 40 % Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey 60 % 66.7 % 33.3 % 80 % Overall Developed Developing Digital Subscription Membership Contribution Micropayments 58.5 % 72.9 % 44.1 % 25.6 % 15.3 % 36.2 % 18.8 % 15.3 % 22.4 % Image via Mediaweek https://wan-ifra.org/2025/10/publishers-roll-out-bundle-initiatives-to-boost-digital-subscriptions/ https://www.mediaweek.com.au/the-australian-joins-forces-with-wsj-and-the-times-in-global-news-bundle/ https://www.mediaweek.com.au/the-australian-joins-forces-with-wsj-and-the-times-in-global-news-bundle/ https://www.niemanlab.org/2025/03/new-york-times-bundles-gives-european-publishers-a-subscription-boost/ https://www.niemanlab.org/2025/07/publishers-like-the-philadelphia-inquirer-are-bundling-new-york-times-content-into-their-subscriptions/ https://www.niemanlab.org/2025/07/publishers-like-the-philadelphia-inquirer-are-bundling-new-york-times-content-into-their-subscriptions/ https://www.mediaweek.com.au/the-australian-joins-forces-with-wsj-and-the-times-in-global-news-bundle/ 38 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends And some publishers have determined that subscriptions don’t necessarily work for them. Frontier Fintech Newsletter, which covers the African Fintech industry, decided35 in September to drop the pay- wall on its Substack, recognising that it only contributed about 10 % of their revenues, with the remaining 90 % coming from sponsorships and advisory work.36 “A paywall also slows audience growth,” reasoned CEO and Founder Samora Kariuki. “From our analytics, roughly 1 in 10 people who click “Subscribe” end up actually subscribing – they drop off once they see the different paid options. That significantly throttles growth and therefore the reach of both the media and advisory business.” Meanwhile, reflecting on the experience of media in Zimbabwe but with lessons for companies in other devel- oping markets, Internews has pointed37 to factors such as economic hardship, as well as low levels of digital literacy and limited internet access in rural areas, as barriers to building digital subscription revenues. Alongside this and again echoing sentiments applicable in other countries around the world, “Many Zimbabweans remain unwilling to pay unless the content offers unique, exclusive value,” they note, “and the prevalence of free news on social media further complicates the viability of paywalls.” Against this backdrop, membership models can offer a potential remedy. They exist worldwide, but are more established among our survey participants in developing markets (36.2 % vs 15.3 %). The South African publisher Daily Maverick is perhaps the poster child for these types of membership models, with 40 % of its revenues38 generated by member-driv- en support. The South African publisher has a high customer lifetime value, Styli Charalambous, the Daily Maverick’s co-founder, CEO and publisher told39 Pugpig, in late-2024, because “after three years, 85 % of people who start as a member are still there.” Fanpage.it, “the Italian website that went from gossip to award-winning scoops,” as The Guardian described it in a 2022 profile,40 blends the language of subscription and membership models, by referring to its subscribers as “Supporters.” Alongside these moves, the Times has also launched a family subscription32 option called the “All Access Family”. This allows up to four individual users to share one subscription, each with their own login and per sonalised experience. Others, perhaps, take a slightly more contrarian view, wrapped up in traditional and other cultural consider- ations.33 In Japan,34 the Yomiuri Shimbun, the newspaper with the highest circulation in the world, continues to only offer digital access to print subscribers. Screenshot via Facebook Image via Substack https://frontierfintech.substack.com/p/were-removing-the-paywall https://www.canva.com/design/DAGrXHcM2rQ/OLDcxrN4kEwo23BhZZo-sw/view?utm_content=DAGrXHcM2rQ&utm_campaign=designshare&utm_medium=link2&utm_source=uniquelinks&utlId=h3dc74cc63f https://www.linkedin.com/in/samorakariuki/ https://internews.org/blog/emerging-revenue-strategies-for-independent-news-organizations-in-africa/ https://fatchillimedia.com/299/how-data-driven-strategies-helped-daily-maverick-grow-membership-to-40-of-their-revenue/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/stylicharalambous/ https://www.pugpig.com/2024/11/15/how-daily-mavericks-membership-model-delivers-higher-ltv/ https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/jan/10/fanpage-the-italian-website-that-went-from-gossip-to-award-winning-scoops https://www.nytimes.com/subscription/family https://www.facebook.com/irishtimes/videos/913223030646840/ https://frontierfintech.substack.com/ 39World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends Supporters can pay for a monthly or annual package, which allows them access to exclusive content including newsletters and podcasts, as well as an ad-free expe- rience on their app and website, and priority access to online and in-person events. The rest of their content is available for free, which – in line with the public media model in the United States – is promoted as something that Supporters make possible. Other strategies to note include the increasing importance placed on Games as well as continued interest in micropayments and their feasibility (and reliability) as an income source. Games have long been seen as a potential gateway for audi- ences to news content. In some instances, they can also operate as mechanisms for standalone subscriptions. The German news outlet Der Spiegel has an average 900,000 users41 playing daily news quizzes, with the link to its puzzles being the most clicked-on link in their morning newsletter. The Dutch public broadcaster NOS published42 its own game on Roblox, an online gaming plat- form popular with children and teens. The game features a virtual studio where children can par- ticipate in news quizzes and play at being reporters. And across the pond, in another initiative designed to broaden access and encourage younger audiences to engage with the news, The Atlantic has made its online journalism and archive freely available43 to every public high school in the United States. Micropayments continue to remain a niche approach overall (18.8 %), though adoption is slightly higher in developing regions (22.4 %) than in developed ones (15.3 %). Part of the reason for this is the success, and habit, of micropayments in areas such as Africa and Eastern Europe in other sectors. However, many publishers still prioritise recurring subscription revenue over micropay- ments, seeing more value in steady (and more predictable and sizeable) subscriber income. In June, Google launched44 Offerwall, a new tool being tested by more than 1,000 publishers, which offers audi- ences a range of ways to gain access to content. “People might decide to watch a short ad, complete a quick survey or pay in micro payment,” they noted in a blog post, arguing that the tool “gives publishers more options to monetise” as well as giving audience greater opportunities and flexibility to access media online. Screenshot, auto-translated from Italian, via fanpage.it https://wan-ifra.org/2025/05/how-germanys-der-spiegel-uses-games-comments-to-boost-engagement/ https://reutersinstitute.politics.ox.ac.uk/digital-news-report/2025/netherlands https://www.theatlantic.com/press-releases/archive/2025/09/atlantic-gives-free-digital-access-high-schools/684221/ https://blog.google/products/ads-commerce/offerwall-gives-publishers-more-options-audiences-more-control/ https://join.fanpage.it/abbonamento 40 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends As a result, in 2023, based on our survey sample, digital advertising was worth just 9.5 % of publisher revenues, down from 18.9 % the year before. Since then, news com- panies have slowly clawed back these monies through a combination of tactics such as improved data strategies, first-party targeting, and platform diversification. Subsequently, after a digital advertising annus horribilis in 2023, income from digital advertising rebounded to be worth 15.8 % of publisher’s total income in 2024 and 17 % in 2025. Nevertheless, despite this growth these revenues are not keeping up with the wider advance of digital advertising, much of which continues to flow to big tech, rather than publishers. As WARC observed46 in late-September, “Though ad spend growth is strong, 90 % of that growth goes to online platforms.” Within this, WARC’s data found that over half (55.8 %) of total advertising spent outside of China goes to Meta, Alphabet and Amazon, a figure they anticipate will “top” 60 % by 2030. Whether this will encourage more outlets, and consum- ers, to embrace micropayments remains to be seen. But, for now, it’s worth noting that publishers and platforms alike are both continuing to try and crack the micropayment nut. This is unlikely to replace wider efforts to grow more lucrative subscription revenues, but micropayments are also a concept that the industry doesn’t appear to be willing to fully write off just yet. Digital advertising As we have seen, there are positive signs for many pub- lishers when it comes to digital subscriptions and reader revenue. At the same time, digital advertising has been a more precarious income source for publishers. Revenues from digital advertising has proven to be un- predictable, as many advertisers continue to direct their dollars towards major platforms and emerging sectors like retail media and growing channels like connected TVs (CTV). Trends in revenue sources, 2021 to 2025 0 % 10 % 20 % Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey 30 % 40 % Print Circulation Print Advertising Digital Circulation Digital Advertisement Others 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 31 % 29 % 32 % 21 % 21 % 26 % 25 % 26 % 24 % 22 % 13 % 17 % 19 % 25 % 22 % 19 % 9 % 16 % 17 % 9 % 11 % 14 % 16 % 14 % https://www.warc.com/content/feed/global-ad-growth-forecasts-upgraded-on-social-media-windfall/10987 41World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends “This means that legacy media owners – even those with online properties in their portfolios – are competing over the course of the year for the equivalent of what Facebook makes in an average month,” they said. Some publishers report only “ad revenue” broadly (print + digital combined), so it can be difficult to isolate the dig- ital component without company disclosures. However, where this can be discerned, growth in advertising rev- enues can often be attributed to new products, bundling, and direct audience relationships, as well as investment in new apps, websites and digital video formats.47 The ability to sell inventory around these initiatives, especially those that are seeing a major upswing in users, offers a viable means for publishers to grow their digital. Furthermore, the use of AI for content repurposing (e.g., audio versions of articles, automated video snippets) is also creating opportunities for increased engagement and the creation of additional spaces to sell advertising. Alongside these moves, publishers are also investing in their tech stack, in a bid to serve better ads and meet their needs of their advertisers, ForbesOne,48 for example, is Forbes’ proprietary first- party data platform that leverages audience insights from across its ecosystem to create targeted segments for advertisers. ForbesOne uses interactive touchpoints like website behavior, newsletter subscriptions, event attendance, and zero-party data (e.g., self-reported job titles) from 70+ datasets and 600+ data points, to build data-rich audience profiles, reaching about 40 % of Forbes’ 135 million monthly users worldwide. Other publishers, like Mediahuis’ Netherlands operation are endeavoring to build their first-party data capabili- ties by building a “cookie wall” in response to the users rejecting the ability for sites to serve cookies, which in turn can have a hugely detrimental impact on advertis- ing revenues. “Approaches to cookie walls differ,” notes49 WAN-IFRA’s Kevin Anderson. ”Some ask users to pay, and others offer options that include registration, which offers up the opportunity for publishers to gain first-par- ty data about those users.” Collectively, this blend of new products, data and tech- nology, are being harnessed to grow digital advertising revenues, and we can expect to see publishers continue to prioritise investment and development of these areas in the years to come. Image via WARC Image via Forbes https://digiday.com/media/media-briefing-publishers-turn-to-vertical-video-to-compete-with-creators-and-grow-ad-revenue-in-2026/ https://www.forbes.com/connect/forbesone/ https://wan-ifra.org/2025/05/how-optimising-your-tech-stack-can-drive-higher-digital-advertising-returns/ https://www.linkedin.com/in/kranderson/ https://www.warc.com/content/feed/global-ad-growth-forecasts-upgraded-on-social-media-windfall/10987 https://www.forbes.com/sites/jessicasibley/2021/02/16/introducing-forbesone-a-new-era-of-innovation-and-engagement-for-our-audience-and-marketing-partners/ 42 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends When it comes to secondary income sources, it is clear that many publishers (32.2 % of our sample) continue to place their faith in the financial possibilities afforded by events. These offer both opportunities to deepen relationships with audiences, as well as secure commercial returns through sponsorships and ticket sales. And, of course, these initiatives can also be tied into content, creating opportunities for event-specific coverage. One recent exemplar, honoured in WAN-IFRA’s 2025 Digital Media Awards Worldwide, is The Hindu’s Made of Chennai campaign, which the judges note 50 “delivered a fully integrated, 360-degree experience through a mix of print, digital, social media, video, radio, ambient media, and on-ground events, connecting meaningfully with a wide range of audiences.” Across a 40-day celebration commemorating the city’s 385th birthday, the campaign featured a whole range of different experiences, cap- turing and celebrating the soul of the city, while bring- ing people together through culture, food, music, and shared pride. A third iteration took place in August and September 2025, around Madras Month. Other revenues In addition to the twin pillars of print and digital, pub- lishers continue to invest in efforts to create supplemen- tary revenue streams by tapping into opportunities in areas such as events, content services, philanthropy, and e-commerce. This is also an area that our data suggests has experi- enced some volatility and capriciousness in terms of specific revenue sources. But, taken as a whole, monies from sources other than advertising and subscriptions has rapidly grown in importance for publishers over the past five years. Combined revenues from these “other” sources grew substantially from 13.2 % in 2021, steadily ticking upwards to being worth 25.4 % of total publisher revenues in 2025. This demonstrates how events, partnerships with plat- forms, B2B services and other activities are increasingly hard-wired into the revenue and operational strategies of news publishers. They are already a cornerstone of many publishers’ monetisation strategies, and this will only continue. The era of the three-pillar model What percentage of your total revenue comes from the following sources? 0 % 20 % 40 % Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey 60 % Print Digital Other 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025 30.7 % 29.9 % 23.6 % 31.7 % 31.0 % 56.2 % 53.4 % 57.7 % 44.6 % 43.6 % 13.2 % 16.7 % 18.8 % 23.8 % 25.4 % https://wan-ifra.org/events/digital-media-awards-worldwide/?pagetype=programme 43World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends 7.8 % 11.7 % 16.1 % 16.1 % Partnerships with platforms (cited by 16.1 %) also contin- ue to be important for both surfacing content and poten- tially being renumerated for it. In the past year, OpenAI has partnered with major western publishers such as Schibsted Media Group,51 Axios and the Guardian Media Group. Meanwhile, Meta announced52 towards the end of 2025 that it would be partnering with a wide range of American media outlets from across the political spec- trum, including USA Today, People Inc., CNN, Fox News, The Daily Caller, Washington Examiner, as well as Le Monde. Content from these partners will be served to audiences if they pose news-related questions in Meta AI, which will include linking out to articles. Another tech titan, Amazon, agreed a deal53 with The New York Times Company earlier in the year, enabling it to license the NYTC’s content for use across Amazon’s AI tools. The Wall Street Journal reported54 that the deal was worth at least $20 million a year. For publishers, announcements of these deals highlight how they can potentially offer a means for attribution, protection of intellectual property and the ability to reach new audiences on platforms like ChatGPT. Apart from advertising and reader revenue, which of the following are your three most important revenue sources in 2025? None (no additional sources anticipated) 0 % 20 % 30 % 40 % Other (miscellaneous sources) 7.2 % Data (selling or monetising user data) Business services (e.g. consultancy, training) Licensing of content 8.9 % Business transactions E-commerce 32.2 % Membership 10 % Grant funding Partnerships with platforms 11.1 % B2B services content 1.7 % 3.3 % 7.2 % 7.2 % Source: World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 survey Events https://openai.com/index/openai-partners-with-schibsted-media-group/ https://openai.com/index/openai-and-guardian-media-group-launch-content-partnership/ https://openai.com/index/openai-and-guardian-media-group-launch-content-partnership/ https://about.fb.com/news/2025/12/bringing-more-real-time-news-and-content-to-meta-ai/ https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/29/business/media/new-york-times-amazon-ai-licensing.html https://www.wsj.com/business/media/amazon-to-pay-new-york-times-at-least-20-million-a-year-in-ai-deal-66db8503?gaa_at=eafs&gaa_n=AWEtsqeBEr3SlgiJO8sgQ397pea8O663P5xyBhsTrszOAQKtdhQBo4EFY41E66vi77A%3D&gaa_ts=693b970c&gaa_sig=jrn4VLPV2up_FL0rYUeVhfr-MQMCcr04P5zQGuOpWyXkxaWPz94eCF_TczTPsiI9rxesBHHJjF7lvwYpCi5Gcg%3D%3D 44 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends Alongside this, partnerships can also help to unlock re- sources to expand operations. At the start of 2025, Open AI shared55 that as a result of a new content partnership Axios would be expanding its local news brand into four new cities in the USA. Nieman Lab reported56 that these new ventures would take the number of Axios Local sites to 34, and that the funding for the four new newsrooms was for three years. “If OpenAI stops funding after three years, Axios plans to continue those four newsrooms,” they wrote, quoting Axios CEO Jim VandeHei who told them that “It takes about three years to get near or to profitability and we will be selling ads to buyers from [the] get-go.” In a similar vein, grant funding is also expected to play a significant role, although not for every publisher. Just over one in 10 (11.7 %) of our sample pointed to this being a priority revenue stream in the year ahead. These funds can support the development and maintenance of specific beats, training, development, as well as operational costs. These funding sources – events, partnerships and grant funding – lie just ahead of areas such as memberships (11.1 %), e-commerce (8.9 %), and business services (7.2 %) as the most popular sources of secondary revenue streams. Among our sample, only 1.7 % of respondents indicated they did not foresee any alternative sources, suggesting that they are perhaps already quite diversified, or that they are unable to see the path to diversification. Whatever the answer, this small percentage of survey participants are outliers. For most news publishers the need for multiple revenue streams has long been a reality, and this looks set to continue to be a strategic priority for new organisations in 2026 and beyond. Image via Made of Chennai https://openai.com/index/partnering-with-axios-expands-openai-work-with-the-news-industry/ https://www.niemanlab.org/2025/01/openai-will-fund-four-axios-local-newsrooms-as-part-of-a-broader-partnership-focused-on-juicing-local-news/ https://madeofchennai.thehindu.com/ 45World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Revenue Trends WAN-IFRA Reports Access to an array of knowledge Just visit our microsite at: www.wan-ifra.org/insights 46 World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026 Report partner content Multimodality is redefining the newsroom At its core, the multimedia hybrid represents a funda- mental shift in how most newsrooms operate around con- tent creation today. It moves beyond the siloed operations of the past—where print, broadcast, and digital teams worked in isolation—toward a unified ecosystem. In a hybrid newsroom, the team thinks in multiple ex- pressions from the outset. A story is not just a text article that is later “repurposed” for video or social. Instead, every story has multiple lives already from the state of planning. Every asset is reusable. Every team works in real-time contact with others. Crucially, in this environment, AI acts as a built-in co-creator across operations, not an additional add-on. With 93% of publishers identifying AI and automation as a top investment priority. It is time to move out of the experimental stage. From a multimedia hybrid perspec- tive, this means that AI must be managed, traceable, and integrated into every phase of the editorial workflow— from planning to distribution. The global news publishing industry finds itself at a crit- ical turning point. According to the World Press Trends Outlook 2025-2026, confidence among media leaders has strengthened for the third consecutive year, with over 65% of executives optimistic about their business pros- pects over the next three years. This resilience is remark- able given the headwinds of declining print revenues and the disruption of AI. However, this optimism is not born of inertia; it is born of mindsets willing to transform. As publishers navigate a landscape where print revenues have dropped to 43.6% of the total mix, and digital combined with “other” reve- nue streams now accounts for over 56%, the traditional, linear workflows of the past are no longer sufficient. At Stibo DX, we experience this as the industry entering the era of the multimedia hybrid. For the modern media executive, the multimedia hybrid is not simply a buzzword, but the editorial reflection of enterprise consolidation. It is the answer to the critical question: How do you create compelling, multi-format stories efficiently while securing the financial sustain- ability of your newsroom? The multimedia hybrid becomes a strategic response to media convergence Report partner content – By Stibo DX https://www.stibodx.