CNN Philippines, Sky Cable and more legacy media outlets struggle in the digital media age
EDITORIAL
The digital age has brought about a significant shift in the media landscape, and many legacy media outlets are struggling to adapt to the changing times.
SIGNING OFF: CNN PHILIPPINES and SKY CABLE
CNN Philippines has recently announced that it will be shutting down its news and production operations on all media platforms effective January 31, 2024. The decision comes after the company sustained significant financial losses over the past years, despite rigorous efforts to adapt and innovate in a rapidly evolving and challenging media landscape.
Similarly, Sky Cable, a subsidiary of ABS-CBN Corporation, is also set to shut down on February 26, 2024, amid its financial woes. The closure of these media outlets is a grim reminder of the current state of the media industry, especially legacy media, which for many years now has attempted to find solutions to become sustainable in the internet age, to little or no avail.
In the United States, Sports Illustrated, a popular sports magazine, has also struggled to keep up with the digital media age. The magazine has been forced to lay off staff and reduce its print publication frequency due to declining revenues. The magazine’s parent company, Authentic Brands Group, has also been exploring a potential sale of the magazine.
The struggles of these media outlets are indicative of the challenges that legacy media companies face in the digital age. With the rise of social media and digital platforms, traditional media outlets have had to compete with new players in the market, who have been able to leverage technology to reach a wider audience. While some legacy media outlets have been able to adapt and thrive in the digital age, others have struggled to keep up, leading to closures and layoffs.
THE ABS-CBN PIVOT
ABS-CBN, a Philippine media conglomerate, has been able to pivot and become a big force in content creation in the digital media age despite losing its broadcast franchise. The company has been able to achieve this by focusing on its digital presence and becoming primarily a content company.
After the non-renewal of its broadcast franchise in 2020, ABS-CBN accelerated its digital shift and continued to create new shows and films during the pandemic. The company has been able to widen its digital footprint and serve audiences worldwide as a content company.
ABS-CBN’s Kapamilya Online Live on YouTube and Facebook register up to 15 million views a day. The company has also partnered with other digital platforms such as WeTV, iFlix, Netflix, Kumu, Spotify, and PDN to reach more people from all over the world and promote Filipino talent on the global stage.
ABS-CBN’s Entertainment channel is the largest in Southeast Asia with 36.4 million subscribers. The company has also been producing made-for-digital video stories, podcasts, and recently launched its official account on TikTok. ABS-CBN News has also made great strides in its digital transformation to reach more audiences online and around the globe. ABS-CBN News Digital generated 1.1 billion page views and attracted more than 220 million active users amid the challenges in 2020. It remains the biggest Philippine news organization on Facebook with 22 million followers on their main page, and 17 million on three other ABS-CBN News pages, and on YouTube, where it already has 13 million subscribers on the main channel.
The game plan of ABS-CBN is simple, and that is to “to tell the most meaningful stories and to tell them to as many people as possible”.
NEXT WAVE
The digital media age has brought about significant changes in the media landscape, and legacy media outlets have had to adapt to stay relevant. However, as the examples of CNN Philippines, Sky Cable, and Sports Illustrated show, the transition has not been easy for everyone. The media industry will continue to evolve, and it remains to be seen how legacy media outlets will fare in the years to come.
NEXT EDITORIAL:
“CONTENT CREATION IS KING”
