PR and Social Scoop 13.09

Online overtakes TV as biggest news source?

More people get their news online than they are from TV for the first time, according to Ofcom’s annual survey of UK consumption habits. TV has been narrowly overtaken by the internet, with 71% preferring digital sources. This is up from 68% last year and 64% in 2018 and has primarily been driven by social media.?

Within that online segment, publisher websites are also falling in influence as social media increasingly dominates.?

?However, separate Ofcom research has found TV was the most important source of news during the last UK general election. The organisation?said TV had been considered the leading source of news in the UK since the 1960s when it overtook radio and newspapers, but a “generational shift in the balance of news media” has now been marked.?

?Read more here?

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Newsquest hits 100,000 digital subscribers?

Newsquest has reached 100,000 paid digital subscribers four years after launching a soft paywall across most of its major regional news websites.?

?The publisher of titles including the Brighton Argus, South Wales Argus, Oxford Mail and Eastern Daily Press said it recorded 101,109 paying digital subscribers last week. Newsquest rolled out?metered paywalls for the websites of all of its daily newspapers in 2020?after trying the strategy out first on sites including?the Northern Echo?and?The Herald.?

?Newsquest?said it also reached a record 187 million page views in August, up 13% year on year.?

Newsquest chief executive Henry Faure Walker said: “The demand for digital subscriptions, which has now surpassed 100,000 and continues to grow at a pace, has exceeded our expectations.”?

Read more here?

Meta expands reminder ads parameters?

?Meta has announced an update to its Marketing API so anyone creating Instagram reminder ads in third-party apps has the same functionality as Meta Ads Manager.?

“After consistently hearing feedback about this lack of parity, we are now supporting additional reminder ad features via the Instagram Marketing API as of August 19, 2024,” Meta said in a statement.?

“These features include the ability to reach people on Instagram Reels placement with reminder ads, reminding people over the right time period, and adding events to ads optimising for ThruPlay or reach.”?

The move also means users running Instagram ads via the API can create a greater diversity of ads and experiences.?

Instagram adds new DM engagement options?

With DM (direct message) usage on the rise, Instagram is adding new DM engagement features to personalise your private chats, including drawing tools and stickers.?

Instagram is also expanding its cut-outs option in DMs so you can use specific elements from photos as stickers.?

As noted, Instagram DMs are seeing greater usage, with IG users far more likely to engage within their messages than via Stories or the main feed.??

Reels remain the primary consumption element, with users also sharing Reels via DM.?