“The Independent” plays his all on the Internet – The World

Le Monde | 02/12/2016 at 22:01 • Updated 02/13/2016 at 9:11 | By Eric Albert (London, correspondence)

The Independent does not celebrate its 30 ^th anniversary. Launched in October 1986, the British newspaper will stop being printed, announced on Friday 12 February, its owner, Evgeny Lebedev. The Russian oligarch has decided to end the financial haemorrhage of the smallest national newspaper in the UK, which has more than 56,000 copies each day. The latest edition will be published on 26 March. The newspaper will continue to exist, but only online.

“The newspaper industry changes and this change is driven by the readers who tell us that the future is digital, says Lebedev. This decision preserves the Independent brand and allows us to invest in high-quality editorial content. “

Large layoffs plan

In fact, the first result will be a great plan layoffs. A hundred journalists are expected to lose their jobs, which represents more than half of writing. Meanwhile, twenty-five hires are planned to enhance the site.

The decision is hardly a surprise. The diffusion of daily experiencing a catastrophic decline, having been divided by three to five years. “ The Independent sold so few copies that did not have much sense to continue to print” , said on the BBC Stephen Glover, one of its founders.

Conversely, the presence of the online daily is important, not commensurate with its print edition. Every month, 58 million unique users reading it. The Independent is also very active on social media. This was done at the expense of quality, many accuse journalists of the newspaper, who are annoyed to see the items to hunt “click”. Last Friday example. “10 incredible stories that prove that pets are our best friends”

If your online status is important, beyond the British borders, the problem is its profitability. The Independent , completely free on the Internet, runs into the same problem as the rest of the newspapers around the world. Digital Advertising brings in a lot less than on paper

an innovative daily

the Independent has always been a very innovative newspaper in the UK. At its launch, it was largely inspired by Libération . A team of journalists believed that British newspapers were too close to political parties, and their tone was too institutional. His freer spirit and more impertinent was quick success, peaking broadcast to more than 400 000 copies in the early 1990s Worried magnate Rupert Murdoch responded by lowering the price of the Times .

in 2004, the Independent , which had already lost half of its distribution, was able to resume the colors becoming the first newspaper ” serious “ to move to tabloid format more suitable for reading in public transport. The Times followed and the Guardian has adapted from a “Berliner” format (same as Le Monde ).

buying the Independent in 2010, Mr Lebedev has given a financial breath. Son of a wealthy oligarch, then aged 30 years, but real passion for newspapers, he has a few success. In particular, it has launched i , a kind of product of The Independent : daily sold 50 cents, which takes into shorter sections of his brother newspaper offering a summary of the serious but quick news to read.

the first, but certainly not the last

Create a newspaper in crisis of the press was a strange bet, but i now sells 260,000 copies per day, exceeding the Guardian or Financial Times (only in the UK, while the latter two newspapers are also sold abroad). Operating profit was 5.2 million pounds (6.4 million euros), enough to bail out of The Independent .

But on Friday, Mr Lebedev decided to reap the fruits of its investment. He sold i for 24 million pounds ($ 31 million) at Johnston Press, a group of UK regional newspapers. Now alone, The Independent could not continue.

If the first British national newspaper to stop publishing its paper, it should not be the last. In five years, British newspapers have lost a third of their dissemination. “The next two to stop printing them should be Financial Times and Guardian ” , predicts Mr. Glover

the newspaper industry in the UK. – as in the rest of the world – through a troubled period. The Guardian is preparing a broad savings plan after losing 65 million euros in 2015. It intends to cut spending by 20%, with cuts in the workforce with the key. The Telegraph , which remains profitable, has ordered a report for Deloitte to review its future, fueling rumors of a sale by the Barclay brothers, owners. There are still twelve national daily paper in the UK. How in five years

Read also: “The Economist” sold to the family Agnelli