A New York newspaper is about to start selling all-online editions, with some changes to the traditional print format.
The New York Post is slated to take over its newsprint and digital business for a period of six years, beginning in 2020.
The Post is also expected to start offering print editions of its online newsmagazines, as well as some digital editions, starting in 2020, though those will not be all-Digital.
The paper is expected to sell some of its digital editions.
The new print format is being called the all-electronic Post.
The change to the format was announced last week in a memo to staff and a memo on the newspaper’s website.
“We want to be the first digital media company to go digital,” said Paul Sullivan, the Post’s executive editor.
The newspaper, which was bought by the Tribune Company in 2019, has struggled in recent years as digital readership has fallen off.
It has also lost revenue on its print editions and digital editions have become a hot seller.
The online versions are aimed at the younger readership, the kind who might not subscribe to print.
Sullivan said the change is part of a plan to diversify the newspaper, with a new digital edition to be launched in 2020 and a traditional print edition to continue in operation for several more years.
In 2019, the newspaper said, it planned to expand its digital coverage to include video.
The goal is to reach 1 billion daily pageviews.
The traditional print editions, which are sold online, are not available online, though they are available on tablets, mobile phones and other devices.
“The Post will continue to focus on its traditional business,” Sullivan said.
“In the future, we are going to be publishing news, analysis and opinion, but also, we’re going to have a lot more content that’s not necessarily traditional.”
The paper also will be focusing on the digital platforms of its rivals, including the New York Observer, the Daily News, the New Yorker and the Wall Street Journal.
“These platforms are very important for us, and we have a great relationship with them,” Sullivan told reporters.
The Washington Examiner, the paper of the conservative Republican National Committee, is also slated to move into a new location at the Post, though it will remain online and have some digital features.
The Associated Press, the biggest news organization in the country, is scheduled to go online, and The Associated British Press will also be digital, Sullivan said, noting that the AP will also offer print editions.
“This will be an all-American newspaper,” he said.
The decision to shutter traditional print media comes as news organizations are grappling with a slowdown in digital growth.
Digital advertising has grown at an impressive rate, and the Post has seen more revenue from digital ad sales than print ever has.
In 2016, the company reported a net loss of $9 million on $1.9 billion in revenue.
The company also has been struggling to maintain revenue growth in the online digital realm, where it has struggled to attract readers and advertisers.
The Journal of Advertising Analytics, a nonprofit, has also been criticizing the paper for losing readers to digital ad-based services such as Facebook.
The AP, which is owned by Hearst Corp., said in a statement last month that it has “great confidence” in its ability to continue publishing traditional print, as long as its business remains strong.
“I believe the future of journalism lies in digital and the growing number of digital platforms and services that enable the delivery of journalism,” Sullivan wrote in the memo.
“At the same time, I recognize the challenges that digital platforms pose to our traditional print business, and I look forward to sharing our thoughts on how to best serve those audiences in the coming months and years.”