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Bundling Digital Journalism: Exploring the Potential of Subscription-Based Product Bundles

Author

Listed:
  • Lukas Erbrich

    (TU Dortmund, Germany)

  • Christian-Mathias Wellbrock

    (Hamburg Media School, Germany)

  • Frank Lobigs

    (TU Dortmund, Germany)

  • Christopher Buschow

    (Hamburg Media School, Germany / Faculty of Media, Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, Germany)

Abstract

This study explores the potential of cross-publisher bundled offers as a strategy for increasing subscription sales in digital journalism. While innovative forms of bundling are an integral part of media distribution in music (e.g., Spotify) and film (e.g., Netflix), their adoption in digital journalism has been limited, despite research showing that bundled access to products can increase consumers’ willingness to pay, especially in younger target groups. Against this background, we conduct a choice-based conjoint analysis using data from a representative survey of the German online population ( n = 1,542). Results show that bundling digital journalism has the potential to raise publisher revenues and subscription sales in digital markets. In particular, they highlight that a comprehensive, cross-publisher bundled offer, available at a fixed monthly rate, has the potential to stimulate digital journalism sales among different consumer groups in a relatively balanced way, including those who are typically more reluctant towards journalism. These findings align with the principles of information goods economics, which posit that maximising the size of digital content bundles often tends to be the most profitable distribution strategy. However, it is crucial to examine these findings in the context of the potential negative effects associated with this emerging business model in digital journalism, such as the cannibalisation of print subscriptions, diminished brand identification, and a possible imbalanced distribution of revenues.

Suggested Citation

  • Lukas Erbrich & Christian-Mathias Wellbrock & Frank Lobigs & Christopher Buschow, 2024. "Bundling Digital Journalism: Exploring the Potential of Subscription-Based Product Bundles," Media and Communication, Cogitatio Press, vol. 12.
    • Handle: RePEc:cog:meanco:v12:y:2024:a:7442
    DOI: 10.17645/mac.7442
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    3. Yannis Bakos & Erik Brynjolfsson, 1999. "Bundling Information Goods: Pricing, Profits, and Efficiency," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 45(12), pages 1613-1630, December.
    4. William James Adams & Janet L. Yellen, 1976. "Commodity Bundling and the Burden of Monopoly," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 90(3), pages 475-498.
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