Over the years local TV brought prominent revenue for those who owned them. Now local TV owners react to new economic realities and trim employees. According to a report in the Baltimore Sun, nationwide layoffs in the newsroom no longer benefit a profit margin. When stations were accustomed to a profit margin of 45-50%, business became easy for TV stations. Now, the reality is about 20-25%, and that’s still not bad, but owners want increases to grow exponentially and it’s just not possible anymore.
Anchorman's Channel 4 News Team
Courtesy: Dreamworks LLC
So what can local TV stations do to profit in the media business? Many are turning to the Web for expansion. Earlier this year, NBC and Nexstar increased investments in local station web operations. This seems to be the best alternative to stay ahead in the technology curve. Newspapers saw quick success and TV stations hope to follow suit. And they are well on their way. Local TV online revenue rose 41% in 2006 with nearly $400 million in pockets of owners, according to the Television Bureau of Advertising.
But can TV stations cope with a shift to the online world? I think they can, but sacrifices might be made in order to do so. For instance, once a story airs on TV, the reporter can have the video on the station’s Web site. In a breaking news world, viewers want constant updates on particular stories and quite frankly don’t have time to wait for the local station to broadcast their news at 5:00, 6:00 and 10:00 PM. It’s an ever-growing battle that alters career-paths for journalists. Who knows, maybe in 20 years there might be a completely different layout for news is presented, and local television might not be an option.