When my subscription to Automotive News recently renewed I was surprised to see that the annual price rose to $299 from $169 last year. This is for the digital and print editions; if I had switched to just digital I would have saved only $50. That still would have been a big increase, and I would no longer have had access to information included in the print edition but not in the digital subscription.
The “Print + Digital” option wasn’t even the most costly. A promotion “recommended” a $699 “All Access” option that will “unlock all Auto News essentials.” That includes current and historical data on sales and production.
Apples-to-apples cost comparisons with other publications can be tricky, but a $299 subscription puts Automotive News within the same ballpark as those from The New York Times, Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg. Is that worth it given the decidedly mixed quality of Automotive News’ journalism?
Also see ‘Automotive News treats Gerald C. Meyers’ tenure at AMC with kid gloves’
It isn’t clear whether the price increases are at least partly driven by financial forces that have been battering U.S. newspapers. In recent years newspapers have seen major declines in their traditional sources of revenue, such as display and classified advertising as well as the circulation of print editions (Pew Research Center, 2023). As a result, publishers have been placing a greater emphasis on building subscription revenue (CRS, 2023; Konopliov, 2023).
Automotive News presumably has a number of advantages that most newspapers don’t. As an industry journal it can largely cater to a readership whose jobs depend upon access to relevant information (and whose subscriptions may be paid for by their employer). In addition, perhaps even more so than General Motors in its prime, Automotive News utterly dominates the automotive media.
Where would readers go if they left Automotive News?
That raises an interesting question: If Automotive News raised its prices too high, where would its readers go? I am hard pressed to point to another U.S. media outlet that comes anywhere close to offering the breadth of content of Automotive News. In other words, this media outlet functions as a monopoly . . . and its management seems to be pretty comfortable acting like one.
Monopolistic behavior can pose a particular problem for small-scale entities such as Indie Auto. In recent years I have seen major increases in the cost of producing this website, particularly from vendors that dominate their product niche. I have managed to push at least some of those cost hikes into the future through workarounds, but it’s only a temporary fix.
Also see ‘Automotive News fails to mention obvious ways to cut weight of EVs’
Some of those costs are required to continue publishing Indie Auto at its current level of quality. However, a subscription to Automotive News strikes me as more dispensable. So in the next year I’m going to try to make greater use of my subscription by writing more stories about current events.
If that doesn’t prove to be very interesting to our readers, then perhaps it’s time to focus more narrowly on auto history. Or I could ditch Automotive News and piece together information from a wider range of sources in and outside of the automotive media.
This is a good time to remind folks that Indie Auto is an entirely reader-supported website, and the only ads we run are satirical. If you find our discussions to be a refreshing alternative to ad-based automotive media, please consider joining us (go here).
Share your reactions to this post with a comment below or a note to the editor.
RE:SOURCES
- CRS; 2023. “Stop the Presses? Newspapers in the Digital Age.” Congressional Research Service. Updated May 24.
- Konopliov, Anton; 2023. “US Newspaper Industry Statistics.” Redline. Posted Dec. 7.
- Pew Research Center; 2023. “Newspapers Fact Sheet.” Posted Nov. 10.
Has anybody recently (in the last five-years) renewed a daily newspaper subscription ? I love print newspapers, but they have become luxuries I can no longer afford. My father subscribed to “Automotive News” for several years before he died in 1974. Everything has become too expensive.
Because of my journalism background I have usually prioritized subscribing to at least one daily newspaper. It’s a basic tool of the trade. That said, I’ve never been rich enough to be able to subscribe to every publication that I find useful so have developed workarounds. For example, in the Rivian story I gained access to a Fortune magazine story through Yahoo!finance.
Last May (2023) I renewed my print-only subscription for $99.00. I believe that’s the cheapest possible way to get the publication. They ensure that you do not have access to any online information. I’m sure that even that rate will increase this year.
I didn’t see a print-only option this year so wonder if you’ve been grandfathered in. At any rate, I now do most of my reading online and would give up the print edition if I could get access to sales/production data without having to pay for the “All Access” option.
They don’t advertise the print-only option, Steve, but I’ve used it for several years. I’ve been a subscriber since 1966 and used to get the whole package but can’t justify the expense any more.
Sigh; I am very concerned with the recent trends affecting all forms of periodicals, including newspapers, magazines, and the like. I try to support them by subscribing to the NY Times, the local newspaper, and numerous car magazines. Unfortunately, I had to let go of the local paper when it became more costly than the NY Times despite the local publication eliminating the Saturday paper! I also let the Automotive News lapse due to the significant price increase. However, I am very fortunate that my local library carries those two publications, so I can still view them. The local paper daily, but the Automotive News a week later… It’s not the same experience seeing them online vs. in print…I don’t know what else I can do as one individual. We are living in weird times these days.