Analysts doubt next month's launch of Taiwan Apple Daily will make the same waves its flagship sister publication did in Hong Kong.
The newspaper - owned by Jimmy Lai Chee-ying's Next Media - would cost the firm about HK$300 million to HK$400 million in its first year, said Tommy Ho of UOB-Kay Hian Research.
It took only 18 months for Apple Daily to break even in Hong Kong. With a circulation target of 750,000, its Taiwan venture is not expected to turn a profit for three years.
Taiwan Apple Daily's editor-in-chief Eric Chen said the paper had a 150-member news team equipped with motorcycles and digital cameras. Many of its employees were veterans poached from rival newspapers.
However, DBS Vickers Securities analyst Charles Ho said the paper's aggressive editorial style might not meet financial success.
'There are too many magazines and newspapers in an island with a population of 22 million. Readership declines every year,' Mr Ho said.
