Deluge of free newsprint sends chill through paper sellers
It is summer in Hong Kong, but it might as well be winter for the Chinese-language newspaper industry.
Since Sing Tao News Corp gave away 400,000 free copies this week, some newspaper stands in Tseung Kwan O reported a 20 per cent drop in copies sold. If that was not bad enough, look at the 40 per cent rate card discount these newspapers offered to grasp a slice of the traditional advertising cake.
With competition intensifying, Lai See has learned that Centaline chairman Shih Wing-ching is pushing his paper AM730 for an August 1 debut, at least two months before schedule.
'We were scooped,' Mr Shih said, 'but we'll stick to our business plan.'
Meanwhile, more free newspapers could be in the making, with one major daily group rumoured to be seriously entering the market.
