Online press industry in France in 2012 : business models and funding mechanisms [CE-2013-3]

In recent times the press industry has been reshaped by the influence of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT). Constant experimentation and innovation in the business model (BM) has become one of the key sources of actors’ competitive advantage. As a result, dominant and stable traditional BMs have given rise to multiple disruptive BMs. The goal of this study is to provide typology and description of the new online BMs and to understand the current economic transformations in the press industry. The analysis relies on the empirical study of 149 French press websites accounting for the various configurations of digital output and technology in production processes. Three classes of online BMs were identified: the “minimally digital”, “pure players” and “exploring leaders”.We substantiate the features of the three classes of online BMs and put forward new relevant approaches to the “free” content funding.