The Impact of New Technologies on the Demand for News Media: The Case of the Czech Republic

Abstract

The share of everyday readers of print newspapers is declining every year, as is the average number of print newspapers sold. This study aims to examine individual data from the Czech Republic to identify possible reasons for the decline in print newspaper readers in the Czech Republic. Furthermore, the study focuses on socioeconomic factors that affect the demand for the news. Based on the random effect tobit and logit model, the results clearly show that the decrease in print newspaper readers is due to the existence of substitutes in the form of online news. The study shows that new technologies, such as the expansion of Internet access or a higher share of smartphones, play an important role. These results have some implications for the policy and news industry.