Will Consumers Pay for News Content Online: The Implications for Tourism Kevin Filo, Ph.D. Griffith Business School G27 3.13 Gold Coast Campus Southport QLD 4222 Australia Email: k.filo@griffith.edu.au Ying Wang, Ph.D. Griffith Business School G27 3.34 Gold Coast Campus Southport QLD 4222 Australia Email: ying.wang@griffith.edu.au Abstract Information can be a valuable commodity for travellers making holiday plans. This research investigates the factors that impact consumer willingness to pay for online news content with the aim to uncover implications for the tourism industry. A qualitative approach was adopted to analyse the responses to a blog entry entitled ‘Would you pay for content on the web?’. Six factors emerged from the analysis: information scarcity, quality, brand, value added, security and functionality, and expense. The results revealed a ‘free mentality’ towards online information content exists among consumers. This mentality results from the sheer number of alternative sources of information, as well as negative evaluations of information quality; perceptions of the provider’s brand image; online security concerns; and price. These findings may be relevant to the tourism industry. The findings suggest an opportunity for tourism content providers to generate revenues through innovative content design, while providing realistically priced, specialised tourism information to differentiate from free content providers. Keywords: online information content, consumer purchase behaviour, tourism Will Consumers Pay for News Content Online: The Implications for Tourism The emergence of the Internet as a source for information has impacted a number of industries. The provision of information represents a critical aspect of the Internet for businesses (Van den Poel & Leunis, 1999), and information search reflects a primary motivation for consumer use of the Internet (Himel & Munck, 2000). Making information available and accessible is particularly imperative in the tourism industry, given that tourism products are relatively luxurious, intangible and perishable. Obtaining information is the most widespread use of the Internet within the tourism industry (Lang, 2000). From the point of view of travellers, the Internet provides a quick and convenient way to acquire information content (Lin, Wang & Hwang, 2010). However, the Internet presents a number of challenges to the industry, and tourism has been identified as an industry to be most affected by the development of the Internet (e.g., Weber & Roehl, 1999). The widespread availability of free information content may represent one of these challenges. Online information content can include news, research findings, references, as well as entertainment and shopping guides. As the number of categories of online information content, along with the sheer amount of information available online, have expanded, an array of business models focused on the provision of this content have emerged. These models include subscriptions, pay through agents, two‐tiered, and pay‐per‐view (Dou, 2004). However, consumers are yet to demonstrate a consistent willingness to pay for online content (Nielsen, 2010). The online availability of pure information products, along with the corresponding issues concerning consumer willingness to pay for this information, have had a pronounced impact across a number of different markets (Clemons, Gu & Reiner Lang, 2003). The current research examines consumer willingness to pay for information content online. Specifically, the purpose of this research is to examine the factors that impact consumer willingness to purchase information content online. In making this examination, the newspaper industry serves as the research setting allowing for a discussion of implications for the tourism information content with regard to a destination and its attributes. The newspaper industry was used as a proxy for the tourism industry as they are both faced with similar challenges in addressing online content provision. Namely, issues such as a lack of uniqueness, a seemingly endless supply of alternative sources available, and a perception that quality is equal across these different alternatives, are confronting both industries. While the motivations for obtaining online news content may differ from the motivations for obtaining tourism information content, this proxy was utilised based upon these similarities, along with the notion that both online news content and tourism information content can represent entertainment‐
based information content. This document is divided into the following sections. First, a review of literature highlights online purchase behaviour, as well as purchase behaviour of information content. Next, the method employed to address these research questions is detailed. Finally, the results of qualitative data are presented and interpreted, leading to a discussion of implications for the tourism industry and directions for future research. 2
Literature Review Online Purchase Behaviour The Internet permits interactive and tailored information dissemination and exchange; it also enables products and services such as digital‐based products to be delivered to consumers without geographical limitations. The development of the Internet has brought about a shift from physical marketplace to virtual marketplace. Along with this shift, fundamental changes in the buyer‐seller relationship have occurred, and these changes challenge the validity of traditional consumer behaviour models in an online environment and require a re‐examination of the assumptions underlining these models (Butler & Peppard, 1998). Research has confirmed that differences exist between consumer behaviour online and offline (e.g., Degeratu, Rangaswamy & Wu, 2000; Gupta, Su & Walter, 2004). With regard to consumer intention to purchase online, studies have often adopted the theory of planned behaviour (TPB), the technology acceptance model (TAM), or an extended or integrated form of the two models (e.g., Athiyaman, 2002; Featherman & Pavlou, 2003; Lin, 2008; Lin et al, 2010; Luo, Remus & Sheldon, 2007; Koufaris, 2002; Morosan & Jeong, 2008). These models focus on the effect of consumer attitude, subjective norms, perceived control, and perceived usefulness on online purchase. Trust and risk have also been incorporated into the modelling of online purchase behaviour. People who perceive a higher degree of trust in e‐commerce are more likely to engage in online shopping (Corbitt, Thanasankit & Yi, 2003), but perceived high risk can be a powerful inhibitor to making purchases online (Featherman & Pavlou, 2003). Research identifying effective attributes of a website that would promote online purchase has also enhanced understanding of purchase behaviour online (e.g., Law & Wong, 2010; Liu & Arnett, 2000; Ranganathan & Ganapathy, 2002). Critical factors suggested by this group of studies include: Internet security, privacy, price ranges, user‐friendly system, information content and quality, service quality, system use, playfulness, and system design quality. Ranganathan and Ganapathy (2002) concluded that information content, design, security and privacy, the four key dimensions of a business‐to‐consumer websites, all impacted purchase intention, and the effect of security and privacy was particularly significant. Cross‐industry difference was noted by Lin (2008) who compared the tourism and banking industries in relation to online purchase behaviour. Brand image seems to be more important to customers of banks than those of the tourism industry, however the impact of subjective norms on purchase intention is stronger in the tourism industry. Tourism studies in relation to consumer behaviour online generally focused on information search behaviour as a step in purchase decision making (e.g., Luo et al, 2007), and factors affecting consumer willingness to purchase/actual purchase behaviour (e.g., Athiyaman, 2002; Morosan & Jeong, 2008; Morris & Maglio, 2001). With regard to information content, price is a significant issue as many consumers expect that information content is available online at no charge. The literature on purchasing information content online is reviewed next. Purchasing Information Content Online The online environment has had a pronounced impact on the provision of information goods, and information content. Whereas select content industries such as music have utilised the provision of free content to stimulate sales (Laudon & Guercio Traver, 2009), firms that produce information goods have struggled with the challenges of the online environment. Digital content often cannibalises traditional offerings, and can impede the ability to charge fees for content offerings (Simon & Kadiyali, 2007). Information goods are costly to produce, but very inexpensive to 3
reproduce. Advances in new media technologies, along with the corresponding networking of these technologies, have facilitated mass distribution of this reproduction. The information content must represent a unique resource that consumers will pay for based upon perceived value, or the content must be provided at the lowest possible cost (Gallaugher, Auger & BarNir, 2001). Frequently, the lowest possible cost means offering the content to consumers at no charge. Traditionally, the belief regarding the sale of content online has been that content must be made available for free, unless that content is highly specialised (Carlson, 2003). A number of academic studies have supported this consensus. Chiyi (2005) found that Internet users in Hong Kong were not paying for online news services, and these users did not demonstrate intention to purchase online news content in the future. Dou (2004) confirmed the existence of a ‘free’ mentality among online content users, and uncovered a number of factors that impact consumer willingness to pay for content. First, the usage purpose finding revealed that an Internet user is more likely to pay for content if the content will be used primarily for business as opposed to personal usage. In addition, brand image and brand awareness were revealed as factors that influence willingness to pay (Dou, 2004). The results indicated that for online content sites, building a brand is important, but favourable brand image may not induce consumer willingness to pay. Similarly, Pauwels and Dans (2001) revealed that brand equity of newspapers contributes to readership of online content offerings, but may not translate to increased revenue for online content. Dou (2004) also found that knowledge of free alternatives did not impact willingness to pay for content, but surmised that this finding may result from the sheer abundance of free content alternatives. Similarly, in a series of in‐depth interviews with management at 14 different newspapers, Chiyi and Sylvie (2000) inferred that content providers are challenged to identify competition because of the vastness of mediums (both online and traditional) with which they now compete. Tourism information content concerning destinations is confronted by this same challenge as a wide variety of information resources can be utilised by consumers (Weber & Roehl, 1999). Online information content continues to be made available to consumers, and this availability can impact a variety of information content‐based industries, including tourism, as consumers grow accustomed to access to information. With this in mind, the current research examines the factors that impact consumer willingness to pay for online content. Specifically, this research advances the following research question: what factors impact consumer willingness to purchase information content online? To address this research question, qualitative data were analysed. The method to collect this data is detailed next. Method Participants and Materials Participants included respondents (n = 452) to a blog entry entitled ‘Would you pay for content on the web?’ Blogs offer substantial benefits for research including low cost, data readily available in textual form, a relatively risk free environment, and access to a wider population. The Australian Copyright Act provides special provisions for ‘fair dealing’ of copyrighted materials and the use of blog content for research purpose can be deemed ‘fair’ (Hookway, 2008). Respondents are required to sign in or register with the site in order to comment. As a result, comments were identified by a username, however, additional demographic data for the respondents was not available. The blog entry was opened with a posting detailing how the newspaper had begun charging readers to access online content due to falling advertising income. From there, the entry posed the following questions: ‘What would you be happy to pay for on the Internet?’; ‘Will the business 4
model be a success?’; ‘Are you a Times website reader?’; ‘Will charging for content save the newspaper industry?’ The debate was opened on Friday, 2 July and closed on Monday, 5 July. Procedures and Data Analysis All four questions were addressed within the forum, with a focus on ‘What would you be happy to pay for on the Internet?’ and the expected success of the idea. The responses were printed out on 15 July, 10 days after the debate had been closed. The response data was analysed separately by two researchers. The response data were coded using what Denis, Lamothe, and Langley (2001) refer to as a mid‐
range scheme allowing themes to emerge both inductively from the interview data as well as deductively using the research questions as a guiding premise. After eight days, the two researchers met to compare themes. Upon meeting, the researchers identified six distinct themes that emerged from the data: information scarcity, quality, brand, value added, functionality, security, and expense. These themes are presented narratively below with supporting quotations from the response data. The presentation of results is below. Results Analysis revealed six major themes: information scarcity, quality, brand, value added, security and functionality, and expense. The results are organised and presented based upon these themes. Quotations are introduced using pseudonyms instead of respondents’ user names to avoid violating the principle of anonymity. Information Scarcity Consumers have a tendency to assign higher value to products that are scarce than those that are plentiful. There was a perceived lack of scarcity in online news content provision among respondents and many believed that the newspaper is charging for content readily and freely available from other sources either online (e.g., news websites and blogs) or off‐line (e.g. from TV and other media). This view was expressed in comments such as the following response from Kevin, ‘I will stick to the BBC website thanks. Does Murdoch really expect people to line his pockets even further when there are literally millions of FREE news sources on the Internet?!’ Jason made a similar reference to the BBC as an option, ‘If I can get my news for free elsewhere I will but if everyone is charging for news then I will choose a site to pay for, whether that be times, BBC etc.’ Meanwhile, respondent, Joan, indicated that paying for content made no sense as long as free options existed. This respondent stated, ‘It’s simple. I will pay for things I really want if I can’t get the equivalent from elsewhere.’ This last comment highlights the point of equivalent quality. Many respondents made it clear that free alternatives are only competitive if they can offer a similar level of quality and coverage. Quality The second most emergent theme was quality. There was a consensus among respondents that the quality of the newspaper content was poor, which fostered unwillingness to purchase this content online. Respondents characterised online news as ‘biased,’ ‘not serious,’ ‘factually incorrect,’ ‘politically driven,’ as well as needing to be more ‘up to date’ and ‘original.’ The perceived poor quality of online news reporting has led to disappointment in journalism in general, as reflected in the comment below from Leo: 5
The majority of the content provided by newspapers and their websites is lifted off the Associated Press website, edited to fit in with the established view of the owners and then presented as news....Most journalists do little more than copy and paste these days. Jenny shared a similar indictment of the overall quality of the journalism, ‘There are no campaigning journalists, none with new ideas. So why pay?’ Brand Brand seemed to negatively affect willingness to purchase. Respondents commented on both the individual (the newspaper brand, and Murdoch) and organisational brands (News Corporation which owns the newspaper). Although loyal followers of the newspaper may pay for the online version as suggested by several respondents, there is also a strong negative sentiment towards the brand of News Corporation and Murdoch himself, as exemplified by the following comment from Steven, ‘What really swings it for me however is that it’s owned by Murdoch and he will never get a penny from me.’ John echoed this anti‐Murdoch sentiment: I expect this sort of crass greed and money grabbing from companies like ʹNews Mediaʹ, the owner of which ‐ Murdoch ‐ has no morals whatsoever when it comes to money grabbing. Value Added Respondents sought not only the basic qualities of information such as objectivity, accuracy, and timeliness, as discussed earlier, but also additional value. To some, added value exists in the form of specialised information tailored to individual needs. This added value presents a unique selling point that differentiates the content provider from competitors and helps the provider position within a niche market. The comment below from Amanda shows that some respondents refused to purchase the newspapers’ online version because of lack of specialisation. Specialist publishers offer something that isn’t readily available elsewhere so people will ‐ and do‐ pay for ft.com. The {newspaper} are hardly at the cutting edge of the news industry so I can’t see many people being prepared to pay for their tosh. Security and Functionality In relation to security, respondents voiced their concerns on not only technical issues of hackers, viruses and secure payment systems, but also the possible misuse of their personal information by content providers. In line with these concerns, Leo, ’There is the risk of internet fraud (keyloggers, phishing etc).’ David described an outright refusal to purchase anything over the Internet: I have heard so many horror stories about paying and banking on‐line that I just logoff the page that is asking me to pay and do not bother…All too much dodgy. I won’t pay on‐line. Issues related to functionality were also mentioned and they include an inflexible payment structure and a lack of comfort, accessibility and portability. Expense Many bloggers were aware of the advertisement‐based model under which many websites operate, and believed that content providers were able to generate sufficient income from advertisements to cover costs, and hence should keep the cost to consumers to a minimum. Online information content was also described by some as not relevant and non‐essential to life, implying an elastic demand for online content and making price a critical factor in purchase decision making. However newspapers’ prices were considered too high, as pointed out in this comment from Nicole, ‘I will 6
say it’s too expensive. £1 is ridiculous. I would pay 40p or 50p a day but I won’t pay a £1.’ A separate response from Michael suggested time as another cost that consumers may take into consideration in such a purchase. This respondent revealed, ‘there is … the time spent having to go through the payment process, then logging in every time you want to read some content’. It is also worth noting that some believed that free information is not sustainable in the long run and charging consumers for online content would become a trend because of recent technological developments. Apple’s iPad was mentioned a number of times as a device that could enhance the reading experience and improve the portability and accessibility of online content. Peter described how he utilises the iPad to obtain content: I bought an iPad because I believed it would facilitate reading newspapers and magazines. It does exactly that and I am now paying £10 per month for the iPad edition of the {newspaper}. Jessica also suggested the iPad would impact the industry, ‘I think this is the shape of things to come. The IPad is the game changer in this regard’. Finally, Daniel indicated support for the newspapers’ decision along with anticipation of receiving content via the iPad: Good on {the newspaper} for charging for content. There is too much FREE stuff out there. I will be watching with interest and as soon as I get an iPad I will be signing up for my subscription. Discussion The results reveal two main findings. First, consumers are unwilling to pay for information content online. Specifically, respondents indicated that they would not willingly pay for the online content of the newspaper. Second, this unwillingness was revealed through the following factors: information scarcity, quality, brand, value added, security and functionality, and expense. The reluctance to pay for the online content revealed by respondents supports the existence of a ‘free mentality’ towards online information content among consumers (Carlson, 2003; Chiyi, 2005; Dou, 2004). The emergence of information scarcity as a reason to not purchase the content aligns with the notion that content providers are confronted by a vast array of competitors in providing this information (Chiyi & Sylvie, 2000). Similarly, brand, as reflected by a distaste for Rupert Murdoch, was found to impact consumer willingness to pay (e.g., Dou, 2004). Furthermore, respondents suggested that information content that was paid for must be specialised and add value. This idea supports the previous finding that consumers will pay for information content that represents a unique resource or specific value (Gallaugher et al, 2001). Next, the emergence of security as a concern among respondents aligns with research that has demonstrated security and privacy as critical factors in online purchase behaviour (e.g., Law and Wong, 2010; Liu & Arnett, 2000; Ranganathan & Ganapathy, 2002). Likewise, functionality relates closely to factors such as user‐friendly system, system use, and system design quality cited within this literature (Law & Wong, 2010; Liu & Arnett, 2000; Ranganathan & Ganapathy, 2002). Finally, the role of expense in discouraging purchasing the information content online supports the central role that price plays in online purchase behaviour (Morris & Maglio, 2002), while underscoring the difference that exist between consumer behaviour online and offline (Degeratu et al, 2000; Gupta et al, 2004). 7
Tourism Implications The general reluctance to pay for online content suggests that a complete switch to the user‐pays content model is premature and a revenue model that combines user‐pays, advertisement incomes and affiliation programs is more pragmatic at this stage. However, for their long‐term survival, tourism websites with revenue coming largely from advertisements must explore new sources of income. On the other hand, the Internet has brought about the problem of too much information / choices (Buhalis & Law, 2008) especially for time‐poor travellers. This provides tourism websites with an opportunity for innovative revenue generating content design to assist tourist decision making through the provision of information. The results of this study provide insight into how the ‘free’ mentality may be overcome, providing implications for strategies that can be adopted by tourism websites in developing online content and information‐based products. The results of this study suggest that quality information alone is not sufficient to draw revenues, and opportunities exist for providers who can differentiate themselves based on adding value, especially through specialisation. Lonely Planet is an example of a specialised content provider that sells digital travel guides online. This content is structured into free basic information for attracting traffic, along with the more specialised content that has a price tag. Travellers can also purchase the entire guidebook or only the sections they need, allowing self‐
tailored content based on individual needs. Additional value may also be achieved through flexible information delivery. Travellers can subscribe to real‐time travel/traffic information and have them delivered to portable devices. Technologies such as the iPad, mobile devices, and micropayment systems have become available to accelerate the development of this type of product. Bundling information with traditional products is another way to create value added products. Travellers may be willing to pay more on top of their tour package for information on the particular destination they are travelling. Websites may therefore make an information top‐up option available alongside the traditional products. In relation to content marketing, particular attention should be given to trust building through a positive brand image. A strong and clear message must be communicated to ensure travellers that the website and payment method are secure, and their personal information is protected. Realistic pricing and flexible payment options are also critical. Limitations Limitations of this research should be acknowledged. One limitation is related to the use of newspaper industry as a proxy, which disregards dissimilarities between travel information and newspaper content. For instance, consumers may place greater value on travel information because travel is a luxury item. Response bias may be present because respondents are users of free news services and are more likely to provide a negative response to payment. There is also evidence of dominant respondent bias where a strong negative response is followed by a long string of negative responses. Additionally, it may be assumed that the sample is not global, rather British, which limits the generalisability of the findings. Future Directions Using the findings of this research as a starting point, a number of future studies are warranted. First, logically, a similar research design can be used in the tourism context. The websites of Choice Magazine and Lonely Planet would provide a more accurate assessment of consumer attitude towards information related to high‐cost travel products. An online forum can be utilised to inquire whether users would be willing to pay for online information content for an established tourism brand. A similar study could also be conducted in the offline environment using focus groups in place of an online discussion forum to facilitate group interaction (Asbury, 1995), while also allowing for clarification of points introduced by participants (Byers & Wilcox, 1991). 8
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