WHILE many say the industry is destined for extinction, today’s print industry is very much alive and kicking as it embraces the digital era. The industry also looks to a brighter future given the new generation of markets that is

both content- and technology-savvy, according to a traditional media expert.

BusinessMirror Vice President for Corporate Affairs Ricky Alegre emphatically said the print media “is not dead,” as it has adopted well to the digital age taking place globally via modern technologies and innovations that enable it to deliver news and other content to readers through print or online platforms.

“The print media industry still is the No. 1 producer of content because our discipline is such that our reporters [or] our writers run and do stories daily, depending on what they are covering; and we’re the only one who does it in such a way that it is submitted every day,” he said on the sidelines of the just-concluded Asia Digital Transformation Summit 2015 in Makati City.

“News evolves, so we should not be threatened [by the digital transformation]. In fact, we should embrace it because this is how we reach out to the younger readers, who are [following] us, maybe not in our [own] platform but still recognize [information] came from the print medium,” he quickly added.

Since the daily publications in the country—be they mainstream or business-oriented—have metamorphosed from a newsroom that is strictly for hard copy to digital, and social media that the current generation of young readers called the millennials more often than not have turned to the print media for content. He urged print-media players to invest more in digital technologies and be more engaging when it comes to content since the millennials are the “future readers and leaders” who will continue to prevail over the next two decades.

Born from 1980 onward, the members of the so-called Generation Y are generally characterized by their enthusiasm for technological and communication advances,

according to Alegre, who is also the president of United Print Media Group (UPMG).

“[They] blazed paths in a new world of information-sharing using social-networking technologies,” he said.

Considering that they account for 36 percent of the country’s population of 98.39 million, he said the millennials are a lucrative market for print- media players given that the group has the “power to decide, criticize or say what they want.”

Alegre cited a study conducted by Omnicon Media Group three years ago, highlighting their economic

independence that contrasted sharply against counterparts in the region.

The report ranked Filipino millennials the highest among 32 markets in terms of expectations of doing good, or more likely to shop at stores, or buy products or services from companies that make

charitable donations.

Also, they ranked the highest (68 percent) among respondents who consider themselves as savers rather than spenders, and who have interest in planning for their future financially.

Millennials in the Philippines (59 percent) topped those in Singapore (58 percent) for agreeing that product reviews are important in their buying decisions.

Among eight Asian countries, Filipino Gen Yers form the biggest number of respondents (78 percent) who share deals with their friends, not open to follow brands outside of their favorite brands list.

According to the latest Nielsen Global Survey of Consumer Confidence, millennials outpace the global average in terms of spending intentions in the first quarter of 2015.

Two beliefs have surfaced from the millennials in the Philippines: They have something to contribute to society and they need to have space to share their stories.

Alegre said print media are a fitting channel to do so given its wide reach and influence.

He encouraged publications to come up with dedicated sections and stories that appeal to their interest as well as host events that attract them, as well.

“That’s why we need millennial writers for the Millennial section. You cannot have somebody professing to be a millennial to write in their stead. They have to be able to know terminologies; their wants and desires

cannot be invented. It has to be born out of being a millennial,” he said.

“I think there should also be more events for millennials. The venue should not be the venue where politicians would go to, but a venue the millennials would like to go to. So you have to have a good venue with music, lights, food and alcohol.

“Maybe we can have a job fair

that is strictly for millennials. Probably, we can have a night run or a night event that is strictly for millennials. We can also invite known brands to come and present it to

the millennials.”

With the various print players as the BusinessMirror’s Millennials section, the Philippine Star’s breakthrough television mini-series, Single/Single; and the Philippine Daily Inquirer’s Youngblood column actively seeking their audience, Alegre said this is a “very clear indication that all of us leading print media corporations recognize that we are all [exerting an] effort to try and make sure we are relating to them, [that] we are communicating to them.”

When asked how the print

industry should continue to remain relevant in the digital age, Alegre said the industry needs to understand the market and creatively cater to their needs. Roderick Abad