Major regional publisher Australian Community Media (ACM) is looking at alternatives to AAP (Australian Assoicated Press) because it believes the national newswire has a limited future.
"It would be risky for us not to consider alternatives," a spokesman told AdNews.
The Sydney Morning Herald reported ACM founder Antony Catalano saying: “It’s (AAP) doomed because it was struggling financially when it was owned and backed by the major media players and it has no hope of survival without them."
News Corp, which pulled out of AAP last year, has developed its own newswire, NCA, to service its newspapers and digital news sites.
Industry sources say News originally planned to offer NCA to external clients as well.
However, this hasn't happened despite a non compete period with AAP running out.
Major shareholders News and Nine Entertainment last year pulled out of AAP, saying the national news agency was no longer viable and unable to compete with free news on the internet.
A group of phananthropists and impact investors took control, adding capital but reducing staff and coverage to keep the newswire going.
In September last year, AAP was allocated $5 million from the federal government under its Public Interest News Gathering (PING) program.
The newswire is resetting its business model without its former big media owners News Corp and Nine Entertainment and the fees they paid to AAP each year.
The AAP newswire services more than 250 regional news mastheads across Australia.
Australian Community Media, with regional daily newspapers such as the Canberra Times, The Newcastle Herald and the Illawarra Mercury, is a major customer.
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