Summer may be over, but subscriptions are still hot. We’ve got three publishing-related tidbits for you and everyone’s favorite feature – top subscription jobs! In the publishing world, newspaper tariffs have been reversed. What does this mean for the newspaper industry? Next, we’ll share the latest merger feud – this time around Sinclair Broadcasting is countersuing Tribune Media. Also this week, Conde Nast will pay $14 million to settle a case involving the sale of subscriber info., and we’ve got five ways to successfully engage your subscribers.

Newspaper Tariffs Reversed: Too Little, Too Late?

Earlier this year President Trump imposed tariffs on Canadian newsprint suppliers, causing significant cost increases for U.S. newspapers. A number of newspapers have cited the increase in costs as the reason for layoffs and a reduction in paper usage. For some papers that meant they ran fewer pages or scaled back newspaper editions and coverage, reports Media Post. For example, in April, The Tampa Bay Times laid off newspaper staff. Chairman and CEO Paul Tash blamed the job cuts on the tariffs.

In a bit of good news, the International Trade Commission recently voted to reverse the tariffs, but some say it wasn’t soon enough.

“Unfortunately, the damage to newspapers from preliminary tariffs imposed by the Department of Commerce since January has already been done. The tariffs have disrupted the newsprint market, increasing newsprint costs by nearly 30 percent and forcing many newspapers to reduce their print distribution and cut staff,” said David Chavern, president-CEO of News Media Alliance.

Read more about the impact of tariffs on the industry in “Newspaper Print Tariffs Overturned, But The Damage Is Done” by Melynda Fuller for Media Post.

Sinclair Broadcasting vs. Tribune Media

Last month we reported that Tribune Media backed out of its $3.9 billion merger and sued Sinclair Broadcasting for breaching the merger agreement. In an August 9 news release, Tribune alleges that “Sinclair engaged in unnecessarily aggressive and protracted negotiations with the Department of Justice and the Federal Communications Commission over regulatory requirements, refused to sell stations in the markets as required to obtain approval, and proposed aggressive divestment structures and related-party sales that were either rejected outright or posed a high risk of rejection and delay – all in derogation of Sinclair’s contractual obligations.”

The shoe is on the other foot now. Sinclair Broadcasting is countersuing Tribune Media and is seeking $1 bill in reparations, reports Reuters. In its countersuit, Sinclair denies Tribune’s allegations and said it was close to getting DOJ approval. Sinclair also alleges that Tribune tried to exploit the unfavorable action by the FCC who sent the merger agreement to an administrative judge for review. The FCC was concerned that Sinclair had not been transparent and did not disclose pre-existing business relationships, among other charges.

Sinclair CEO Chris Ripley said his company had fully complied with merger obligations and tried to close the transaction. Obviously, Tribune does not agree that Sinclair tired hard enough to seal the deal. If the parties can’t settle their agreement out of court, it will be up to the courts to decide who should prevail or if both parties should just take their toys and go home. Read more on the countersuit at Reuters online.

Conde Nast Settles Lawsuit for $14 Million for Allegedly Selling Subscriber Data

Advance Publications, parent company to Conde Nast, will pay close to $14 million to settle a lawsuit where it was accused of selling magazine subscriber data including everything from subscription history and reading habits to income and political affiliation, reports The Fashion Law. The class action suit was brought by Suzanne Boelter, a subscriber of Bon Appetit and Self, of Michigan who said the company gave unauthorized access to third-parties to mine customer data, in violation of the state’s Video Rental Privacy Act.

This case is similar to one settled earlier this year by Hearst Communications for $50 million. In this suit, Michigan-based plaintiff Josephine James Edwards accused Hearst Corporation of selling subscriber information without consent. Edwards, who had been a subscriber of Good Housekeeping said she had received harassing phone calls and junk mail because her personal data had been sold. As part of the settlement, Hearst did not admit any wrongdoing. This settlement was the largest of its kind to date.

Because these suits have both been successfully settled, it seems likely we will see more such cases where personal data has been sold without subscriber consent. Ouch.

Five Ways to Successfully Engage Subscribers on Facebook 

With Facebook putting an emphasis on friends and family posts, it is more important than ever for subscription companies to engage customers and prospects. Otherwise, their posts are drowned out of newsfeeds and ignored. Want to get your posts noticed? Here are five ways to successfully engage customers on Facebook.

1. Share viral content: See a post that is getting a lot of attention from a social influencer or maybe a subscriber who is getting lots of likes? Share that content.
2. Engaging your customers goes beyond replying promptly to Facebook messages or replying to comments. Engage your customers by asking for their opinion about your product or service. Own a streaming video service? Ask for their favorite date-night movie. Manage a beauty box subscription company? Ask your customers what their favorite color, flavor or combo is. Better yet, run a contest to ask them to name your new lip color.
3. Mix up your content: No one wants to read all text, see only pix or watch just videos. Offer a variety of interesting and engaging content that highlights ways customers can use your product or service, or share a little-known, or often misused, feature. Make your content “must-read” or “must-watch.”
4. Review Insights weekly to see what types of content are most engaging. Facebook provides this info. for a reason. Use it to your advantage. Review your posts for the week. What worked? What didn’t? How can you use that information to improve next week’s content?
5. Do sponsored or paid posts. You will be surprised at the reach you can get from a paid or sponsored post on Facebook and Instagram (Facebook owns them too!) Whether you have a big budget or a tiny one, doing a paid post will expand your reach exponentially. What we really love about this opportunity is that you can segment your market geographically, demographically, by interest, by age, etc. Not getting the results you want? You can change your target audience at any time during your campaign. 

LinkedIn: Top Subscription Jobs

Educational Subscription Marketing Coordinator
The Sacramento Bee
Sacramento, CA

The Marketing Coordinator will work directly with the Educational Subscription Manager and will be responsible for developing, implementing and tracking sales, marketing and sponsorship campaigns for the NIE programs and will have goals and targets including but not limited to, digital sales growth, revenue & expense targets, teacher engagement and fundraising efforts. The Marketing Coordinator is expected to contribute to delivering on these goals and targets, anticipate shortfalls and identify areas for improvement or alternative plans to meet established goals as necessary. Read more…

Senior Retention Marketing Manager
Knixwear
Toronto, Canada

Knix is on hunt for a Senior Retention Marketing Manager to strengthen our relationship with our customers throughout their lifecycle by driving high-value behaviors and increasing lifetime value. The Senior Retention Marketing Manager will bring art and science together to drive awareness, acquisition and retention of our customers.  He/she is hands-on and loves concepting new tactics, channels and campaigns, testing + learning and scaling what works (on repeat!). The ideal candidate is data-driven and comfortable operating fluidly across strategy, analysis and execution. Read more…

Marketing Manager, Subscription
SourceMedia
New York, New York

SourceMedia’s subscription division has an exciting career opportunity for an innovative Marketing Manager to grow subscriptions through high impact, strategic renewal and engagement program. This position will develop and manage subscription renewal marketing initiatives and will track the effectiveness and ROI of these programs against KPI’s through proper reporting. This position reports directly to the Marketing Director, Subscription. Read more…

Go-to-Market Communications Specialist, Business Model & Pricing
Autodesk
San Francisco, CA

We are moving from perpetual software to a subscription model and the team you will be joining is at the center of this company-wide change. The Business Models and Platform Strategy team is responsible for providing the direction, strategy, and development of the subscriber experience – from purchasing, managing, and accessing Autodesk software. We are constantly optimizing our business models and prices to address changing market factors, industry demands, and other influences across our entire portfolio of products. We are looking for a business savvy communicator to bring these changes to market through creative, transparent, and simple messages to sales, partners, and customers. Read more…

Senior Marketing Manager, Subscriptions
The Telegraph
London, United Kingdom

To support the development and growth of The Telegraph subscriptions business. Working alongside the subscriptions team, the Senior Marketing Manager/Head of will devise and implement campaigns that support strategic initiatives for acquisition and retention across print and digital subscriptions. Utilising the wider Customer team’s specialist departments – Design, Brand, Data and Performance Marketing (Media, SEO, PPC, Programmatic, Paid social and CRM), the role will develop campaigns with a full marketing mix across Paid, Owned and Earned channels. Effectively monitoring results and optimising to ensure that campaign objectives are achieved. Read more…