Schibsted Media is a global leader in digital subscriptions, and during the recent Subscriptions Town Hall, INMA members heard about the company’s pioneering journey.

Tor Jacobsen, who joined the company in 2009 and eventually became executive vice president/product and consumer of its VG brand, recounted Schibsted’s process of experimentation, learning, and adaptation to share how it navigated the complexities of digital subscriptions.

Jacobsen, who now is with Norway’s DN Media Group, explained he served in “a couple of different roles” at VG, including CEO of VG Mobile, “a small startup division of VG launched in 2010 to focus on mobile devices.” He played a pivotal role in the development of VG's mobile presence and the launch of VG+, Norway’s first paid digital news product. 

“Almost everything we did back then was wrong,” he recalled, noting that the team had little precedent to follow in those early days and took a trial-and-error approach.

The digital initiative initially focused on the iPad, which had just been introduced to the Norwegian market, but he said they quickly realised that relying solely on advertising was risky — so the team turned its attention to the opportunities found in consumer revenue.

Forging a new path

The initial strategy involved offering in-depth articles and lifestyle content behind a paywall, while keeping generic news free. This approach was based on the idea that readers would be willing to pay for more substantial content. 

“Then we started seeing and getting data … and seeing how the sales went and how the usage went,” he said. From there the journey was about “… learning and learning and learning and learning how you should do it.”

As the team gathered data on what content was most popular and adjusted its strategy accordingly, it also experimented with different paywall models. First, it offered a hard paywall before adopting a more flexible approach that allowed for some free content to entice potential subscribers.

Thanks to the constant feedback of the digital environment, the team could see what was working and what wasn’t. This data-driven approach enabled it to refine its offerings and improve the overall user experience. 

Growing pains

As Schibsted expanded its digital subscription model, it faced new challenges. The company had to integrate its digital and print subscription teams, which required a shift in focus and the development of new competencies. 

“In print you have distribution, you didn’t need to work so close with editorial department for instance, you didn’t need to work so close with product and tech,” he said. The digital environment, however, requires breaking down the silo. “Everything you do should be very close to product, technology, the newsroom, etc.”

Such integration is essential for creating a seamless user experience and ensuring that content meets the needs of subscribers, he said.

“When a customer joins as a subscriber, how do you take care of [them]? How do you have a good communication? What kind of topics should you present for this person?” Jacobsen said, emphasising the difference between the print and digital experiences. “This is not possible to do in the paper because they don’t have data about this person or digital marketing.”

Digital platforms require maximising efforts beyond the media company’s own platform and reaching out through platforms like TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, and more. 

Building a better bundle

Although Schibsted’s subscription offerings initially focused on individual brands, over time it began bundling multiple brands into a single subscription. This “super bundle” concept offers greater value to subscribers and helped drive growth for the company.

The introduction of multimedia content, such as podcasts and video, further enhanced the appeal of the subscription packages, particularly among younger audiences.

With the “super bundle,” subscribers can pay a bit more and have access to other Schibsted newspapers, infotainment features like sports, VGTV, and the Podme platform, and extended offerings from partners.

“This product is amazing if you love news media,” Jacobsen said. “If you use a lot of brands and are a news junkie, then this is perfect. It’s a very, very good product.”

Yet, it’s not for everyone, he acknowledged: “If you really don’t like that [kind of content], it’s like we are really over-serving you on the news part.” 

One of the significant challenges Schibsted faced was determining the right pricing strategy. Jacobsen noted that while it was tempting to continually raise prices for their most loyal subscribers, this approach risked alienating potential new subscribers. The company has had to balance the need to generate revenue with the goal of attracting a broader audience.

The high level of success with digital subscriptions is partly due to the market conditions, Jacobsen said. Norway enjoys high levels of digital literacy, trust in media, and economic stability — all of which lend themselves to a favourable environment for digital subscriptions. But without Schibsted’s willingness to experiment, learn from data, and adapt its strategies, it would not have been able to take advantage of this valuable market. 

“And I think that we have this kind of culture where it’s not so hierarchical; it’s easier,” he said. “When I talk with more international media houses, we were much closer together. So [removing] the silos and working with newsroom, product, technology, etc., we have been pretty good at.”

Jacobsen emphasised the importance of continuous innovation and adaptation, and said there is no “secret recipe” for success; it is a matter of testing, experimenting, and paying attention to what the data tells you: “We did some decisions that were maybe not 100% data-driven — and that doesn’t go well.”

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