This archive report was first published on 1 July 2020.
On July 1, 2020, Nation Media Group (NMG) announced a major restructuring of its business operations in response to the Covid-19 pandemic and market shifts.
The company, which had issued a profit warning for the current financial year, is understood to be hemorrhaging cash with circulation and advertising having dipped sharply over the last three months.
According to sources, the reorganization is a response to the slowdown caused by the Covid-19 pandemic and is geared at re-engineering the NMG business across its various platforms – print, broadcast, and digital.
The restructuring is anchored on accelerating digital transformation, and will see over 50 employees pushed out, including newspaper and TV journalists as well as senior managers.
The layoff will target both permanent and contract staff, with those whose contracts are ending likely to be easy targets.
NMG is adopting a new business model that moves away from relying on its traditional print flagship newspaper, having learnt painful lessons from Covid-19 movement restrictions that have hit circulation and increased consumption of digital media.
This new direction is part of a raft of options explored by the NMG board of directors at its AGM held last week.
In the new strategy, NMG is looking at monetizing its digital platforms, including introducing subscription for its online content and selling advertising on the digital paper, modeled along global leaders such as The New York Times.
