2020 Malaysia Media Landscape Highlights
Overview
Media Consumption Inflated during the Pandemic
The COVID-19 outbreak in Malaysia has spurred media companies to pivot their business strategies to meet the new needs and concerns of consumers in the new normal.
In 2020, media consumption habits saw a major shift. The Malaysian Digital Association (MDA) analysed the viewership of key media publishing outlets to evaluate the media consumption patterns of Malaysians during the nationwide lockdown and Movement Control Order (MCO) that started last March. With many forced to spend most of their time at home, mainstream media outlets saw a surge in traffic as people constantly kept themselves updated with the latest COVID-19 developments on their mobile devices and desktops.
According to the MDA, mainstream news outlet Malay Mail reported a 250% increase in visitors from March 15 to March 21 – the week that MCO started. Malay Mail ranked among the top-performing mainstream English dailies during that period. Other mainstream outlets that saw a spike in traffic during this period were The Star, Free Malaysia Today (FMT), Berita Harian, and New Straits Times (NST). The top-performing mainstream outlet is Chinese daily China Press, which outperformed the viewership of these media outlets during the first week of MCO.
The Ceasing of Media Outlets and Anguish of Media Professionals
On the contrary, The Edge Financial Daily, one of the leading business and financial publications in Malaysia, had to reluctantly shut down its print operations after 13 years. The unexpected closure is caused by the shift towards digital news consumption as well as the fatal blow of COVID-19, which caused its revenue to dip. The Edge Financial Daily ceased its operations on 21st April 2020. However, its weekly newspaper The Edge Weekly and website continue to operate, providing the latest updates on the business and finance industry.
Just one week after The Edge Financial Daily’s shock departure, another one followed. Major publishing company Blu Inc Media shuttered all of its lifestyle titles including Cosmopolitan, Her World, Harper’s BAZAAR, Marie Claire, and Shape, as well as its Malay-language titles such as EH! and Glam. The publisher said that it could not sustain its operations due to the challenges of fighting digital disruption and the compounded effect of the pandemic.
News outlet Focus Malaysia announced last June that it terminated its monthly print and digital editions. This is due to challenges faced in distributing its print edition as well as the economic turbulence brought about by the pandemic. Focus Malaysia continues to report developments in business, politics and current affairs on its website.
With the closure of media outlets, many media professionals have also lost their jobs. The National Union of Journalists (NUJ) Malaysia reported a significant decline in its number of members. At its peak, the association had close to 1,500 active members. As of March 2020, it has 486 active members. This is a result of retrenchment exercises in several local media companies and the termination of publications that were unable to pull through during these trying times.
READ MORE: 2020 Singapore Media Landscape Highlights
Key Developments
- Kini News Lab Launched Covid-19 Tracking Platform
Independent online news portal, Malaysiakini launched Kini News Lab, a one-stop platform for citizens to obtain information on COVID-19-related information that is sourced from the Ministry of Health and state government data. Kini News Lab was set up last March when the pandemic first peaked.
- RTM News Channel Launched to Combat Fake News
Last June, the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) launched a multilingual news channel called “Saluran Berita RTM” (RTM News Channel) as an initiative to combat fake news. It airs talk shows, business news, magazine programmes as well as informative documentaries in four languages: Malay, English, Mandarin, and Tamil. With its main role as an advocate to counter fake news, the news channel runs a programme called “Pastikan Sahih” (Make Sure it is Authentic) to highlight and clarify fake information.
- The Resurgence of Utusan Malaysia
Utusan Malaysia, the nation’s oldest Malay language daily, alongside its sister publication Kosmo!, a Malay language tabloid, made a comeback last year after they ceased operations in October 2019. The closure was due to the media company’s long-standing financial crisis that resulted in a protest by about 800 of its employees over unpaid wages. The Utusan Group is now owned by a new publisher, Media Mulia Sdn Bhd.
READ MORE: Malaysia Media Landscape Highlights 2019: Shifting towards Multilingual & Digital Content
Key New Media Outlets
Although the media industry saw a slate of closures of titles, many new media outlets started emerging during this period. Here’re some of the key newcomers:
- TIN Media
At the end of 2019, Travel Industry Network Media (TIN Media) made its debut as Malaysia’s first independent travel trade media. This B2B publication aims to promote tourism by delivering news on the developments in the travel, tourism and hospitality industries in the country and around the world to aid travel industry professionals in their businesses.
- Dagang News
Dagang News, a bilingual news portal dedicated to covering business and corporate news stories in English and Malay, was established on 1 July 2020. They focus on providing analysis of the impacts on businesses and the economy as a result of government and political policies surrounding Malaysia and Indonesia.
- The Vibes
In September 2020, The Vibes was launched in Kota Kinabalu and Sabah in East Malaysia. With the tagline ‘Malaysia, From Every Side’, the news portal aims to promote quality and independent journalism. The Vibes provides coverage on political issues, business updates, world news, sports and fitness, culture and lifestyle.
- MalaysiaNow
Bilingual current affairs website, MalaysiaNow was born on 20 September. They provide coverage in English and Malay on a wide array of topics ranging from politics, current issues, business and lifestyle around the world.
READ MORE: 2021 Asia-Pacific Media Landscape Outlook
2021 Outlook
One of the key agenda of the Malaysian media industry in 2021 is to help businesses promote their digital transformation plans. This becomes more crucial as brands set out to reinvent themselves to take on the post-crisis world.
Through adopting and improving Industry 4.0 technologies such as fintech, blockchain and artificial intelligence (AI), companies can future proof their businesses. This is part of the government‘s Malaysia 5.0 digital transformation plans to be the “Heart of Digital ASEAN”. With digital technologies amalgamated into all sectors of its economy, Malaysia hopes to become the regional digital hub for companies looking to tap into ASEAN’s digital future.
With this development, the media will be keen to feature stories from brands that have adapted to digital tools and platforms as a catalyst to achieve their business goals and venture to new opportunities.
Focus on local businesses in 2021
As COVID-19 continues to adversely impact Malaysia’s economy in 2021, media companies are stepping up efforts to promote home-grown Small & Medium Enterprises (SMEs), which have been bearing the brunt of the economy crisis.
According to Public Investment Bank Berhad (PIBB), Malaysia’s movement control order (MCO 3.0) is expected to incur economic losses of RM300 million per day. MCO 1.0 (March 18 to May 3, 2020) cost the economy RM2 billion per day, while MCO 2.0 (January 13 to 26, 2021) RM300 million per day.
To support local businesses, national oil and gas company Petronas Dagangan Berhad has launched a ‘Love Local’ Campaign. It provides more than 70 local brands an online platform to showcase their products and reach out to more customers. This initiative has been well-covered by the Malaysia media in a bid to give businesses a leg-up and stimulate domestic consumption.
PR Newswire’s News Distribution Network in Malaysia
PR Newswire has a strong media partnership with Malaysian national news agency Bernama. Our news distribution network in Malaysia covers 5,800 journalists and editors from 1,700 media outlets. Key content partners include Money Compass, NewsWav APP and TheAsianParent.
This is the third instalment of PR Newswire’s 2020 Asia-Pacific Media Landscape series. Our Audience Development team, which is based in 9 markets in APAC, gives an overview of media developments across the region.
For more information on receiving media insights, get in touch with us here.
This blog post is written by Christine Pereira, the Senior Audience Development Executive at PR Newswire Malaysia. Christine is in charge of partnerships, expanding media network, organizing events, conducting media interviews, and other company-wide projects for the Malaysian market. You can contact her at christine.pereira@prnasia.com or connect with her on LinkedIn.
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