The title was recently branded Hong Kong’s “worst employer” by Special Magistrate Chan Yan-tong, who fined it HK$135,000 (US$17,300) for outstanding Mandatory Provident Fund contributions, which the company has pledged to pay.
The city’s experts believe that its unclear consumer proposition remains a pressing problem, particularly in the light of increasing competition from free newspapers and new media. “In order to survive as a pay newspaper, you either have to be a top seller like Apple Daily, or you occupy a niche like Hong Kong Economic Times,” said GroupM Hong Kong CEO KK Tsang. “Sing Pao Daily lacks a clear market positioning.”
The impact of free newspapers, which now account for 21 per cent of newspaper adspend, has also hurt Sing Pao. With newspapers largely reliant on banking, retail, property and travel clients, Sing Pao’s readership - comprising mature working class readers - attracts little support. “Sing Pao’s biggest problem is that it doesn’t have any big differentiation, and is also not mass enough,” said OMD MD Jackson Kwok.
Neither is Sing Pao’s financial backing particularly strong. Wen Wei Po and Ta Kung Pao have strong mainland support, while Hong Kong Daily is owned by Emperor International.
