Zee group shut down DNA newspaper after 14 years of its launch
KI SINGH/ royalpatiala.in/ Chandigarh
Daily News & Analysis, a daily known by its initials “DNA”, brought the shutters down on its print edition Wednesday, 14 years after it was launched with much fanfare as a potential alternative to The Times of India (TOI) in Mumbai. It announced to shut its last running Mumbai and Ahmedabad editions.
Although launched in the financial capital, over the years, DNA came out with editions across India, including Delhi (2016), Bengaluru, Jaipur, Pune and Ahmedabad. At one point, it reportedly boasted of a nearly 6-lakh-strong readership in Mumbai alone.
“The decision has been taken by the company in order to optimize cost and reduce the losses. DNA is an integral part of Diligent Media Corporation Ltd (DMCL) news media offering and the company has always invested immense time, resources and energy in enriching it as a news platform, making it relevant and immensely informative for its readers, and will continue to do so,” said the company. DNA said the shutdown was aimed at optimising costs and reducing losses. Employees say they were caught off-guard by the abrupt manner in which the paper exited the print industry, but there had been murmurs about DNA’s imminent shutdown, what with the financial troubles of its parent company, Essel Group of Subhash Chandra.
DNA acting editor Akash Shah told that it was “not viable to run the paper anymore”, In a press note issued this week, DNA said the shutdown was aimed at optimising costs and reducing losses.
A promising beginning
DNA was launched in 2005 in Mumbai with editorial talent poached from industry leaders, with salaries much higher than the market rates.
The launch was accompanied by a major advertisement blitzkrieg pegged on catchy taglines such as “Speak up, it’s in your DNA”, word play that invoked the more-recognised meaning of DNA, the repository of genetic information in human beings and other organisms.
The Mumbai edition of Hindustan Times was also launched around the same time.
Initially, DNA, run by the Essel Group Company Diligent Media Corporation Limited (DMCL), was started as a joint venture with Bhaskar Group, with its own printing press at Mahape in Navi Mumbai.
While it was hailed as a vibrant newspaper, with supplements like DNA Money, Afterhours and hyper-local editions that earned a positive response from readers, industry insiders say DNA barely managed to earn a sixth of its Rs 300 crore investment in the first year.
The daily had since been running at consistent losses, which sources estimated at thousands of crores of rupees.Amid constant losses, the Bhaskar Group exited the joint venture in 2012, and Essel Group took complete control.
The immediate trigger for its final shutdown was the liquidity crunch faced by Subhash Chandra’s Zee Group, said one of the former employee.
A member of the DNA launch team said the daily was not correctly positioned in the market from Day One.“DNA’s pricing was very low and they had targeted very high circulation with zero advertisements. As advertisements started drying up, DNA experimented with a variety of editorial and marketing tactics to increase circulation.
“The youth has largely shifted to online modes for news. Those who still read newspapers are usually at the 35-plus age group, who read a newspaper purely out of habit .A person reads a newspaper, not just for news, but also for information they get from classified ads, appointments and matrimonials, among other things”said a former employee.
