(Left to right: AnyMind Group: Masanori Inoue / Shiro Sakumasu, TBS TV: Ryosei Nambu / Masato Nagai)
JNN (Japan News Network) is a network of 28 TV stations across Japan with TBS as its key station. TBS NEWS DIG Powered by JNN is a news site launched on 18 April 2022 that prioritizes deeper yet easy-to-understand news coverage.
TBS NEWS DIG combines the reporting capabilities of the 28 JNN stations, and also includes conventional terrestrial broadcasting.
TBS NEWS DIG tapped on AnyManager to power their site, which also helped TBS NEWS DIG exceed 120 million page views in just four months. In this interview, we speak to Ryosei Nambu and Masato Nagai, who were responsible for the development of TBS NEWS DIG.
What is TBS NEWS DIG Powered by JNN
TBS NEWS DIG was launched in April 2022, and DIG in this context means to dig deep. This new media outlet is packed with articles that are condensed from in-depth news coverage by JNN’s 28 affiliated stations, providing people in Japan with nationwide and overseas news. It has built a reputation for its “readable” news and images.
- News on TV alone did not have sufficient reach
- The team had little knowledge of web publishing
- Provision of knowledge for web publishing management
- Implementation of AnyManager’s various features
- Unification of indicators across bureaus facilitated better communication, leading to improved operational efficiency
- Through the use of data, TBS NEWS DIG was able to provide high-quality news that transcended geographical barriers
- Increased pageviews, leading to greater revenue generation
Interviewee profiles
Ryosei Nambu
News Bureau, JNN Next Media Preparation Office
Ryosei Nambu joined TBS Television in 2007 as a technical staff member and was in charge of news and sports as a cameraman. In 2013, he was posted to the London bureau. In 2021, he joined JNN Next Media Preparatory Office and was involved in the launch of TBS NEWS DIG.
Masato Nagai
Infrastructure Security Department, ICT Bureau and JNN Next Media Preparation Office, News Bureau
Masato Nagai joined the company in 2020 and was assigned to the Infrastructure Security Department of the ICT Bureau. Initially, he was engaged in updating telephone equipment, but in 2021, he joined JNN Next Media Preparatory Office. Currently, he is engaged in work related to the implementation of tools and site policies.
The most difficult part was to bring all 28 JNN-affiliated companies together
How was TBS NEWS DIG started?
At first, we were managing a web media called TBS NEWS (the predecessor of TBS NEWS DIG), which provided two types of news – news from TBS TV and national news from JNN stations.
The problem was that we needed to provide information that was relevant for the demographics of users who view our web content. We launched TBS NEWS DIG to provide news that is not bounded by a frame or scale, with the objective of strengthening the content we were publishing.
What were some of the challenges in launching TBS NEWS DIG?
The most difficult thing was to organize all 28 JNN-affiliated companies. Because of COVID-19, it was difficult to explain the launch of the new media in person to the publishing departments. In this case, how can we then gain everyone’s understanding? It was important for us to explain this move based on marketing data such as user needs, and we then worked on developing the content together.
Another challenge was the lack of manpower. Most of the affiliate stations have digital distribution arms and also provide terrestrial news. It was important for us to consider how we could deliver news more efficiently.
The decisive factor in working with AnyMind was the company’s extensive capabilities and track record in supporting publishers
What are your reasons for choosing AnyMind?
When we decided to create new web content, we had no knowledge at all and did not know how to proceed with this project. That’s when we met with some people at AnyMind Group.
They taught us everything, from tapping on their experience and expertise in working with web publishers to creating a monetization structure. Because of their experience working with major publishers and newspapers, they had a wealth of knowledge pooled up, which was also very reassuring. In addition, they have been speedy in the development of new functions on AnyManager. We are working together as partners – not just for monetization, but also like an extended arm of our team.
The value of each content can now be visualized and analyzed with a high degree of flexibility
How did the implementation of AnyManager benefit you?
The best thing about implementing AnyManager is that each of our 28 affiliate companies can now realize the value of their own content through data. AnyManager has been installed at all 28 JNN-affiliated stations. The clarity of the data has enabled each station to produce news with the same goal in mind.
It has also led to increased communication within JNN and new discoveries, such as the fact that there is such interesting news in various areas across Japan. The ability to connect our Google Analytics to AnyManager was also significant. We are now able to analyze data with a high degree of freedom, and as a result, this has led to increased revenues. Above all, we are now able to distribute news more efficiently, which is great.
Examples of articles that were well-received on TBS NEWS DIG
Is it a traffic violation to eat onigiri while driving? Police confirm that it is…https://newsdig.tbs.co.jp/articles/-/44239
This is an article published by BSS (Broadcasting System of San-in) to TBS NEWS DIG. This news was definitely news that should have been delivered nationwide, and it was a highly popular piece of content within TBS NEWS DIG. If the news was only published in the Tottori Prefecture, it would only reach about 500,000 people. This is a good example of how news was delivered to the whole of Japan, transcending regional boundaries, through TBS NEWS DIG.
Jungle Pocket’s Shinji Saito shares his harrowing experiences of being bulliedhttps://newsdig.tbs.co.jp/articles/-/73733
TBS NEWS DIG editorial staff was approached by SBS (Shizuoka Broadcasting System) and asked them to publish a longer version as web content. The TBS NEWS DIG platform enabled the editorial team to deliver the news across JNN as a whole.
The most attractive feature of AnyManager is its intuitive dashboard
What do you like about AnyManager in terms of functionality?
The dashboard is highly intuitive and easy-to-understand. You can immediately see the numbers you want to see. In addition, not only can you see CPM and CTR for each ad space with just a glance, but you can also extract past trends so that any team can easily analyze this data. The page RPM (estimated amount per 1,000 pageviews) is particularly intuitive and easy-to-understand. We can now visualize the revenue generated by our content.
In addition, after implementing AnyManager, we are now able to become a more efficient and faster unit when operating advertising. We can do what we want to do at a very fast pace because even the testing environment is prepared for us. It takes time to run ads by ourselves, but by working with AnyMind, we were able to save so much time. We are now able to run tests every other week.
