Page 222 - 2019 - Leaders in Legal Business (n)
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will rub up against law firms that have not yet embraced change and are focused on what they can
do beyond the commoditized and vanilla. The relationships between publishers and LPOs will be
interesting to watch as well. LPOs, while offering efficiencies in many areas over law firms or in-
house legal teams, currently offer services to clients in some areas where a publisher would
instinctively want to offer a product to a much larger set of clients at a lower rate.
Globalization
The continued globalization of international markets and business is another powerful force
that is having a major impact on the legal market. In-house counsel at multinational firms must
stay on top of an ever-multiplying set of laws and regulations in a growing number of countries.
This increasingly complex and interconnected global regulatory environment has seen law firms
forge alliances or open offices across the globe. Often deterred by the multitude of languages that
prevent economies of scale, publishers have been slow to follow, covering developments in smaller
jurisdictions at a relatively high level. This is something that technology will surely address in the
foreseeable future.
Revenue Models
With the exception of those focused on news and opinion journalism, legal publishers have
not been beset by the challenges facing the wider newspaper and magazine industry as it grapples
with declining advertising revenues and customers’ reluctance to go behind the paywall in a world
where so much information online is free. Newspapers are focusing on high-quality, often long-
form journalism to build loyalty with readers and convince them to use their credit cards. This is
exactly the kind of content on which legal publishers have focused.
Those with a co-publishing, financed content model generally ensure that their projects are
financially underwritten in advance. They may be free to air, require registration, or require a
subscription fee from one or more classes of user, but branded content has long flourished in the
legal sector and looks set to continue, especially given the importance of content marketing to law
firms.
As publishing has moved online, expectations around advertising have changed greatly.
No longer can publishers simply quote readership numbers based on a multiple applied print runs.
Advertisers are seeking highly targeted opportunities and real-time analytics on usage. Those that
fail to deliver will be left behind.
There is increased competition from outside the sector from the likes of LinkedIn and
Google, which can target users in the way that previously only a trade publisher could.
Legal directories of one sort or another have long been a mainstay for many publishers.
They continue to provide valuable intelligence to readers, and serve as both a marketing tool and
a competitive benchmarking tool for firms. They are still driven by advertising; as of yet, no one
has moved to fees based on the number or value of the introductions made.
Much of the innovation in this space will come from new market entrants, many of which
bring with them “freemium” models. Just as with so many services outside the space, they work
toward proof of concept and build user bases by offering a free service before introducing premium
features.
207
do beyond the commoditized and vanilla. The relationships between publishers and LPOs will be
interesting to watch as well. LPOs, while offering efficiencies in many areas over law firms or in-
house legal teams, currently offer services to clients in some areas where a publisher would
instinctively want to offer a product to a much larger set of clients at a lower rate.
Globalization
The continued globalization of international markets and business is another powerful force
that is having a major impact on the legal market. In-house counsel at multinational firms must
stay on top of an ever-multiplying set of laws and regulations in a growing number of countries.
This increasingly complex and interconnected global regulatory environment has seen law firms
forge alliances or open offices across the globe. Often deterred by the multitude of languages that
prevent economies of scale, publishers have been slow to follow, covering developments in smaller
jurisdictions at a relatively high level. This is something that technology will surely address in the
foreseeable future.
Revenue Models
With the exception of those focused on news and opinion journalism, legal publishers have
not been beset by the challenges facing the wider newspaper and magazine industry as it grapples
with declining advertising revenues and customers’ reluctance to go behind the paywall in a world
where so much information online is free. Newspapers are focusing on high-quality, often long-
form journalism to build loyalty with readers and convince them to use their credit cards. This is
exactly the kind of content on which legal publishers have focused.
Those with a co-publishing, financed content model generally ensure that their projects are
financially underwritten in advance. They may be free to air, require registration, or require a
subscription fee from one or more classes of user, but branded content has long flourished in the
legal sector and looks set to continue, especially given the importance of content marketing to law
firms.
As publishing has moved online, expectations around advertising have changed greatly.
No longer can publishers simply quote readership numbers based on a multiple applied print runs.
Advertisers are seeking highly targeted opportunities and real-time analytics on usage. Those that
fail to deliver will be left behind.
There is increased competition from outside the sector from the likes of LinkedIn and
Google, which can target users in the way that previously only a trade publisher could.
Legal directories of one sort or another have long been a mainstay for many publishers.
They continue to provide valuable intelligence to readers, and serve as both a marketing tool and
a competitive benchmarking tool for firms. They are still driven by advertising; as of yet, no one
has moved to fees based on the number or value of the introductions made.
Much of the innovation in this space will come from new market entrants, many of which
bring with them “freemium” models. Just as with so many services outside the space, they work
toward proof of concept and build user bases by offering a free service before introducing premium
features.
207
