• Advertising guru receives Change Maker of the Century Award at newspaper’s centenary celebration
• Proposes media, publishing divisions, IPO to develop income, possession base
Sunday Ehigiator
Chairman of Troyka Holdings, Dr. Biodun Shobanjo, has challenged Daily Times of Nigeria to leverage its historic archives and institutional heritage to rework into a world media and publishing conglomerate, urging the newspaper to discover new enterprise alternatives past conventional print journalism.
Shobanjo made the decision whereas delivering the keynote handle on the Times Heroes Award, held lately in Lagos, as a part of actions marking the newspaper’s a centesimal anniversary.
Speaking on the theme, “Honouring the Past, Shaping the Future,” he stated declining newspaper readership and circulation, alongside the rising affect of digital platforms, had made it crucial for conventional media organisations to rethink their enterprise fashions and discover sustainable sources of income.
Shobanjo stated Daily Times should look past typical newspaper publishing and diversify into digital media, leisure, publishing, and different content-driven companies to stay aggressive within the evolving media panorama.
A significant a part of his proposal centred on the business and cultural worth of the newspaper’s historic archives, which he estimated at roughly 660,000 images, movies, and different archival supplies documenting Nigeria’s historical past.
According to him, the archives represent vital mental and business belongings that might be monetised by means of digital content material, documentaries, licensing, publishing, and leisure.
Shobanjo acknowledged, “You have 660,000 images, movies and different archival supplies. These should not simply historic data; they’re belongings that may be transformed into financial worth.
“You must begin to look at how these materials can generate revenue for the organisation.”
Drawing parallels with Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation, Shobanjo proposed that Daily Times restructure its operations round two main enterprise divisions: media and publishing.
He defined that the proposed construction would allow the organisation to diversify its operations, develop its income base, and set up a sustainable enterprise mannequin past newspaper manufacturing.
Shobanjo additionally advocated broader public possession of the historic establishment by means of a proposed Initial Public Offering (IPO) on the Nigerian Exchange, whereas permitting Folio Communications, its majority stakeholder, to retain controlling curiosity.
“The Daily Times should belong to Nigerians,” he stated, stating that wider public participation in its possession would give residents a chance to put money into and profit from the establishment’s future development.
Reflecting on the newspaper’s historical past, he acknowledged the contributions of previous media professionals, intellectuals, and enterprise leaders, significantly former chief executives, Chief Tola Adeniyi and Alhaji Yemi Ogunbiyi, whom he recognised for his or her roles within the organisation’s improvement.
He additionally counseled Chairman of Folio Media Group, Mr. Fidelis Anosike, for his audacity and dedication to sustaining the Daily Times legacy, urging him and Folio Communications to construct on the newspaper’s heritage and reposition it for higher achievements.
Shobanjo was honoured with the Change Maker of the Century Award on the centenary celebration in recognition of his contributions to Nigeria’s advertising communications trade and the broader enterprise panorama.
The award recognised his pioneering function within the nation’s promoting and advertising communications trade, institution-building, expertise improvement, and the nurturing of generations of execs.
His entrepreneurial legacy spans organisations, together with Insight Redefini, All Seasons, and Quadrant MSL, with enterprise pursuits protecting promoting, media, and built-in communications.
The recognition additionally highlighted his contribution to constructing establishments designed to create worth and alternatives past their founders.
At the Shaping the Future Town Hall held as a part of the centenary actions, enterprise leaders and trade stakeholders additionally examined the significance of constructing sustainable enterprises, growing human capability, and establishing establishments able to outliving their founders.
One of the contributors, expertise entrepreneur, Iyinoluwa Aboyeji, emphasised the significance of equipping folks with related abilities and capabilities to turn out to be productive.
Aboyeji recognized human capability improvement as a important pathway to job creation.
The discussions bolstered the significance of sustainable constructions, robust management, funding in folks, and steady innovation in constructing enduring establishments.
