Empowering Hyperlocal Journalism and Fostering Community Resilience
Revolutionising the Independent Community News Sector with Cutting-Edge Technology and New Revenue Streams
Ping! - the Public Interest News Gateway - supports independent community journalists by creating new revenue streams, helping to create a more sustainable and diverse news ecosystem.
Introduction
Ping News, a Community Interest Company (CIC), is dedicated to revolutionising the independent community news sector by providing hyperlocal journalists with free access to state-of-the-art news delivery technology and new revenue streams. Our mission is to usher in a new era of development, growth, and resilience within the sector while preserving its independence.
Core Values
At Ping News, our work is driven by the following core values:
Ensuring the sustainability of the local news sector
Representing all communities and reaching new audiences
Expanding quality journalism into news deserts and black holes
Building connections, intimacy, trust, and local knowledge
Securing and increasing diversity and plurality of voice
Empowering communities to build resilience against misinformation and disinformation
Holding power to account
Fostering shared identity and social cohesion
Ping! is a game-changer for Independent Hyperlocal News
The Ping! platform is an innovative news delivery web application designed exclusively for the benefit of the independent hyperlocal news community. It sets itself apart as the only software tool that enables publishers to access and pay for content from hyperlocal journalists across the UK.
Our Journey
The objective of Ping News CIC is to support the independent news sector. In 2019, we secured development funding from Google's Digital News Initiative fund, which allowed us to explore ways to better support hyperlocal news providers while ensuring fair compensation for their work. The result was the creation of the Ping! platform.
Transforming Community Reporting
Community reporting is a crucial part of the overall news ecosystem, but it faces numerous challenges. Even a small increase in income can be transformative for these independent publications. Regional and national publishers pay a monthly subscription fee, which is fairly distributed among content creators giving them a new revenue lifeline.
Revenue Distribution
For every pound of subscription fee, 60% goes directly to the content creators, allocated algorithmically based on the amount of content produced and the regions they cover. 30% is invested back into platform development costs of new features designed to generate additional revenue streams. Ten per cent is set aside in a reserve fund for the CIC to address any emergencies and/or support the industry in other ways.
How fees are allocated
Future Developments
Immediate plans for the Ping! platform's development include:
Ping!-Bounties: A system for commissioning stories directly from hyperlocal news providers across the country who are already embedded in their communities.
Ping!-Advertising: A shared advertising model that allows ads to be distributed among all hyperlocal publications.
Ping!-Internationalisation: Expanding the platform to address similar challenges internationally by sharing the Ping! software with news membership organisations managing hyperlocal news providers worldwide.
Our Partners
We are proud to have partnered with Bristol-based web app development company Omni Digital, a certified B Corporation dedicated to positive impact projects. In addition to developing the platform they worked with us to secure multiple rounds of funding from various sources, including Google, Meta, and Nesta. Omni Digital has played a crucial role in the development, management, and launch of the Ping! platform.
Quality Assurance and Free Trial
The Ping! platform is currently available exclusively to content creators who are members of the Independent Community News Network (ICNN). Each member needs to adhere to a robust criteria to become a member of ICNN. Publications must uphold high professional standards, including accuracy, transparency, integrity, accountability and fairness. Publications must demonstrate this by having at least six months of active coverage. This ensures the highest quality standard of content being inputted into Ping!, for regionals and nationals to use on demand.
New subscribers to the platform receive a free trial period, allowing them to seamlessly integrate Ping! into their daily workflows and access this valuable regional news content from hyperlocal news sources throughout the UK.
