Digital readers drive growth for Dutch newspaper publishers
Dutch publishers’ revenue rose in 2025 as digital readers spent more, despite a decline in advertising income. ABN AMRO expects newspaper subscription revenue to keep growing.
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Dutch newspaper publishers brought in more than €1.2 billion in 2025, up 2% from the previous year, according to Nieuws.nl. Spending by paying digital readers rose 13% to €224 million and drove the increase, while advertising revenue fell. [1]
That was the sixth year of revenue growth since a low point in 2019. Paying readers accounted for more than 80% of publishers’ revenue in 2025, compared with about half in 2005, when advertisers supplied the other half. The paying-reader figure includes more than digital spending alone. [1]
ABN AMRO economists expect newspaper subscription revenue to grow to €300 million over the next two years, mainly through digital subscriptions, Nieuws.nl reports. The bank says news podcasts can help publishers reach new audiences. It also warns that AI-generated answers in search engines could leave fewer readers clicking through to newspaper websites. [1]
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