Subscription ceilings and EU budgets
The Global North may be slowly running out of new subscribers, Reuters scores a win against AI on copyright, negotiations for the next EU budget and 23 active calls.
Welcome!
This week on the Media Finance Monitor:
Peak subscriptions
Reuters scores a win against AI on copyright
The fight for the next MFF is on
Design thinking and 5000 euros for small projects (x)
23 active calls (2 new)
This edition is going to be a little shorter than usual. Next week is the submission deadline for 'Journalism Partnerships', which is always crazy hectic, and we're chasing some other stuff as well. That said, I didn't want to leave you without the latest funding opportunities - if for nothing else, so your days too can be filled with the sweet-sweet bureaucracy of person-month calculations and weekly consortium prep-calls. After all, this is exactly what we saw in All the President's Men that made us get into journalism. We may even skip next week, but I promise we'll be back to our regular programming by March.
Peak subscriptions
Until a few days ago, I was only vaguely aware of DCN (Digital Content Next), but I came across an excellent article by Damian Radcliffe on the most important subscription trends of 2025. While the analysis primarily applies to “Western” publishers (more on that in a moment), I think it’s spot on.
The article argues that retention—keeping subscribers engaged and paying—is becoming increasingly important for mature news and media businesses. In fact, for many publishers, retention may now be more important than conversion, the process of persuading new users to subscribe. If you’ve never run an audience revenue program or are just starting one, this may be difficult to imagine. But I promise you, within 18 months of program launch, you’ll find yourself focusing more on why people are leaving. That’s because the pool of new subscribers will eventually shrink—unless you can keep investing in new editorial products and services, which is tough to sustain.
Another way to look at it: Conversions can happen for many reasons. They can be emotional decisions; in some markets, like Hungary, subscribing to independent media can be an act of defiance, a proxy for civic action. While these motivators may be powerful enough to drive an initial purchase, they’re not enough to ensure long-term retention. To keep people subscribed, you need to offer benefits and services that provide real, lasting value. Otherwise, that initial spark—no matter how strong—will fade, and some of your subscribers (whether they’re members, donors, or paying readers) will eventually churn.
Radcliffe also touches on AI integration, highlighting a new feature from Time magazine: a widget that can summarize an article, read it aloud, answer user questions, and even engage in conversation.
Why I think the analysis may not be universally applicable, is because in many CEE markets (and probably a bunch of similar contexts globally), where digital subscriptions are more of a recent phenomenon, there still seems to be a lot of room for growth. Dennik N just announced getting 10+ thousand new subscribers in four days and in places like Romania and Bulgaria I think there are still a lot of new people to convince that news may be something worth paying for.
You can also look at the 2024 results of Dennik N, and see the crazy growth.
As Thomas Bella, their Chief Digital Officer puts it
(...) it turns out that quality long-form journalism under an authoritarian and hostile government remains the most boring and predictable business in the world.
That’s not to say churn isn’t an issue in CEE—it absolutely is. But the growth curve here appears much steeper than in more established markets. And on that note check out PressGazette’s “2025 ranking of world’s biggest [English language] news publishers by digital subscribers”.
Reuters scores a win against AI on copyright
While probably it’s still a little early to tell your favorite AI agent to order you a bottle of champagne, Thomson Reuters won AI copyright 'fair use' ruling against a one-time competitor.
The case centered on Westlaw, Reuters’ online legal database, which isn’t cheap—subscriptions range from $100 to over $1,000 per month, depending on the service tier. A competitor obtained some of Westlaw’s materials and used them to develop a non-generative AI search tool. The court ruled that this constituted copyright infringement, dealing a win to Reuters.
I think this is a welcome decision, but it doesn’t necessarily extend to generative AI or the use of copyrighted content for AI training data. When you ask ChatGPT, Claude, or DeepSeek about a Reuters-reported story, you won’t get a verbatim copy of the article. Instead, the AI synthesizes a response from multiple sources, potentially including Reuters’ reporting. This makes infringement harder to prove, as the use of any single article is more indirect.
(In slightly related news, The Guardian struck a licensing deal with OpenAI for an undisclosed amount. What about deals with publishers outside the Global North, you ask? You must be new here.)
The fight for the next MFF is on
Probably the most deceptively aggressive acronym in the world is MFF, which sounds like something incredibly raw and/or badass but actually stands for Multiannual Financial Framework, the seven-year budget of the European Union. Regular readers will know that we at the Center for Sustainable Media care a great deal about the next MFF (starting in 2028) because we want to change how journalism is funded in the EU, and any meaningful reform will likely involve allocations in the next seven-year cycle.
Earlier this year, we brought on David Kardos, a Brussels insider, to help us navigate the byzantine bureaucracies of the Commission, Parliament, and Council. David and I are already working on a piece that will break down the MFF negotiations, showing how they unfold in Brussels and key European capitals over the next 18 months. We aim to publish it in March.
In the meantime, things are already happening. The European Parliament's Budget Committee is discussing an MFF resolution - essentially a wishlist of priorities they want the EU to fund starting in 2028. At this stage, it's nothing more than that: a wish list, an early step in a long and complex process. But we're working to ensure that journalism funding at least makes it onto some of those lists.
If you want to aid our efforts, check out our CSM Partnership Program (it comes with some cool benefits) or reach out to us on advocacy@funds4media.org
Design thinking and €5,000 for small projects (x)
I guess this is our very first ad. Well, sort of.
Our good friends at Transitions are organizing a design thinking workshop for journalists, editors, and other media types in Budapest on March 7-8. They've asked us to be their local partner and help spread the word.
There are two big benefits to attending:
You'll learn about design thinking—a toolset that, in my view, helps you better understand your audience's needs and create editorial products and services that truly serve them. And let's be honest, we could all do better in that department.
There's a micro-grant program attached, offering up to €5,000 to help you apply what you've learned and build something new.
Interested? Apply here—spots are limited!
Here are the active calls, with the largest at the top:
Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values Programme (CERV)
Who: European Commission
How much: EUR 75,000 - 8,000,000
What is it for: Counter disinformation, information manipulation and interference in the democratic debate
How long: 12 - 24 months
Deadline: April 29th, 2025
Eligible countries: EU member states (including overseas countries and territories), countries associated to the CERV Programme or countries which are in ongoing negotiations for an association agreement and where the agreement enters into force before grant signature
A European public sphere: a new online media offer for young Europeans
Who: European Commission
How much: EUR 1,500,000 and EUR 3,200,000
What is it for: Engage young Europeans in pan-European discussions
How long: 12-14 months
Deadline: March 24th, 2025
Eligible countries: EU Member States, including overseas countries and territories
European Festival of Journalism and Media Freedom
Who: European Commission
How much: EUR 3,000,000
What is it for: Organize the European Festival of Journalism and Media Freedom
How long: 24 - 27 months
Deadline: March 31st, 2025
Eligible countries: EU Member States (including overseas countries and territories)
Media Freedom Hub 2025 - NEW
Who: European Commission
How much: EUR 2,940,000
What is it for: Support independent Russian and Belarusian media based in the EU
How long: 22 - 24 months
Deadline: March 14th, 2025
Eligible countries: EU Member States (including overseas countries and territories)
CREA - Journalism Partnerships - Pluralism
Who: European Commission
How much: Up to EUR 2,500,000
What is it for: Protect independent media and journalism
How long: Up to 24 months
Deadline: February 27th, 2025
Eligible countries: Creative Europe participating countries (EU member states and non-EU countries associated to the Creative Europe Programme)
Prevention of irregular migration through awareness raising
Who: European Commission
How much: EUR 1,250,000 - 2,500,000
What is it for: Prevent irregular migration through information campaigns
How long: 36 months
Deadline: April 1st, 2025
Eligible countries: EU Member States, including overseas countries and territories
CREA - Journalism Partnerships - Collaborations
Who: European Commission
How much: Up to EUR 2,000,000
What is it for: Cross-border media collaborations
How long: Up to 24 months
Deadline: February 27th, 2025
Eligible countries: Creative Europe participating countries (EU member states and non-EU countries associated to the Creative Europe Programme)
CREA - Media Literacy
Who: European Commission
How much: Up to EUR 500,000
What is it for: Media literacy
How long: Up to 24 months
Deadline: March 6th, 2025
Eligible countries: Creative Europe participating countries (EU member states and non-EU countries associated to the Creative Europe Programme)
UNDEF Project Grants
Who: United Nations Democracy Fund
How much: USD 100,000 - 200,000
What is it for: Media and freedom of information
How long: 24 months
Deadline: February 28th, 2025
Eligible countries: Global (preference for countries that are in the transition and consolidation phases of democratization, in particular countries emerging from conflict, new and restored democracies, least developed countries and low or middle-income countries).
Strengthening independent public interest journalism in Europe
Who: Civitates
How much: Up to EUR 160,000
What is it for: Media resilience and sustainability
How long: 24 months
Deadline: March 2nd, 2025
Eligible countries: Hungary, Poland, Italy, Spain, Bulgaria, Slovakia and Croatia.
Making online spaces safer, more trustworthy and inclusive - NEW
Who: Civitates
How much: Up to EUR 150,000
What is it for: Media resilience and sustainability
How long: Over 24 months
Deadline: March 14th, 2025
Eligible countries: Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovakia and Spain.
Boosting Fact-Checking Activities in Europe
Who: European Media and Information Fund
How much: Up to EUR 55,000
What is it for: Combat mis- and disinformation
How long: Up to 6 months
Deadline: February 28th, 2025
Eligible countries: EU, EFTA and UK
IJ4EU’s Investigation Support Scheme
Who: IJ4EU
How much: Up to EUR 50,000
What is it for: Cross-border investigative journalism
Deadline: March 10th, 2025
Eligible countries: All 27 EU member states and the following non-EU countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Norway, Serbia and Ukraine.
Visegrad Grants
Who: Visegrad Fund
How much: Up to EUR 30,000
What is it for: Media literacy, disinformation, transparency
How long: Up to 18 months
Deadline: June 1st, 2025
Eligible countries: V4 countries (Czechia, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia). * Consortia required.
Visegrad+ Grants
Who: Visegrad Fund
How much: Up to EUR 30,000
What is it for: Media literacy, disinformation, transparency
How long: Up to 18 months
Deadline: June 1st, 2025
Eligible countries: V4 countries (Czechia, Hungary, Poland, Slovakia), Western Balkans (Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia) and the Eastern Partnership regions (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Georgia, Moldova and Ukraine.
Professional Development Grants for Environmental Journalism
Who: Journalismfund Europe
How much: Up to EUR 20,000
What is it for: Capacity building of environmental investigative journalists
How long: Up to 12 months
Deadline: May 22nd, 2025
Eligible countries: European countries
Environmental Investigative Journalism
Who: Journalismfund Europe
How much: Up to EUR 20,000
What is it for: Conduct investigations about Europe's environmental affairs
How long: Up to 12 months
Deadline: April 3rd, 2025
Eligible countries: European countries
Fossil Fuel Grants Programme
Who: Journalismfund Europe
How much: Up to EUR 20,000
What is it for: Cross-border research on unreported activities of European fossil fuel companies
Deadline: April 3th, 2025
Eligible countries: European countries
European Cross-Border Grants Programme
Who: Journalismfund Europe
How much: Unclear, but likely up to EUR 14,000
What is it for: Cross-border investigative content
Deadline: March 27th, 2025
Eligible countries: At least 80% of the requested budget should go to local journalists/media from EU countries
European Local Cross-Border Grants Programme
Who: Journalismfund Europe
How much: Unclear, but likely up to EUR 10,000
What is it for: Local cross-border investigative content
Deadline: March 27th, 2025
Eligible countries: EU countries
Microgrants for Small Newsrooms
Who: Journalismfund Europe
How much: Up to EUR 5,000
What is it for: Capacity building for small news outlets
Deadline: April 3rd, 2025
Eligible countries: Creative Europe participating countries (EU member states and non-EU countries associated to the Creative Europe Programme)
Audience-Engaged Journalism Grants
Who: BIRN
How much: Up to EUR 5,000
What is it for: Media support
How long: Up to 8 months
Deadline: March 2nd, 2025
Eligible countries: Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia.
Pluralistic Media for Democracy
Who: Journalismfund Europe and IMS
How much: Unclear (call amount: EUR 700,000)
What is it for: Support media in "news deserts"
Deadline: June 12th, 2025
Eligible countries: EU 27 countries, including Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, North Macedonia, and Serbia.
Until the next issue, thanks for reading and take care.
Peter Erdelyi and the rest of the Center for Sustainable Media team