If you haven’t heard by now, the Seattle Post-Intelligencer is no longer available in print. They printed the last edition of the PI today and will be moving the whole production online.  The PI lost $14M last year and couldn’t find a buyer willing to keep up the operation.  Hearst Corp., owner of the PI, said they’d put the PI online if they couldn’t find a buyer within 60 days.  So that’s how it all came to be.

Some are saying the demise of the PI (and other newspapers) is a result of the recession.  Gameshow buzzer sound effect. The decline of  newspapers is a result of newspapers being neat-o, not necessary.

How many people see this as a beacon of light for the newspaper industry?  Hearst Corp. couldn’t unload a clear money losing company.  A lot of big city dailies are in red ink.  Hearst Corp. sees opportunity online.  Darwin would be thrilled.

The brilliant thing about the PI’s transition from print to web is that they have every opportunity to save their existing newsroom and use those talented reporters and producers to fill the PI.com with content.  They also have a much more dynamic medium now to create individualized content for singular customers.

The sad thing is that it’s about ten years late.  Consumers have been heading to the internet for a long time for content.  Big companies could have had a jump on it and lead the technology.  Instead, they are laggards trying to catch up because their viability depends on it.

I don’t have to go on and on about this as it will likely be a recurring theme on this blog; the reluctance of challenged businesses to change.  The future just happened to the PI.  Embrace it and prosper.