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Commercialization

Space Foundation Charges News Media To Read Their News

By Keith Cowing
NASA Watch
June 22, 2016
Filed under
Space Foundation Charges News Media To Read Their News

Keith’s note: I just got this email from Carol Hively, Director, Public Relations & Team Communications telling me “NOTE TO MEDIA: Today, the Space Foundation will issue a press release announcing data from The Space Report 2016. In addition to the data found in the press release, an overview of the report is available free to media here. There will be a charge of $99 for media to access the complete pdf of The Space Report 2016, which includes more than 80 pages of data on global space activity during 2015. Go here to receive the discount code to order The Space Report 2016 pdf full report for the discounted media rate of $99.”
I had to read that email more than once. Space Foundation charges immense fees for its member companies, puts on lavish events, and never does anything in an inexpensive way. Indeed, according to their 2014 Form 990 Space Foundation had over $7,000,000 in income. And yet they want the several dozen news media (those who pay attention to the Space Foundation that is) to pay $99 to read their self-congratulatory 80 page PDF file? Really? You’d think that the Space Foundation would best serve its membership by making the good news about space economy available to everyone who is interested.
Keith’s update: According to their press release “The report can be purchased as a downloadable PDF for $399. A website subscription can be purchased for $3,500.” So … now the non-profit Space Foundation is in the commercial market forecasting business, I guess. Again, you’d think that this report should be out in the wild for anyone to read.
This must be what it was like when Rome was burning.

NASA Watch founder, Explorers Club Fellow, ex-NASA, Away Teams, Journalist, Space & Astrobiology, Lapsed climber.

14 responses to “Space Foundation Charges News Media To Read Their News”

  1. TheBrett says:
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    I laughed too. Why would I want to pay $99 to read an 80 page report that won’t tell me anything new? I could always just wait a few weeks for the next multi-page giant report on space exploration/commerce/tourism/whatever.

  2. Vladislaw says:
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    Off Topic:

    Kieth you are in the top influencers in space…

    http://traackr.com/blog/201

  3. ThomasLMatula says:
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    Interesting strategy to limit distribution to just the handful of big old time media outlets and old line trade media with expense accounts. It basically allows them to avoid dealing with the new media outlets. It will be interesting to see if the strategy of stealth discrimination against new media works or a strong backlash stops it. In any case it is a classic example of the mindset that still exists in big corporations against the new media outlets. I will have to use it as an example in the next PR class I teach as how strong resistance is to change in traditional organizations.

  4. Marc Boucher says:
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    I have no problem with them charging for their research reports to the public and the price is reasonable considering what consulting groups charge for theirs. However, I think they would get more marketing mileage if they didn’t charge the media. That’s a mistake IMHO. And as I keep pointing out to people, a non-profit can and should earn revenue, they just have to spend it each year.

  5. Bill Housley says:
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    I predicted earlier this year somewhere here on Disqus that we’ll look back on 2016 as the year SpaceX became the industry leader. If that happens then we might also look back on 2016 as the year this particular conference became irrelevant.