KUALA LUMPUR: The local media ecosystem will continue to be strengthened through the Media Innovation Fund as it grapples with shifting advertising trends and changing audience demographics, says Datuk Seri Fahmi Fadzil.
The Communications Minister said the RM30mil fund, introduced last year and is still available, was designed to help mainstream and online media organisations modernise their infrastructure and services.
“Media companies can apply, but they must be registered with the Information Department (Japen),” he said when featured on the Jangan Kecam podcast hosted by Nazz Abdullah, Bernama reported.
Fahmi said applications were open to eligible registered mainstream and online media companies holding a Media Accreditation Card (e-Media Kad) issued by Japen.
He said government agencies, including the Malaysian National News Agency (Bernama) and the Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC), had also been asked to assist eligible media organisations.
On the impact of new media, Fahmi said the shift from television and print to mobile devices had drastically reshaped the industry.
He said annual traditional advertising expenditure had fallen to about RM2bil from RM4bil to RM4.5bil, with advertising revenue increasingly flowing to international social media platforms such as TikTok, Facebook and YouTube.
The decline, he said, had affected the ability of local television, radio and newspaper organisations to sustain their operations.
However, Fahmi stressed that traditional media remained essential as independent communication channels that were not entirely reliant on foreign platforms.
“Is it wise to have all our content on Facebook and TikTok? Not necessarily, because these are foreign platforms, not ours. If they decide one day to change their policies or shut down, we could lose those channels of communication,” he said.
Fahmi said the Media Innovation Fund would help local media companies adapt to these changes, including developing content strategies to attract younger audiences such as Generation Z and Generation Alpha.
The fund, a Communications Ministry initiative to support modernisation and digital transformation, aims to ensure local media organisations remain competitive and sustainable.
It offers grants of up to RM300,000 per project for skills training, software licences, equipment purchases and research into innovative technology-driven content, including artificial intelligence.
