SF newspapers losing $60M to craigslist

We've been using craigslist exclusively for posting part time jobs over the last six months with amazing results. The following story from the Merc News includes an estimate of the financial loss to newspapers with the audience of sellers and buyers gravitating to this free site.

From the story:

"Bob Cauthorn, former vice president of digital media at the San Francisco Chronicle, estimates that with job listings alone, craigslist has taken $50 million to $60 million a year away from Bay Area newspapers.

It's true that Bay Area newspapers still generate many times the revenue of craigslist,'' he writes, ``and, in that narrow respect, newspapers lead. But this is fragile leadership because Bay Area newspapers have largely lost their ability to control pricing in the face of their mostly free online competitor. And, as craigslist's listing volume/user traffic demonstrates, the marketplace has moved decidedly from newspapers to craigslist."