Media Nation: The trouble with charging for content

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Tuesday, April 21, 2009

In my latest for The Guardian, I gather together some thoughts on why newspapers can't charge for online content.

At April 21, 2009 at 10:24:00 AM EDT, Unknown said...: Does it make sense to charge for access early in the day and then release the paper online after, say, 9 o'clock in the morning? Or is this in contravention of the immediacy of the Internet? Would page views take a catastrophic hit if access was on a paid basis for people who want the paper with their breakfast before being released to the rest of the world (and the aggregators)? As it is the first edition is on-line very early in the morning
At April 21, 2009 at 8:30:00 PM EDT, Unknown said...: If newspaper reporting is essential to having our government held accountable, then I would favor supporting that through a surcharge on internet service fees. (I think David Denby made a suggestion of this recently in a letter to the Times.)
At April 22, 2009 at 2:28:00 PM EDT, Aaron Read said...: Well the "Demagogue & Comical" (Democrat & Chronicle) here in Rochester apparently can't do the math, either, Dan.

Check it out:

http://www.13wham.com/news/local/story/Democrat-and-Chronicle-to-Launch-New-Web-Site/zal3aCKdOkaE-SxdBKjVzw.cspx?rss=102