Will relationship building cost newspapers too much?
The New York Times is giving pay wall skeptics reason to reconsider their skepticism. Despite questions about the company's paywall strategy, the daily has managed to lure some 325,000 paying subscribers.
That's good news for a newspaper that some believed might not survive.
B&N discounting, giving away NOOKs to sell content
In the battle for the future of the tablet market, Amazon - with the Kindle Fire, may be a top contender for the lead row. But another retailer, Barnes & Noble (B&N), isn't ceding anything to its etail rival.
Yesterday, it announced that customers who pony up $120 for a one-year subscription to the digital version of PEOPLE Magazine will receive a $50 discount on the NOOK Tablet, bringing its price down to that of the Kindle Fire ($199). Customers who purchase a $240 annual subscription to the New York Times (NYT) can have a NOOK Simple Touch for free, or a NOOK Color tablet for $99.
Huffington Post follows Forbes into branded blogging
The Huffington Post UK is launching branded blogs at the start of next year, mirroring a service already offered by its US counterpart and Forbes.
The US version of Huffington Post already offers brands the chance to blog, providing a new form of advertising to clients like BMW.
Is the New York Times getting comments right?
November 30th, 2011 was yet another monumental day in digital media history that will swiftly fade from memory: the New York Times changed its comments section.
In the past few years, while the development of video content, photo galleries, and other interactive features raced ahead, the comments section continued to resemble something from the pre-iPhone days.
No longer!
The New York Times adopts the Google Labs approach
Google is arguably one of the most innovative companies of our time. A big part of that is that, despite the fact that the vast majority of its revenue comes from a single revenue stream (online advertising), the company has been eager to experiment with new ideas not necessarily related to search.
One of the primary ways it has conducted its experiments in public has been through Google Labs, "a playground where our more adventurous users can play around with prototypes of some of our wild and crazy ideas and offer feedback directly to the engineers who developed them."
Does Slovakia hold the secret to paywall success?
Here's a question most publishers would love to have an answer to: what's the secret to building a successful pay wall?
Although one might expect major publishers like the New York Times to eventually provide the answer, newspapers in Slovakia may have beat their Western counterparts to the task.
Newspaper circulation declines, even with free copies
Newspapers need help anywhere they can get it, and the Audit Bureau of Circulations is trying to help. Recently, it updated the rules it uses to calculate newspaper circulation.
One of the changes: free copies given to local schools and newspaper employees are now counted.
That should help, right? Apparently, it's not that easy. Despite the Audit Bureau of Circulations' good intentions, newspaper circulation in the U.S. continues to decline.
Financial Times: we don't need in-app subscriptions
Traditional publishers have known better days. The business models of the past are failing, and new ones that can take their place are, for many publishers, elusive.
But a few, like The Financial Times, are not just surviving, they're thriving. And increasingly, they're extending their success into new channels and onto new platforms.
The miracle of the New York Times pay wall
Yesterday, the New York Times officially rolled out its new subscription in the United States.
According to Arthur Sulzberger, Jr., the launch represents a "major step forward" for the storied daily he publishes.
According to Sulzberger, "It will allow us to develop new sources of revenue to strengthen our ability to continue our journalistic mission as well as undertake digital innovations that will enable us to provide you with high-quality journalism on whatever device you choose".
NY Times pay wall: the good, the bad, the ugly
One of the most storied news dailies, The New York Times, has been talking about a pay wall for well over a year. Like most newspapers, times are tough, and to survive and thrive, new sources of revenue must be found. For obvious reasons, subscriptions are one of the most appealing potential revenue sources.
Yesterday, The New York Times finally pulled the trigger and announced that it will be launching a paid subscription model later this month.
