Rupert Murdoch's "paywalls" at News International have not won over the hearts of many fans in the past few years. Advertisers don't like it and analysts are unconvinced.
The Herald Sun launched a paywall around its content in March, the second title in News Limited's stable of newspapers to do so. The Australian's paywall, launched last year, is now citing 30,000 paid subscribers. Fairfax Media has not announced paywalls for any of its titles with the exception of a long-running subscription model for The Australian Financial Review.
Recently in an article from The Australian, it has been shown that the newspaper industry's turn toward "paywalls," that is, charging for online access, has been a hit with at least one important constituency: investors. Newspaper stocks are up 50 per cent to 80 per cent in the past year.
My Opinion:
My Opinion:
Despite this recent success, as a consumer of the media, I still havent accepted the reality of paywalls, and seem to find paid content to be down right anoying, for lack of a better word. While I always thought the internet was meant to fall perfectly in line with the lifestyles of people on the go, having to pay for everytime you want to read an article is a very time consuming task.
Simply by just scrolling through The Australian's online website, a site now conquired by the concept of paywalls, to read more than four lines of an article requires me to log in and purchase the remainder of the story. I ask myself the question, if newspapers in the future cease to exist, what will happen to the older generation who dont have access to the internet to get their news, and better yet, and online credit card to pay for it?
Although subscribing to The Australian website only costs $2.95 a month, it seems the consumers are winning in a way because they will be spending less than they would if they bought the newspaper from the local newsagency. I believe the problem with charging for online content, is the hassle of actually taking the time to fill out membership details and have to give away private credit card information.
Reference:http://www.theaustralian.com.au/media/online-charges-a-hit-with-investors/story-e6frg996-1226496862644
Reference:http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/online/has-rupert-murdochs-paywall-gamble-paid-off-2067907.html
Image source: http://www.commonfloor.com/guide/how-to-pay-your-property-tax-in-mumbai-7412.html
Although subscribing to The Australian website only costs $2.95 a month, it seems the consumers are winning in a way because they will be spending less than they would if they bought the newspaper from the local newsagency. I believe the problem with charging for online content, is the hassle of actually taking the time to fill out membership details and have to give away private credit card information.
Reference:http://www.theaustralian.com.au/media/online-charges-a-hit-with-investors/story-e6frg996-1226496862644
Reference:http://www.independent.co.uk/news/media/online/has-rupert-murdochs-paywall-gamble-paid-off-2067907.html
Image source: http://www.commonfloor.com/guide/how-to-pay-your-property-tax-in-mumbai-7412.html
No comments:
Post a Comment