News Ltd And Fairfax Making A Huge Play In Subscriptions For Online News

[El Diablo]

http://au.businessinsider.com/news-ltd-is-making-a-huge-play-in-subscriptions-for-online-news-2013-5

News Ltd Is Making A Huge Play In Subscriptions For Online News
Paul Colgan Today 12:02 PM

A digital news subscription service that will be watched keenly by the global media industry launches in Australia next week.

Readers of two of the biggest news brands in the country will be asked to register and ultimately pay to access digital news content as part of a huge subscription play by Australia’s biggest media company, News Ltd, the local arm of Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation.

News Ltd chief executive Kim Williams announced the plan this morning – the full statement is below.

Subscribers will gain access to a bundle of products under the newly created news+ brand, which will ultimately be a pool of News Ltd’s vast suite of content from its Australian newspaper network and lifestyle titles.

The first brands to introduce the subscription system will be Melbourne’s Herald Sun and Sydney’s Daily Telegraph.

The metering system will work like this:

Readers will get access to five free articles a week before being asked to register
Registered readers will be able to access a further 10 articles on the Herald Sun and a further 15 a week on the Daily Telegraph

Further access will require users to buy a digital subscription, at a starting price of a dollar for the first four weeks and $4 after that – just over $200 a year.

The company will also offer extremely cheap newspaper subscriptions bundled with the digital deal – chipping in just an extra $5 a week will give digital subscribers seven-day newspaper delivery.

Broadsheet titles like the WSJ, The Australian and the NYT have successfully started building digital subscriber bases, but News Ltd is breaking new ground in asking readers to pay for the content of mass-circulation tabloids packaged up with sports and lifestyle brands.

Here’s the full text of the announcement.

The chief executive officer of News Limited, Kim Williams, today announced the launch of a new digital subscription service for The Daily Telegraph and Herald Sun together with a fresh addition: news+, a product enhancement to support the company’s rollout of digital subscription products across its network.

The launch includes the integration of content from FOX SPORTS with News’ masthead sports content and an enhanced ability to serve local audiences with targeted content which meets specific interests and needs. The new subscription products will offer enhanced local content to subscribers in a range of completely renovated digital sites with exclusive sports content and a new metered subscription model for access to those key mastheads.

Consumers will be able to choose from a number of subscription offers, including a variety of print and digital bundles or digital only. Subscribers will get full access to their local masthead website, mobile site and tablet app as well as News’ complete national network, including FOX SPORTS content as part of a multi-platform subscription product experience.

On May 16, The Daily Telegraph and Herald Sun online will be the first sites to implement new product offers incorporating news+. In June AdelaideNow and The Courier-Mail online will launch, followed with other new offers over time.

The new masthead digital subscription products for the Herald Sun and The Daily Telegraph incorporating news+ will utilise a metered model allowing consumers to access a number of news articles in a given time period at no charge. Registering with the site will allow access to an additional number of articles, while paid subscription will enable full access across a richer diversity of content than has ever been offered in Australia before. Models will vary slightly across Australia, in accordance with each local market. Some premium sports content will only be accessible by subscribers.

Mr Williams said: “Our new digital subscription service for the Herald Sun and The Daily Telegraph with the exciting addition of news+ marks an important landmark for News Limited as we continue paving the way for commercially sustainable models for quality journalism and digital innovation in Australia.

“The new masthead digital subscription services with news+ ensure subscribers will have access to their local masthead with enhanced local content as well as to our entire national news, lifestyle, business and sport network, delivered across all the devices they love. We are giving consumers the richest diversity of content from a source they trust, in a form convenient and relevant to contemporary lifestyles and technologies.

“For the first time, we will see an integration of high-quality FOX SPORTS broadcast reporting, analysis and commentary across News’ online network giving our masthead subscribers access to fine content as part of the news+ product.

“We will continually enhance the value of our digital subscription product – over time we will also integrate our online lifestyle and business content offerings within the mastheads and their news+ environment. Other additional subscriber benefits will be launched progressively.”

In conjunction with the introduction of the new digital masthead subscription products with news+, News Limited has invigorated its online and mobile sites with fresh designs.

Mr Williams said: “The refreshed sites follow from extensive customer research and user testing. The new designs reflect what our customers tell us they want – they are faster, offer easier and more intuitive navigation, have up to 20% more homepage content than the sites they replace with better presentation and auto-adjustments tailored for a wide range of different digital devices.

“We aim to deliver consumers a satisfying experience which will evolve and improve as it responds to regular feedback,” Mr Williams added.

Mr Williams said that the new digital masthead subscription products with news+ will also give advertisers the best audience segmentation in market. “Our data capabilities are enhanced with these new digital subscription products. With a better understanding of our consumers, we can deliver advertisers more relevant and targeted editorial environments for their campaigns.”

Mr Williams concluded: “Today’s announcement heralds a bright future for the longevity of content publishing across all platforms – print, online, tablet and mobile. Delivering fine journalism across diverse content domains, in interesting environments, that facilitate debate, conversations and discussions among Australians is what News aims to provide in ways which are aligned with consumer wants and needs. The launch of these new digital subscription products for The Daily Telegraph and the Herald Sun with all that is contained in news+ will be central to our future in the Australian media landscape.”

 

[El Diablo]

Readers will get access to five free articles a week before being asked to register
Registered readers will be able to access a further 10 articles on the Herald Sun and a further 15 a week on the Daily Telegraph

Further access will require users to buy a digital subscription, at a starting price of a dollar for the first four weeks and $4 after that – just over $200 a year.

lol

good luck

you'd be mad to pay to read their drivel especially if you follow League

 

[Danish]

:lol:

Get ready for the death of the telegraph folks. Its going to be glorious.

 

[nrlnrl]

seems to be common move across various media outlets

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencet...uTube-subscription-fee-launch-early-week.html

YouTube to charge for watching videos: Monthly subscription channels set to launch this week to take on TV broadcasters
Subscriptions could cost £1.28 ($1.99 a month) per channel
Between 25 and 50 channels are expected to be made subscription-only when the service launches
By VICTORIA WOOLLASTON
PUBLISHED: 09:12 GMT, 6 May 2013 | UPDATED: 14:03 GMT, 7 May 2013
Comments (358)
Share

You may soon have to pay to watch videos on YouTube.
The video site, owned by Google, is set to launch a paid-for subscription service later this week that will charge users to access content on some of its specialist channels.
According to reports in the Financial Times, a single-channel subscription is expected to cost £1.28 ($1.99) a month and will apply to as many as 50 YouTube channels.

You may soon have to pay around £1.28 a month to watch videos from specialist YouTube channels. Reports in the Financial Times claim that a paid-for subscription model is expected to launch later this week and will enable producers to make new and exclusive content available online
YOUTUBE IN NUMBERS

More than 1 billion unique users visit YouTube each month.
Over 4 billion hours of video are watched each month on YouTube.
72 hours of video are uploaded to YouTube every minute.
70% of YouTube traffic comes from outside the US.
YouTube is localized in 53 countries and across 61 languages.
In 2011, YouTube had more than 1 trillion views or around 140 views for every person on Earth.
Millions of free subscriptions happen each day.
Subscriptions allow you to connect with channels you're interested in and keep up with their activity on the site
Paying customers will be able to get access to exclusive videos, TV shows and films from select specialist channels.
Paying a subscription may also remove adverts from free videos.
YouTube revamped the site and introduced channels in December 2011.

More...
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In October 2012, the site launched 60 partner channels, including BBC Worldwide On Earth, ITN, the Jamie Oliver Food Channel and Mixmag TV.
Other partners include Channel 4 and Film 4, Howcast and The Onion.
It is not yet known which of these partner channels will be included in YouTube's subscription service when it launches.
A 'person familiar with the plans' told the FT that the channels will show archived content or exclusive previews and clips.
The extra money is also expected to fund new TV and film shows that will be shown exclusively online.
Paid-for subscriptions are an alternative way for YouTube to make money, in addition to its advertising revenues.
The new channels have helped expand YouTube’s audience to 1bn users who watch 6bn hours of video each month.
You can already subscribe to get updates from channels for free.

It is not yet known which channels will be included in YouTube's subscription model when it launches sometime later this month. YouTube partners including Howcast, BBC and Channel 4 could get extra money from subscriptions to produce new content, or use to it make money from archived clips
YouTube hasn't confirmed the paid-for subscription plans, but a Google spokesman said: 'We're looking into creating a subscription platform that could bring even more great content to YouTube for our users to enjoy and provide our creators with another vehicle to generate revenue from their content, beyond the rental and ad-supported models we offer.'
Rumours about paid-for subscriptions began in January when AdAge reported YouTube had been in touch with a 'small group of channel producers'.
The reports claimed YouTube had asked them to submit applications to create channels that users would have to pay to access.
Then in February, Android fan blog Android Police noticed the YouTube app had been updated to include 'channel subscribe' code.

YouTube is also believed to be considering charging for content libraries and access to live events on a pay-per-view basics
The code appeared to describe a function in the app which tells users they can only subscribe to or unsubscribe from paid channels from their desktop or laptop computers.
It reads: '<string name="paid_channel_subscribe_message">You can only subscribe to this paid channel on your computer.</string>'
And: '<string name="paid_channel_unsubscribe_message"> You can only unsubscribe from this paid channel on your computer.</string>'
In addition to episodic content, YouTube is also considering charging for content libraries and access to live events on a pay-per-view basics, as well as self-help or financial advice shows.
YouTube is expected to launch the paid-for subscription as an experiment.
The revenue split between YouTube and the channel producers is expected to be similar to the 45-55 split that YouTube currently has with advertising revenue.
At a media conference last year, YouTube's CEO Salar Kamangar said that a subscription model would give TV networks and producers of these networks a more direct line to their audience with lower costs.
A Google spokesman added: 'We have long maintained that different content requires different types of payment models.
'There are a lot of our content creators that think they would benefit from subscriptions, so we're looking at that.'


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencet...tion-fee-launch-early-week.html#ixzz2ShrhxxMP
Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook

 

[adamkungl]

Guess I can save myself the constant disappointment of reading their shit then

 

[herbert henry1908]

I just don't see their main target demographic paying for online news. I could be wrong , but as the article says , it's going to be the first tabloid really to do this.

Asking people to pay for papers that have actual talent & in depth analysis in their journalism pool makes sense. This doesn't.

 

[Paullyboy]

I can't believe it's taken a newspaper this long...

 

[BODISGOD]

Murdoch did this with the London Times as well.

Works for good quality papers where people will pay for quality but they are taking a leap with this drivel.

 

[nrlnrl]

http://news.smh.com.au/breaking-new...ay-off-for-new-york-times-20130501-2irx6.html

Digital fees pay off for New York Times


DateMay 1, 2013
AP
The Wall Street Journal remains the top-selling US daily newspaper, but The New York Times has surpassed USA Today for second, thanks to an expansion into digital subscriptions, new figures show.

The Journal's weekday circulation averaged 2.38 million from October through March, the period covered by the report from the Alliance for Audited Media (AAM). That was a 12 per cent increase from the same period a year ago, the AAM said. Most of the growth came in digital subscriptions, which accounted for nearly 900,000, or 40 per cent, of the total circulation at the newspaper, which is owned by News Corp.

The New York Times began charging for unlimited access to its heavily trafficked website two years ago. The move has helped boost its paid circulation by reeling in more subscribers who are willing to pay for unlimited digital access the newspaper's content.
The Times' weekday circulation averaged 1.87 million during the latest period, an 18 per cent increase from last year. The figure included digital circulation of 1.13 million, a 32 per cent increase from last year.

AAM's rules allow publications to count as multiple subscriptions the same person's paid usage on multiple outlets, such as a paper newspaper, a website and a tablet computer.
AAM's methods for tracking circulation have changed in the past few years as newspaper publishers attempt to counter a decline in paid readership of their print editions and an even sharper drop in the advertising sales that bring in most of the industry's revenue.

One of the biggest changes has occurred on the internet and on mobile devices, where newspapers are increasingly requiring readers to pay a fee to gain unlimited access to digital content that was once free. The AAM includes paid digital subscriptions and so-called branded editions -regional versions of newspapers or those tailored for commuters- in its circulation tally.

Digital subscriptions now account for 19 per cent of average US daily newspaper circulation, up from 14 per cent last year, the AAM said. Overall, the average daily circulation at the 593 US newspapers that submitted figures to AAM declined by 0.7 per cent from March 2012. The AAM cautioned against comparing the industry's overall numbers with the previous year because of the different ways newspapers have been delivering and selling editions. Some newspapers, for instance, have reduced the number of weekdays that they deliver print editions. Other newspapers are listing branded editions that weren't counted in past years, according to the AAM.

In what was then a break from the industry's practice, The Wall Street Journal began charging for online access to its business-oriented newspaper during the 1990s. That move helped The Journal leapfrog USA Today as the largest US newspaper in 2009.

© 2013 AP

 

[Allstar Knights]

Has anyone been on the DT in the last week and been asked to subscribe to something called news? I want to read some of the articles for SuperCoach, but i can't until I subscribe to that stupid thing and it costs money.

Is there any way around this?

Thanks.

 

[Twizzle]

yeh, pay the subscription costs

 

[RHCP]

You get 15 free a month I believe, which covers the SC articles.

 

[Allstar Knights]

You get 15 free a month I believe, which covers the SC articles.

I must of read 15 this week, lol.

That sucks how you have to pay.

 

[Twizzle]

you pay for newspapers

 

[Allstar Knights]

you pay for newspapers

True. $4 a week isn't too bad, I suppose.

 

[Danish]

I haven't paid for news for a very long time (besides through whatever advertising revenue they get from my clicks, of course), and I won't be starting with the bloody telegraph.

I'll stick with the SMH as its free, then when it goes paid I'll probably buy an online subscription for the Australian and get all my sports news from the Fox Sports website (which I assume will remain free indefinitely).

 

[RHCP]

I must of read 15 this week, lol.

That sucks how you have to pay.

That's after you sign up I meant to add - so you sign up for free and from that account you should get 15. Without it you get 5.

I'm ok with paying for news, but paying for news from the DT? :lol:

 

[El Diablo]

delete DT cookie

 

[Allstar Knights]

That's the thing, I only really read the DT for Knights news, as well as Origin and SuperCoach. I don't like to read most of it cos it's crap.

Foxsports seem to have most of the DT's articles on there anyway, so I might just read from there and SMH.

 

[Smiley]

Switch where it has dailytelegraph in the web address to couriermail.