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As newspapers disappear before our eyes many observers are wondering how journalism will survive when few seem willing to pay for content.
It is not just newspapers that are feeling this pinch. The music industry has grappled with this issue since the heyday of the free and not-so-legal version of Napster. Television wrestles with bit torrent. And bloggers can struggle with paying for bandwidth.
I've read several polls and articles lately that indicate that few are willing to pay for newspapers online. I read newspapers online. I no longer want physical media coming to my home. Newspapers and magazines stack up unread and clutter my space. It was difficult for me to get used to reading on screen but now I will never go back.
When The New York Times had its Times Select payment program I, like many readers, refused to pay. My primary objection was because I could not share the information. And the price appeared not to be in line with value as single article prices were several dollars - the cost of purchasing several days worth of the entire newspaper. Given the presumably lower cost of producing a paper online than printing a physical copy it makes little sense when presented with a much higher cost to purchase. Plus, there were bloggers who paid the subscription fee but believed that information needs to be free that they would post the firewalled content (the most popular content - Op-eds) and just open a new anonymous site when The Times came after them and shut them down. One did not have to pay-per-view.
I've been thinking lately though that I would be willing to pay a subscription fee, as I did when I had the paper delivered, in order to support the continued employment of journalists. However, there's no model for newspapers that works, yet. I watch television shows online that are ad supported. I happily pay for non-DRMed music downloads. And I pay for blogs.
There are a few bloggers that I read on a regular basis that provide information I use and content I re-read much like a magazine or a book. I figure that if I'd be willing to pay $15 for a magazine subscription or $25 for a book that I can pay that to a blogger who provides me with as much or more value and I've clicked their donation and sent them a some funds to keep the good stuff coming.
If newspapers put up a subscription payment option I'd pay. I want journalists to keep their job. But I think there are too few people who feel the same. Relying on voluntary subscriptions will neither keep newspapers in business nor allow bloggers to quit their day jobs. Read Rita Arens' cautionary tale about the limited success of producizing blogs into books when readers can still read the blog for free.
What do you think? Is there a way to get people to rethink how we pay for the content we consume? Or is the genie of free internet never going back in a bottle? Do you have a tip jar or donation button on your blog? Do you ever donate to or tip bloggers? If you have advertising revenue does it pay for the costs of operating your blog let alone earn you a profit? Any advice for newspaper publishers and other media producers?
Related Reading:
Lauren Perez at USC Jour 309 Spring 2009 Blog: Micropayments and Other Good Jokes
Micropayments, the idea that people will pay a small fee for online news content, is just another example of why journalists should go to business school. Because businesspeople know that the public is not going to start paying for something they can already get for free.
Abigail Hamilton at TV + Internet: Better together! Business models that need to change include wine and cable
Ashley Morgan at The Upstart Blogger: The power of free and how to make money online by giving away your work
ElsaElsa at The Astrology Blog: Behind the Scenes... Amazon Sales
I also want to thank the people who donate via the tip jar. Every time someone does, I just about faint. I am just astounded for some reason, I don’t know that I can explain. But I can tell you I am very grateful - Thank you.
The future of The Volcanism Blog:
This blog is relatively time-consuming. If I’m going to continue putting into it the hours I have been over the last 14 months, and keeping the coverage and quality up to
