dug up from february...

I know this is old, but I was just reading Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger's comments at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland (via Haaretz). He said he wouldn't care if the Times stopped printing in five years. Of course, if the Times stopped printing, everyone else would probably follow suit...or take a huge risk by forging their own path. The thing is, if the Times successfully starts that trend, they'll also have enough impact on the industry to reintroduce fees for content.

And those fees will have to come back eventually. They'll have to be low. Credit cards and electronic checks won't suffice by any means. Gift cards—or subscription cards, rather—might, as long as they are truly ubiquitous, dispensed from machines on street corners and sold in grocery stores. Otherwise, disadvantaged kids will NEVER get to read the paper. (Of course, you would hope for public-use computers and wireless by that time.)

I no longer believe that paying a private company for content is a bad idea, but I do think those companies have to be prepared to continue their service to the fullest. There cannot be a lapse in accessibility during the transition from print to new media. The nature of the content is too important for that to happen.

That said, companies are entitled to charge. It's all they can do to sustain themselves. But unless they have a ready-to-launch strategy for ensuring widespread access, it's the citizens who will suffer as a result.

This entry was posted by Marianna, on Wednesday, June 3, 2009. You can leave your response.