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THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2009
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 OPINION 
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Newspapers: Forget Paywalls, Take Content Live

Only 'experiences,' not content, can save the news: Jenkins

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(Newser) – Suddenly every newspaper is talking about a Journal-style online paywall or a "freemium" subscription model, but Guardian columnist Simon Jenkins is resigned that "stunned and traumatized" papers are on their way out. Instead of paywalls, Papers should learn from the battered music industry, which has used "the long-tail economics of live enterprise" to fund hard-to-sell content. Newspapers' brands are still viable, even if their finances have collapsed.

"Newspapers will have to generate new markets for their wares," the columnist writes: concerts, sporting events, seminars, dating agencies. To survive, the content must become only the "core activity" supporting a diverse mass brand: "Goodbye Guardian, welcome the Guardian Experience."

A spread from the Guardian during protests against the G20 in London.
A spread from the Guardian during protests against the G20 in London.   (©markhillary)
The front page of the Guardian the day after Barack Obama's election.
The front page of the Guardian the day after Barack Obama's election.   (©stuartpilbrow)
The offices of Guardian Media Group in north London. GMG posted sharp losses last quarter.
The offices of Guardian Media Group in north London. GMG posted sharp losses last quarter.   (©markhillary)
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I was once asked by a streetwise Californian what business I was in. When I said I wrote for the Guardian, he looked glum. 'Great brand,' he said, 'pity about the product.'
- Simon Jenkins

To be secure, a media operation must entice an audience to enjoy what the web cannot supplant, a paid-for exclusivity and an opportunity for a unique participative experience. - Simon Jenkins, Guardian columnist and former London Times editor

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Radzyn
Aug 11, 09 8:36 PM CDT
They should pool their resources and partner up with Iphone and Blackberry to deliver subscription news stories straight to these phones. Reply
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