New York Times aims too high with plans to charge ‘frequent readers’ online

By Matthew Boyle | mboyle@flagler.edu

According to a New York Times article on Jan. 20, the Times announced it plans to charge “frequent readers” online, starting in January 2011.

You can’t charge online readers. They won’t pay.

Although the Times will have a full year after this announcement to frame the conversation, defend its plans and wipe out any potential competitors, I don’t think the nation’s newspaper of record’s decision will work out for the better of the industry or for the Times itself.

Don’t misunderstand me. I would absolutely love for the new “frequent reader” system to work. It’s just not going to.

I don’t expect readers to pull out plastic to pay for news stories they’re accustomed to reading for free. Other national news services will continue to offer free web content and take regular readers away from the Times.

In the Jan. 20 article, Felix Salmon, a Reuters media writer, was quoted saying, “Successful media companies go after audience first, and then watch revenues follow; failing ones alienate their audience in an attempt to maximize short-term revenues.”

I agree 100 percent with Salmon. The Times will experience a quick, short-term revenue boost but will steadily lose its national readership.

The Times says it can’t find a profitable or sustainable subscription-free, advertising-supported revenue model and notes that the negative economic climate doesn’t help.

By June 2011, six months after the “frequent reader” program’s scheduled launch, I expect that the Times will have fully abandoned this proposed model and will have shifted back to something similar to what it has now.