Will users be content paying for content?

By Laura Mead

I’ve recently been reading about the newspaper 'pay wall’ debate that seems to have struck a real nerve on both sides of the Atlantic.  Should newspaper publishers charge for online content, and is it a feasible revenue model for them? 

As a PR and avid online reader, it's both a fascinating and scary question.  With print subscriptions dying out and online advertising not generating the revenue the industry was hoping for, it’s obvious that things need to change – of course the question of how remains. 

Rupert Murdoch and the Financial Times seem to be leading the way, with the FT looking to introduce a unique charging model based on frequency for online users by 2010.  I remain unconvinced that this model, or indeed any pay model, will succeed.  What’s worse, I question whether it will have the opposite effect and drive readers away instead. 

Today’s ‘Google generation’ has been brought up online, and most consumers are now used to and have come to expect instant and free access to information – the news is certainly not immune to this.  The rise of social media – from Facebook to Spotify – has fashioned a way to share information and collaborate with other users in an easy, free way that wasn’t possible before.  The web has also spawned limitless opportunity for bloggers to share news, information and their opinions with anyone willing to read it.  This all makes me think the ‘pay wall’ model is not the answer the industry is looking for – won’t readers just look elsewhere for their news?

As media critic Dan Kennedy rightly points out, some of today’s leading online news sources – the BBC, CNN and MSNBC to name a few – offer a free service, which shows no sign of abating given their sole purpose is to promote and drive viewers to their sister TV channels.

With consumers now so spoiled for choice, there will always be alternative routes to get the news for free and so long as there is, I don't think they will pay for this online content - no matter how valuable it is.