The Payoff of Paid Content Walter B. Potter Sr. Conference Community Newspapers: Tomorrow has arrived Reynolds Journalism Institute Oct. 20, 2011

Andy Waters | October 2011 Community Newspapers: Tomorrow has arrived Reynolds Journalism Institute

Over the past 10 years, the number of newspapers charging for content online has skyrocketed, accelerating in the past three years. Paid content on the upswing at U.S. daily newspapers Source: NAA, PaidContent.org

Why? ColumbiaTribune.com launched paid content on Dec. 1, Why?  Advertising-only model not working  Eliminate incentive to stop buying print edition  New revenue stream

 Metered model – 10 free/month  $8/month online-only  $1/month for print subscribers  Premium: All staff-produced local content (photos, video, news, sports, blogs, obits, etc.)  Only subscribers can comment  Free: Everything else (section fronts, wire, weather, contests, classifieds, etc.) How does it work?

One year later: How’s it going?  3,000,000 pageviews/mo. – 3x net revenue in January  500,000 unique visitors – Non-subscribers are returning  Local advertising unaffected – Non-issue for advertisers  More than 8,000 paying – Online-only and bundled  Opt-out is key – Transparency goes a long way  Few objections from readers – Quality journalism at stake

The metered model was part of a process that started in 2006.

Steps to a metered model Began Local Initiative Expanded programming department Invested in DTI

Steps to a metered model Restructured newsroom Redesigned website Focused on customer service

The Tulsa World metered model Launched April 4, 2011 Print + Digital and Digital-only subscriptions Digital: $14.99 a month per year $15.99 a month per 6 months $16.99 for one month Set website to 10 page views every 30 days Mobile and all apps require subscription

The results so far … One of only three major American newspapers to increase market penetration in its metro region (including print and online readership) in the last year.

The results so far … Unique monthly visitors are up Visits to the website are up Online advertising revenue is up Circulation revenue is up Number of “cross trainers” are up Social media refers are up

The results so far … Each week, more than 70% of Tulsa area adults read the Tulsa World.

For more information: Jason Collington