As I pointed out in Writers and journalists in 2009: will you thrive or die?, the state of traditional newspapers and magazines is terminal. With advertisers fleeing online, and costs rising, traditional publications can’t survive in their present form.
Moving entire publications online is one solution, with a big challenge: there aren’t enough advertisers to go around.
Traditional publishers need to charge for their wares; otherwise a complete online model isn’t viable.
Journalism Online Inc. is a new company which shows what a new model of publishing looks like.
Media Executives Plan Online Service for Publications to Charge – NYTimes.com reports:
“As the company envisions the system, a non-paying reader on a magazine or newspaper site would reach a certain point and see a page asking for payment — the Journalism Online system, operating within the publication’s Web site. But a reader who wanted a subscription to multiple sites would go directly to the new company’s own site.
‘The most important thing is it’s simple to use,’ Mr. Brill said in an interview. ‘Much of the barrier to charging online is the transaction friction, as opposed to the actual cost. With this system, you’d have a single password, give your credit number just once.’”
How does it affect you, dear writer?
If you want freedom, you need to build your own following online. Publications have their own problems, and looking after writers is a long way down on their list of concerns.
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