newspapers

Should media companies charge for content?

Submitted by eacastel on Thu, 03/11/2010 - 14:28

By Emilio Castellanos

To charge or not to charge for access to proprietary content online is an old idea based on a new media paradigm. The paywall has been highly debated, tested, embraced and forfeited over and over again but media companies are not asking the right question.

The bigger issue with monetization is that media companies have failed to react to the changes that have taken place in the ecosystem and still insist in serving controlled content online as gatekeepers. Media companies need to be asking questions about structure, portability, business focus and models to become more flexible, accommodate user preferences, identify emerging trends and then avidly follow them.

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70% of print publishers step up mobile efforts

Submitted by eacastel on Tue, 09/22/2009 - 10:56

From MC Marketing Charts, Read original article here

More than 70% of US print publishers in a recent survey say that mobile is receiving more attention at their publication this year than last, though only about one-third believe they have a well-developed plan for attacking and conquering the mobile market, according to the Audit Bureau of Circulations (ABC), which conducted the research.

The study, “Going Mobile: How Publishers Are Preparing for the Burgeoning Digital Market,” (pdf) found that most publishers are already focusing on the mobile market or planning to do so soon in an attempt to expand their brands, reach new audiences and generate additional revenue.

Condensing the web with Google Fast Flip

Submitted by eacastel on Tue, 09/15/2009 - 11:37

Google recently released Fast Flip - http://fastflip.googlelabs.com/: a categorized collection of screenshots from print and online that allegedly allows "faster" news browsing. It is a promising experiment. Google now needs to include more publishers and level the playing field to showcase quality content. Once there are enough players users should be able to customize views, topics and sources.

Basic features include a "magazine style rack" homepage layout that lets users browse "as quickly as flipping through a magazine"; top stories and topic tabs generated by most read, most emailed and most popular partner attributes; voting and recommending to friends; personalization of relevant topics with your Google account login; and available apps for iPhone and Android.

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