Murdoch signals end of free news

07-08-2009, 04:10

Didn't think it would be long. I read it online but I won't pay for it, it's his fault that he's lowered the price to 20p per paper not ours.

**Hugh** · 07-08-2009, 10:09

The Times has been reduced in price? - my newsagent's been ripping me off!

**Damien** · 07-08-2009, 10:15

They do have a point that news organisations, other than the BBC, can afford to continue to provide free content for the web. Ads won't support the cost of good journalists, especially foreign correspondents. Despite the hype proper journalism cannot be replaced with bloggers and citizen journalists.

The news is dumbed down enough with out Bob down the road imparting his wisdom on the day's events for mass consumption

dev · 07-08-2009, 10:20

Quote:

Originally Posted by Damien

They do have a point that news organisations, other than the BBC, can afford to continue to provide free content for the web. Ads won't support the cost of good journalists, especially foreign correspondents. Despite the hype proper journalism cannot be replaced with bloggers and citizen journalists.

Most papers will manage, based on the crap they write i'm pretty sure the journalists aren't paid much.

As for blogs, who the hell gets news from them? 90% of them are full with pointless rubbish unless it's a company (or someone from one) running it giving information about said company's products/services - but then that's not exactly news

07-08-2009, 10:45

I get my toilet paper from sainsburys i have no need to buy any so called newspaper or it's digital equivilent.

Jimmy-J · 07-08-2009, 11:19

Quote:

We intend to charge for all our news websites. I believe that if we are successful, we will be followed by other media.

Now that's a mighty big if.

07-08-2009, 13:04

Quote:

Originally Posted by foreverwar

The Times has been reduced in price? - my newsagent's been ripping me off!

No the Sun has been reduced to 20p round our way, it's printed in Derby so they sell it round here for 20p.

joglynne · 07-08-2009, 14:45

The following link does not really have any more information than that contained in Nidge's first link but I couldn't resist posting it just for the smile the first paragraph gave me.

http://www.reuters.com/article/wtUSI...53218820090806

**Maggy** · 07-08-2009, 15:12

The only reason I like online news is because I don't have to recycle anything afterwards.

frogstamper · 09-08-2009, 02:54

I doubt very much that this will leave Murdoch on his uppers

shame really.
As far as I can see who in there right mind would honestly think they are getting an unbiased stream of news from "any" of our tabloid so called newspapers? I wouldn't be sorry to see them gone, nowadays they offer no more than tittle tattle and pointless gossip about "celebrities".

Stuart · 09-08-2009, 03:08

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nidge

Didn't think it would be long. I read it online but I won't pay for it, it's his fault that he's lowered the price to 20p per paper not ours.

I doubt very much whether News Corp are losing out as a result of the 20p price, based upon past experience.

When they reduced the price to 20p in the 80s, my family owned a newsagent. The reduced the consumer price to 20p, which was actually less than the wholesale cost.

When we complained, they said that we wouldn't lose out ultimately because the Sun bought in customers who we could sell other stuff to. Sadly, that wasn't true in our case. We owned the only Newsagent (indeed, the only shop of any description) in the New Covent Garden Market (the one at Nine Elms, not near the Strand) so our customers had to come to us.

We lost 10s of thousands of pounds. They lost nothing.

AndyCambs · 09-08-2009, 06:46

Trouble is though, charge the consumer a fee for the news pages online, and you then lose all the advertising revenue which is most likely worth much more. Look at the Sky/VM spat a year or so ago - Sky needed Virgin to carry its channels as the advertising revenue fell without the viewing figures.

Matth · 09-08-2009, 16:44

Unless you have a monopoly or an exclusive, try charging people for content, and most will try to search for it elsewhere.

The "freemium" model seems to be the way forward, free content that's good enough to get people in, with premium upselling.

If you're going to ask people to pay for anything beyong a mere sampler, then you'd better be sure you have them well and truly hooked.

09-08-2009, 20:32

I can't stand rupert murdoch or his views and as those are so well represented by many of his media publications no chance of him getting money out of me. Hell given i pay the licence fee i would prefer to start using the bbc rather then give a penny to him.