The New York Times is to start charging for subscriber access to its website, smartphone and tablet computer editions this month.
The US paper is adopting a ‘metered’ system – similar to that used by the Financial Times – that will allow free access to 20 articles each month across its digital platforms.
The NY Times said digital subscriptions would be introduced on 28 March. The Times launched the service in the Canadian market yesterday ‘in order to fine-tune the customer experience prior to the global launch”.
The paper said last night that it would offer a range of digital subscriptions to readers.
The basic package – NYTimes.com plus Smartphone app – will start at $15 for four weeks access. NYTimes.com plus a tablet app will cost $20 every four weeks, while access on all digital platforms will cost $30.
On The Times’s smartphone and tablet applications, the Top News section will remain free, while New York Times home delivery newspaper subscribers will receive free, unlimited web access and the full content on all applications.
Subscribers to the print edition of the International Herald Tribune, the global edition of The New York Times, will also receive free, unlimited web access.
Arthur Sulzberger Junior, chairman of The New York Times Company and publisher of The New York Times, said: “Today marks a significant transition for The Times, an important day in our 159-year history of evolution and reinvention.
‘Our decision to begin charging for digital access will result in another source of revenue, strengthening our ability to continue to invest in the journalism and digital innovation on which our readers have come to depend.
‘This move will enhance The Times’s position as a source of trustworthy news, information and high-quality opinion for many years to come.”
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