Additionally, by subscribing to the Times, even just the Sunday Times - you are covered for TimesSelect.

This was what I thought was the beauty of the idea, push people towards subscribing to the paper - so that they don’t feel as if they are just buying web content. As the other comments show, the idea of paying for news web content is widely reviled.

The Times is a wonder, and that it is free is, to me, a astounding turn about of value for value.

I was more than glad to subscribe to the physical paper, as to have access to stories from last week, and some of the editorial content.

If only ESPN would follow suit. Their Insider feature is annoying. They offer the same scores and basic stories done by all other sites for free, but charge for in-depth.

Yes, it probably is quality coverage that may set you apart from the competitors, but isn’t that why I come to your site in the first place?

If your only free offerings are on par with the free offerings of every other major site in your area of specialization, what good reason do I have to come to your site if I can’t get that in-depth coverage that sets you apart?

In fact, it even worsens my experience by showing me all the things I *can’t* access.

It’s a good operation and also, on a purely visceral level, a complete insult to every regular subscriber, especially considering the amount of random wire copy and “bus plunge” stories the paper carries.

I think it bugs me more because the paper hired a couple of the state’s best political bloggers and put them behind the firewall, too.

Maybe the real lesson isn’t whether there’s room for premium content, but whether people will pay for valuable, factual, balanced content…this is still untested.

Chris

Wonder how much the building of the system and the marketing of it cost relative to the amount they will claim they made.

the “premium” part, i think, comes in the form of INFORMATION rather than a few bucks changing hands.

if a web channel wants my “currency” they have to EARN it.

a concept mass marketers can’t quite grasp… yet.

i don’t think that singling out the newspaper industry is such a wise move either. EVERYBODY ought to be looking at this as a way to charge a heckuva lot more for advertising.