Study Finds Paywall Resistance Decreasing, But Most Buyers Want ‘Freemium’ Model

Date: May 18, 2012

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Good news for paywall and subscription site execs: audience resistance to paywalls seems to be decreasing! According to a recent study of digital media professionals by DigiCareers, 42% said that they would research pricing if they hit a paywall, while 52% said they would immediately leave the site. While that’s not the most desirable number, [...]

Why You Should Never Say Your Subscription Site Is ‘Safe & Secure’

Date: May 17, 2012

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This week, Attorney Lisa Dubrow spoke to members of our sister site, Subscription Site Insider, about recent government crackdowns on companies collecting customer data online. One of her best tips was that no subscription or membership site — no website at all, in fact — should claim their site is “safe and secure.” Of course, [...]

Match.com Finds New Revenue Opportunity with Offline Events

Date: May 16, 2012

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Match.com, with 1.8 million paying subscribers globally, has decided to go retro and take dating offline. The company recently announced plans to host 2,000 to 3,000 offline events in 40 countries around the world for paying subscribers. The new service will be called “The Stir,” and come in two varieties: Free events, like casual drinking [...]

$14.5M in Digital Subscription Revenues for The Economist

Date: May 15, 2012

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While most publications have seen a decline in subscription rates over the last decade, The Economist has been able to double its circulation to 1.5 million in that time, mainly the result of some savvy marketing. Of that1.5 million, recent reports indicate that 100,000 are digital-only subscriptions, garnering approximately $12.7 million in online dollars for [...]

Social Readers Get Mixed Results For Driving Traffic and Consumer Satisfaction [chart]

Date: May 14, 2012

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Many sites with a metered paywall have been able to drive traffic through social media. (Poynter recently reported on the different ways six major papers were combining social media and paywalls.) But there’s been some speculation about Facebook’s social readers, which allow users to automatically share their reading and viewing activity with friends, with some [...]