Comments on: Wired stands by story after Guardian denies iPhone app paywall plans

By: how to become a poli

how to become a poli — Mon, 18 Jan 2010 10:26:23 +0000

I was thinking this when the app was launched. Although I’m not 100% comfortable with paywalls. Their Guardian iPhone app has been a success so they’re looking at ways to apply those lessons to other things they do.

By: John S. James

John S. James — Sun, 17 Jan 2010 20:21:31 +0000

An in-between approach could be called mass sponsorship. Following Harrison’s comment re 20-30p for online access to a day’s Guardian, let anybody buy any number of accesses (say 100 for £20, or less with a bulk discount) and get a special URL that allows 100 people to view free. The sponsor can include a message to the 100 — and also give out the URL selectively, through social networks as desired. (This may work better for permanent access to a single investigative article, which some sponsors may want to promote — and for music and other digital art marketed independently.)

There’s more to it, and I’ve developed a (hopefully) rights-free design at http://www.RepliCounts.org I’m looking for discussion on where to go with this.

By: Older consumers start getting into SMS (but for how much longer?)

Older consumers start getting into SMS (but for how much longer?) — Sat, 16 Jan 2010 07:03:53 +0000

[...] Paywall for Guardian iPhone app? Wired hits back over Guardian denial (onlinejournalismblog.com) [...]

By: Stuart Harrison

Stuart Harrison — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:12:29 +0000

I was thinking this when the app was launched. Although I’m not 100% comfortable with paywalls (they’re an old media solution to a new media ‘problem’), I’d happily pay a nominal fee (say 20 – 30p) for offline access to that day’s edition of the Guardian. It’s a lot less than I’d pay if I actually bought a paper, plus I’m supporting quality journalism, so I get a warm fuzzy glow in my belly.

By: Pete Ashton

Pete Ashton — Fri, 15 Jan 2010 16:01:43 +0000

Since this is all speculation, how about this?

Guardian Media Group (which is bigger than The Guardian) is exploring new ways to sell content. Their Guardian iPhone app has been a success so they’re looking at ways to apply those lessons to other things they do. In-app purchases are an interesting thing so they mock up a version of the Guardian app to do them for columnists, since that fits the paid content conceptual model rather well (even though it makes no sense in reality).

Doesn’t mean they’re actually going to do it for Guardian content but they might for, say, some of the Emap publications.