NJ Paywall Down (That Didn’t Take Long) Comment Rescue
UPDATE: Paywall is up.
Business is iterative these days. If you are not trying things, getting feedback, fixing, trying again… you are not going to make it. So I’m not surprised to read this update from commenter, Another Mike:
Just saw on the Gannett blog that Gannett has turned off the paywall at The News Journal. I just checked a few minutes ago and clicked on a few stories. I didn’t get the article countdown, just a message that I could have access to a limited number of stories for the next 30 days.
gannettblog.blogspot.com/2012/04/april-9-15-your-news-comments-part-5.html
I fully expect it to be back. Maybe they are rethinking the $15 monthly charge for stuff that doesn’t get replaced more than once a week.
I’m a subscriber to the actual paper so I have a logon for it, but it never sticks. I’m constantly having to re-login even though I tick the “remember me” box. It’s annoying. Plus the summary of top 5 stories they send every morning doesn’t work. I click a story link and go to a “page not found” page.
In short, needs work.
So how come I didn’t get a notice of this from the News Journal? I pay for the electronic version I wonder why I didn’t get a heads up about this free month?
The “remember me” feature is annoying, Comment by Weave. I do have that box checked and while I am trying to click on stories to read, apparently the website is busily looking for the cookie or something. I can read one or two articles online before it recognizes me and turns off the article countdown. It all just feels really kludgy, which doesn’t make much sense if you are trying to maintain an online presence. But don’t get me started.
Gannett’s notion that any Gannett newspaper is worth the cost of the newsprint (or the electrons) is a staggering example of the power of self-deception.
I’d tend to agree with you, except for the fact that actual news reporting is valuable. If we don’t pay for it, corporations will and what kind of democracy will we have then?
When we get the great reporting we should send link-readers their way. They are still trying to collect advert dollars via online viewership.
I wonder why ElSom no longer provides hyper links in his coverage.
Agreed. My comment stands (grin). As I’ve mentioned before, even when I lived in those parts, I didn’t consider the NJ worth a subscription.
Err, no, the paywall’s not down. You still just get five stories a month.* What’s changed is the little countdown meter on the side. It just no longer juts out every time you load a new article and tells you how many you have left, unless you click on the tab.
* Unless you clear your cookies, as has been noted again and again but some people here apparently haven’t noted.