It has been blamed for the demise of print media, but Google might soon become a saviour for newspapers.
The technology giant has mooted a payment system, based on Google Checkout, that could let news outlets charge for online content. The payment system will work in various ways. It could let users pay a monthly subscription fee or give users access to a few news sites for a flat fee – and even allowing users to pay for stories piecemeal.
Google presented the idea to the Newspaper Association of American. The trade organisation that represents some 2,000 print outlets in the United States had asked for proposals recently.
Significance: Some news outlets, like the Christian Science Monitor and Seattle Post-Intelligencer, have already cut their print editions and moved online fully.
Yet, publishers have not found a way to make money online, even though many newspapers have been experimenting with fee-based systems online in the face of falling print subscriptions. Moving on, it will be especially important for publishers to find a way that works.
It is also ironic that Google might come to the rescue, since publishers have blamed Google News – which aggregates news stories and displays a headline and short blurb – for driving readers away from their sites and depriving them of advertising revenue.
2 Comments
Let’s see how long they can keep charging users for everything. Already downloading is capped and high speed internet prices are high.
i feel lucky google, i love you google