Wednesday, May 13, 2009
Now online only
The WebNotes column will no longer appear in the print edition of the newspaper. All my efforts will now focus on online-only stories.
It is important to place greater emphasis on the Internet version. It is our future. I am interested in issues of interest to the community.
The Wall Street Journal's decision to explore micro payments to allow site visitors to read individual stories for a fee is being watched closely by the industry.
We currently have a subscriber wall around our locally produced material. You can access state, national, and world news without payment.
The WSJ has a similar subscriber base system for an annual fee of more than $100. A micro-payment system would allow casual visitors to the site to pick and choose stories they might want to read and pay for them individually for a modest fee. A fee structure has not been announced.
I liken this system to the one in the print world where there are subscribers and people who purchase individual copies of the paper on a day-by-day basis. They see an interesting headline in a paper box or at a news stand and purchase the single issue.
This system will help provide some additional revenue but it doesn't add much to replace the lost print advertising revenue that the industry is now experiencing. It could be useful to provide stats of additional eye-balls on the site which would allow the site to charge higher rates to advertisers.
In another Internet story, the Boston Transit Authority looks like it will ban cell phone use by trolley operators. An operator has admitted to texting on his phone when his trolley was in a crash that injured at least 46 people.
Texting is a form of distracted driving that is becoming more common. States are taking steps to ban drivers from this activity in autos. It is only right that transit workers be required to do the same.
Distracted driving which could be anything from being intoxicated to being sleepy to talking with other people in the car or using a cell phone, is the prime cause of accidents.
More later.
You can reach me at richardepolk@gmail.com
It is important to place greater emphasis on the Internet version. It is our future. I am interested in issues of interest to the community.
The Wall Street Journal's decision to explore micro payments to allow site visitors to read individual stories for a fee is being watched closely by the industry.
We currently have a subscriber wall around our locally produced material. You can access state, national, and world news without payment.
The WSJ has a similar subscriber base system for an annual fee of more than $100. A micro-payment system would allow casual visitors to the site to pick and choose stories they might want to read and pay for them individually for a modest fee. A fee structure has not been announced.
I liken this system to the one in the print world where there are subscribers and people who purchase individual copies of the paper on a day-by-day basis. They see an interesting headline in a paper box or at a news stand and purchase the single issue.
This system will help provide some additional revenue but it doesn't add much to replace the lost print advertising revenue that the industry is now experiencing. It could be useful to provide stats of additional eye-balls on the site which would allow the site to charge higher rates to advertisers.
In another Internet story, the Boston Transit Authority looks like it will ban cell phone use by trolley operators. An operator has admitted to texting on his phone when his trolley was in a crash that injured at least 46 people.
Texting is a form of distracted driving that is becoming more common. States are taking steps to ban drivers from this activity in autos. It is only right that transit workers be required to do the same.
Distracted driving which could be anything from being intoxicated to being sleepy to talking with other people in the car or using a cell phone, is the prime cause of accidents.
More later.
You can reach me at richardepolk@gmail.com
