Paywalls, will you pay to read news online?

[Mental Trousers]

Pay walls very rarely work. Lots of our customers have looked at getting us to implement one for their digital content but a pay wall loses them money rather than making any. Unless the content is original, unique and indispensable to a very large number of customers everybody goes elsewhere. News sites are one of the worst to put behind a pay wall as there's so many others available.

[Gremlin]

Being retired, it's amazing how little I give a f--k these days. Too busy having fun

Interesting Geoff. I remember my grandfather reading every paper cover to cover. However, this was a man who could avoid making his own toast...

I'm not even close to retired, so news is more of a filler, but as said, I wouldn't miss it.

[ellipsis]

...I'll just make up my own news, I'm sure I could do as good or be as accurate as the 'journos of today'...after all, I would be starting on the same footing as them, knowing fuck all facts and even getting them wrong...

[Blackbird]

Interesting Geoff. I remember my grandfather reading every paper cover to cover. However, this was a man who could avoid making his own toast...

I'm not even close to retired, so news is more of a filler, but as said, I wouldn't miss it.

Depends how busy you are Alan - I'm hardly Waiting for God as you well know . I like to see how investments are doing to see how many more toys I can buy to deprive the kids of their inheritance but other news is pretty much secondary.

[Scuba_Steve]

While we're on the subject of "news", this just in

[oldrider]

While we're on the subject of "news", this just in

Looks like a typical TV news broadcast in New Zealand to me!

[merv]

Sydney Morning Herald has done it to some content so I hardly go there at all now - I can't see any of them surviving at all if they start charging.

[ellipsis]

...to allow yourself to be mislead or more strongly, bullshitted to for free is silly...to pay for the service is absolutely ridiculous...

[ellipsis]

A Harley biker is visiting the zoo in Taronga Park , Sydney , when he sees a little girl leaning into the lions' cage.

Suddenly, a lion grabs her by the cuff of her jacket and tries to pull her inside, under the eyes of her screaming parents.

The biker jumps off his Harley, runs to the cage and hits the lion square on the nose with a powerful punch.

Whimpering from the pain, the lion jumps back, letting go of the girl, and the biker brings her to her terrified parents who thank him endlessly.

A reporter has watched the whole event. The reporter, addressing the Harley rider, says, "Sir, this was the most gallant and brave thing I've seen a man do in my whole life."

The Harley rider replies, "Why, it was nothing, really. The lion was behind bars. I just saw this little kid in danger and did the right thing."

The reporter says, "Well, I'll make sure this won't go unnoticed.
I'm a journalist, and tomorrow's paper will have this story on the front page. So, what do you do for a living and what political affiliation do you have?"

The biker replies, "I'm an SAS soldier just returned from Afghanistan and a Liberal party supporter."

The journalist leaves.

The following morning the biker buys the paper to see news of his actions, and reads, on the front page:

SAS SOLDIER ASSAULTS AFRICAN IMMIGRANT AND STEALS HIS LUNCH



That pretty much sums up most of the media's approach to the news these days.

[Banditbandit]

What????!!!

Only a complete retard would rely on the Harold for anything more than some thugby information.
REAL news? Go elsewhere!

You're not very bright are you ...

[Swoop]

You're not very bright are you ...

You are suggesting that the Harold is a serious, impartial reference that all kiwis should read?

I'm concerned that journalistic standards have dropped quite low. Editorial standards are equally bad.
For them to start adding a "readers comments" forum under a lot of articles, daily "polls" and the like (terribly important issues as well - "Who makes the best coffee", etc), it really becomes more of a tabloid and does itself no favours.

[oldrider]

You're not very bright are you ...

Strange response from you BB ... well I thought so anyway!

[R650R]

For them to start adding a "readers comments" forum under a lot of articles...

It's a damn pity then Hitler lost WWII, we nearly had a utopia where you'd never have to hear an opinion from any one else except the glorious leader...
I hope you realise the irony of coming ontoa motorbike forum and voiving an opinion about how it sucks to have to read (actually you don't have to read them but I suspect you cant stop) other peoples opinions...

Overall the Herald isn't too bad but does pale compared to the Dominion Post which does have some pretty sharp and accurate info.
Half the problem these days is govt officials and police are too scared to make an official comment, hence replacement of news with speculation fuelling a vicious cycle...

At least they haven't gone full retard like Fairfax did with "Stuff Nation" which is actually part of a plan to end real journalism. Soon we will have Internet 2.0 with no news at all just corporate press releases...

[Robbo]

Another typical example of the Harolds crap reporting.

http://news.msn.co.nz/nationalnews/8...ackass-mistake

Pay to read the facts??

Yeah Right!!

[oldrider]

I remember how indignant everybody was at the first suggestion of "pay TV" ..We are all using it today! (including me)

Soon there will be nobody who remembers otherwise!

I guess it will be the same for pay to read news on line ("paywalls"?) it will happen with or without this generations approval.

When we were kids we soon learned it was easier to survive by finding the right place and swimming with the current to cross rivers in order to go forward!

It's hard to believe the amount of change we have faced in our short lifetime compared even to the generation immediately before us! ....