The news that The New York Times will start charging for access to its website broke over the weekend, but now it’s officially confirmed . As anticipated, one of the world’s most recognizable newspapers will be introducing a metered model, meaning they will “offer users free access to a set number of articles per month and then charge users once they exceed that number.” The idea is to balance between free and paid, between being open and closed, and earn revenue from both advertising and charging for content. Chairman of The New York Times Company, Arthur Sulzberger, Jr., said: “Our new business model is designed to provide additional support for The New York Times’ extraordinary, professional journalism. Our audiences are very loyal and we believe that our readers will pay for our award-winning digital content and services.” The company says that more details about the metered model will be revealed over the next few months. But let’s quickly look at what it almost certainly won’t do: attract links . Anyone who links to a New York Times article will get complaints by many readers that the link doesn’t work. It’ll be much easier and future-proof to find another source and link to them. It’s also very doubtful that it will attract new readers: Yes, some people will subscribe. But most people will simply click on NYTimes stories while they’re free, and stop clicking when they hit a

paywall. The metered model (from what we know now) is not a horrible solution, but it’s not a revolutionary one, either. It’s just enough to keep NYTimes afloat. Luckily for The New York Times, an important piece of the puzzle for the “salvation” of the newspaper industry doesn’t lie with them, but with Apple’s soon to be announced tablet. Apple figured out how to change the notion that everything on the Internet is free: Pick a piece of the online market, like music or mobile apps, create a device that makes the digital content associated with it very easy to purchase and consume, and then sell the content. The actual price of the content is just one piece of the equation ; availability is equally as important. Ask yourself two questions: Will you purchase a subscription to The New York Times on the Internet? Will you purchase a subscription to The New York Times on a tablet-device that makes subscribing a one-click affair? That’s why for now, NYTimes’ announcement of the metered model, which should go live in 2011, doesn’t really mean much. A lot will happen between now and then, and this compromise solution sounds like it’s primarily meant to placate everyone instead of actually making money. Tags: media , new york times , newspapers , trending

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CONFIRMED: New York Times to Start Charging for Website in 2011