The end of free content?
POSTED BY: SignyM
UPDATED: Monday, August 25, 2025 17:37
VIEWED: 3901
PAGE 1 of 4
The internet has revolutionized the way we get information. All of that may come to a screeching halt, as news corporations seeks to make it a profit center.
Quote:Once again, profit ruins a great idea.
Speaking on a conference call as News Corporation announced a 47 percent slide in quarterly profits to $755 million, Murdoch said the current free access business model favored by most content providers was flawed.
"We are now in the midst of an epochal debate over the value of content and it is clear to many newspapers that the current model is malfunctioning," the News Corp. Chairman and CEO said.
"We have been at the forefront of that debate and you can confidently presume that we are leading the way in finding a model that maximizes revenues in return for our shareholders... The current days of the Internet will soon be over."
----------------------
We should have strapped him into a glider, filled it nose heavy w/ explosives, and dropped his Allah lovin' ass into a large, empty field. After which, release wild boars into the area so they could make good use of his remains. Now THAT's justice.- rappy
Yeah, that's what Sheikh Issa said. Seems you both have a lot in common.- signy
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
While I quite like my free info - let's be realistic here. How do these organizations continue to function without bringing in some money? Newspapers are dying off, mostly due to the internet, which provides very scant revenue. Reporters don't report for free, how does a news organization pay them without charging for the content they generate?
What is a workiable solution? It's unrealistic to just expect it to remain as is, when the current model is killing these companies.
"I thoroughly disapprove of duels. If a man should challenge me, I would take him kindly and forgivingly by the hand and lead him to a quiet place and kill him."
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Hello,
Why can't advertising on the internet provide as much revenue as advertising in the newspaper used to?
Publishing on the internet is cheaper, so with the same advertising revenues as always, why can't they make a profit?
I'm confused about the nature of the problem.
--Anthony
"Liberty must not be purchased at the cost of Humanity." --Captain Robert Henner
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
If they ever ask ME to pay for ANYTHING on the internet I'll be gone. Heck, FFF is one of the few sites I've ever even "registered" for. I really don't trust the internet, have never done banking or financial stuff on it. Bought a few things on Amazon over the years, but's that's it. I can never fully shake the feeling that everything I do on it is somehow showing up somewhere on someone else's screen. None of us can ever be safe. If hackers can get Pentagon stuff, they can get my stuff. I saw a thing recently on Dateline showing identity-theft websites where hackers sell your personal info for as little as five bucks. Pretty scary.
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Hello,
Five bucks for identity info?
I wonder how hard it would be to generate large quantities of superficially sound but in reality bogus information?
--Anthony
"Liberty must not be purchased at the cost of Humanity." --Captain Robert Henner
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:
Originally posted by AnthonyT:
Hello,
Why can't advertising on the internet provide as much revenue as advertising in the newspaper used to?
Publishing on the internet is cheaper, so with the same advertising revenues as always, why can't they make a profit?
I'm confused about the nature of the problem.
--Anthony
"Liberty must not be purchased at the cost of Humanity." --Captain Robert Henner
If I recall, studies have shown people are very adept at completely ignoring net ads, far beyond what they do with TV - but I have no cites.
One definite factor, is people useing pop-up blockers and such to block the ads. One way or the other, advertisers decided years ago that net ads are not as effective, and the rates they pay dropped right about the time the bubble burst a few years back. It's not the same revenue stream, plain and simple.
And the entitlement attitude that comes with the internet makes things worse - people think that anything online should be free - regardless of what that means to those who provide the content.
"I thoroughly disapprove of duels. If a man should challenge me, I would take him kindly and forgivingly by the hand and lead him to a quiet place and kill him."
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Hello,
The internet didn't invent an entitlement attitude to content. I remember spending my childhood watching free content on VHF and UHF stations.
It's the businesses themselves that set such expectations with how they operated in the past. No surprise that people will balk at paying tomorrow for what they were receiving for free today.
--Anthony
"Liberty must not be purchased at the cost of Humanity." --Captain Robert Henner
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Hello,
This too: "people are very adept at completely ignoring net ads"
Newspapers are rife with ads from local businesses, advertising special deals and cut-out coupons. People could easily ignore these ads in a newspaper. Instead they choose to look at them.
There's no reason CNN and the New York Times couldn't have special deals and coupon areas with things relevant to your municipality, just like a real newspaper. If I was at work and trying to decide what to eat for lunch, I could pull up the adverts page and select which fast food restaurant had the best coupon. Then print and go.
It's not that they can't make money with online advertisements. It's that they aren't doing it right.
--Anthony
"Liberty must not be purchased at the cost of Humanity." --Captain Robert Henner
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:
Originally posted by AnthonyT:
Hello,
The internet didn't invent an entitlement attitude to content. I remember spending my childhood watching free content on VHF and UHF stations.
Create? No. Just perpetuate, to a FAR greater degree.
And your comparison is a bit disingenuous. Watching free stuff on TV, with advertising, isn't the same as downloading anything at any time with no retruns for the originators of the product.
Quote:
It's the businesses themselves that set such expectations with how they operated in the past. No surprise that people will balk at paying tomorrow for what they were receiving for free today.
Funny, I don't remember all newspapers being free. Nor were record labels or movie studios or TV networks saying "take all you want, for free".
Your rationelle is thin at best.
"I thoroughly disapprove of duels. If a man should challenge me, I would take him kindly and forgivingly by the hand and lead him to a quiet place and kill him."
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME
Quote:
Originally posted by AnthonyT:
Hello,
This too: "people are very adept at completely ignoring net ads"
Newspapers are rife with ads from local businesses, advertising special deals and cut-out coupons. People could easily ignore these ads in a newspaper. Instead they choose to look at them.
There's no reason CNN and the New York Times couldn't have special deals and coupon areas with things relevant to your municipality, just like a real newspaper. If I was at work and trying to decide what to eat for lunch, I could pull up the adverts page and select which fast food restaurant had the best coupon. Then print and go.
It's not that they can't make money with online advertisements. It's that they aren't doing it right.
--Anthony
You're still ignoring the anti-ad software that everyone has. Local coupons don't help there.
And you talking about papers as if they're entirely run on ad revenue. They're not, and never were. Or did you not notice the cover price? Even with ads, they need to generate revenue.
Again, pretty thin argument.
"I thoroughly disapprove of duels. If a man should challenge me, I would take him kindly and forgivingly by the hand and lead him to a quiet place and kill him."
NOTIFY: Y | REPLY | REPLY WITH QUOTE | PERMALINK | TOP | HOME