Newspapers And Magazines Charging Subscription Fees Online - Survival or Insanity?

Time Magazine May Join Newspapers In Committing Suicide By Charging Online | Techdirt. I recently posted about the exodus of newspapers to the Internet. This inexorable shift to the medium where the people are has raised some interesting questions about the financial survival of newspapers and magazines in an Internet age. For decades, the combination of the subscription and advertising business models have served the publishers well. On the Internet, however, the subscription model hasn't worked, partially due to the mindset of Internet users. On the Internet, information is supposed to be free. Is it insane to charge subscription fees for Internet content? It will, of course, limit the number of eyes on the product. However, hasn't that always been the case? People who really want a particular subset of content have always been willing to pay a reasonable subscription charge. Perhaps, the newspapers and magazines should stay with what works; then, if the numbers don't work out, abandon the subscription model, or go out of business. It is safe to say that there won't be any newspaper or magazine publisher bailouts. Frankly, I don't understand the comments that seem to think that the death of newspapers will be the death of journalism. Perhaps the opposite is true. Maybe the true journalists will be people who have jobs and careers, and who share their knowledge and insights with the world for free. When did newspapers gain a monopoly on truth and justice?