recode

People Pay for the Content, Not the App

Álvaro Serrano, linking to Re/code's article about the financial issues and potential layoffs faced by The New York Times:

“It’s sad to see the Times struggling but let’s face it, their digital subscription model is downright ridiculous. For example, the smartphone and tablet subscriptions are priced separately, and if you want to read the NYT in both your phone and your tablet you need to pay for both. It feels like 2010 all over again.

I can’t believe we still have to say this in 2014, because it’s just obvious: people pay for the content, not the app. And the New York Times is the same whether your read it on your computer, your tablet or your smartphone.”

I have to agree. It's no wonder so many traditional publications are struggling, when one of the smartest and most prestigious publishers around is still getting digital subscriptions so wrong.