Newspapers cannot expect readers to pay for access to their content unless they provide significant quality and value. Most newspapers have become mediocre and are not as good as they used to be. Simply putting up a paywall is not enough - newspapers must innovate, meet community needs, and fundamentally change what they are doing to adapt to the new media landscape. Readers will go elsewhere for news if newspapers do not improve their products and make them worth paying for.

1. Pay for news? It’s just not worth it By: King Kaufman Presented by: TarekAbouArbid

2. “Almost all news organizations will be changing for content within a year” - Lionel Barber, Financial time editor

3. Charge readers for accessValue for their moneyProduce a quality product

4. Provide a real serviceto provide real value to readersReally stand outInform, entertain, enlightenTop-notch—not occasionally, but consistently

5. It's just too easy for readers to look elsewhere—especially if you stick a pay wall in front of them

6. Think newspapers are full of unique content

7. Most newspapers have been relentlessly mediocre, for the most part, for years or even decades. It's hard to justify asking people to pay for a product that's not nearly as good as it was a couple of years ago, and may not have been that good to begin with

8. Want Proof

9. The current print formula of raising newsstand and subscription price while reducing the quality of the product is having a quite predictable effect on circulation. Readers can tell the difference, and they’re walking away.

10. If you want people to pay for something, you’ve got to give them a good product at a price they’re willing to pay

11. iTunes

12. The sad fact about “almost all news organizations” is that they don’t provide the same kind of value

13. Three standards questions of quality that newspapers need to measure themselves in today's environment, online and offline:1. Does the paper truly meet the needs of its community?2. Is the paper truly willing to innovate to meet community desires and requirements for new products and coverage?3. Is the paper’s management and staff truly willing to fundamentally change what it’s doing, at every level of its operation, to adapt to the new realities of the business?

15. clunkyhard to navigateNewspaper Web sites aren't really very good—they're still (mediocre) newspapers pasted on a screenunimaginativetext-heavy

16. People look to aggregators

17. Google is doing the valuable work, providing something worthwhile by aggregating and making some sense out of the massive flow of news and information

18. In conclusion, news organizations may charge readers for access- But readers won’t pay, at least not in anything resembling sufficient numbers. Not unless they see significant quality and value.

19. Weisbein, J. (2010), “Newspapers Have Alternatives to the Paywall, But Will They Explore Them?” accessed 13 September 2010, <http://www.besttechie.net/2010/07/20/newspapers-alternatives-paywall/> Potts, M. (2010), “Journalism Online in Lancaster: Dead on Arrival?”accessed 13 September 2010, <http://recoveringjounalist.typepad.com/> Potts, M. (2009), “You Can't Charge For Something That Doesn't Provide Value”, accessed 13 September 2010, <http://recoveringjournalist.typepad.com/recovering_journalist/2009/07/you-cant-charge-for-something-that-doesnt-provide-value.html>Kaufman, K. (2009), “The pay walls are coming!” accessed 13 September 2010, <http://open.salon.com/blog/future_of_journalism/2009/07/16/the_pay_walls_are_coming> Kaufman, K. (2009), “Gawker steps up as GQ cowers” accessed 13 September 2010, <http://open.salon.com/blog/future_of_journalism/2009/09/04/gawker_steps_up_as_gq_cowers> Kaufman, K. (2009), “Google to publishers: Are you crazy?” accessed 13 September 2010, <http://open.salon.com/blog/future_of_journalism/2009/07/15/google_to_publishers_are_you_crazy> Seward, Z. (2009), “Niche outlets replace newspapers in Washington”,Nieman Journalism Lab, Harvard University, accessed 13 September 2010, <http://www.niemanlab.org/2009/07/niche-outlets-replace-newspapers-in-washington/>Potts, M. (2009), “You Can't Charge For Something That Doesn't Provide Value”, accessed 13 September 2010, <http://recoveringjournalist.typepad.com/recovering_journalist/2009/07/you-cant-charge-for-something-that-doesnt-provide-value.html>RELEVANT MATERIALS