The publishers of NRC handelsblad, de Volkskrant and the FD talks about a joint online’kiosk’ where newspaper articles are to be sold. Also a collective paywall belongs to the options. A decision is not yet taken.
De Volkskrant writes Wednesday morning about a ‘Spotify for newspapers’, of which NRC Media, FD Media and De Persgroep, responsible for, among others, De Volkskrant and The Parool, could negotiate. There might even already decided to the platform, a ‘joint initiative’ of the publishers, at the end of this year, where users of a newspaper can select from the range of all daily newspapers. It would include articles from the printed newspaper, which is now also using apps to be sold.
Peter van der Ploeg, chief of internet at NRC, denies that all knots are made. “The discussions about a platform walk yet,” he says. “We are not yet working actually on a platform. We talk more about participation.” The publisher of the guardian and the industry association NDP were not reachable for comment.
The newspapers work according to the Volkskrant also a common paywall, that los would be the ‘Spotify-idea’. Laurens Verhagen, former editor-in-chief of NU.nl and recently responsible for the websites of de Persgroep newspapers, calls it ‘nonsense’. “It is contrary to my ideas,” he says.
Monday called Verhagen in an interview with NRC Handelsblad betaalmuren still a ‘step back’. “There are people within the School to a betaalmuur tend to be, but I believe there is not. That worked, it is not true”, he says Tweakers.net. However, he confirms that discussions are being carried on a common newsstand. “I understand that it is really about newspaper articles.”
The Gelderlandse start-up Yournalist is currently working on an “all you can eat’model for newspaper articles, similar to Spotify. It is unclear whether the plan is available to the Volkskrant writes. Co-owner Thomas Rutten of Yournalist, that does not confirm, but acknowledges that he is in talks with newspaper publishers; what he doesn’t want to say. “We want this year to launch,” says Rutten. “We would like all publishers on a single line.”
How many users would have to pay for access to Yournalist, is still unclear. “Research by PWC shows that a price of 9 euros per month is realistic. We are currently still looking for what a good price would be,” said Rutten. “Maybe Yournalist even free, but ultimately I think that it is a universal betaalmuur like. Individual paywalls will not work.”
Decision by Flemish media to a common platform. In Slovenia and Slovakia exist such collective paywalls already. In the past time, the number of betaalmuren on the internet. In the Netherlands, under the FD and the Dutch daily Newspaper paywalls entered, and abroad The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal. Publishers complain that they have insufficient income from ads.
Update, 16:35: Marieke van der Donk, Deloitte, who, according to the Volkskrant it would have indicated that the digital ‘kiosk’ already this year is launched, denies to have said. “It seems now as if I were involved in the planning, but that is not so”, says Van der Donk. “They have me only called as an expert.”