paidContent » Rani Molla Archives

In case you missed it: here are the transcripts from paidContent Live 2013

Rani Molla — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 19:12:30 +0000

Last week in New York, hundreds of media professionals, influencers and watchers gathered at our paidContent Live conference to figure out exactly how the crazy disruption being visited up the media industry by the maturation of the internet will create winners and losers. We assembled our coverage of the event on this page, but we’re also providing transcripts to those videos through the links below for your enjoyment.

Thanks to those who helped make paidContent Live a success, and thanks for your interest in our speakers.

A majority of the biggest newspapers in the country now have paywalls

Rani Molla — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 17:17:26 +0000

Click to enlarge

Several hundred newspapers now have paywalls of some kind, but for the most part, it’s the small and mid-size papers that have been the early adopters. Last year, for example, Gannett put all 80 of its community newspapers’ websites behind metered paywalls, while keeping its flagship paper, USA Today, free online.

But the New York Times‘ ability to attract subscribers in the two years since its paywall went live – combined with the increasingly tough digital advertising market – seems to have caused some of the bigger newspapers to reconsider. In the last year alone, six of the biggest newspapers in the U.S. have announced plans to start charging for their digital editions: the LA Times, Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, Houston Chronicle, Philadelphia Inquirer, Orange County Register.

As of now, 12 of the top-20 U.S. newspapers (by weekday circulation) have either enacted a paid scheme or plan to do so.

Click the graphic to the left to see which of the biggest newspapers have paywalls.

Amazon’s September harvest: new HD Kindle Fires, Paperwhite ereader

Rani Molla — Thu, 06 Sep 2012 20:09:57 +0000

Amazon announced at a press conference Thursday four new tablets and one new ereader, the Kindle Paperwhite, as well as Kindle Serials a feature where users can buy a serialized publication that will update automatically. Despite rumors, Amazon did not announce a smartphone. GigaOM’s Laura Owen live blogged from the LA event. Here’s a quick summary of what Amazon is rolling out:

Kindle Paperwhite

high-def front-lit display
longer battery life
starting at $119; 3G $179

Kindle

small revamp
$69

Kindle Fire

faster processor
twice the memory
longer battery life
$159

Kindle Fire HD

16 GB
Front-facing HD camera
7 inch and 8.9 inch
$199 (7-inch) and $299 (8.9-inch)
11 hours battery life (7 inch)

Kindle Fire HD 4G LTE

32 GB
8.9 inch
$499

Kindle Serials

episodes update automatically
$1.99