Read (& talk) for Free. Pay for Print.

I got into an interesting discussion over at the Buzz Machine. It is, of course, about newspapers, web and print. 21 Responses as of right now. Thursday around 7:40 New York Time.

Evan Rudowski says:

January 8, 2009 at 8:26 am

. . . Here in Bath, England, we have The Bath Chronicle which has been continuously published since the 18th Century. About a year ago it moved from daily publication (overkill anyway in this city of about 70,000 people) to weekly. The weekly edition is now more lively than ever and thick with advertising. The newspaper has recently won multiple awards as one of the best UK weekly newspapers.

I said:

. . . That makes very good sense to me. My question is could the web have done it without the weekly print paper? Is the primary revenue from the Paper or the Web? I’m betting the web creates the community and the news. But the Paper brings the news to everyone and the money into the organization.

He said,

. . . Without doubt, you’re right — the weekly print edition pays the freight. However, they have now eliminated six days worth of newsprint and distribution costs, while using the website to remain relevant throughout the week. And the debates on the website are vital to the community;

In the Google-Mart Economy people buy stuff. Print is stuff. Information is either free or very, very inexpensive.