The paywall pioneers over at The New York Times got more bad news today. The number of people willing to pay for online news is shrinking fast, according to a study today released by pollster Harris Interactive.
Of the 2,105 U.S. adults surveyed, 80 percent said they would be willing to pay "nothing" to read a daily newspaper's content online.
So who's most likely to pay? Young, college-educated men.
The study found that a quarter of 18 to 34 year-old men were willing to pay up to $20 a month to read newspaper content online; only 15 percent of their female counterparts said they were willing to pay anything online news.
Surprisingly, those willing to pay were the ones who have grown up with free online news ― flying in the face of the widely held idea that it's tough to start charging for something after your customers have gotten it for free.
The New York Times recently began charging online readers who view over 20 articles per month, the third major media company to do so after the Wall Street Journal and Financial Times put up their paywalls earlier this year.
The New York Times charges $3.75 a week for web plus smartphone or $195 a year, WSJ can be had for $1.99 a week for web only or $104 a year, while FT charges $3.59 a week or $187 a year.
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