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The most common sites that use paywall services to put either a hard or soft paywall on their site so access is only given to those who paid a subscription are digital newspapers and magazines. A hard paywall allows no access at all. You would click on a link that might be to a news article from their site, and it will instead take you to a subscription page. It tells you that to access that article or anything else there, you need to pay, and there may be between 1 to 4 subscription options for you to chose from if you decide to subscribe. A soft paywall is, as the name suggests, less rigid than the hard paywall model. It allows some kind of limited access, sometimes a limit on what you can see, sometimes a limit in how long you access the site for or how many free visits you can make, or how many articles you can see without paying. This is the most common example of a soft paywall and it is called a metered paywall. The Financial Times allows visitors who are non-subscribers access to 10 articles. The New York Times once allowed access to 20 articles but has since gone down to 10 also. Sites that use a metered paywall or any paywall bring in a more steady income from subscriptions rather than relying on less reliable ad revenue. It is thought that the soft models keep the number of visitors at a good level to turn some of them into subscribers. Other news sites around the world are also considering this option. After all, for the physical copy of the paper there is a charge so why should there not be one for their digital copy? Then there is the belief that the printed word itself is in danger anyway. Many people access their news online now. Many people carry with them devises they can use to read the news all the time, phones, tablets, laptops. The digital world is especially where the younger to the middle-aged demographic is going. So it is understandable that online newspapers are looking for successful models to make money from their online news articles. The key is making sure it is sustainable. Getting readers to sign up and keep them loyal. But who wants to pay for something that was once free? It is hard to justify charging for something when they can go to another site that does not charge and get, at least, similar news. Key to being successful with the paywall, whatever kind you chose is to stay connected with your subscribers. Encourage brand loyalty, those who have always read The Times are more likely to subscribe as they are loyal to the newspaper they have always relied on. Whether you have a news site or some other website you want to have users subscribe and pay fees for, think carefully about which paywall services you use, and which model best suits your site.
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