It has been assumed for some time that the Online Wall Street Journal will become free not too long after News Corp. (NWS-A) takes over Dow Jones (DJ).
In a recent speaking engagement, Rupert Murdoch once again confirmed that it's the way he is leaning at this time.
The decision isn't as easy as it looks because the paid subscription has continued to grow, with growth in the third quarter increasing by 25.5 percent over a year ago. The total number of paid subscribers now stands at about 989,000 as of the end of the third quarter.
Talking to Australian investors, he said he "expects" that he will make the online edition of the Wall Street Journal free. "We are studying it and we expect to make [the site] free," he said.
In other words, it's still not a definite yes, but is moving toward that decision.
Murdoch projects that the online version offered for free would generate between 10 to 15 million readers from around the world.
One thing that probably is being thought about is the slowing down in ad revenue overall, although it will still grow at a healthy pace online, although not quite as fast as expected with the recent economic problems connected to housing, subprime loans and growing energy prices.
With the brand of the Wall Street Journal, I don't think Murdoch has to worry as much as AOL does, as far as generating revenue from online advertising.
AOL, because it's a portal with general news, won't command the ad prices the business-focused Wall Street Journal can. Social networking has also put more pressure on ad prices for the portals, again, that shouldn't be much of a problem for the online Journal.
» Rupert Murdoch's Plans for Wall Street Journal from ManagersRealm
Rupert Murdoch is still juggling the pros and cons of changing the online Wall Street Journal to a free site, moving away from the subscription model. Every day he seems to be leaning more that way, although the final decision... [Read More]
Tracked on: November 13, 2007 4:45 PM | Permalink to Trackback