NY Times to Gain Revenue from News Readers

New York Times Co. will begin charging users for some content on its namesake Web site in 2011 to boost revenue as more readers seek news on the Internet.

Photo: NY Times to Gain Revenue from News Readers

The New York-based publisher said in a statement today that it will give users access to a set number of articles a month for free on NYTimes.com and charge a fee for further reading. Subscribers to the New York Times print edition won’t be charged for Web access.

The model mirrors that of the Financial Times, owned by Pearson Plc, which allows users to access 10 free articles monthly before charging at least $3.59 weekly to continue.

News Corp.’s Wall Street Journal’s Web site is subscription-based.

The publisher has been studying paid models for its free site since at least February 2009, when Executive Editor Bill Keller said in an online question-and-answer session that he was considering charging for all or some Web content.

Times Co. experimented with charging users for some opinion and editorial content in a service called Times Select that ran for two years through 2007. At its peak, 200,000 users paid for Times Select and it generated $10 million in revenue, Keller has said.

Times Co. lost 16 cents to $13.54 at 10:38 a.m. in New York Stock Exchange composite trading. The shares advanced 69 percent last year.

BusinessWeek has contributed to the report.