That is, indeed, the question a lot of content-centric web sites are facing these days.
Recently, Rupert Murdoch (along with AP’s CEO, Tom Curley) put that question in the global spotlight with remarks at a conference in China. As you probably know, Murdoch owns most of the media stuff in the world that is still actually making money–including the only major newspaper currently making a profit–The Wall Street Journal.
What Murdoch suggested in his remarks in Beijing amounts to heresy among the high priests of the new economy. Namely, that stuff shouldn’t be free just because it’s on the Internet.
The battle between old media and the Web gathered steam Friday, as two of the most prominent news publishers said it was time for Internet sites to pay for news content that now flows for free.
Rupert Murdoch of News Corp. decried “content kleptomaniacs” and said websites that aggregate or borrow reports from companies such as his “will soon have to pay a price.” News Corp. owns the Wall Street Journal, one of the few large newspapers that has successfully charged fees for access to its website.
Later, Associated Press (AP) chief executive Tom Curley said, “We content creators have been too slow to react to free exploitation of news content by third parties without input or permission.”
The AP is pursuing plans that could be “game-changer” in the elusive quest for online revenue, he said.
Just what does this mean for regular folks like us? Jon Simpson and I will be discussing the implications of all this–for businesses and non-profits–in the next few installments of our podcast, “The Report from the Bridge.”
Stay tuned. By the way you can subscribe to the podcast here and never miss another thrilling episode.
