Happy Friday! Here’s what we’re talking about this week in media:
1. New York Times Lets Starbucks WiFi Users Access More Free Content
The New York Times may be tightening loopholes around its paywall (which allows 10 free articles per month), but is loosening up for Starbucks customers: readers using the free WiFi in Starbucks get 15 free articles per day. PaidContent lists this as the latest example of “how news brands are using the public’s insatiable appetite for free WiFi as a vehicle to promote their content.” The 15 free articles are in addition to the 10 free monthly ones, with one catch: the Times chooses which stories Starbucks WiFi users can access.
2. Hearst Magazine Readers Share Reactions to Stories on Facebook
Developer Social Amp – in its first partnership with a publishing brand – is working with Hearst magazines to “provide a more social experience” for readers. The platform, which just rolled out for Cosmopolitan’s site (and is coming soon to Marie Claire and Bazaar) lets readers react to stories using pre-set actions on Facebook, and share those reactions with their friends. The platform is called MagShare, and readers can react with actions that correspond to that magazine’s readers (for Cosmo, they include “want,” “WTF,” or “OMG”). To make it more social, a personalized sidebar lets users see how their Facebook friends are reacting to each story and which stories are getting the most reactions overall.
3. The Boston Globe, Now For Sale, Juggles Paid Vs. Free Websites
How can one newspaper juggle both a free (Boston. com) and a paid (BostonGlobe. com) website with similar content? While right now “it’s a bit of a muddle between the two sites,” Boston. com is slated for a redesign, and has already seen a “broad reduction” in the amount of Globe content it carries. In addition, The New York Times Co. announced plans to sell the Globe (and its two digital sites). How will potential buyers view the newspaper’s digital circulation strategy — with the two separate sites?
What were you talking about in media this week?
