Day one living behind The Times paywall and I find myself in a state of confusion and unrest, has the website changed? I’m trying to spot all the differences but it has been weeks since I’ve been on here with my initial reaction being similar to two thirds of the readership and rebuffing their attempts to make me pay for news but alas I became weak. Whilst perusing the daily headlines this morning I felt the familiar urge to check The Times and within minutes found myself confirming a direct debit that would be charging me £8 a month for the pleasure of their website. Justifications were spilling out of me along the lines of, ‘it is important for my job to be on top of the news’ and ‘if I don’t buy Grazia anymore I can enjoy so much more information for my money’. Dress it up how you will paying to access news stories is not a comfortable position to be in.
This week has seen opinions rushing onto people’s Twitter, Facebook and Blogs not to mention the stampede of journalists keen to pen their take on the situation (especially those from publications that do not charge for access to their site, yet). Facts and figures galore have been flying around with Experian Hitwise proclaiming two thirds of web traffic lost and then Beehive City saying just 15,000 people have signed up, I find myself in the minority.
So what is it like on the other side? Well it certainly feels different, the layout has changed and I find myself part of The Times + group which from my understanding is designed to make me feel like a superior newsreader. My superiority has already caused me problems as I have attempted to post witty pieces to my Twitter page that nobody can share. There is no doubt I visit the site more readily than I did when it was free, after all I have value for money to consider now! The advertising has inevitably changed along with the readership and I’m faced with luxury cars, TV packages and jewellery, my one bed flat and ’97 Golf Cabriolet doesn’t correspond with.
Whether or not I will continue my subscription to this infuriating service is yet to be determined but I do have an underlying element of respect for the dangerous and opinion provoking experiment The Times have under taken and will most definitely be waiting for their statement on its launch.
