nzherald.co.nz to charge for premium content

The internet has been a challenge for newspapers as they try to retain the loyalty of readers and advertisers.

The ability of papers to provide authoritative content and to zero in on the concerns of readers in their circulation area has proved decisive, as people learn to question the veracity of what they read on the internet.

Newspapers haven't been complacent. Most have experimented with different models for putting their content and services online and developing new online products.

The New Zealand Herald has editorial content going back to 1998 on its site.

It has proved a huge boon for readers, particularly New Zealand expatriates who use it to keep up with news from home and help push unique visitor numbers to an average of 1.1 million a month.

APN general manager for digital media Matthew Harman says the paper is making a change to its online content.

It has launched a new photo site, newspix.co.nz, to make it easier for people to buy copies of pictures run in APN publications.

Harman says while viewing news stories will remain free of charge, from September, exclusive comment material, in which Herald columnists analyse what is behind the news, will require subscription access - $3 for a day pass or $99 a year.

"We made an assessment of what content on the Herald site is exclusive and therefore not available on other sites. With general news, a reader may be able to get a similar story on other news websites. But opinion is clearly exclusive," Harman says.

The fee will not apply to sports columns.

He says the keyword search engine will be changed so a payment is needed to get in to stories more than a week old.

"If you are prepared to invest the time to click through the category browsing structure, you can still access the material at no cost, so the search fee is essentially a convenience levy," he says.

The Herald's approach is similar to the model developed by major newspapers such as the New York Times.

Harman says online advertising will continue to be the principal source of revenue for the site, which is now profitable.

"The reality is people are prepared to pay to access Herald content in print format, so there is no reason the online channel should be different."