{"id":648713,"date":"2013-03-25T17:42:38","date_gmt":"2013-03-25T21:42:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/paidcontent.org\/?p=226507"},"modified":"2013-03-25T17:42:38","modified_gmt":"2013-03-25T21:42:38","slug":"new-york-times-closes-another-loophole-in-its-digital-paywall","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mereja.media\/index\/648713","title":{"rendered":"New York Times closes another loophole in its digital paywall"},"content":{"rendered":"

Look out media cheapskates \u2014 the New York Times<\/em> is losing patience with your skinflint ways. After imposing a so-called \u201cmetered paywall\u201d last year to restrict how many articles non-subscribers may read for free, the Times<\/em> is clamping down on popular tricks to get around the wall.<\/p>\n

The latest casualty is NYClean, a bookmarklet that lets readers zap away \u201cover the limit\u201d messages that appears in front of Times<\/em> stories. I discovered the change on Monday when, after having reached my monthly quota of 10 free stories, I tried and failed to use NYClean to read another story. The tool (see the arrow) zapped the message for a second but then the message came right back:<\/p>\n

\"NYT<\/a><\/p>\n

This is the second time in as many months that the Times<\/em> has shut down a trick to evade its meter; in February, readers discovered they could no longer access a blocked story<\/a> by chopping off the end of the article\u2019s website address. Times<\/em> spokesperson, Eileen Murphy, explained the situation this way:<\/p>\n

\u201cAs we have said from the time we launched our digital subscription model, we are aware of various loopholes to access our content beyond the allotted number of articles each month.\u00a0It remains a priority for us to protect the value of our content so we will continue to make adjustments to\u00a0optimize the gateway through technical security solutions.\u201d<\/p>\n

The new restrictions come at a time of increased acceptance of metered paywalls. In recent months, popular blogger (and paidContent Live<\/a> guest) Andrew Sullivan introduced a meter \u2014 now at $1.99 a month<\/a> \u2014 while longtime paywall holdout, the Washington Post<\/em>, said it will introduce one this summer<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The Times<\/em>\u2018 get-tough measures create dilemmas for readers like me who are running out of workarounds. I like the New York \u00a0Times<\/em> but, since I already pay hundreds of dollars a year for a Wall Street Journal<\/em> subscription, I am not in position to shell out full fare for a second paper. Perhaps the Times<\/em> will introduce a grazing option (say 50 articles for $5) or introduce paywall partnerships across publications.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

<\/a><\/p>\n

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:<\/strong>
Subscriber content. Sign up for a free trial<\/a>.<\/p>\n