The New York Times on Thursday unveiled details about its long-awaited paywall, a digital subscription service that will cost between $15 and $35 per month, depending on your level of service.
"It's an important step that we hope you will see as an investment in The Times, one that will strengthen our ability to provide high-quality journalism to readers around the world and on any platform," Times publisher Arthur Ochs Sulzberger, Jr. said in a note to readers.
Digital subscriptions are rolling out now in Canada and will start in the U.S. on March 28. There will be three options; all plans provide unlimited access to NYTimes.com, but differ in regards to smartphone and tablet access.
The NYTimes.com Plus smartphone app will cost $15 per month and provides unlimited access to NYTimes.com, as well as unlimited access from BlackBerry, iPhone, and Android-powered devices.
The NYTimes.com Plus tablet app will cost $20 per month and will provides unlimited NYTimes.com access, as well as unlimited access to the paper's iPad app, and the Times Reader 2.0 and NYTimes App for the Chrome Web Store.
Finally, the All Digital Access plan, which will run $35 per month, provides unlimited access to the Web site and all smartphone, tablet, and Web-based apps.
The Times said it will have a promotional offer for new subscribers, but did not provide details.
These digital subscriptions do not include access on e-readers like the Barnes & Noble Nook and Amazon Kindle. Home delivery subscribers will have automatic access to the digital edition.
For those who don't want to subscribe, the Times will offer 20 free articles per month - including blogs, slide shows, video, and other multimedia features. As you reach your limit, pop-ups will appear on the site. The paper will also provide unlimited access to the home page, section fronts, blog fronts, and classifieds. Those who comes to the Times via links from search, blogs and social media like Facebook and Twitter will be able to read the articles, even if they have reached their monthly reading limit. Some search engines will have a daily limit of free links to Times articles.
The Times announced plans for a paywall last year, when it was trying to recoup lost dollars from advertising. It has already had one foray into metered access. Its "Times Select" option put access to columnists like Maureen Dowd and Frank Rich behind a $7.95 per month paywall, but the paper ditched that effort in 2007 after two years.
Earlier this month, the company threw its hat in the daily deals ring with the launch of TimesLimited.