19 Jul 2022
Have you ever clicked on a link and were presented with a paywalled article?
Sure you have. This is the 2022 web. Publications want your dollars. After running into a few too many requests I spent a month tracking requests for paywalled content.
If I had payed for the access it would have came out to over $1,000 per year for all of the requested subscriptions. I was not going to do that. I am not a journalist, pundit, or even somebody who write about the news. I have no need to be that up-to-date online.
I would like to say that I have a rule to respect copyright and pay for all of my software, movies, and digital content. I have no issues with publications putting content behind a paywall. I just got tired of being asked.
Here is the list of websites.
| Website | Period | Cost | Total Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bloomberg | M | $1.99 | $23.88 |
| Daily Gazette | A | $145 | $145 |
| The Economist | A | $189 | $189 |
| The Financial Times | M/A | $40 | $186* |
| Insider | A | $49 | $49^ |
| The New York Times | W | $1 | $52 |
| Silicon Valley Business Journal | M | $4 | $48 |
| The Telegraph (UK) | M | $0.50? | $12.99 |
| The Times (UK) | M | $3/$5 | $57 |
| The Washington Post | A | $40 | $40 |
| The Wall Street Journal | M | $4 | $48 |
| Wired | A | $30 | $30 |
Noticably absent are Reuters and the Associated Press. I am not sure if they ever asked.
I tried to keep things straight but it did become confusing. There were special offers and deals to be had. I am not sure if they are still running the bargains nor do I really care. I was more interested in how much it would have cost if I had pay the $ for a subscription. I could have saved half of my $ by choosing a single month (some only offered annual).
This experiment was not scientific by any means. It was done in an adhoc manner because I was tired of being asked for $. You mileage may vary.
* The cost for the The Financial Times was quoted as $40 per month but they offered an annual subscription for $186.
^ The cost for Insider was a special price of $49 where normally the subscription would $99.
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