Media Prices On The Rise
Graph from TheWrap.com shows the rising price of media consumption
As media outlets suffer a decline in ad sales, they are passing the cost on to the consumer. A report by Hollywood industry blog TheWrap.com shows that the price of media consumption has risen sharply this year, particularly the cost of electronic media, such as e-editions of newspapers, video streaming, and e-books. It is important to note that the article doesn’t mention music prices, which are holding steady at iTunes and other outlets.
Hulu, the free ad-supported video-streaming site introduced a Hulu Plus version in June, for $9.99 a month. Even though Amazon battled book publishers to keep the price of e-books for its Kindle reader at $9.95, they eventually lost, raising the price to $13-$15. The New York Times recently raised the price of its digital subscription for e-readers, like the Kindle, 43 percent to $19.99/month. NYT is also building a pay wall for its website, and as early as 2011 will block off stories that used to be free.
The NYT is building a pay wall? Newspapers and magazines charging for access to content? It’s like relying on selling little plastic discs. These are steps in the wrong direction. Glad I’m in new media.