The New York Times cuts its price online, but there is a problem

With 3.8 million subscribers, of which 2.9 million subscribers pay only for digital access, New York Times was one of the first successes of Paywalls, which partially or totally limits access to non-subscribers. Now the sale continues to grow by bundling its Basic Digital Access subscription with the Scribd e-book and audiobook service for a monthly fee of $ 12.99 (after a 30-day free trial).

It's a good deal if you are a big reader. Scribd alone costs $ 8.99 per month. the New York Times $ 8 a month the first year, then $ 15 a month. So after the first year, it's actually cheaper to have double subscriptions than subscribe only to the Time.

Is this first year worth it? Scribd offers a vast but uneven selection of ebooks and audiobooks offering almost illegible access (with some restrictions for the more voracious). It's a bit like Netflix streaming, which contains a lot of interesting movies and TV shows, but not necessarily the ones you're looking for. (I took a close look at Scribd's offerings in February.) Scribd also offers scores and samples of magazine and newspaper articles, including Time.

But you will need Time'Its own application (or web browser) to access your full subscription. "This is not a technical integration as such," says Russell Kern, general manager of marketing partnerships at New York Times. It's just a combined bill.

This is a continuation of the Time"The collaboration with Scribd, who tested a student subscription package last year (since it was discontinued), was $ 4.99 a month, but was limited to four months. In 2017, the Time provided with a one-year Spotify All Access subscription (including additional gifts beyond the base value) for a combined amount of $ 20 per month. In addition, "we have gone through a much smaller series of essays with international publishers," says Kern. "This is the first time we really double with a partner."

Why the (far from failing) New York Times offering such an agreement? To overcome the initial wave of people who were willing to gather those who still read the five free articles a month, says Kern. It is also seeking to expand beyond the United States. Although Scribd is smaller than the Time (with around 800,000 subscribers), it has an international reach, say the companies. Scribd will not provide customer breakdown, but a company spokesman said Scribd had "a significant number of paid subscribers outside of the United States."