The Wall Street Journal’s Web site will move from a subscriber-revenue model to offering free access in exchange for advertising revenue, according to parent company News Corp. chairman Rupert Murdoch.
According to several reports, Murdoch anticipates that opening the content will move readership from 1 million paid subscribers to between 10 million and 15 million free readers. In turn, this will vastly expand the size of an audience desirable to marketers, who will pay for ads next to the site’s content.
Currently the site, wsj.com, charges $79 per year for access among individuals who do not have a subscription to the print version, reports said.
Murdoch’s News Corp. acquired Dow Jones & Co., which publishes the Wall Street Journal, in September. The deal is expected to formally close during the fourth quarter.
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