Do news consumers want to pay for an ad-free experience?

And even Spotify, one of the largest digital subscription businesses in the world — which divulged last week that it’s paying between around $140 million to $195 million to buy The Ringer — still makes its podcasts available for free in its app, not requiring a Premium subscription. That may change someday. But purchasing The Ringer — and Gimlet Me... See more

The customer always gets what they want: In the case of an ads-driven business model where the advertiser is the true customer, that’s balanced political news alongside frivolous lifestyle stories as a canvas for ads. In the case of subscribers, it’s being flattered by having their own worldviews echoed back themselves in more articulate form.

By many measures, Follett said, one of the very worst advertising environments is social media: “People are scrolling so tremendously quickly, like on a slot machine in Vegas—is it any wonder no one actually looks at these ads?” One of the most valuable advertising spaces, according to his data, is next to long, absorbing articles from trusted publ... See more