The Wall Street Journal wants you to spend $102 to access their content through their iPhone app. Most applications land in the free-$2.99 range, so clearly the Journal is placing a premium on their content. But with so many content options available outside the pages of the WSJ, who is likely to pay for the service? PRNewser Editor Joe Ciarallo thinks business executives will, and agrees that the average reader might look for their news elsewhere to avoid the cost.
Consider that by simply typing any WSJ headline into a Web search tool like Google, you can access any Journal story for free online. This capability is also available through smart phones, so at the end of the day people tho pay for the app will only be buying convenience. It’s worth noting that subscribers to either the print or online edition pay only $52 annually for the app while those who subscribe to both editions get the app for free.
Dan Brown’s The Lost Symbol already sold 1 million of the 5 million copies printed, marking the largest single day sales for a book release, ever. Figures haven;t come back on e-book sales but Amazon says Brown’s novel has broken sales record for digital books they sell.
Ciarallo came back to join us today after covering for me yesterday. Today he explained how his site, PRNewser (our sibling here at Mediabistro) will cover the industry. Expect to see more cross over as the public relations and advertising worlds continue to collide.
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