Author: Minal Bopaiah - Page 64 - Subscription Insider

Amazon Backs New Video Format Aiming To Make Online Distribution Easier

Entertainment and Streaming, Subscriber Only, Technology / Minal Bopaiah

This past Tuesday, Amazon revealed that it had signed a deal with UltraViolet, a cloud-based video format that lets users view a downloaded or streaming video via multiple devices.While the Hollywood-backed service has been around for a little while now, it hasn’t really taken off, and Amazon is the first major online video supplier to ink a deal. UltraViolet lets users combine digital purchases from any retailer and store it in a “locker.” More over,…

Amazon Backs New Video Format Aiming To Make Online Distribution Easier Read More »

FTC Case Could Affect How Payment Processors Address Chargebacks

Payment Processing, Regulation and Compliance, Subscriber Acquisition, Subscriber Only / Minal Bopaiah

In these economically-strapped times, the Federal Trade Commission(FTC) is cracking down not only on merchants who swindle consumers, but all parties involved in fraud, including payment processors.Recently, a U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas banned the use of “remotely created payment orders” by Landmark Clearing, Inc. “Remotely created payment orders” allow merchants to enter a client’s name and bank number into a form and are cleared like a paper check, except that…

FTC Case Could Affect How Payment Processors Address Chargebacks Read More »

PBS’s Smart Use of Facebook to Track Audience Viewing

Subscriber Only / Minal Bopaiah

Even if you’re not as excited about Season 2 of Downton Abbey like I am, you might be interested in checking out their Facebook page.Most television companies start a video upon opening a page, an annoying tactic that has shown to causes viewers to leave a page. But PBS not only delays the viewing of their Season 2 teaser, but actually forces viewers to “like” their page before being able to view it.Loyal Paywall Times…

PBS’s Smart Use of Facebook to Track Audience Viewing Read More »

Newspaper Shares Dive, Digital Revenues Up for Magazines

FInance, Subscriber Only / Minal Bopaiah

The New Year brings lots of revenue data and Monday morning quarterbacking (or should we say January-quarterbacking?).In the newspaper business, stocks plummeted an average of 27% in 2011. In fact, every major print/online news outlet saw a decline, except for Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, which has employed a strict paywall strategy for years. This is good news for subscription sites, and with the New York Times’ adoption of a paywall strategy in 2011 (albeit a…

Newspaper Shares Dive, Digital Revenues Up for Magazines Read More »

Got Post-Holiday Marketing Blues? Start Prepping for Valentine’s Day!

Subscriber Acquisition, Subscriber Only / Minal Bopaiah

Yes, it’s only four days into the New Year, but not too soon to begin thinking about your Valentine’s Day campaign.Here are some tips to keep in mind: Valentine’s Day promotions are not just for dating sites! If you’re membership site isn’t very romantic, consider partnering with one that is to boost your opt-in or conversion rates. For example, how about one free month of gaming for guys who buy their sweethearts flowers? While women tend to…

Got Post-Holiday Marketing Blues? Start Prepping for Valentine’s Day! Read More »

Case StudyLesson: Apple’s Newsstand Helps ‘Popular Science’ Sell More Online

Subscriber Only, Subscription Apps / Minal Bopaiah

Apple seems forever plagued to receive mixed reviews. There are clear MacHeads and clear haters, and then those of us in between just trying to figure out the ever-changing rules of online content distribution. In November, Paywall Times wrote about how the Financial Times discontinued its use of Newsstand and created its own app in order to dodge Apple’s 30% cut of sales, a particular thorn in the side of many online publishers. But recent data…

Case StudyLesson: Apple’s Newsstand Helps ‘Popular Science’ Sell More Online Read More »

Real-World Lesson: Get a Separate IP for Every SSL Certificate

Subscriber Only, Technology / Minal Bopaiah

If you’ve been reading Paywall Times or our sister publication, Subscription Site Insider, for a while, you already know the importance of making sure all payment processing occurs over a secure (https://) network. This requires getting a Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) certificate, which produces cryptographic protocols to secure your transactions. But did you know that each SSL certificate requires its own static IP. This means that if you have two sites sharing a hosting account, you…

Real-World Lesson: Get a Separate IP for Every SSL Certificate Read More »

Star Wars: The Old Republic’ Launches With Subscription Pricing

Industry Announcements, Subscriber Acquisition, Subscriber Only / Minal Bopaiah

Just when you thought George Lucas couldn’t squeeze any more money out of his Star Wars franchise, he goes and launches a massively multiplayer online (MMO) game that aims to sell across generations of Star Wars fans. To say the project is ambitious is an understatement. Players can choose from eight characters, each within a certain “class” story, and each story in contained within a three-part trilogy that requires them to make moral decisions about the…

Star Wars: The Old Republic’ Launches With Subscription Pricing Read More »

Be Wary of Research Data on Print and Digital Subscriptions

FInance, Subscriber Only / Minal Bopaiah

GfK MRI’s semiannual measure of magazine readership was released to much ballyhooing this week, as publishers practically demanded a recount. The survey showed 70% of the 220 magazines measured were down in audience, including Wired (down 22%), O, the Oprah Magazine (down 10%) and New York (down 14%), according to AdWeek. However, the publishers claim the survey doesn’t account for growing digital subscriptions. The problem may be in the methodology, as MRI collects information through in-person…

Be Wary of Research Data on Print and Digital Subscriptions Read More »

Google Currents: A Mixed Blessing for Subscription Sites

Subscriber Only, Subscription Apps / Minal Bopaiah

Google just came out with Google Currents last week, an app that lets publishers create mobile-friendly content across platforms (iPhone, Android, etc.). By all accounts, the software seems rather intuitive for both readers and publishers. And Google already has 150 publications on board. What’s missing? Paywall sites.To be fair, there are some membership sites available on Google Currents, like The Motley Fool and The Street. But these sites tend to upsell other products while providing free…

Google Currents: A Mixed Blessing for Subscription Sites Read More »

Insight to drive subscription growth

Minal Bopaiah