The media industry failed last year to persuade more customers to pay for its online news services, in spite of experimenting with new ways of charging for content, new research has found.
According to a survey of 19,000 people in 10 countries, conducted by the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism at the University of Oxford, only one internet user in 10 was willing to pay for digital news last year – exactly the same proportion as in 2012.
These findings come as traditional media groups, including News Corp and Axel Springer, continue to adapt their business models in an attempt to generate more money online, and offset rapidly declining revenues from print products.