The Sun is to become the latest national newspaper to charge for online content, with plans to charge readers £2 a week to read content online with access to Premier League football highlights, according to a news report.
According to the Media Guardian, the charge will come into effect in August after a £30m deal was struck for the rights to all 380 Premier League matches a season.
The tabloid newspaper, a property of News International, will make the change that ensures all three of company’s UK newspapers are pay-exclusive to online readers, with The Sun joining The Times and The Sunday Times in the subscription structure.
For The Sun, this structure will be based on the price of £2 per week for new online brand ‘Sun+’, which alongside its regular news content will contain full access to their exclusive ‘internet and mobile’ highlight rights to football from the English Premier League as of the next season (2013-14), a deal being shared with the rest of their News International stable.
It is currently unclear, though, how the new Sun+ system will affect the status of the £4.99-per-month iPad edition of the newspaper, although the use of different formats will most likely keep the two platforms separate.
Media Guardian reports that News International’s chief executive Mike Darcey is a key figure behind the change, having made previous claims that providing free online content is ‘untenable’ for a long-term business proposition, and that their Premier League highlights deal will be a big enough draw to bring in a sizable number of customers and assuring the success of the venture.
