So I get ads are terrible, obviously. I run ad-blockers all the time. But people also get angry at paywalls. So that leaves me wondering, if not through ads or subscriptions, how is a news publisher supposed to sustain itself?

  • AA5B@lemmy.world
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    3 hours ago

    Huh, I came here to say the opposite. If people were similar to me, a weak paywall is exactly right

    I hate the idea of paying per article: I don’t know the value at the time nor do I know whether they’re trustworthy. If something posted here isn’t readable without pay, I’m not reading it.

    However I do recognize news sources the I find useful, that are high quality, that are likely to have more well done news, and i do subscribe to a couple

    On the other hand I also pay a news aggregator and have no idea how their sources are paid. Do they get a cut per article I read? Is it effectively advertising where they offer teaser articles and hope to sell me a subscription?

    Edit: it’s a mix of revenue

    Apple News publishers earn revenue through a combination of ad placements and subscription fees, with payment models favoring those who use Apple News Format (ANF) and generate high engagement. Key revenue streams include selling their own ads (100% of revenue), utilizing Apple-sold “backfill” ads (70% revenue), and receiving a portion of Apple News+ subscription revenue based on total time spent reading.