

Ask HN: Is Murdoch Right when he says "The current days of the Internet will soon be over"? - mildweed

The nature of the net is constantly changing, granted.  But what he's really positing, is that the free ride is over.  Ad-based support isn't enough for content.  How can we prove him wrong?  In what ways have we already?
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xsmasher
It will become a mix of free and paid services. Broadcast TV was free in the
US (ad supported) because it was impractical to bill for usage. Now the cable
and satellite rule the roost, we pay for some channels (HBO, Showtime) and
some content (on demand) while others are still mostly ad supported. The HBO
model is not for everyone - would you pay $20 a month for the scifi channel? I
don't love Boa vs. Python that much.

The net is a mix too - I pay for web service and email service, event though
there are free alternatives. If iphonedevsdk or stackoverflow changed to a fee
structure, I'd join. However, if Facebook or Reddit or went paid, I'd stop
showing up.

~~~
xsmasher
Now that I've stated thinking, I'm curious: other than server/email/backup
space, what paid memberships/websites do you subscribe to?

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vaksel
He is in the newspaper business, its in his best interest to kill the ad
supported model

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magikcrow
Think about the scam that the newspaper business pulled on hemp during yellow
journalism. I think it was hearst that owned land with trees to be used for
paper. (I forget off hand who it was for sure) Hemp would produce 4 times the
amount of one acre of trees. He printed all kinds of bogus stuff to protect
his interests. Now we're in a huge mess because of his greed. Don't let
Murdoch make a similar mistake with the net.

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mixmax
I would say no, it's all about gametheory. I wrote about it here:
[http://www.maximise.dk/blog/2009/03/online-news-and-
prisoner...](http://www.maximise.dk/blog/2009/03/online-news-and-prisoners-
dilemma.html)

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khandekars
Also, somewhat related and interesting:
[http://www.scripting.com/stories/2008/11/13/onlineAdvertisin...](http://www.scripting.com/stories/2008/11/13/onlineAdvertisingIsNowDead.html)

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DanielBMarkham
I don't know

