Twitter will soon offer its users to buy press articles individually, announced Saturday Elon Musk, a solution repeatedly proposed but whose economic model remains to be proven.
"From next month, this platform (Twitter) will allow media publishers to charge readers, article by article, with a simple click," wrote the boss of the social network, which continues to launch new projects - sometimes in confusion - since he bought the American company.
"This will allow users who do not take a monthly subscription to pay a higher price per article when they want to read an article occasionally," adds Elon Musk, "it will be a win-win for the media and readers." He gave no further details on pricing or operation.
Trials, but little success
The idea of a platform to buy press articles from different publications individually, a form of alternative between free online press financed by advertising and subscriptions, is not new, but has never achieved the expected success.
The pioneering Danish start-up Blendle has not succeeded in its bet to create a kind of iTunes journalistic content. The company was acquired in 2020 by the French group Cafeyn, which offers... a subscription.
Elon Musk's bet, like previous similar attempts before him, requires the participation of press publishers, who should agree to connect their content to the platform, which does not seem an easy task given the chaotic history of this model and the now damaged reputation of Twitter.
- Tech
- Elon Musk
- Media