CNN is moving forward with an ambitious plan to charge for its online news.
Starting this week, visitors to CNN.com in the United States will have access to a limited number of news articles for free before they are asked to pay $4 per month to continue reading news stories on the website.
In a note to employees on Tuesday, CNN’s Executive Vice President of Digital Products Alex MacCallum said paid membership to CNN.com will come with a number of other reader benefits, including “exclusive election features, original documentaries, a curated daily selection of our most distinctive journalism” and articles that contain fewer advertisements.
The membership does not include access to CNN’s live video stream, which remains exclusive to cable, satellite and other pay TV platforms. A version of CNN’s international news channel is available on Max, the subscription streaming service owned by CNN parent company Warner Bros Discovery that costs $10 per month.
Faced with dwindling traditional TV ratings and accompanied by lower advertising sales, CNN has embarked on a plan to generate revenue through other means, to include charging for online news that was once free and distributing its news clips and original series through free, ad-supported streaming TV platforms like Samsung TV Plus and Pluto TV.
“Over time, we will invest in ways to better meet our users’ needs and expand our aperture to engage and serve new audiences,” MacCallum said.
The paywall is at least the second time in recent years that CNN has sought to generate direct subscription revenue from its journalism. Two years ago, while still under AT&T’s ownership, CNN launched a direct-to-consumer streaming product called CNN Plus. The service cost $6 per month, contained original programming and access to CNN’s back catalog of shows, and was shut down about a month after it debuted.
