Exclusive Content + Perks = Good Subscription Package

It’s refreshing to see a newspaper looking for online subscription revenue approach the problem creatively. Rather than building a “pay wall” around the news they’re already giving away, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette has just this month launched PG+, a premium tier with exclusive blogs, videos and sports coverage, as well as lots of members-only contests and deals with local merchants and advertisers. It costs $3.99 a month, or less if you buy a full year at a time. (They’ve also built a very effective online tour and sales pitch for the product.)

So far, it seems to be football that’s driving the “most read” stories list on PG+, not too surprising in Pittsburgh in September. And one could make some other quibbles: Why doesn’t the site have its own URL? But this is a great experiment to watch. If publishers want to grow their online reader revenue, it’s new products, not carving up old ones, that are going to provide the real wins.