Murdoch: WSJ.com to Retain Subscription Model, Raise Prices

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 25, 2008 - 10:16am.

Davos, Switzerland - News Corp. (NYSE: NWS) chairman Rupert Murdoch said on Friday that he plans to keep a large portion of the content on the website of his newly acquired Wall Street Journal behind a subscription firewall, and indicated that subscription prices are likely to rise, The Journal reported. The remarks, made at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, countered earlier hints that Murdoch was contemplating making the entire site free to access.

"We are going to greatly expand and improve the free part of the Wall Street Journal online, but there will still be a strong offering," Murdoch said.

"The really special things will still be a subscription service, and, sorry to tell you, probably more expensive."