In a major change to its business strategy, CNN has officially launched a paywall on CNN.com, the beginning of a “long-term” effort to build a sustainable digital subscription offering.
CNN executive VP of digital products and services Alex MacCallum announced the paywall in a memo to staff Tuesday.
“Starting today, we are asking users in the United States to pay a small recurring fee for unlimited access to CNN.com’s world-class articles,” MacCallum wrote. “The vast majority of the 150 million users who visit CNN.com every month will continue to enjoy the same experience as they do today. Only after users consume a certain number of free articles will they be prompted to subscribe.
“In addition to unlimited access to CNN.com’s articles, subscribers will receive benefits like exclusive election features, original documentaries, a curated daily selection of our most distinctive journalism, and fewer digital ads,” she added.
It is not immediately clear how many articles users will need to click to hit the paywall. CNN says that the paid subscriptions will cost $3.99 per month or $29.99 per year to start. The CNN homepage, live blogs and breaking news live stories, vertical videos, standalone video pages and interactive content will not be included in the paywall to start.
MacCallum adds that the offering will change over time.
“This launch is just the first step in CNN’s journey to become a more consumer-oriented digital product company,” she wrote. “Over time, we will invest in ways to better meet our users’ needs and expand our aperture to engage and serve new audiences. We will create new products and businesses, build new capabilities in product, engineering, data and subscriptions, and evolve how we work.”
Among other things, CNN is expected to add more “need to know” news and analysis anchored in compelling formats, as well as more lifestyle-focused “want to know” content. CNN will also ultimately lean more into video and its on-air talent to differentiate it from most other news subscriptions, though text will remain a big piece of the puzzle.
Earlier this summer CNN cut about 100 jobs as part of its digital pivot.