CNN to become a "good web citizen" by dropping paid-for video

Posted by Mica Swyers on June 29, 2007 at 10:29 AM

In a major overhaul of its international website, CNN.com will drop its paid-for video service starting on Sunday, July 1. Free access to select content from CNN’s video archive, personalization options for the homepage, and outlets for submission of user-generated content are all attempts by the network to become “a good web citizen.”

The video service Pipeline, which costs $0.99 per day or $2.95 per month, will be dropped from CNN.com. The site will shift its focus to advertising revenue to support its video and future mobile services. CNN managing editor Nick Wrenn acknowledged that this free-access model is currently better for CNN, with free content becoming the norm on the Web.

In addition to free video, the site will invite user-generated submissions such as text, photo, and video. Users will also be able to arrange headlines and weather feeds of their choice to create a personalized homepage.

Wrenn added that as “good web citizens,” news networks like CNN have to remain flexible and adapt to the trend of linking news stories to complementary websites. “Journalism needs to adapt,” he said, “…journalists need to be aware of how people consume news differently.”

Source: Media Guardian through EJC