The Tindle Newspapers Group, which publishes over 200 local and regional papers in the UK, some of which are over 100 years old, has judged its various paid content experiments as successful and now plans to erect paywalls at 40 of its titles.

Based in Surrey, the announced increases in projections on how much can be made from paywalls follows a heartening speech by chairman and boss Sir Ray Tindle at Oxon Hoath in Kent on how the group will emerge from the recession 'with flags flying.'

Tindle has weathered the recession so far with minimal cuts or damage to its staff and hundreds of titles. It has even managed to get on the Newspapers Society's top 10 biggest UK publishers list last April.

Over the summer, Tindle began a subscription trial on six of its titles - three free papers and three paid-for titles - using online page-turning software PageSuite and using Paypal to secure subscriptions.

Tindle said the trial had been so successful that the cash generated from subscriptions soon exceeded expectations and the Paypal facilities had to be expanded. Due to this success the group wants to try it out on a wider range of titles, using the same PageSuite system and Paypal.

"We originally expected a few paid online subscriptions in our core circulation areas, with most coming from foreign parts," said the group's managing director, Brian Doel.

"In fact many of our subscriptions, worth thousands of pounds, came from local subscribers. Some people obviously prefer to read their local papers on their computers. Many of our papers have survived technology changes for 150 years or more. This online move will help guarantee their survival for another 150."

Source: MediaGuardian