The Digital Reader

Hold the Front Page is reporting:

Regional publisher Johnston Press is quietly dropping its experiment in introducing paywalls to some of its local newspaper websites.As first revealed by HTFP last November, JP imposed a £5 subscription for anyone wanting to read stories in full on some of its local sites, including the Whitby Gazette in North Yorkshire and the Southern Reporter in Selkirk.

However the paywall at the Gazette has now been dropped with full stories now freely available again to users.

…

However a source at one of the titles involved in the trial said it had been a “disaster” and that the number of people subscribing had been in single figures.

Read that last line again. While it may be inappropriate to enjoy another’s misfortune, I have to admit I snickered.