3 ms·

Newspapers have always had a subscription. You used to pay 3-4 bucks every day, now all they want is a few bucks a month. It's not ironic.

Wowfunhappy 4y ago
On the whole, I think paying for each day's paper is a lot "healthier" for the consumer. You only pay for the days you actually read the paper, and you're aware that you're making a payment each time. You can't just forget about it. You can also read five different papers on five different days depending on which one strikes your fancy, leading to a more balanced news diet. A problem I'm having right now is that I want to get news from multiple sources, but I can't afford to subscribe to all of the major papers, I have to choose one!
- ipaddr 4y ago
  Back when people subscribed to newspapers a subscription was cheaper than daily purchases by far. Having someone bring it and come to your door to collect was easier. This is back when this was the only way aside from word of mouth to be informed (daily news touches on stories but moves on quickly)
MrGilbert 4y ago
The fact that I have to pay for news is not what this article is about. It's about getting hammered with subscriptions left and right, while getting subsciption popups on the same page at the same time. I find that amusing.
- Wowfunhappy 4y ago
  I also appreciate the irony, although it is of course worth noting that different people were almost certainly responsible for the website and the article (and this type of firewall is in fact a mark of a good paper).
yazzku 4y ago
Except that then they make cancelling the subscription hard or impossible. https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/new-york-times-makes-subscription-cancellations-exceedingly-difficult-for-consumers-class-action-lawsuit-alleges/ https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/new-york-times-makes-su... Create a subscription? -> Click this button! Cancel? -> Oh, sorry to hear that. You will need to call one of our representatives. 8am-7pm Monday-Friday, EST.
- gumby 4y ago
  This is illegal in California. So NYT subscribers in California can cancel on the web while everyone else has to go through the gantlet you describe. When I subscribe to something via my phone or Mac I always do it through apple, because they guarantee a painless cancellation. And this is despite the fact that on the Mac I purchase software outside the Apple Store when it’s an option. Managing subscriptions is that bad.
  - yazzku 4y ago
    It may be illegal now, but not when I tried cancelling. I just blocked the credit card payments and let them deal with their own shit.
Eddy_Viscosity2 4y ago
But we can't afford those few bucks because we have to pay the subscriptions to use the heated seats in our cars or to unlock the doors in with the key fobs.

Wowfunhappy 4y ago

On the whole, I think paying for each day's paper is a lot "healthier" for the consumer. You only pay for the days you actually read the paper, and you're aware that you're making a payment each time. You can't just forget about it. You can also read five different papers on five different days depending on which one strikes your fancy, leading to a more balanced news diet. A problem I'm having right now is that I want to get news from multiple sources, but I can't afford to subscribe to all of the major papers, I have to choose one!

ipaddr 4y ago
Back when people subscribed to newspapers a subscription was cheaper than daily purchases by far. Having someone bring it and come to your door to collect was easier. This is back when this was the only way aside from word of mouth to be informed (daily news touches on stories but moves on quickly)

MrGilbert 4y ago

The fact that I have to pay for news is not what this article is about. It's about getting hammered with subscriptions left and right, while getting subsciption popups on the same page at the same time. I find that amusing.

Wowfunhappy 4y ago
I also appreciate the irony, although it is of course worth noting that different people were almost certainly responsible for the website and the article (and this type of firewall is in fact a mark of a good paper).

yazzku 4y ago

Except that then they make cancelling the subscription hard or impossible. https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/new-york-times-makes-subscription-cancellations-exceedingly-difficult-for-consumers-class-action-lawsuit-alleges/ https://lawandcrime.com/high-profile/new-york-times-makes-su... Create a subscription? -> Click this button! Cancel? -> Oh, sorry to hear that. You will need to call one of our representatives. 8am-7pm Monday-Friday, EST.

gumby 4y ago
This is illegal in California. So NYT subscribers in California can cancel on the web while everyone else has to go through the gantlet you describe. When I subscribe to something via my phone or Mac I always do it through apple, because they guarantee a painless cancellation. And this is despite the fact that on the Mac I purchase software outside the Apple Store when it’s an option. Managing subscriptions is that bad.
- yazzku 4y ago
  It may be illegal now, but not when I tried cancelling. I just blocked the credit card payments and let them deal with their own shit.

Eddy_Viscosity2 4y ago

But we can't afford those few bucks because we have to pay the subscriptions to use the heated seats in our cars or to unlock the doors in with the key fobs.