Google CEO: Newspapers will find new online business models

Google chief executive Eric Schmidt believes newspapers will find new business models that allow them to make money online.

Speaking at the annual conference of the American Society of News Editors on Sunday, Schmidt said that a new model would soon emerge, based on a combination of advertising and subscription revenue, reports Associated Press.

“We have a business model problem. We don’t have a news problem,” he said, adding “we’re all in this together.”

From June, News International is launching a paid-for model for access to The Times and The Sunday Times’ online content, and other publishers are sure to be watching carefully to see if it is a success.

Rebekah Brooks, chief executive of the News Corp-owned business, suggested paywalls around The Sun and the News of the World‘s online content would follow.

Publishers are also pinning their hopes on devices such as the iPad, hailing it as a new distribution platform that could bring in a younger readership.