Times And Sunday Times Online To Merge

News International is merging the online presence of the Times and the Sunday Times as part of a move towards a premium paid-for service.

The new subscription-based website, called Times Newspapers Online will include content from both thetimes.co.uk and thesundaytimes.co.uk and will overseen by Keith Blackmore as online editorial director.

A number of staff are thought to be facing redundancy as a result of the move but a spokesperson for the Times Online today said that “no decision had yet been reached.”

News International started charging users for content on the Times website earlier in the year (see Times Online To Charge Users) and has made no secret of its intention to make the relaunched website a paid-for service.

Publisher of Times Newspapers Online, Katie Vanneck, said: “We’ve always believed our content should not be free. You can’t find the kind of information that we provide anywhere on the internet outside of the Times website. There is an intrinsic value in our content – attached to our brand – and we believe that it is high time to start making a commodity of it.”

The move could prompt a stream of other newspaper publishers to start charging users for content. The Telegraph, the FT and the Guardian are said to be exploring the possibility of introducing paid-for services and the Wall Street Journal already operates a subscription service.

Vanneck, added: “Newspapers are the portals of the off-line world. The internet has made a commodity of news and information and newspaper publishers are in a prime position to start charging internet users.”

News International: 020 7782 3922 www.newscorp.co.uk

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